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Presidents of Sordland:
Anton Rayne
The newly elected president of Sordland.
- The Bard: Regardless of path, Rayne is fond of quoting poetry, and is hinted to write poetry himself in the case of his speech to the Assembly.
- Cannot Tell a Joke: Rayne has several opportunities to make a joke in conversation. None of them works, and all of them come off as awkward and insensitive.
- The Chains of Commanding: Four years in the office take a heavy toll on Rayne, make him look visibly older and potentially cost him his bonds with friends and loved ones.
- Character Customization: From update 1.1 onwards, Rayne's appearance can be customized.
- Chummy Commies: Can very well promote a planned economy and draw closer to United Contana while respecting democracy up to the point where he can out himself as a Malenyevist to Iosef. Of course, he does not politically survive this and in all likelihood is toppled by the military as a result.
- Comically Missing the Point: When discussing women's rights reform, Ciara mentions Lucian as an example of a male politician who has become extremely influential despite being unmarried, something which would be a major source of scandal for a woman. Rayne can respond by mentioning he actually *has* been suspicious of Lucian's family life.
- Corrupt Politician: Rayne has the opportunity to take bribes, conduct insider trading, and submit false evidence to the court.
- Deadly Distant Finale: Some endings (primarily those where Rayne leaves office disgraced, but alive) reveal that he dies of natural causes in 1976.
- Drink-Based Characterization: Regardless of his backstory, Rayne likes the good stuff — multiple characters comment on his taste for Erlory Maroon 30-year-old whiskey, and he can request it in almost any situation where he is offered a drink throughout the game. If he comes from a wealthy background, he also has a developed palate for expensive wines.
- Easily Forgiven: It is possible for Rayne to be exposed by the press if he engages in corrupt actions (e.g. using his influence to get his son accepted into college despite his bad grades) and still be re-elected if he is popular enough.
- Expy: Of Turkish president Bülent Ecevit, who was a high-profile CHP member and whose governments were regularly threatened by political violence, scandal, intraparty crises and polarization. Like Rayne, he was also an amateur poet.
- Failure Hero: If Rayne proves to be a bad leader, the consequences of his mistakes can range from economic depression and nationwide pandemic to a nuclear world war and the immolation of Sordland itself.
- Family Man: It is possible to play Anton Rayne as a devoted husband and father who cares deeply about his wife and children.
- Good Is Not Nice: Even if you play Rayne as well-meaning and principled, it is possible to strike at enemies of the state with no mercy or hesitation.
- One strong example is if you play Rayne as a democratic reformist and use the Anti-Corruption Police to arrest or fire any state official even remotely tied to Lileas Graf's conspiracy. Your shocked advisors point out that you've just sanctioned the biggest governmental purge in history of Sordland.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Many, many ways, often leading to The Many Deaths of You (or at least disgraces):
- Doing too many corrupt deals can easily bite you in the rear if they are leaked.
- Acting as a reactionary, anti-feminist Sollist or nationalist when married to a barnstorming feminist for decades is a good way to destroy your marriage and family.
- Rumburg is a bellicose, aggressive neighbor that by default is probably somewhat stronger than Sordland and headed by a Queen that seems hell-bent on continental conquest, but who is unable to decisively outmatch Sordland militarily and lacks any foreign allies worth talking about. Rayne can change that by going to war with Rumburg and aligning too strongly with one of the superpowers, in essence handing Beatrice an alliance with the other bloc on a silver platter and greasing the skids towards nuclear apocalypse.
- The Leader: Anton Rayne assembles a diverse group from the United Sordland Party to form a coalition that elects him as the fourth President of Sordland, appealing to both the conservative and reformist elements of his party.
- Lonely at the Top: Possibly. Rayne's best friend can commit suicide or be assassinated, his teenage son can grow to despise him or die at war, his wife can divorce him and take their little daughter away, and his loyal driver can be shot while saving the President's life. If all of it comes to pass, Rayne has a lonely dinner at home, all his friends and loved ones either dead or wanting nothing to do with him.
- Multiple-Choice Past: Rayne's socio-economic status, educational background, military record, and political history are decided by the player in the game's prologue.
- Nice to the Waiter: If you so choose, Rayne can be consistently polite, friendly and supportive to his driver Serge, his secretary Livia and even some actual waiters.
- The ultimate example might be the option to pay for Serge's kids' education out of Rayne's own pocket. Doing so marks the transition of Serge from a member of your staff to your personal friend.
- Politically Correct Villain: It is possible for Rayne to be this if he becomes a dictator but implements policies that support the rights of women and ethnic minorities, especially as a Malenyevist.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: A dictator or an autocrat Rayne can become this, trampling on the rights of minorities and keeping women oppressed to maintain his power.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: If the player so chooses.
- Ruler Protagonist: Exactly what it sounds like.
- Self-Made Man: Anton Rayne, regardless of the economic background you choose for him, is always someone who had to climb the ranks of the United Sordland Party starting from the position of being a mere university activist.
- Stay in the Kitchen: He can take this stance to appease his conservative voter base.
Ewald Alphonso
- Ascended Extra: He gets a lot more focus and screentime in Amendment, compared to him mostly being a background figure in the original game.
- Corrupt Politician: He took many bribes during his term and left Sordland's economy in the hands of the Oligarchs.
- Expy: Of Boris Yeltsin. Alphonso was, like Yeltsin, an aggressive economic reformer who worked to reverse the anti-market status quo, but the privatization of previously uncontested Sordish state assets gave certain businessmen immense power as Sordland's new Oligarchs, mirroring Yeltsin's capitalist reforms and the subsequent rise of Russia's economic oligarchs.
- Failure Hero: For all his hard work in reforming the country all he achieved after removing Soll from power was an economic recession.
- Graceful Loser: He isn't particularly bitter about how his presidency ended, and can be an ally and confidant to Rayne if your beliefs align.
- Identical Stranger: To Police Chief Karl Grieser, prior to the Amendment update. Given Alphonso's higher status, he was allowed to keep the original portrait, while Grieser's was changed.
Tarquin Soll
- Colonel Badass: As a colonel in the military, he stopped the Sordish civil war and restored the Republic.
- Cult of Personality: Even after his departure from politics, Soll's cult of personality lives on in Sordish society, especially in the school system. If you want, you can try to abolish this.
- Expy:
- Of General Kenan Evren, who ended political violence between the left and right in Turkey by launching his own coup d'etat, and ruled as an authoritarian president who proudly suspended civil liberties and human rights, was racist to Kurds, and had ties to ultranationalist organizations. But like Evren, you can have Soll tried and sentenced to life imprisonment if you play your cards right.
- Of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, namely his negative side: his authoritarianism, his stifling personality cult, and his denial of minority rights in the name of national unity. Like Ataturk, Soll is also the creator of an codified ideology named after him that keeps Republicanism, Statism, and Nationalism as its tenets and represents them visually with pointy things (the sun-rays on the USP party flag), though Kemalism tacks on three more.
- Glorious Leader: Still revered by many citizens and the Old Guard.
- Heel–Face Turn: He's initially antagonist and dismissive to a reformist Rayne, and will attempt to block any attempts to change the constitution. If he is invited to the football game, he can be asked to put his disagreements with Rayne aside for the sake of the country and help if Rumburg invades. Then at the war room meeting, if Rayne has done well throughout his presidency, Soll will finally admit Rayne has been a good president.
- Hidden Depths: He turns out to be a big fan of film and football, which can lead to an oddly jovial bonding moment if you take ownership of FC Anrica.
- How the Mighty Have Fallen: If Rayne managed to remove his immunity and replace the corrupt Chief Justice, Soll can be put in trial for his past crimes, and will be found guilty. He then will be imprisoned, or worse executed if Rayne manages to lift the ban on capital punishment.
- Kangaroo Court: Even if he is vulnerable to prosecution he can still avoid any punishment if the conditions aren't met.
- Meaningful Name: "Soll" is a pun on "Sol", the Latin name for the Sun, and is very fitting given that Sollist ideology and the deep state revolves around him. The flag of the USP, the party he founded and still dominates even in absentia, features the rays of the sun.
Artor S. Wisci
- Expy: Of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founding father of modern Turkey and republican revolutionary. Wisci represents the positive side of Ataturk, namely his democratic beliefs and modernizing reforms. His son Deivid, notably not a fan of his ultimate successor President Soll, does admit that he and his father had some things in common.
- Posthumous Character: President Wisci died in prison after being couped. Wisci, notably, is the only character who begins the game already dead who has his own entry in the Codex.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Just looks like his son Deivid plus the hat.
The Rayne Cabinet:
Petr Vectern, Vice President of Sordland
- The Alcoholic: Petr continually drinks over the course of the game, downing liquor as if it were soda. Anton also notices to his disquiet that Petr sometimes appears late for rather important meetings and at other times appears disheveled and slovenly.
- Best Friend: Petr and Anton have been friends since the two were in school. Anton brings Petr with him as part of his staff from the beginning of his political career, and Petr makes further connections and support to help Anton succeed.
- The Casanova: Petr is infamous for his wandering eye and playboy antics. It gets him into serious hot water after he sleeps with Livia Suno, creating a major sex scandal.
- Driven to Suicide: If Rayne betrays him, making him take the fall for the Livia Suno sex/espionage scandal, Petr falls into deep depression and eventually jumps from a bridge.
- Honorary Uncle: Petr is close enough with Anton and his family for both of Anton's children calls him "Uncle Petr".
- Meaningful Name: His last name is Sordish for "Victory", which will certainly be in abundance if Rayne keeps him around.
- The Scapegoat: Lucian advises blaming the entire Livia Suno scandal on Petr. Somewhat justified, as it was Petr's fault as he bypassed a background check because she was attractive.
- Sleazy Politician:
- He is known as a 'bad boy' in politics. But the game can note the things he does has been losing its charm since he's middle aged. He also jokes that he cheated on his taxes with Anton claiming he gave away 30% of his salary to charity.
- His wife Evelyn says he has cheated on her multiple times and the women in those situations had the option to sleep with him or get fired.
- Smarter Than You Look: While a flawed character, Petr is politically savvy and does effectively campaign for Anton Rayne. He also correctly points out that initiating a war is one way to keep the electorate's support, should Rayne's popularity be suffering.
- Taking the Heat: If Anton Rayne takes responsibility for the Livia Suno scandal, Petr stops him, publicly acknowledges that he was responsible for the entire affair in a press conference, admits his infidelity and alcoholism, apologizes to his wife, denies that Rayne held any knowledge of his actions, resigns the Vice Presidency, and checks himself into a hospital for treatment in order to preserve Rayne's presidency. It works.
- Undying Loyalty:
- Should you remain loyal to him and keep him as VP, and should you get kicked out of the party, Petr will follow you anywhere you go. He will also support your reelection and the game notes that when it comes to campaigning, he still got it in him.
- If Anton Rayne offers to take responsibility for the Livia Suno scandal. Petr is so moved by Rayne having his back in this Darkest Hour of his, that he decides to willingly takes the fall himself and tries to become a better person in the process.
Lucian Galade, Chief of Staff and Chief Political Strategist
- The Chessmaster:
- Lucian is an expert in manipulating the populace into supporting the player, giving advice on how to improve the player's image and policies. He also uses the sex scandal from Petr to his advantage, attempting to push President Rayne to pick him as the Vice President.
- Literal with the Amendment Update, where the player can have a chess match with Lucian, with most outcomes resulting in Rayne losing.
- Clock King: Aside from being the President's chief strategist, he's also such a stickler for punctuality that he arrives on the exact hour, and ensures that meetings always start and end on time. This is part of why the perpetually-pickled Petr pisses him off; Petr's almost never on time.
- Confirmed Bachelor: Is unmarried. The reason why is never addressed in-game.
- Fatal Flaw: Cynicism. Lucian honestly believes that being a politician is all about appeasing a gullible populace and getting votes, and any actual improvement of peoples' lives is more of a side benefit. This mindset can put him at odds with more principled or idealistic President Rayne.
- Honest Advisor: Despite his moral shadiness and the aforementioned Fatal Flaw, this trope is Lucian's most valuable trait. He is neither afraid nor hesitant to give his honest opinion about any decision of President Rayne and explain any negative consequences such a decision might produce.
- Jerkass Has a Point:
- Doubly so during the sex scandal event.
- While the means he's used to obtain the information (wiretapping his own colleague) are downright immoral, he is absolutely right in that his actions revealed a disastrous security breach and a foreign spy in the Presidential office.
- While he's doing it to depose Petr and replace him as VP, he correctly points out that by abusing his position to sleep with his friend's secretary and by leaking sensitive state information, Petr all but betrayed his friendship with Rayne.
- Lucian's stance on media policies also counts. He cynically thinks that media should be under firm control of the state, because the populace is too gullible and the state knows better what people should or should not know. The game at least partially proves him right, as the populace constantly changes opinions on Rayne's administration based on newspapers who push certain narratives either out of political agenda or plain sensationalism.
- Doubly so during the sex scandal event.
- The Peter Principle: He's an excellent political strategist and adept at political machinations, but if you choose to make him Vice President he turns out to be lacking as a retail politician.
- Softspoken Sadist: If you choose to kill Petr to prevent his affair with Livia Suno from going public, Lucian is described to look pleased upon hearing your decision.
- Treacherous Advisor: Despite appearing to be loyal and supporting most of the President's schemes throughout the game, he will betray you without hesitation if you choose to block his path to becoming vice-president pre-admenment update, and after it if you give the position to anyone else (so keeping Peter no longer automaticly causes him to betray you) or if his respect of you is low enough. Prior to your re-election campaign, he will leak any dirty deals you may have made. When Lileas Graf challenges you for your position in the USP, he will endorse her if you gave the VP position to anyone but him. And even if you did give him the post, he will choose to stay in the USP if you decide to form a new party.
- Villain with Good Publicity: He gets accused of being after the Vice President's seat since your term began. If he succeeds he noted to be a very effective campaigner and popular enough to pull in undecided and centrist votes.
Lileas Graf, Minister of the Interior
- Churchgoing Villain: She is openly religious, but that doesn't stop her from conspiring with the Old Guard against the President. She is, in fact, the mastermind behind the assassination of Bernard Circas, whom she killed simply to make Rayne's term difficult.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Lileas is a hardline Sollist who schemes against Rayne to trick him into declaring an emergency, but even she is disgusted by Phelix Bron's tyrannical rule in the Bergia Special Zone. Much of her mid-game scenes involves her attempting to abolish the BSZ, returning Bergia to be another province of Sordland.
- Hypocrite:
- Promises to stand bravely against wealthy elites in their mansions, shortly after hosting you in her own mansion.
- While claiming to protect Sordland's inner stability and integrity, she provokes a nationwide revolt with massive collateral damage just because her President promises to do something she doesn't like.
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Lileas' plan to kick Rayne out of the party could result in him forming his own party, and winning the election anyways, leaving the USP powerless to stop Rayne from pursuing his own agenda.
- The Rival: To Nia Morgna, who clashes openly with Lileas over their differing ideals. Should she oust Anton Rayne to contest in the election on the USP's ticket, she will also become his political rival.
- The Starscream: She is a die-hard Sollist that arranged the assassination of a communist MP to stoke violence between communists and nationalists. That was in order to derail the reforms that Rayne promised to get elected.
Symon Holl, Minister of Economy, Commerce, and Energy
- Honest Advisor: The guy is to economic matters what Lucian Galade is to political matters. Symon's advice and assessment of situations is always blunt, clear and on point.
- It's All My Fault: If Sordland falls into an economic depression by the end of the game, he'll blame himself for the situation, and resign.
- No Social Skills: Symon is noted as having poor social skills and openly smiles when he is told he has to spend more time crunching numbers than being with his family. However, Symon seems to function serviceably on the campaign trail, at the National Business Council, and in cabinet meetings.
- The Smart Guy: Well, nobody in your cabinet is an idiot, but Symon still stands out because of his aptitude for numbers and his insightful commentaries. He also comes up with several plans to improve the economy, each and every one of them extremely beneficial and effective if implemented correctly.
Nia Morgna, Minister of Justice and Law
- Crusading Lawyer: Nia is devoted to ending corruption in the legal system and eliminating the case backlog. She may even be supported by Anton Rayne to establishing an Anti-Corruption Task Force meant to clean up Sordish government.
- Foreshadowing: When meeting with Anton Rayne, Nia warns him not to trust Lileas. While she appears to be saying this out of spite, later events and revelations prove her to be correctly suspicious of Lileas.
- Meaningful Name: Her last name is Sordish for "morning" and as a Supreme Court Justice by dint of being Minister of Justice, she is the most vital member of the Cabinet for pushing through constitutional reform, which she wholeheartedly supports.
Iosef Lancea, Minister of Defense and Security
- Beware the Honest Ones: He's one of the only Sollists who's not at all corrupt. But if he thinks you've left Sordland defenseless or sold out to foreign powers, he will remove you from power.
- Combat Pragmatist: While he repeatedly emphasises that Sordland's army can stand on its own, he correctly realizes the need for allies in the event of war with Rumburg. Despite being possibly the most jingoistic political figure in the game, he also understands that an army of conscripts does not lend itself well to quality combat, and wants the Sordish Armed Forces to be a purely volunteer-based, professional entity.
- General Failure: Subverted. He may seem to be a standard General Ripper physically unfit to be in the army (Rayne can make a quip about his weight if he sends Franc to the military and Franc jokes about being the next Lancea), apparently being hell-bent on charging into battle with nothing but a vague sense of national pride, but he's actually by far the more competent general between him and Kruger, though the latter's ideas aren't totally worthless. Taking his advice in as many matters as possible is a sure path to victory against Rumburg, unless you're fighting without allies.
- Last Stand: If Sordland loses the war against Rumburg, he will be the last person standing beside Rayne. He then does a badass sacrifice, stating that he always wanted to go with a bang.
- Majorly Awesome: During the Wehlen Civil War, Iosef held the position of major and was Anton Rayne's commanding officer. As a major, he earned Sordland's highest military honor. His nickname was "the relentless".
- Quality over Quantity: Actively seeks to reform the Sordish Armed Forces by abolishing conscription and converting the military into a fully professional force.
- Token Good Teammate: Among Sollists. Iosef exhibits many dubious traits of this ideology, e.g. aggressive nationalism, isolationism bordering on xenophobia and a dismissive attitude towards women and minorities. However, unlike other Sollists, he does not engage in any form of corruption, he truly cares about Sordland's security and integrity, and he wants to protect his country with as little casualties as possible.
- Warhawk: He is certain that Rumburg will invade within a year. He's not right about the timeline, but he is correct that Rumburg will invade unless Rayne makes decisions to stop Rumburg.
- War Hero: Credited with significant military victories and very popular with the Sordish Armed Forces and the nationalists as a result.
Ciara Walda, Minister of Education, Technology, and Research
- Horrible Judge of Character: Ciara will go out of her way to praise your secretary, Livia Suno, for her bright mind, and encourage you to involve her more in your administration. She turns out to be a spy for Rumburg, which means taking Ciara's advice is the absolute worst thing you could do. Luckily this is just flavor text and doesn't actually lead to you doing so.
- Hypocrite: She's a committed reformist, but if you have expanded presidential powers, then she'll ask you to pass her women's rights reform by decree instead of going through the Assembly.
- Soapbox Sadie: Ciara is a committed radical, and isn't afraid to show it. She goes on political rants about inequality and social issues in nearly every scene she's in, and while her causes are arguably noble ones, her tirades can be irritating at times.
Deivid Wisci, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade
- A Friend in Need: Deivid aided 10,000 Sordish and Bludish immigrants in Lespia, and was celebrated in Merkopan diplomatic circles as a result.
- The Mentor: Was one of Rayne's professors in college, and continues to advise his old student now that he's the President.
- Not So Above It All: Despite the gravitas of being a foreign minister old and wise enough to have been his boss' professor in university - which he was - Deivid is amused at the Alliance of Nations summit when the foreign heads of state misbehave.
- Realpolitik: If the player decides to have Rayne attend university in Deyr in the prologue, Deivid will give a lecture explaining the merits of realpolitik. For all of his commitment to liberal democracy, his professional concerns about Wehlen have more to do with its stability (and therefore reliability as a diplomatic partner) than Smolak's human rights abuses, though he certainly lets his displeasure about them known to Rayne during the AN meeting.
- So Proud of You: While he'll be loyal to his old student to the end regardless of his ideology, he'll be especially proud of a Rayne who brings a democratic constitution to Sordland.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Just looks like his father Artor, minus the hat.
Gus Manger, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development
- Hair-Trigger Temper: Downplayed. Gus is known to have a short temper, and frequently argues with people who disagree with him, but he is never violent or out-of-control.
- The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: Gus is more or less just Rayne's investment broker, providing him with the opportunity to make money off of a number of deals if Rayne has been pro-free market and pro-business enough. He also is a key Gasom partner responsible for securing a potential investment by Rizia into the firm. At this point, he just moonlights as Minister of Agriculture and the only remotely farming-related thing he does is offer a few proposals for reviving agriculture in his home region of Gruni.
Paskal Beniwoll, Minister of Health, Social Affairs, and Labor
- Disappointed in You: If Rayne did corrupt things and the scandals got leaked, Paskal will express his disappointment and decided to resign at the end of the game.
- Irony: Rayne notes in the first meeting with Paskal that his Minister of Health was portly.
- Nice Guy: He is possibly the most benevolent and least flawed characters in Anton Rayne's cabinet. Genuinely concerned for the welfare of Sordland's citizens, he never gives bad advice and has no quarrel with his colleagues. He is also a principled man who will leave the cabinet should the President engage in any form of power abuse.
- Oppose What You Suffered: The child of miners, Paskal's childhood was spent in poverty. As an author, he illustrated the plight of poverty in his books. As a civil servant, he endeavored to establish policies to support workers in a similar condition to his parents. As a minister, he hopes to improve and expand Sordland's healthcare system.
Party Leaders and Members of the Assembly:
Gloria Tory, Speaker of the Assembly
- Female Misogynist: As a USP conservative, Tory is guaranteed to be put off working with Rayne if Monica is allowed to make a speech at a major gathering in Benfi centered around Christianity's Fantasy Counterpart Religion, the biggest in Sordland. This dynamic is discussed by The Radical during the decision on who will be your new Vice President, in which the paper is conflicted between their desire for Sordland's first female VP and the fact that the only candidate for such a position is a staunch anti-feminist.
- Iron Lady: Gloria mentions that she has held the position of Speaker for years against fierce opposition, and has done so by being forceful and effective. She cannot be bribed for her support in constitutional reforms and will fight a reformist Anton Rayne. She is amenable, however, to being named Vice President.
- Meaningful Name: Gloria's last name is Tory, a slang term for the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: She's a conservative Sollist, but she's not insane about it. She's willing to make moderate concessions to reform for the sake of the country, so long as you're willing to play ball too and not go too nuts.
Albin Clavin, Deputy Speaker
- Corrupt Politician: Clavin is willing to take bribes in exchange for supporting the new constitution. It was revealed after the Amendment update that he was possibly bribing the teachers at his son's school to give him higher grades than he should have had.
- Hypocrite: He claims to support electoral reform (and he will back a reduction in the electoral threshold), but he's also the author of the electoral finance bill that'll give the United Sordland Party a vast increase in election funds, at the expense of the minor parties.
Frens Ricter, Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of the PFJP
- Chew-Out Fake-Out: If Rayne's reform proposal is comprehensive enough, it'll at first seem in their meeting that he for some reason can't support the new constitution, but it emerges that Ricter was just so shell-shocked by how extensively (and more) it meets the PFJP's demands.
- Fair-Weather Friend: Publicly condemns Rayne as an ineffectual reformer if a reformist constitution fails in the Assembly, no matter how closely they worked together.
- Friendly Rival: A reformist Rayne will get along very well with Ricter.
- Playing the Victim Card: Galade notes that Ricter plays the victim whenever he doesn't have the upper hand.
Manoly Suheil, Group Deputy Chairwoman of the PFJP
Kesaro Kibener, Chairman of the NFP
- The Bully: A legislative version. Each and every bill proposed by Kibener and his party aims to assault or demean someone, usually Bluds.
- Double Speak: Is a fan of trying to pass laws with fluffy sounding titles (Religious Harmony Bill, Unified Education Language Act, Human Dignity Bill) that actually strip away certain rights (the former two laws force the use of Sordish language in religion and education respectively, while the latter completely outlaws prostitution). This is very much something that can catch egalitarian players off-guard if you don't Read the Fine Print before signing them.
- Hate Sink: Though Kibener can be an ally, one can't help thinking he was written primarily as this trope. He is a racist, sexist, fascist, hatemongering jerk whose entire political career consists of bullying Bluds and women. Downplayed after Amendment, when he appears to be an nationalist of a more subtle kind while his worst aspects are transferred onto Holstron.
- Pet the Dog: The Amendment update gives him some more sympathetic moments, particularly when it comes to moderating Holstron's extreme demands. He opposes the demand to completely ban the Bludish language for example.
- Realpolitik: Kibener carefully words himself in public to avoid speaking out his true intentions, portraying himself as a civic nationalist instead of an ultranationalist.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Blue to Holstron's Red. Kibener understands that Holstron's Blud-exclusionary Sordish nationalism will lead to disaster even by hardline Sollist standards, and his attitude towards the Bluds is one of suppressing their culture and forcibly assimilating them into Sordish identity.
Remus Holstron, Deputy Chairman of the NFP
- Absolute Xenophobe: Holstron is immensely racist, fascistic, and wants a literal race war against the Bluds. This is shown through the point that Holstron is completely against any pro-minority peaceful solutions, or even non-violent but not pro-minority Sollist solutions, whereas even staunch Old Guard conservatives such as Lileas Graf are against his insane genocidal fantasies. Furthermore, such statements (very rightfully) appalls the likes of pro-minority and principled reformists like Nia Morgna due to both the hateful nature of it and the no-filter way it was said during the Victory Day event.
- Do Wrong, Right: Holstron hates the idea that Bluds can be Sords, even in the sense that they ought to be forced to adopt Sordish culture.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Red to Kibener's Blue. Whereas Kibener's faction of the NFP is a more "modern" right-wing nationalism that's cautiously open to Sollism and seeks to suppress Bludish identity to bring them under the definitional umbrella of Sordness, Holstron is a full-blown "Sordist" fascist who sees Sords as superior to Bluds and wants to crush the Bludish.
Denis Stahler, Leader of the CPS
- Chummy Commies: Stahler is a firm believer in democratic socialism and isn't afraid to publicly oppose communism's more authoritarian tendencies, something that has caused a minor schism within the CPS.
- Out of Focus: A centrist, reformist Rayne generally won't encounter Denis until the run up to the '57 election.
- Start My Own: He previously joined the People's Freedom and Justice Party in 1936, but quit when he was snubbed from the party's candidate lists for his communist views, which ultimately led to him co-founding the Communist Party of Sordland in 1950.
Fetih Ejall, Leader of the WPB
Mansoun Leke, Leader of the Independents
- Friendly Rival: Even if you aren't ideologically aligned, he will like and respect you if you protect Bludish rights.
- Start My Own: After the WPB missed the electoral threshold in the '49 election, he opted to resign and run as an independent (who are not subject to the electoral threshold), succeeding in the '53 election. Although this move was controversial, he returns to lead the WPB again in the '57 election.
Katarina Horten, Labour Union of Sordland Spokesperson
- Rebel Leader: Horten is the leader of the protests late-game.
Bernard Circas, Member of the Assembly
- Chummy Commies: Downplayed. He's introduced as a poet and an independent communist, and the ideological leader of Sordish Socialism. According to the ending political compass, however, he's pretty much a textbook Malenyevist who slightly leans toward the democratic end of the spectrum.
- Expy: With Sordland being a more or less clear reflection of Turkey, Circas seems like a walking nod to Nâzım Hikmet Ran, the author of the game's epigraph. Both are "romantic communist" poets with profound impacts on their respective nations' thespian spheres, if not their political ones.
- Plot-Triggering Death: His murder at Rayne's inaugural ball triggers nationwide conflicts between the communists and nationalists. Rayne can put reforms on hold to deal with the fallout or push them through regardless. The unrest is used by Rumburg as an excuse to claim Sordland is a threat to the region because of its instability and close their consulate in the capital. The first of many actions they take to justify potentially invading Sordland. His murder was planned by the Old Guard to cause the unrest, hoping to derail Rayne's reforms.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Rayne never even gets to meet him before he is assassinated, unless he was a member of the Red Youth.
Justices of the Supreme Court
Orso Hawker, Chief Justice
- Amoral Attorney: He is very secure in his place as head of the Old Guard and enjoys immunity given to him as a Justice of the Supreme Court.
- Evil Old Folks: Hawker is in his 70s by the time the game starts, and is determined to shut down any reforms that is brought to the Supreme Court.
- Hated by All: A well known obstructionist, he's disliked enough that attempting to impeach him when legally allowed to (which will require a majority vote of the assembly) will always work. Even Soll, the very person Hawker is obstructing to serve, will admit he doesn't like him if Hawker is assassinated by The Young Sords.
- Kangaroo Court: Soll can be put on trial for his crimes as President in front of Hawker. The narration notes that Anton can practically hear the quotation marks in Hawker's statement for his alleged "crimes."
Heron Garaci, Justice
- Irony: Despite being a judge, Heron will gladly be bribed for his support in return for Rayne supporting him with several investments.
Isabel Edmonds, Justice
- Reasonable Authority Figure: She can be swayed to support the reforms offered by Anton even if they include removing immunity from the Supreme Court Justices.
Ovid Grecer, Justice
- Reasonable Authority Figure: He is noted for his impartiality in his rulings. This respect even gives him the opportunity to become chief justice if Hawker is arrested and Grecer is selected to become a supreme court justice. He will even convict Soll for previous crimes if Anton launches an investigation.
Family Members
Monica Rayne, First Lady of Sordland
- Happily Married: Possibly. If Anton supports Monica's aspirations and throws his weight behind her feminist cause, they can work closely together to improve women's position in Sordland and remain passionately in love with each other.
- The Heart: Of Rayne household. Staying on Monica's good side is the key to keep unity and peace in your family overall.
- Housewife: A role she desperately wants to grow out of. Monica spent years managing the household and raising the kids, and now she wants to become something other than just the President's wife. Anton Rayne can either support this transition or try to push Monica back into the kitchen, though the latter will most likely ruin the family completely.
- Love Makes You Dumb: It is possible for Monica to not realize that her husband is a misogynistic die-hard Sollist conservative, and will, bizarrely, expresses her anger at Rayne for not supporting her before filing for divorce towards the end of Rayne's presidency. Her dumb behavior is alleviated after Amendment, when it became possible for the player to choose if he supports a young Monica after she tells him of her advocacy for women's rights, along with additional dialogues where Monica finally admits that she was an idiot for thinking that she can change her husband's mind in the scene where she divorces him.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: While her request to replace the sexist fundamentalist Curtan Leste for a speech in Benfi feels like a reasonable one, her fiery rhetoric advocating for progressive values at a religious event could potentially cause national outrage and subsequently harm her own cause, in addition to losing Rayne the support of the conservatives for his new constitution.
- Soapbox Sadie: There is nothing Monica likes more than making big declarations and "giving Sordish women their voice". She gets so much into her crusade she's ready to break up her own family if Anton Rayne does not support her.
- The Suffragette: While she never explicitly brings up women's voting rights, she otherwise fits the role to a tee, passionately campaigning for an end to workplace discrimination against women, criminalization of domestic violence, and bringing equality to the education system.
- Supreme Chef: When Monica puts her mind into it, her cooking is described as superb. Over the course of the game, she cooks several delicious meals in order to cheer the family up.
Franc Rayne
- Book Dumb: No matter what you do, Franc will fail his high school final exams.
- Dating What Daddy Hates: He can start dating a Blud, to which Anton can respond with disapproval.
- Nepotism: He can get into Anton's alma mater because he's the President's son.
- Rebel Prince: He may join protests against Anton while he's in college if Anton has a low approval rating.
Deana Rayne
- Cheerful Child: Deana is often shown in the game as being more bubbly and lively than her introverted brother, Franc. This can become a Subverted Trope if the mood within the family turns sour.
- Children Are Innocent: Deana is one of the few characters who does not commit any questionable acts within the game, being a little child.
- Harmful to Minors:
- The player can slap Monica during the fallout of the Benfi Festival, with Deana seeing you doing so as she becomes scared of you.
- If the player has treated the Bludish population poorly, Deana will read out a death threat sent by the Bludish Freedom Front.
Evelyn Vectern, Second Lady of Sordland
Prominent People of Sordland
Marcel Koronti, Chairman of Heart of Sordland
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: He will try to form a media deal with you and if investigated is found to be using his company as a front for one of the largest criminal families in Sordland.
- Enemy Mine: Koronti is a capitalist oligarch, but he will let you get away with absolutely anything, up to and including instituting a Malenyevist dictatorship, so long as he supplants Tusk and you don't infringe on his business interests, which are largely media-centric instead of posing as much of a threat to socioeconomic equality as Tusk does. He'll even actively help you by biasing his media outlets towards you.
- An Offer You Can't Refuse: Implied during the conversation at his villa in Conriat with Rayne, Petr and Lucian, saying that it would be a shame if sensible information about a scandal were published, and they could instead help eachother.
- Smug Snake: Koronti is a cunning businessman and a powerful media mogul, but he is just too full of himself for his own good. This can bite him in the ass if President Rayne manages to outsmart or arrest him.
- The Starscream: Plans to supplant Walter Tusk as leader of the Lotherberg Group, and wants President Rayne's help in doing so.
Walter Tusk, Spokesman of the Lotherberg Group
- Corrupt Corporate Executive Aside from trying to bribe you during the first meeting with him and constantly attempting to pressure you he is smuggling weapons to the BFF.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: The man eats, breathes and makes love with this trope. Tusk believes he can buy anyone and anything, up to the President of Sordland himself. His solution to almost any problem is to throw a colossal bribe at it.
- Smug Snake: Even moreso than his main rival, Marcel Koronti. Tusk is extremely self-assured and condescending, but his corrupt "schemes" lack even the thinniest facade of subtlety and finesse Koronti possesses. Walter is so crass and unrefined he comes out as a classless slob with loads of money.
- While You Were in Diapers: If the player decides to partially or entirely nationalize his company, Bergia Steel, an angry Tusk will threaten Anton as he signs away the rights to the company's daily operations. If the player have Anton say that he is not intimidated by Tusk's threats and that it is Tusk who is the one should be worried if he tries anything, he will spit this line at Anton:Tusk: Do you know who I am? I've been chewing up and spitting out Sordish politicians since you were in diapers!
Serge Wolkner, Presidential Chauffeur
- Chekhov's Gun: If Rayne pays for Serge's children's education, he will give him his antique pocket watch as a sign of gratitude. The pocket watch will result in Rayne surviving his assassination attempt, should he faces one.
- The Driver: Serge serves as Rayne's chauffeur, and often has conversations with him as he drives him to his duties.
- My Master, Right or Wrong: Serge's devotion towards Rayne is unshakable regardless of what kind of leader Rayne actually is. A ruthless totalitarian fascist or a corrupt tool of the oligarchs receives the same admiration from Serge as a democratic or socialist President.
- Nice Guy: Serge is the kindest and friendliest character by far, and will always support Rayne no matter how badly the President treats him.
- Taking the Bullet: If President Rayne decides to hold a military parade while a military coup is being plotted, Serge can take a bullet to save Rayne's life. It is necessary to get the Just Another Funeral achievement.
- True Companions: If Rayne treats Serge well, their relationship will evolve into a geniune friendship. The President and his driver can converse about their family lives and exchange gifts and tokens of gratitude, Serge can give Rayne solid advice about his son Franc, Rayne can pay for Serge's kids' education etc. In one scene, if their bond is strong enough, they can even settle for a bachelor night of football game, beer and pizza.
Mikail Aven, Chairman of the National Business Council
- Rage Breaking Point: Aven will snap at you if you fully nationalize both companies, and calls you an idiot. The player can respond by sending Aven to prison.
Karl Grieser, Police Chief
Click here to see Karl in the pre-Amendment version of the game.
Head of police and the man in charge of the President's safety.
- Da Chief: A professional police chief who will support Rayne during his presidency.
- Identical Stranger: To ex-President Ewald Alphonso, prior to the Amendment update.
- Internal Affairs: He leads the Anti-Corruption unit if Rayne creates it.
- Just Following Orders: If he is forced to testify against Rayne after being ordered to perform horrific tasks after the SSP is formed, he'll appear genuinely confused at the idea of doing something other than what he was ordered to do.
- My Country, Right or Wrong: Grieser is an effective, driven policeman who, if Rayne creates the Anti-Corruption Police takes to the role of internal ethics enforcer like a duck to water. However, he also takes to the role of oppressive Secret Police chief like a duck to water, unquestioningly ordering hits on Rayne's political rivals if so directed.
- Police Are Useless: Averted if they are properly funded and directed. During the inaugural ball, though, Rayne can call Grieser and the police clowns.
- Taking the Bullet: If the SSP has been formed and Rayne is targeted for assassination during his re-election, Karl will shield Rayne during the assassination attempt and take the bullet instead.
Edith Agnoc, Chairwoman of the Central Bank of Sordland
Valken Kruger, Chief of the Sordish General Staff and the Sordish Armed Forces
- General Failure: In general, his old fashioned tactics are much less effective than the more modern strategies suggested by Lancea.
- That said, it is possible to win with his tactics, albeit at a higher manpower cost, but you need to fully commit to them.
Livia Suno, Secretary to the President (UNMARKED SPOILERS!)
- Dead Person Impersonation: Lucian's investigation reveals the real Livia Suno is dead, since a corpse matching the description of Livia by a previous employer was found in the sea.
- Love-Interest Traitor: It comes to light that "Livia" is in fact a spy for Rumburg who killed and stole the identity of the real Livia Suno and exploited the information gold mine that is Petr by seducing him. Petr is wracked with guilt over his affair, but it turns to horror when he discovers that he has also gravely endangered national security in the process.
- The Mole: Is revealed to actually be Ilana Vance, a spy for Rumburg.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Livia's appearance bears a striking resemblance to that of Tessa Thompson
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Phelix Bron, Governor of the Bergia Special Zone
A hardline nationalist who has served as the Governor of Bergia since 1941. Widely hated by the Bludish population due to his racist and repressive policies.
- 0% Approval Rating: Bron is not only despised by the native Bludish population due to his tyrannical regime as the Governor, but by other parties, USP included, for his unchecked powers and constant non-compliance with the national government. Even the NFP isn't a big fan of him or what he represents, as his "separate but equal" doctrine goes against their desire for a completely united Sordland, and abolishing the Bergia Special Zone is one of their aims.
- The Faceless: Likely the most important character in the game to lack a portrait.
- Hated by All: Virtually everyone who doesn't share his beliefs dislikes him, with the only reason he has kept the job is because he has managed to keep Bergia stable and economically growing during his tenure.
- Utopia Justifies the Means: He has managed to bring a level of political stability and economic prosperity to Bergia, at the expense of terrible repression against the Bluds.
Alfred Kcirbuk, Renowned Film Director
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: His name alludes to both Alfred Hitchcock and Stanley Kubrick.
