History Characters / TheConversionBureauTheOtherSideOfTheSpectrum

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[[folder: PHL/UN Taskforce]]

!!Ponies for Human Life
The PHL began as a peaceful pro-human group started by Ambassador Lyra Heartstrings, but gained military backing after USMC Colonel Marcus Renee was assigned as her bodyguard, catapulting him into a position of unprecedented power. Since then, the "Ponies for Human Life" title has become something of a misnomer due to the inclusion of humans and other sapient beings from Equus. Currently, the PHL are also working in tandem with a United Nations taskforce led by Colonel Renee. Listed below are the tropes relating either to members without their own character section, or the organization in general.

* {{Action Girl}}s: Any female member in their ranks (and there are plenty) can qualify.
* {{Badass}}es
* TheBigGuy: Bulk Biceps, aka Snowflake.
* {{Category Traitor}}s: The ponies in the PHL are labeled as "Betrayers" and often treated as humans-in-all-but-race by the Solar Empire. Human members are also hated by the HLF for their cooperation with the ponies, being considered an "affront to all humanity" and "halfway to becoming Newfoals".
* {{Celebrity Survivor}}s: Vinyl Scratch, Photo Finish and Sapphire Shores have important roles in the organization.
* ChildSoldiers: The PHL has taken many war orphans, both human and pony, under its wing. While their leaders are unhappy about sending children out onto the front lines, the Empire's merciless nature and constant loss of manpower has made it a heart-breaking necessity.
** Youngsters known to be fighting for the PHL include Dinky, Pipsqueak, the Cutie Mark Crusaders and a boy named [[Manga/AttackOnTitan Jean Kirchstein]], the last of whom [[spoiler: is burnt to death by Queen Celestia]].
* ColdSniper: Bundeswehr sharpshooter Alicia.
* [[DefectorFromDecadence Defectors From Decadence]]: All of the ponies in the group. TCB!Spitfire in particular resigned from the Wonderbolts in disgust over her country's policies.
* DirtyBusiness: Whether it's [[ChildSoldiers using children as soldiers]], [[ColdBloodedTorture torturing their enemies for information]] or [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill employing lethal force]], they will do it to save mankind from Celestia's madness. But that doesn't mean they enjoy resorting to such methods.
* EthnicMagician: Zecora.
* FutureBadass: Since TCB!Equestria is four years ahead of its canon counterpart, most of the ponies count.
** Before the war, Lyra was flighty, lazy and eccentric. During the war, she became the most respected pony on Earth and the leader of a multinational resistance group. She remains a revered figure even in death.
** Cheerilee is one of the few members to be endowed with some powerful, yet volatile magic runes which heighten her physical endurance.
** Trixie makes use of her talents as an illusionist (with a helpful dose of Changeling magic) to go undercover behind enemy lines.
* {{Heroic Bystander}}s: The majority of the pony members are civilians who chose to make a stand against Queen Celestia's regime.
* {{Hero Worshipper}}s: According to Marcus, many of the ponies (and some humans) revere TCB!Lyra in the same way as the in-show ponies do with Celestia.
** This is further explored and deconstructed in ''Last Train From Oblivion'', where it is shown to not necessarily be a good thing.
** It's deconstructed again in the chapter "Training Days: The First Month", where Marcus is worried that people will project TCB!Lyra onto Canon!Lyra and what kind of mental strain that could leave on the mare who didn't accomplish all the things that her counterpart is renowned for.
* HumansAreWarriors: Pretty much true of every human member.
* IconOfRebellion: The PHL's symbol is a white-on-blue representation of a lyre within a laurel wreath.
** Two other notable examples are a graffito of Lyra calling on people to resist the Empire, and a poster of a PHL pony defending a human child from TCB!Rainbow Dash.
* ItsPersonal: Nearly everyone involved has lost someone they've loved. More broadly, the humans want to take back their planet, and the ponies feel betrayed by Queen Celestia.
* LaResistance
* LoweredRecruitingStandards: Like many human military forces, they have ChildSoldiers (one of which is apparently not even old enough to vote) and have accepted at least one ex-HLF soldier into their ranks (Kraber) who really should have been institutionalized by this point.
* MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: Amethyst Star is the HappilyAdopted daughter of Doctor Whooves.
* MildlyMilitary: Not true of most human combatants, and certainly not "mild" in the sense that everyone involved is desperately fighting for survival, but applies in that its highest-ranking members include civilians such as a musician-turned-ambassador, a schoolteacher and a physicist.
* MultinationalTeam: Alien ponies cooperating with a United Nations taskforce, which includes soldiers from all over the world.
* OhMyGods: A closer reading of the text shows that the ponies now swear in Luna's name rather than Celestia's. [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen It's not exactly hard to see why]]...
** Some of the more zealous PHL ponies use terms such as "for Lyra's sake" or "by the Golden Lyre".
* OldSoldier: Peter and Mueller of the Bundeswehr.
* RagTagBunchOfMisfits: Albeit a rather well-organized bunch, thanks to having career soldiers on board.
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: The PHL are not exactly the kinds of people who believe in such a thing as overkill. Which is justified, considering the HopelessWar they're embroiled in. [[WhatMeasureIsAMook It does help from an ethical standpoint that most of their firepower is directed at zombie-like former humans]].

!!Marcus Renee
[[quoteright:298:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/marcus_renee__no_3__by_haruaxeman-d7g3iwq_3634.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:298:He's a colonel, not a commander. [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/Marcus-Renee-no-3-450301562 Art by Doctor Fluffy]].]]
The main protagonist of the story, Colonel Marcus Renee is a leading member of the PHL and the UN Taskforce, as well as a very capable human combatant augmented with magic runes that greatly enhance his strength. Nevertheless, the war has not been kind to him.

* ActionBomb: If he gets doused with the potion, he has about five minutes to get it off of him before the runes blow him up.
* AndThisIsFor: Broke one of Canon!Applejack's legs because he mistook her for her TCB counterpart, who had taken his family from him.
* AntiMagic: His {{Power Tattoo}}s protect him from more lethal kinds of magic.
* ArbitrarySkepticism: In "War March and Past Sins", he initially refused to believe that [[spoiler:his mother, Megan, is the same one King Spykoran met over a thousand years ago, and that her legacy of dealing with ponies has now been passed to him]], but then reconsiders when he thinks about his home world's own situation.
* AsTheGoodBookSays: Quotes Revelation 21:6 in Chapter 11, "Sanguine Meetings and Bloodied Past".
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Managed to make Princess Celestia bleed for the first time in centuries.
** AsskickingEqualsAuthority: He became vital to the PHL because he was ''very'' good at his job, and once he had authority he ended up getting all the cool new toys for better asskicking.
* BattleAura: His runes send out a blast of telekinetic force whenever he releases the magic built up in them. They're accompanied with a slight blue glow.
* BerserkButton: The TCB!ponies in general. And upon meeting Prince Blueblood for the first time, we get this gem.
--> '''Marcus:''' "Oh... dear... God. I have the sudden urge to throttle something... violently."
* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: Attempted to slit his throat when he thought he was about to be ponified by the Canon!Mane Six, only for the knife to be taken from him. In desperation, he tried to faceplant on the knife, but wound up knocking himself out.
* BigBrotherInstinct: One of his major sources of {{Mangst}} is the fact that he was forced to kill his own ponified little brother.
* BlessedWithSuck: The Runes. They are capable of extreme power, but need to be embedded into the body of the user, and even if said user has had them for over two years, they can still be very difficult to control (though he does get a better handling of them with some tutelage from Princess Celestia).
** Even more [[spoiler: in "Sons of Legacies, Part 3" once it's discovered that after getting purged of Sombra, Marcus's runes basically fused with him, making his tissues alicorn-like. His body actually needs magic to survive. Expel too much, and he could die]].
* BreakTheBadass: Marcus breaks down to ManlyTears four times during the story. First is after he kills his ponified brother. Second when he meets Canon!Lyra for the first time, after confusing her for her TCB counterpart. Third is when he explains the state of his world to the Canon!Mane Six. Lastly is when he reflects on his mother's death and that [[spoiler:she ''did'' want to tell him about her adventures in Dream Valley but couldn't spit it out]].
* ChildhoodFriends: Somewhat with Porter Stanley, owing to Marcus's father having saved the life of Porter's father in the Gulf War.
* TheChosenOne: [[spoiler: After a fashion, considering he is the son of [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends Megan Williams]]]].
* ColonelBadass
* ColonelKilgore: Although he's not happy about it, Marcus thinks of himself as one.
* ConditionedToAcceptHorror: The reason why Marcus handles his experiences in the war better than Celestia.
* CrisisOfFaith: In "War March and Past Sins", it's revealed that Marcus lost faith in the idea of a loving and just God after 9/11, and his subsequent experiences where God never did a thing against the evils of the world. He ends up discussing it with [[spoiler:Discord]].
* DefiantToTheEnd: Intended to go down like this, mouthing off at Canon!Twilight due to thinking he was about to be ponified.
* {{Determinator}}: During his fight with the Canon!Mane Six, he keeps on fighting even after being blasted through a glass window (and it's not SoftGlass either) courtesy of the party cannon and being thrown into a wall. He also is able to resist both TCB and Canon Fluttershy's signature Stare.
* DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength: [[spoiler: After being exposed to Sombra's powers, his own magical powers increased to such an absurd degree that he now possesses alicornal tissue, causing him to be ridiculously magically and physically powerful]].
* TheDreaded: To HLF members.
* DrivenToMadness: The war has been one traumatizing, psychotic episode for Marcus, who is barely holding onto his sanity by the time the main story rolls around.
* EmbarrassingMiddleName: It's Dwayne. He even admits outright he hates it.
* EmpoweredBadassNormal: His Runes turn him from a scarily competent Marine into something on a whole new level.
* {{Expy}}: Doctor Fluffy states that he [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/Marcus-Renee-no-3-450301562 based Marcus' facial features on]] [[VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein}} BJ Blazkowicz]], specifically how he looks in ''VideoGame/WolfensteinTheNewOrder''.
** On the other hand, Kizuna Tallis goes for the ComicBookFantasyCasting route, stating that she envisions [[Series/StrikeBack Philip Winchester]] as Marcus.
* GenerationXerox: A Marine like his father, and like his mother, [[spoiler: he's dealing with ponies and mystical evil forces]].
* GeniusBruiser: According to Cheerilee, he has a degree in physics.
* HandCannon: Marcus's Colt ([[IncrediblyLamePun *snicker*]]) [[CoolGuns M1911]] has been magically modified into one.
** Unfortunately, he later ends up [[DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength accidentally destroying the grip (offscreen)]] and rendering it useless. Thankfully, Discord managed to procure a set of pistols that were made by Claire and Laura from ''Last Train'', which were then (apparently, they're InUniverse Anime/{{Hellsing}} fans) alchemically remade with adamantium and vibranium.
* HappilyFailedSuicide: Marcus tried to kill himself in Canon!Equestria, only to find out that he was WrongGenreSavvy, and he now has allies that can actually turn the tide of the war.
* TheHero: For the PHL, though from a narrative perspective he is more of a SupportingProtagonist.
* InterspeciesRomance: With TCB!Cheerilee.
* ItsPersonal: His reasons for wanting the TCB versions of the Mane Six dead, ranging from TCB!Twilight ponifiying (and marrying) his younger brother Jacob, TCB!Applejack for "taking his family away from him", TCB!Rainbow Dash for converting his soldiers, and TCB!Fluttershy for coming close to converting him with her Stare.
* LanternJawOfJustice: [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/Marcus-Renee-no-3-450301562#comments Very square-jawed]].
* MessianicArchetype: While not to quite the same extent as [[BigGood TCB!Lyra]], Marcus is the leader of the PHL's fighting forces and [[HopeBringer a source of inspiration to humanity]]. [[spoiler: Discord]] even goes so far as to state that if he were ever killed or ponified, it could very well be the last straw to make humanity and the rebellious ponies lose all remaining hope.
* RapidFireNo: He lets out a string of these in "War March and Past Sins" when Dragon King Spykoran identifies his heirloom heart-shaped locket as [[spoiler:the Rainbow of Light]].
* RealMenWearPink: Appropriately enough for a male action hero in a ''My Little Pony'' fanfic, he's a Marine who's unafraid to wear the aforementioned heart-shaped locket.
* SemperFi
* UnskilledButStrong: Despite his runes granting him magical abilities, he has a lot of trouble using them for more than enhancing his strength and stamina, releasing a BattleAura and basic telekinesis such as lifting and pushing, due to not having a horn to focus it through. However, the things Marcus can do, he does with an incredible amount of force. He does learn to get better control of them through Canon!Celestia's tutelage, but [[spoiler:Sombra]] thinks it's still pretty sloppy.
* UnstoppableRage: The runes seem to give him a huge boost of aggression when active.
* WrongGenreSavvy: He was initially convinced he ended up in a past version of Equestria before they met with Earth, and tries to kill Celestia to prevent the war.
* YouWouldntLikeMeWhenImAngry: Want to live longer? Don't mess with Marcus.

!!Lyra Heartstrings (TCB)
The PHL's founder and original leader, Ambassador Lyra Heartstrings is still a symbol of true harmony between humans and ponies after her execution by Queen Celestia.

* {{Adorkable}}: Shows signs of this in her journal.
* AllLovingHero: Judging from her last words.
** Though it's worth noting her attitude to Queen Celestia was like [[SupermanTheAnimatedSeries Kal-El's towards Darkseid]] in that she would have accepted her arch-enemy's death as the lesser evil.
* AlternateUniverseReedRichardsIsAwesome
* {{Ambadassador}}: Was the Equestrian ambassador to the United Kingdom, and the leader of the PHL.
* TheAtoner: Albeit, a more unaware version of this. See ForWantOfANail.
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: While not much has been seen of her in combat, it's clear she was no slouch judging by her [[MultiArmedAndDangerous assault arms]].
* BeingGoodSucks: Defying Queen Celestia (whom she was almost certainly on good terms with, to be made an ambassador) and denouncing her beloved home country were not the easiest decisions for her to make, especially given the fear and mistrust she faced from many of the same humans she vowed to protect. Not to mention, dying a martyr's death is inspiring only when it isn't happening to you.
* BigGood: To the PHL. Even some members of the HLF mourned her death despite their anti-pony sentiments.
* BiTheWay[-/-]CovertPervert: She apparently wasn't unfaithful, but she did have a bit of a reputation as an "experimental" sort of mare.
** Marcus responding to Canon!Lyra's question as to whether they were lovers by saying "you'd think I would be used to your antics by now" could be read in more than one way.
* BreakTheCutie: When Equestria first encountered Earth, she was excited. By the time Newfoals were commonplace, she was... less so.
** Even before the manifestation, she had also lost her parents to an attack by Sombra's forces, causing her to become something of a StepfordSmiler for a while.
* DefiantToTheEnd
* DramaticIrony: [[spoiler: She found the Bag of Tirek, kick-starting the whole mess in the first place]].
* FaceDeathWithDignity
* FinalSpeech: Made one before her death at Queen Celestia's hooves that heavily references ''Film/TheGreatDictator''.
* ForWantOfANail: [[spoiler: Everything that happened in the story can be traced back to TCB!Lyra deciding to go on a scuba-diving trip with some friends, where she uncovered a wrecked ship that held the Bag of Tirek onboard. She wasn't aware of this though, as evidenced by her journal entries. Canon!Lyra on the other hand rejected going on that trip in order to practice for the Canterlot Royal Orchestra tryouts]].
* HiddenDepths: Went from being the equivalent of Ponyville's resident UFO-logist to a respected leader of the human and pony resistance.
** FromNobodyToNightmare: Well, a nightmare to the Solar Empire, anyway. Who would have guessed that a fringe historian would go on to lead an uprising?
* IncorruptiblePurePureness: Averted in a significant way. [[spoiler: She wasn't immune to the power of Tirek's Bag]].
* InspirationalMartyr: To the point where people are petitioning for the Pope to canonize her as a saint.
* LiterallyShatteredLives: Queen Celestia executed her by turning her to stone and having her crushed by a mob.
* MessianicArchetype: This Lyra almost single-hoofedly gave humanity and ponykind a reason to keep trusting each other after the war began.
** At one point, Marcus outright says that she is a messiah-like figure to the PHL, which is why he decides against taking Canon!Lyra with him back to Earth, since she could never live up to their expectations, though he does agree to let her train alongside the Mane Six.
** [[spoiler: Taken one step further after it is revealed that she presented Marcus with a uniquely powerful "redeemer" rune to tattoo on his body, the implication being that this rune could purge Queen Celestia of Tirek's influence, and Lyra got it from [[{{God}} the Scribe]] in person]].
* NayTheist: While the Solar Tyrant is far from omnipotent, she's still very powerful. By contrast, Lyra is merely a little green unicorn. She was also the one whose defiance led to the creation of the most effective military force battling against the Solar Empire.
* NoPlaceForMeThere: [[spoiler: Saving mankind and making up for her mistake required setting in motion a chain of events (i.e. Marcus taking command of the PHL's troops, his arrival in Canon!Equestria alerting Princess Celestia to the situation, Discord reconciling with his sisters, etc.) that she wouldn't live to see]].
* TheParagon: While members of the PHL can fall anywhere on the moral spectrum, Lyra was and is still regarded as one of the most noble and selfless people in the group. [[spoiler: Shame about being indirectly responsible for all the war and destruction]].
* PosthumousCharacter
* PrimAndProperBun: The Asia Side-Story describes Ambassador Lyra as keeping her mane tied into a bun, in contrast to Canon!Lyra's distinctive unkempt hairstyle.
* [[APupilOfMineUntilHeTurnedToEvil A Pupil Of Mine Until She Turned To Evil]]: Inverted in that she was one of the unicorns studying at Celestia's School (though she was never a personal student like Twilight) and rebelled against her former teacher after Celestia went to the dark side. [[spoiler: Which is then further complicated after factoring in that Lyra discovered the very ArtifactOfDoom which caused Celestia's corruption. Oops]].
* RebelLeader: And her death ended up making her a martyr.
* ReluctantWarrior: Preferred persuading people over to her side than fighting them, including the HLF. If the King of England is to be believed, she would have been a MartialPacifist in a more idealistic setting.
-->'''King William V:''' "We can say all we like about her prowess in battle. But I hope to God that becomes a footnote in history because Lyra was never about battle. If there was a peaceful solution, she'd try for it."
* [[RenaissanceMan Renaissance Mare]]: The ''Case Files'' side-story reveals that [[BrilliantButLazy when she applied herself]], Lyra was close to being Twilight 2.0. Amongst other things, she personally oversaw the design of ArtificialLimbs, and various {{Magitek}} weapons and devices for the PHL to use.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: She publicly defected from Equestria, revealed the truth about the potion to humanity, and founded the PHL. Her defiance of the Queen in fact helped spur many ponies (like Firebrand, Blizzard Flurry and Aegis) to reject the conversion of humanity and join the fight.
* ShadowArchetype: A heroic example to TCB!Twilight. Went to Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns? Check. Was one of Princess Cadance's charges? Check. Had an obsessive interest for unusual subjects (in this case, humans)? Check. Proved unexpectedly well-suited for leading people into fighting the good fight? Check.
** During one of her visions, Lightning Dust sees Lyra as an alicorn.
* TakeOurWordForIt: Similarly to [[Film/{{Terminator}} John Connor]], TCB!Lyra is a resistance leader whom we rarely see in action ([[PosthumousCharacter for obvious reasons]]) but is treated with awe and respect by the people who believe in her cause.
* TheUnchosenOne: She died before she could bring about the BigBad's defeat, yet the way she stayed loyal to the principles of old Equestria inspired many humans and ponies to hold back from falling into mutual hatred and slaughter.
* [[spoiler: UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom]]: [[spoiler: She was famous in the TCB-verse for finding the sunken ship of the KV-62 archaeological party headed by Dr. Waggoner on a scuba-diving trip. Unfortunately, said ship also carried a certain ArtifactOfDoom...]]
** [[spoiler: UnwittingPawn]]: [[spoiler: It's also very likely that the Bag of Tirek did subtly influence her to carry it over to TCB!Celestia]].

!!Cheerilee (TCB)
Formerly Ponyville's school teacher, now a high-ranking member of the PHL.

* AlliterativeName: Her full name is Cheerilee Cherry.
* BadassTeacher
* BerserkButton: Harming kids in any way. [[spoiler: Just ask Queen Celestia's Mirror Pool clone]].
* BewareTheNiceOnes
* CurbStompBattle: Apparently, Cheerilee delivered a diplomatic one to the Taliban. Marcus was sick, so he sent her in his place. [[OffscreenMomentOfAwesome The meeting was over in an hour]], with them fully backing the PHL and the UN.
* DefectorFromDecadence
* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: Yes, [[spoiler: Cheerilee DID just punch the shit out of Celestia]]. Unfortunately, [[spoiler: it was only an avatar created by the Mirror Pool]].
* FriendToAllChildren: To both human children and foals.
* InterspeciesRomance: With Marcus.
* InUniverseNickname: Affectionately called "the Teacher" by some.
* MamaBear: [[spoiler: Not even an alicorn is safe from her when she goes into this mode]].
* NiceGirl: As in canon.
* ParentalSubstitute: Regards all the war orphans adopted by the PHL as her own children.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure
* RebelLeader: Gets promoted to Commander of the PHL Forces on Marcus's recommendation.
* [[RoseHairedSweetie Rose-Maned Pony]]: Has somehow managed to hold onto her sweet nature despite all the horrors she's surrounded by.
* TakingUpTheMantle: She's well on the way to taking over Lyra's role as the BigGood.
* UnskilledButStrong: Thanks to having runic enhancement. The magic boost she receives is enough to hurt [[spoiler:Queen Celestia]]!
* UnstoppableRage: Falls into this when Queen Celestia kills a [[ChildSoldiers teenage boy soldier]].
* WorthLivingFor: How Marcus sees her.
* YouAreInCommandNow: After Marcus goes missing.

!!Bon-Bon (TCB)
Lyra Heartstrings' earth pony girlfriend, who was forced to watch her get executed.

* BlessedWithSuck: She can see into the future, but is an insane and completely broken mess.
* BreakTheCutie: Went completely crazy after Lyra's death.
* BystanderSyndrome: Bon-Bon probably wouldn't have cared much about helping mankind if her girlfriend wasn't so fond of them.
* DespairEventHorizon[-/-]MaddenIntoMisanthropy: Almost crosses into this during a fit of madness, but Doctor Whooves succeeds in snapping her out of it.
* DrivenToMadness: Played painfully straight.
* ForcedToWatch: With regards to Lyra's execution, which completely shattered her sanity.
* HeelFaceTurn: She was actually on board with the conversion bureaus, but changed her tune quickly after seeing a Newfoal try to kill Lyra.
* {{Jerkass}}[-/-]JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Prior to her HeelFaceTurn, the fact that her lack of sympathy for the humans' plight didn't cause Lyra to break up with her implies it can't have ran all that deep. It's also possible that Bon-Bon was just bitter at seeing her girlfriend wear herself out leading a seemingly hopeless cause.
* MadOracle: The trauma of Lyra's death caused her to have a "temporal stroke" which makes her able to view the past, present and future at the same time. It does come in useful sometimes.
* SanitySlippage: Implied in TCB!Lyra's journal entries, in which she claims that Bon-Bon hadn't taken life on the run well.
* SatelliteLoveInterest: Notice how a lot of her character is defined by her relationship with Lyra, even after the latter's death?
* TraumaCongaLine: Bon-Bon followed Lyra into exile on Earth, presumably out of love, even though she initially supported Conversion, and was disowned by her parents for that. She stayed with her girlfriend through thick and thin, countless assassination attempts befalling them both. In the end, she saw the mare she loved get turned to stone and smashed by an angry mob. And this was before the "temporal stroke" cracked her mind like an egg.
* WhenSheSmiles: Other characters note that whenever she looks happy again, chances are things may just get better.
* [[WidowWoman Widow Mare]]

!!Stephan Bauer
[[quoteright:313:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/major_stephan_bauer_by_germanlastarcher-d7l07yy_4684.png]]
[[caption-width-right:313: The Knight of Germania. Art by [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/Major-Stephan-Bauer-458545498 Proudtobe]].]]

A Bundeswehr major notable for going into battle wearing power armor and wielding a claymore, hence his nickname, "the Knight of Germania".

* ActionBomb: He keeps enough C4 on him to level a two-story building if he is ever hit by potion.
* AndThisIsFor: He pulls this on Queen Celestia when he thinks she killed his soldiers.
* BadassNormal: Does a pretty good job at keeping up with Marcus despite lacking the Runes.
* BattleCouple: With TCB!Trixie.
* BerserkButton: Anything related to Queen Celestia.
* {{BFS}}: Has a machete that turns into a claymore (think like [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Cloud Strife's sword]]) that is very light for its size, courtesy of changeling magic.
* BoldlyComing
* BreakTheBadass: Facing the Dark Door and being forced to witness his worst fears actually caused him to break down into BrokenTears.
* ChivalrousPervert: As of "Training Days: First Days, Part 1". He's a little [[PowerPerversionPotential too happy to take advantage of Trixie's]] VoluntaryShapeshifting.
* ComicBookFantasyCasting: In the comments for "Sons of Legacies, Part 3", Kizuna Tallis states she envisions [[Series/StrikeBack Sullivan]] [[Film/ThreeHundredRiseOfAnEmpire Stapleton]] as Stephan.
* ADayInTheLimelight: The Europe Side-Story is this for him.
* DrillSergeantNasty: He's very tough on his new recruits and certainly won't be going easy on the Canon!Mane Six while training them.
* InterspeciesRomance: With TCB!Trixie.
* JerkassFacade: You can't afford to show too much softness as a soldier, but he's probably one of the nicest and most compassionate humans in the story. It's just best not to provoke him.
* TheLancer: To Marcus.
* MajorlyAwesome
* MyGreatestFailure: He was once forced to MercyKill a classroom full of ponified children during an evacuation gone wrong in France.
* NotSoStoic: Aside from breaking down sobbing after being in the hold of the Dark Door, he also spends much of "Training Days: First Days, Part 1" inwardly geeking out over fighting alongside dragons.
* OnlySaneMan: While he's as worn down by the war as one would expect, Stephan seems to have fewer PTSD issues than Marcus or Kraber.
* RedBaron: He gained his nickname, "The Knight of Germania", due to being German and using PoweredArmor and a sword.
* SeenItAll:
-->"I am talking with you, [[spoiler: the God of Chaos]], or whatever you call yourself now. I saved the Crystal Empire, fighting alongside two alicorns, one whom I wanted to see dead, and now I am in a different Equestria, facing the challenge of training an army of griffons, dragons, Diamond Dogs and other mystical creatures from to fight in our war! I've had tea with Princess Celestia, and found that she is actually rather nice! At this point, [[spoiler: dear darling Discord]], there isn't much that can surprise me anymore."
* ShellShockedVeteran: Though his PTSD is not nearly as bad as Marcus' or Kraber's, he does have his respective issues. For one thing, he ''did'' lose his home and was forced to kill a classroom full of children who became Newfoals to prevent them from attacking his men.
* UnstoppableRage: Falls into this in ''Strike'' when he thinks Queen Celestia killed his soldiers.
* WeAreNotTheWehrmacht

!!Trixie Lulamoon[-/-]The Blue Spy (TCB)
A clever shape-shifting unicorn spy, assassin and possibly the rebel ponies' greatest war asset.

* AntiHero
* BattleCouple: With Stephan.
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: She fell in love with Stephan because he was the only person who treated her with genuine respect and care.
* BecomingTheMask: What Trixie fears is happening to her, due to the alternate personalities she uses to do her spying starting to become fully sapient personalities.
* ColdBloodedTorture: She uses psychological torture on a Royal Guard by threatening to cut up his (absent) family. It should be noted that she hates herself for it, and when she discovers [[spoiler: Spike alone and tortured]], she breaks down in tears.
* DefectorFromDecadence
* HeroicBSOD: Gets a brief but powerful one after [[spoiler: finding a tortured Spike in a prison cell]].
* InterspeciesRomance: With Stephan.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold
* KnifeNut
* KnightInSourArmour
* LargeHam: Trixie shows that she's still got it in her when she can't help but compare her crimes to those of "some vampiric tyrant of old".
* PowerPerversionPotential: She may end up going along with Stephan's plans involving her shapeshifting.
* TheRedBaron: Her alias, "the Blue Spy".
* RescueRomance: The other reason why she fell in love with Stephan.
* SheWhoFightsMonsters: Fears she's becoming just as ruthless as the people she fights against.
* SplitPersonality: It's lucky that Trixie is such an egomaniac, or she'd have lost herself a long time ago. Also, she does make a big point of defying GollumMadeMeDoIt.
* TookALevelInBadass: With training from Stephan and [[spoiler: TCB!Chrysalis]], she goes from an egotistical magician to a skilled shape-shifting spy with a vast array of bombs and considerable skill with a blade.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Has this power as the Blue Spy. [[spoiler: TCB!Chrysalis taught her as a last gift against the Solar Tyrant]].

!!Doctor Whooves[-/-]Time Turner (TCB)
A brilliant earth pony [[spoiler: and a former Time Lord]] physicist and one of the PHL's most resourceful strategists.

* [[spoiler: {{Animorphism}}]]: [[spoiler: He is ''[[Series/DoctorWho the Doctor]]'', and turned into a pony at one point]].
* BadassPacifist: Hates violence in general.
** MartialPacifist: Nevertheless, he knows that some enemies can't be negotiated with, making violence more of the very last resort.
* BunnyEarsLawyer
* DarkAndTroubledPast: [[spoiler: Well, given who he is...]]
* DoesNotLikeGuns: Or weapons of any kind.
* HappilyMarried: To Derpy Hooves.
* MadScientist
* OverprotectiveDad: Downplayed. He vocally hates the idea of sending his daughters into battle, but reluctantly accepts ChildSoldiers as a necessary evil.
* [[spoiler: ProHumanTranshuman]]: [[spoiler: Sorta. Being a Time Lord, he was never human to begin with, but he's also the only non-pony (other than Verity Carter) to turn into a pony without any ill side-effects]].
* TheSmartGuy
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Stephan.
* YouCantFightFate: [[spoiler: TCB!Lyra's death was an immutable fixed point in history, and Doctor Whooves couldn't save her life because of this]].

!!Derpy Hooves (TCB)
Formerly Ponyville's pegasus mailmare, now serves as a field nurse to ponies and humans alike.

* AbsurdlyYouthfulMother: To Amethyst Star. It's because Amethyst is adopted [[spoiler:from one of her time-travel adventures]].
* ActionMom: Not shown fighting, but does spend a lot of time risking her life out in the field to assist the injured.
* AllLovingHero
* AngerBornOfWorry: Does not like it when Doctor Whooves overexerts himself in his work.
* TheCameo: Plays a brief yet essential part in "The Answer".
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold
* HappilyMarried: To Doctor Whooves.
* HolyBacklight: Makes her appearance "gliding like an angel".
* TheMedic

!!Princess Cadance (TCB)
One of the minor princesses, Cadance in the TCB-verse is a pegacorn who never ascended to alicornhood.

* AllLovingHero: She ''is'' the Princess of Love, after all.
* BrokenBird: A far less cynical example than the norm, but she qualifies, as TCB!Shining Armor ([[spoiler:who was placed under MindControl into obeying every one of Queen Celestia's orders]]) did leave her and at one point, according to Marcus, tried to drag her back to Equestria to the Tyrant. Also applies literally in that this version of Cadance isn't an alicorn, rendering her vestigial wings useless.
* TheExile: Princess Luna's last act before getting petrified was to help her escape to Earth.
* TheHeart
* HeartIsAnAwesomePower: Though unable to access her full potential, Cadance can use ThePowerOfLove to [[spoiler: override Celestia's brainwashing]].
* TheIdealist: Of the various members of the PHL, she's the closest.
* MagicalNanny: To TCB!Twilight, as in canon, but it's shown she was also Lyra's foalsitter. They even share the same little song and dance.
* RebelliousPrincess: In that she's a princess and one of many rebels against her tyrannical aunt.

!!Viktor Kraber
[[quoteright:315:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kraber_5579.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:315:Kraber, [[AxCrazy in his element]]. Art by [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/Kraber-and-Aegis-Semi-WIP-452659322 Doctor Fluffy]].]]
A bitter and violent half-South African/half-German ex-HLF soldier, currently holding the rank of Stabsunteroffizier in the Bundeswehr. Kraber takes ShellShockedVeteran to an extreme beyond any other protagonist in the story. His life since the barrier's appearance has been rather depressing – ever since finding his children were ponified at their own birthday party, [[DrivenToMadness he's gradually taken leave of his sanity]].

He's also probably the most ubiquitous character in the 'verse, having (maybe) cameoed in the Asia story, being mentioned in ''Adrift'', and having appeared in the main story,''Last Train'', ''Case Files'', ''Multiverse Journey'', ''Calm Before The Storm'', as well as the central role in '' The Light Despondent'', and even appearing in FanFic/TheAvatarOfAlbion in a (not so) quick cameo.

* AdultFear: TCB!Pinkie Pie (whom he hired to plan out his children's birthday party) ponified his family, and the only reason he didn't get converted along with them was because he got stuck in traffic. When he arrived home, [[NothingIsScarier the house was eerily silent and empty]] and it took some time before the realization hit him.
* TheAlcoholic
* AmoralAfrikaner: Well, at least part Afrikaner, and it isn't clear which side of his family is from there. And the "amoral" part is subverted, since being around Aegis has changed him for the better. This is revealed in ''Light Despondent'' to be at least partly an affectation so Kraber can terrify people. On top of that, Kraber ''is'' a Sharlto Copley fan.
* AntiHero: Somewhere between a ruthless PayEvilUntoEvil version and an UnscrupulousHero. To his credit, he does make an effort to kill the right ponies and people. But it's also made clear he's [[GoodIsNotNice not a nice person]].
* TheAtoner: He was in the HLF, who are {{Right Wing Militia Fanatic}}s with a KillEmAll mindset with regards to ''all'' ponies (both [[DefectorFromDecadence PHL]] and PER members) in this universe. Still, he does hold plenty of guilt over the crimes committed during his time with them, insisting in his interview in ''Case Files'' that he's no hero. His friendship with [[MoralityPet Aegis]] and desire to redirect his murderous impulses ''solely'' towards the TCB!Equestrians are evidence of this.
* AxCrazy: His sanity seems to decrease each chapter, [[spoiler:which nearly gets Luna killed, twice]]. Though he's a bit more self-aware about it than other examples, freely admitting that he's crazy and very, [[ShellShockedVeteran very traumatized]]. It's also implied on some occasions that he was a bit unhinged before the Barrier came.
* {{Badass}}: He's survived being in the HLF up until 2022, managed to blow up no fewer than three Conversion Bureaus, got in a fight with the TCB!Elements and fell three stories with minor injuries, shot out TCB!Celestia's spine, slaughtered untold numbers of PER...
** BadassBeard: [[http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/452659322?ga_submit_new=10%3A1399491884 According to official artwork]]. May also qualify as BeardOfEvil.
** BadassNormal: Falls three stories after being BlownAcrossTheRoom by a party cannon, gets in a shotgun fight with a {{Teleport Spam}}ming KnifeNut Pinkie Pie, and takes a display case to the chest, all with apparently no ill effects.
* BadDreams[=/=]PsychicDreamsForEveryone: In chapter 3 of ''Light''.
* BatterUp: Used his wife's baseball bat to fight newfoals during the earliest days of the war.
* BerserkButton: TCB!Pinkie Pie's very existence as well as being reminded of what happened to his kids.
** Which is likely why his other BerserkButton is the implication that he ponifies people just because he works with ponies.
** Being called a rapist is yet another. It's implied this stems from the statutory rape allegations he faced while he was in college. However, he and Kate did love each other, and he didn't know Kate was underage at the time.
* {{BFG}}: His [=MG2019=] light machine gun, which is .338 caliber, likely a .338 Norma Magnum. He later upgrades to an [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/MG2023-AISW-LMG-and-Colt-Quetzalcoatl-485373165?ga_submit_new=10%253A1412012631&ga_type=edit&ga_changes=1&ga_recent=1 'MG2023']] with an underbarrel LightningGun... with lightning that tracks toward the bullets he's fired.
* BiTheWay
* BloodKnight: Before his recruitment into the Bundeswehr, anyway. He's gotten better, though his trigger finger remains very itchy.
* BrilliantButLazy: states in his ''Case Files'' interview that he used to "wake and bake" (likely meaning he was a bit of a [[TheStoner stoner]]) a lot back in med school.
* BunnyEarsLawyer: For all his faults, he does work as a doctor for the PHL, and he's reasonably competent as a squad leader.
* BreakoutCharacter: Evidently. He initially appeared in only a few chapters in the main story, but quickly grew to become one of the most ubiquitous characters in the verse, appearing by mention or physically in several chapters as well as getting his own side story.
* CasanovaWannabe: Ironically, considering his previous allegiances, he's evidently hit on a lot ponies.
* CelebrityParadox: Averted. While he is modeled after Sharlto Copley, it's made clear in ''Calm Before The Storm'' that Sharlto Copley does exist in the Spectrumverse, meaning Kraber is just a celebrity lookalike. However, Kraber is certainly aware of the resemblance, judging by his desire to be played by Sharlto Copley in a movie, (preferably while playing Copley himself in a cameo) and claiming that he's "Like what'd happen if Sharlto Copley was cast [in a film] of Literature/MarabouStorkNightmares."
* ClosetGeek[-/-]PopCulturedBadass: He likes ''Podcast/WelcomeToNightVale''. And, oddly enough, he appears to like a lot of first-person shooters, such as ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' and the ''VideoGame/{{Syndicate}}'' remake.
* TheCloudCuckooLanderWasRight: Never believed magic was harmful to human tissue. Turns out he was right!
* [[ClusterFBomb Carpet Various Letters Bombing]]: 'fok!' is easily the most common word in his dialogue, though it's often used alongside various... interesting... [[BilingualBonus phrases in Afrikaans]].
* ColonelKilgore: Sergeant, actually.
* CoolGuns: His first LMG is almost identical to an [=MG42=]. He later upgrades [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/MG2023-AISW-LMG-and-Colt-Quetzalcoatl-485373165?ga_submit_new=10%253A1412012631&ga_type=edit&ga_changes=1&ga_recent=1 to these two weapons.]]
* ComedicSociopathy: Carved "Dear Queen Molestia - NUTS!" (a reference to General Anthony [=McAulife=]'s infamous response to Germans demanding his surrender) on a Royal Guard's dead body sometime after the "Trust" chapter.
* ComicBookFantasyCasting: He's modeled off [[Film/{{Elysium}} Kruger]] and [[Film/DistrictNine Wikus]], both of whom are played by Sharlto Copley.
* CompositeCharacter: See the entry for {{Expy}}. Though considering his frequent bouts of murderous insanity, there's probably a lot more of Kruger in him than Wikus.
* {{Cosplay}}: Apparently was into this before the war, and managed to cosplay [[Anime/{{Redline}} Sweet JP]].
* CulturedBadass[=/=]PopCulturedBadass: Reads classic literature such as ''Liteature/HeartOfDarkness'', but he's also a fan of the NewWeird, such as Creator/ChinaMieville and Jeff Vandermeer, and he likes ''Literature/{{Trainspotting}}''.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Lost his mind after finding his children were ponified, and joined a German HLF faction. It's telling that in ''Case Files'', he has the [[LongList longest list of criminal charges against him]].
* DeathSeeker: WordOfGod states that he's suicidal due to his sheer guilt over what he did as an HLF member. He's taken on many suicide missions as well.
* DespairEventHorizon: Seems to cross it in ''Light'', with part of his reasoning for getting healed with magic (which, as far as anyone knows, could kill him) is because nobody will miss him.
* {{Determinator}}: He simply doesn't give up, and the fact that he hasn't killed himself (successfully) probably qualifies him as one. But it's probably the chapter "Philistine" that cements him as this. When faced with a hospital full of PER, his solution is to press on and kill all of them. And, when faced with a super-newfoal with increasingly ridiculous amounts of shield magic and PER fighting alongside her, while suffering from a broken rib, bleeding internally, a hole in his stomach, a broken collarbone, and a leg wound, hallucinating, and losing his mind, he ignores the pain, keeps going, and manages to survive having all his limbs rapidly healed with magic.
* TheDreaded: He's feared by some ponies during his HLF days.
* EveryoneHasStandards: He may have ''plenty'' of loose screws and hates the TCB!Mane Six with every fiber of his being (especially TCB!Pinkie Pie), but even he is sickened by [[spoiler:what the Bag of Tirek has done to them and the experiments conducted to make the potion work]].
** And despite being TheAtoner, he never admits any guilt to what he did to the PER. Indeed, his need for redemption stems more from making up for his crimes towards innocent ponies than any pro-Bureau collaborators.
* ExhaustedEyeBags: [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/Viktor-M-Kraber-Redone-515120941 his new portrait]] by Doctor Fluffy has them. Word of Fluffy is that he's afraid to go to sleep, thanks to the nightmares he gets. Considering the last two that he's gotten in ''Light'', this is understandable.
* {{Expy}}: Of [[Film/{{District9}} Wikus van der Merwe]] in that he's a morally ambiguous and foulmouthed family man who lost his comfortable life, underwent unspeakable ordeals and SanitySlippage, gets revenge on those that hurt him through the use of a {{BFG}}, and eventually discards his FantasticRacism.
** And [[Film/{{Elysium}} Kruger]] by virtue of being (half) South African, taking an unhealthy interest in killing, ''[[DrivenToMadness being utterly insane]]'', plus looking almost exactly like him except with different armor. What makes this weird, however, is that Kraber is explicitly a fan of ''District 9'', and his status as the AmoralAfrikaner is at least partly an act. Lampshaded by Verity, who considers him a "pretentious, Sharlto Copley-obsessed bliksem[[note]]bastard[[/note]]."
* FeelNoPain: Judging by the gap between Stephan consigning him to the hospital and the actual battle, he must have been walking around with several cracked ribs, cracked scapula, and torn muscles for about an hour without noticing. Either Kraber has great pain tolerance, or he's just too crazy to care. Though, judging by Light, he ''can'' feel pain, he's just [[{{Determinator}} really good at ignoring it]].
* FriendToAllChildren: Due to losing his own. Aegis claims that his two foals love Kraber and consider him an HonoraryUncle. He also lends Dancing Day his stuffed wolf Ambassador Nikai the Second as a reward for her work in keeping the [[CoolTrain 501]] running. To clarify, the toy is a TragicKeepsake that belonged to one of his kids.
** But it's also rather nastily averted in a flashback from the same chapter of ''Light Despondent'', where he [[spoiler: murders a family of PHL-affiliated ponies taken prisoner by the PER, laughing manically as he does so]].
* FromNobodyToNightmare: ''Case Files'' explains he was a BrilliantButLazy medical school student who accidentally got his (underage) girlfriend pregnant. He stepped up to the plate, got his degree and lived a happy life as a dedicated family man. Then along came a certain ill-fated birthday party...
* FutureMeScaresMe: Played with - they're alternate versions of him, the horror of one alternate comes from the world around him rather than his personal qualities, and he actually sees a brave (yet, strangely enough, female) version of himself in another universe, but he's mostly fixated on the horror of an alternate him being reminiscent of a chaos space marine.
* GenreSavvy[-/-]CrazyPrepared: He's well aware that a stealth op with him is likely to fail, so he brings lots of guns.
* [[GratuitousForeignLanguage Gratuitous Foreign Slang]]: He frequently uses South African slang in "Trust". He mentions having family there, so that's probably where he picked it up.
* GunNut: The man loves huge weaponry.
* TheGunslinger: Has elements of the Vaporizer, but he's a very good shot with a revolver on the occasions that he uses it.
* HairTriggerTemper[=/=]SuddenlyShouting: Happens in Chapter 3 of ''Light'', where his own mentions of his actions in the HLF are enough to send him into screaming rage.
* HearingVoices[-/-]{{Hallucinations}}: Continuously in ''Light Despondent'', from a time when he was even less sane.
* HeelRealization: In a flashback from ''Calm Before the Storm'', Kraber saw a pair of pony refugees cower from him in fear and imagined his wife and children looking at him with disappointment.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Overlaps with PetTheDog, as he bonds instantly with a fellow HLF member's fluffy Samoyed.
* HeroicSelfDeprecation: His regret and low self-worth over his actions in the HLF are major parts of his character, but it's made clear in ''Light'' that he deeply hates himself, considering himself a mass-murdering psychopath and a terrible person. He does react with almost childlike joy when he finds out that he isn't, in fact, a sociopath.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Aegis. Though considering that they share a bed, that should be [[HoYay called into question...]]
* HiddenDepths: Claims in Chapter 4 of ''Calm'' that he wanted to be a writer, and make radio dramas. Knowing him, he was probably inspired by ''Podcast/WelcomeToNightVale''.
** Once played Francis Begbie in a play of Literature/{{Trainspotting}}, and can still pull off a decent Scottish accent as of the time of the fic.
* ICallItVera: Owns a [[HandCannon 13mm shotgun revolver]] that he calls "Margaret". Later upgrades to a 28-gauge (14mm) shotgun revolver... [[HandCannon which shoots ammunition that explodes, and is also contained within wax slugs, making it a miniature cluster bomb launcher.]] He calls it a '[[Videogame/BorderlandsThePresequel Fragnum]]'.
* INeedAFreakingDrink:
** In "Trust" and ''Case Files'', he frequently asks for bourbon.
** After Canon!Luna [[spoiler: shows him the potion tests]], he says that he really needs some Kentucky Bourbon.
--->'''Kraber''': "I'm not gesuip (drunk) enough to tell you that."
* InformedJudaism: Is unexpectedly revealed to be Jewish in Chapter 3 of ''Calm Before The Storm''. The irony of having been part of a borderline-fascist organization is not lost on him.
* IOweYouMyLife: Kraber and Aegis became friends because Aegis saved his life during a raid on an HLF compound.
* ItsAllMyFault: He blames himself for his children's ponification, due to having hired TCB!Pinkie Pie to throw their birthday party in the first place.
* ItsPersonal: Towards TCB!Pinkie Pie, who ponified his family at his childrens' birthday.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Abrasive, alcoholic, lecherous, hard to deal with... but his heart's usually in the right place, unless it involves the PER.
* LongList: While in the HLF, he committed crimes such as:
-->''Murder, mass murder, conspiracy to commit murder, illegal possession of firearms, assault, impersonating a police officer, illegally crossing borders between countries, impersonating a child protective services officer, torture, smuggling firearms, practicing medicine without a license, arson, forgery, vandalism, kidnapping, robbery, theft of military property...''
* KickTheDog: Has more than a few moments of this in ''Light Despondent'' prior to his HeelFaceTurn.
* MadBomber: According to the Timeline and ''Adrift'', he's managed to blow up at least three conversion bureaus.
* TheMedic: Although he's had his medical license revoked, he does some work as a field doctor for PHL soldiers.
* MoreDakka: Evidently a favorite tactic of his; the [=MG2019=] he carries is frequently described as having a fire rate "like a buzzsaw".
* MrExposition: Of ''The Light Despondent''.
* NoodleIncident: Did something so terrible to his former commanding officer in the HLF that even he considered to be going too far. And then there's the "corpses in a vinyard" thing...
* NotSoDifferent[=/=]ShadowArchetype: [[https://www.fimfiction.net/group/206246/spectrum-crew/thread/150475/a-theory-about-kraber-and-verity Doctor Fluffy suspects this is true of him]] and Verity.
* OohMeAccentsSlipping[-/-]FunetikAksent: Speaks in a Scottish accent inspired by the works of Creator/IrvineWelsh in chapters 4, 5, and 6 to keep people from realizing his identity. However, bits of his South African lilt routinely creep through, [[PaperThinDisguise but somehow, it works...]]
* {{Omniglot}}: He's fluent in English, German and Afrikaans, can hold a conversation in Swahili, he's shown in chapter 3 of ''Light'' speaking Hebrew, and he also reads ''Heart of Darkness'' in the original Polish.
* PapaWolf[-/-]CrusadingWidower: Kraber's whole crusade against TCB!Equestria boils down to his desire to avenge his wife and children.
* PayEvilUntoEvil: He would know as an ex-HLF man.
* PetTheDog: In the HLF, he let two ponies named Astral Nectar and Dancing Day through a security checkpoint, and, more literally, was shown to love a fluffy samoyed in the next chapter.
* SanityBall: Claims that he ended up holding it later in the HLF. Having grown very aware of his fractured mental state, he hated it.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: Tries to save civilians instead of securing the factory early in Chapter 4 of ''Calm''. He eventually has to, but it's impressive CharacterDevelopment to show that he's so focused on saving people.
* ShellShockedVeteran: Canon!Luna can see his nightmares hang over him even when he's awake.
* ShownTheirWork: Everything he says in Afrikaans (and the various bits of slang that do not originate in Afrikaans) is completely accurate.
* SirSwearsALot: Throws a lot of {{Cluster F Bomb}}s. The swearword count only grows when you consider the numerous South African [[ForeignCussWord phrases he utters]], which are impressively vile and creative.
** CountryMatters: Has said this repeatedly, though because [[BilingualBonus it's all translated into Afrikaans]], the average reader might miss it.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: Want to know why his character section is so big despite him appearing for only a handful of chapters in the main story? Well, there are actually a [[CreatorsFavorite good]] [[WriterOnBoard many]] [[SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped reasons]], but narrative-wise, Kraber serves to provide a human face to the members of the HLF and other people who wouldn't respond with nobility and heroism to a CrapsackWorld such as that of ''The Conversion Bureau''.
** He also lands a killing blow to [[spoiler:the Tyrant's clone]], saving Stephan at a crucial moment.
* SociopathicHero: Though it's made clear by Lunar Phase that he's not a [[ShownTheirWork clinical sociopath.]]
* TakeThat: He is basically one giant middle finger aimed specifically at Chatoyance's story ''[[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/22989/The-PER%3A-Michelson-and-Morely---The-Speed-Of-Right-- The PER: Michelson and Morely - The Speed of Right]]'', in which the eponymous PER agents ponified a bunch of children at a birthday party with a pinata full of potion. Specifically, he's what happens when the father comes home and does not like what he finds.
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: Every weapon Kraber gets his hands on seems to be somewhat over the top in terms of firepower. There's few other labels one can ascribe to a man that modified a 14mm shotgun revolver to shoot miniature cluster bombs, anyway.
* ThrowTheDogABone: Befriends, and later has GladToBeAliveSex with Yael Ze'ev in Chapters 4 and 5 of ''Calm Before The Storm''.
* TookALevelInKindness: As of Chapter 3 of ''Calm Before The Storm'', he doesn't really see a point in torture anymore, saying he's sick and tired of it.
** And in the PHL chapter of ''Case Files'', he stays out of Aegis' interview, as an apology for being drunk, angry, and barely remembering to mention him in his own interview.
* TortureTechnician: Mentions tying a pony clown (it's not clear if he was a Newfoal or a natural born pony) and torturing him for fifteen straight hours to find out what happened to his family. This is also one of the many criminal charges brought up against him for his time in the HLF.
* TragicKeepsake: He still keeps the stuffed animals that belonged to his children, and sleeps with them.
* TraumaCongaLine: ''Light Despondent'' is that trope incarnate for him.
* UnstoppableRage: When he's anywhere near TCB!Pinkie Pie, or the Element Bearers in general. This is evidently so common for him that Stephan outright expects him to disobey orders.
* VillainousBreakdown: The first five chapters of Light, culminating in him going up to kill off all the PER in what could be read as SuicideByCop, completely losing his mind, [[spoiler: and eventually being forced to [[MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext suplex an equine personification of his self-loathing into a wall and beat the shit out of it.]]]]
* WeaponOfChoice: He prefers high-capacity shotguns, light machineguns, and revolvers that happen to be {{Hand Cannon}}s. All his appearances so far have him using some revolver with a bore almost half an inch in diameter, and an LMG.
* WrongGenreSavvy: Early on in ''Light'', while an HLF member, Kraber believes he's a heroic partisan striking against a corrupt government.
* YouKilledMyFather: Inverted; his vendetta against TCB!Pinkie Pie stems from how she ponified his children at their own birthday party.

!!Aegis (real name: Claw Hammer)
[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aegis_8250.png]]
[[caption-width-right:300:"And now you have to show common sense?!"[[http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/452659322?ga_submit_new=10%3A1399491884 Art by Doctor Fluffy]].]]
Kraber's ever-present, enormous, and long-suffering earth pony friend, whose main job generally consists of "keep Kraber from doing something really terrible and stupid".

* ActionDad: Has two foals, who are currently living in South Africa with Kraber's relatives, by virtue of neither him nor Kraber being in a good enough situation to serve as parents.
* AlcoholicParent: Downplayed. Though he's most definitely not abusive, he has an alcohol intake that could rival Kraber's.
* BarrierWarrior
* BashBrothers: No matter what, he has Kraber's back, and Kraber has his.
* {{BFG}}: Carries a 25mm automatic grenade launcher in "Knell".
* TheBigGuy: [[http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/452659322?ga_submit_new=10%3A1399491884 He's larger than the average pony]]. WordOfGod is that this was an accident because, when drawing Kraber, he wasn't sure how big Aegis was supposed to be.
* BiTheWay: Considering that he shares a bed with Kraber.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: He makes a mention of having a brush with a re-education camp with Verdant Tract (another PHL pony) back in Equestria, and he doesn't "feel like pressing his luck" on the subject.
** ''Case Files'' expands on his backstory, revealing he was a normal family stallion whose well-meaning wife went off the deep end when she adopted a pair of Newfoal orphans. She eventually left him for a Newfoal, forcing him to escape to Earth with his children.
* DeadpanSnarker: He even [[NervesOfSteel mouths off to]] TCB!Celestia.
* DrowningMySorrows: According to ''Case Files'', he spent a lot of his time in Britain drunk.
* GetAHoldOfYourselfMan: Punches Kraber in the knee to keep him from going up against TCB!Pinkie Pie by himself.
* GunNut: To a lesser degree than Kraber - he doesn't {{Squee}} at the thought of new weapons, but he's just as excited by big weaponry as Kraber is.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Kraber.
* HiddenDepths: Implied to like superheroes, considering that he says his current alias reminds him of a superhero name.
* MoralityPet: Though he wouldn't like to be referred to as a pet, it's shown that Aegis is one of the ''very'' few things during the war that's actually kept Kraber sane. [[AxCrazy Relatively speaking, that is]].
* NervesOfSteel: Very little can scare him, save for [[spoiler: Princess Luna becoming Nightmare Moon]]. Making him a good counterpoint to [[HotBlooded Kra]][[BloodKnight ber]].
* NotSoAboveItAll: Still, he has fairly goofy moments in Chapter 4 of ''Calm''.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname
* OnlySaneMan: Forced to play this role to Kraber, who, as it turns out, is very grateful for it.
* PinkElephants: Somehow managed to see [[spoiler: the Scribe, or a manifestation of her]] while drunk off his flank.
* RedOniBlueOni: A calming, more relaxed counterpoint to Kraber's boisterousness.

!!Yael Ze'ev
[[quoteright:298:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yael_ze_ev_by_haruaxeman-d818rg9_2057.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:298:"So... we couldn't ''not'' help them."]]
A female Israeli soldier, evidently quite high-ranked in the IDF that accompanies Kraber and Aegis in their raid on a Dead End in Detroit. [[AllthereInTheManual Other facts about her can only be found on]] [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/Yael-Ze-ev-485817849?ga_submit_new=10%253A1412207526 Fluffy's deviantart]]. She's FamedInStory for having fought the HLF on numerous occasions. She wanted to be a dancer before the war, but it quickly out a damper on that.

* BadassIsraeli: According to ''Many Faces'', she's from Tel Aviv.
* BeenThereShapedHistory: She was at Reykjavik and found the camera with footage of Queen Celestia, and was also a friend of [[WeHardlyKnewYe Sutra Cross]].
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Played with. Despite [[AllThereInTheManual having been lit on fire at least once]], there's still some facial scarring from the burns. Still, she looks pretty good for someone that was lit on fire.
* ButNotTooBlack: Half Ethiopian. Though the Ethiopian person was also Jewish.
* TheCassandra: As revealed in an interview in Last Train, she was of the opinion that the HLF was too dangerous to simply leave lying around in favor of entirely prioritizing the invasion. She apparently went to great lengths to prove her point, doing [[WellIntentionedExtremist things that are implied to have gotten her demoted.]]
* ChainmailBikini: Doctor Fluffy drew her for the express purpose of teaching himself to avert this.
* CloserToEarth: She's certainly more professional than Kraber, anyway. [[BloodKnight Not like that's hard...]]
* TheCynic: Crosses over with ProperlyParanoid in regards to her fears about the HLF and barrierfall.
* DeadLittleSister: Subverted - her sister's fine, and "her legs work again," but it's implied the HLF did something to her sister that made Yael snap.
* DeadpanSnarker
* DefrostingIceQueen: Becomes more trusting of Kraber over the course of her story.
* FamedInStory: For killing lots of HLF.
* FantasticRacism: Claims to have very nearly avoided this, saying that the ponies that made their way to Israel were so miserable she ''had'' to help.
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: She compares the Conversion War to UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust.
* GladToBeAliveSex: Has this with Kraber at the end of Chapter 5 of ''Calm''.
* NotAMorningPerson: If her interview with True Quill is anything to judge by.
* OnlySaneWoman: Serves as this to Kraber's squad, questioning his bizarre sense of humor and bloodlust.
** NotSoAboveItAll: However, she's just as prone to bloodlust and ultraviolence as the rest.
** NotSoDifferent: And it falls to Aegis to keep her from arguing with Kraber and bringing down the PER on them.
* IOweYouMyLife: She and Kraber have this going on - he saved her from a PER member by [[GroinAttack kicking him in the groin so hard his balls fell off]], and she shot a pegasus that was going to ponify him.
* PopCulturedBadass: She likes ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' just as much as Kraber and Aegis.
* ShallowLoveInterest: To Viktor Kraber. At least as of ''Calm''. Though Doctor Fluffy has promised that he's working on this.
* HeroicSelfDeprecation: Admits in an interview with True Quill that she and her country are somewhat paranoid. Though, InUniverse, both were ProperlyParanoid.
* StatuesqueStunner: She's "somewhere between 5'11 and 6 foot 3."
* VitriolicBestBuds: Seems to develop into this with Kraber and Aegis.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: It's implied that she is this, judging by the fears she had of being seen as a fascist for the measures she wanted to take against the HLF.
* WouldNotHurtAChild: Her standard response to foals in the PER is to take them to different parents to get adopted, instead of shooting them.

!!Heliotrope
[[quoteright:313:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1f0fc21c835781cc3762a55a39e897ae.png]]
[[caption-width-right:313: [[Anime/DeadLeaves have you seen my]]-oh, nevermind.]]
Yael Ze'ev's best friend, a somewhat sarcastic pegasus mare with a flight suit that lets her turn invisible.

* ActionGirl: Par for the course.
* AxCrazy: A mild case. She seems to enjoy flying without being noticed, and the fact that she went along with Kraber's plan to reference ''Anime/DeadLeaves'' while kicking a newfoal in the face shows a somewhat immature side to her.
* BeenThereShapedHistory: Served in the Crystal War repairing [[CoolAirship skyliners]], but never touched the Royal Guard charter, had the bad luck to be caught on the ''Great Equestrian'' when Kith and Kin exploded, and Kraber also shot her once. He did say he was sorry, though.
* GadgeteerGenius: She made the flight-suit herself.
* {{Invisibility}}
* VisualPun: Was only introduced into ''Calm'' so Doctor Fluffy could get away with saying "[[Anime/DeadLeaves Have you seen my heliotrope?]]"
* WalkingArmory: By pony standards. She wears wing blades, carries a big knife, and favors silenced rifles in her assault yoke.

!!Johnny C Heald
A PHL member [[EarlyBirdCameo first seen in]] ''Case Files'', [[ImprobableAimingSkills shooting a man's hand off with a kalashnikov]]. He's a friend of Kraber and Aegis at the time of ''Calm.''

* AuthorAvatar: He's essentially Doctor Fluffy with a different name.
** CreatorProvincialism: Right down to the area they call home.
* CulturedBadass: He has knowledge of philosophy, and does sketches when not on duty with the PHL.
** PopCulturedBadass: He's also a fan of WesternAnimation/TheVentureBros.
* GunNut: He can manage to identify PHL and HLF hardware by watching footage from a helicopter, while also probably drunk.
* HisNameReallyIsBarkeep: Apparently, his first name is actually "Johnny C".
* HonoraryUncle: Appears to have taken up this role for Dancing Day.
* NiceJewishBoy: one with a lot of firepower.
* RevolversAreJustBetter: Appears to own a revolver of the same type as Acevedo.
* WarriorPoet: He thinks he could be one... and promptly dismisses the notion.

!!Gilda (TCB)
The former friend of Rainbow Dash turned resistance fighter for the PHL.

* ActionGirl
* BadassPrincess[-/-]RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: She's revealed to be royalty, and certainly isn't afraid to get her claws dirty to fight.
* BigBadassBirdOfPrey
* CombatPragmatist: Uses her enemies' dead bodies as meat shields.
* TheGadfly: Towards Trevor.
* {{Jerkass}}: Fighting for a good cause hasn't made her a nicer person.
* LastOfHerKind: Not of her species (though the TCB!griffons aren't doing very well), but she's the last living member of the griffon royal family.

!!Iron Will (TCB)
The sole minotaur living in the TCB-verse, fighting alongside the PHL to avenge his race.

* {{Badass}}
* TheBigGuy
* DropTheHammer: His main weapon.
* ItsPersonal
* LastOfHisKind: For the minotaurs.
* ALoadOfBull
* TeamDad: Somewhat towards the raiding team in "The Bigger Score" since he usually has to diffuse fights and scolds Gilda and Trevor for their bickering.

!!Michael, Trevor, Franklin and Lester
The crew of ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' who've joined the resistance.

* AntiHero: Type V, all of them. Although they are definitely opposed to Queen Celestia, they are still not going to fight her unless they are paid handsomely.
* AscendedFanon: The reason why they're here. One fan wrote a DownerEnding [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/133962/1/the-conversion-bureau-the-other-side-of-the-spectrum-side-story-inner-rage/chapter-1 recursive fanfic centered around a ponified Trevor Philips]], and so he and the rest of the ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' crew appeared in the main story.
* AxCrazy: Trevor, naturally, mixed with HairTriggerTemper.
* BadassCrew
* CloudcuckoolandersMinder: Michael helps keep Trevor in line.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: They may be ruthless criminals, but even they're downright frightened of [[TheDreaded Queen Celestia]].
* NotInThisForYourRevolution: See OnlyInItForTheMoney.
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: While they, like every human not aligned with the PER, want to survive above all else, that doesn't mean they'll risk their lives for free.
* ShipTease: Between Franklin and a PHL mare named Shimmering Sigil.
* TokenEvilTeammate: All four serve as this to the PHL, though Trevor is the most obvious example, even amongst the crew themselves.
* VitriolicBestBuds: If there's one thing they share with the true-hearted ponies, it's the value they place on friendship.

!!Big Macintosh (TCB)
Applejack's big brother, secretly a PHL spy.

* AdultFear: He was rightfully and genuinely frightened that Applebloom could have become just as hateful and murderous towards the humans if she had stayed in the Empire any longer. And of course, there's his worries over how much Applejack changed for the worse, and [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone what]] [[DrivenToSuicide could]] happen if she were to realize exactly what she did to the humans and to her family.
* BigBrotherInstinct: Wants desperately to snap Applejack back to normal and worries a lot for Applebloom too. He also mentions giving Diamond Tiara food poisoning once for bullying Applebloom.
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: [[spoiler: Has just barely avoided this, claiming that "thoughts I know weren't mine" frequently appeared in his head while he was in TCB!Equestria]].
* DespairEventHorizon: In his own words, his grandmother's death, sister's radical personality changes, the propaganda, and TCB!Equestria in general has "hollowed [him] out like an old Nightmare Night pumpkin." On top of that, he's ''very'' aware that things will never be the same again thanks to the EndOfAnAge.
* MyGreatestFailure: He hates himself for letting Applejack allow the Newfoals to work on the farm and letting Sweet Apple Acres turn into what's essentially a slave plantation.
* ReverseMole: Being the brother of a BadLiar who is honest to a fault puts him in a great place to funnel vital information to the PHL.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: The entire point of his segment of the "Empire" chapter of ''Calm Before The Storm''.
* ShipTease: With TCB!Carrot Top.
* ThisIsUnforgivable: Joined the PHL because of what TCB!Applejack became.

!!Fancy Pants (TCB)
A aristocratic unicorn from Canterlot who aids the PHL from behind the scenes despite the risk it will put him through.

* {{BFS}}: [[spoiler: His magic allows him to wield ''five at the same time'', to be exact]].
* [[spoiler: DefiantToTheEnd]]: [[spoiler: After Queen Celestia discovers he's a PHL spy, she goes into his home to dispose of him personally. He refuses to go down without a fight, to say the least]].
** [[spoiler: DyingMomentOfAwesome]]: [[spoiler: He knows what's going to happen to him when Queen Celestia finds him. His response? Go out in the most badass way possible]].
* GenreSavvy: Knows full well that he's not in the old Equestria where "[[LampshadeHanging problems could be solved within thirty minutes and capped off with a speech]]."
* GentlemanAdventurer: Was an adventurer in his youth, and the spark hasn't gone out of him yet. [[spoiler: Sure enough, he goes down facing the most fierce beast he ever encountered, Queen Celestia herself]].
* HappilyMarried[-/-]MayDecemberRomance: With Fleur de Lis.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: After the Newfoals and authorities discover he's a PHL spy, he sends Fleur away to safety and then kills several Newfoals and Royal Guards before mouthing off to Queen Celestia]].
* ObfuscatingStupidity: On the outside, he's a foppish IdleRich aristocrat. In truth, he's a spy for the human/pony resistance.
* OhCrap: Has a massive one when he sees the Solar Empire's newest weapon against the human resistance.
* RedBaron: Far more {{Badass}} than his real name is his nickname, [[spoiler: "Five Blade Fancy"]].
* RetiredBadass: [[spoiler: He explored distant lands far beyond Equestria's borders, collected weapons from those places and even learned their fighting styles. He picks up the swords one last time to fight off the Newfoals and ensure Fleur escaped safely]].
* ReverseMole: Uses his social position, wealth, and connections to gain inside information to the Empire's secrets.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight
* UnclePennybags
* UnstoppableRage: Flies into this when [[spoiler: a Newfoal attempts to hurt a pregnant Fleur]].

[[/folder]]

[[folder: People (and ponies) on Earth]]

!!U.S. President Jack Davis
The current President of the USA on TCB!Earth.

* BewareTheNiceOnes: He's stated to be usually a pretty jovial fellow, but the stress of the war and lack of options drives him to give E.U. Military General Delon an earful.
* BigGood: To the human forces on Earth.
* TheChainsOfCommanding: Being the Commander-In-Chief during a near HopelessWar will inevitably wear a man down. King William notes that he's been aging prematurely.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With King William V of Great Britain.
* OurPresidentsAreDifferent: A President Personable on a good day, which there haven't been many of lately.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Is the first of the world leaders to give Canon!Luna and [[spoiler: Discord]] a chance, if only because [[GodzillaThreshold they just have no other options on the table]].
* RousingSpeech: Naturally.

!!Megan Renee, née [[spoiler: Williams]]
Marcus's late mother. [[spoiler: She was [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTVSpecials the very same Megan who traveled to the ponies' world many years ago, and vanquished Tirek]]]].

* AllGirlsLikePonies: Justified, as she worked on and eventually inherited her family's ranch.
* CannotSpitItOut: In the "Final Words" mini-chapter, [[spoiler:Marcus realizes in retrospect that his mother ''did'' want to tell him and Jacob about her adventures when TCB!Equestria manifested on earth and her suspicions about the conversion bureaus, but was scared that they [[CassandraTruth wouldn't take her seriously]]]].
* DarkSecret: [[spoiler: Not exactly a "dark" one, but she, Molly, and Danny never told ''anyone'' about their adventures in Dream Valley. Not even as a bedtime story to Marcus and Jacob. It's possible that this was out of habit, given that she was afraid their parents would throw them into the crazy house if they ever uttered a word about their adventures]].
** LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain
* DespairEventHorizon: Seeing Jacob's ponification caused her to have a stress-induced heart attack.
* DroppedABridgeOnHer: A short bit of exposition revealed she died in the beginning days of the war due a stress-induced heart attack brought on by finding out her second son Jacob was ponified. On that same note, [[spoiler: her siblings Molly and Danny were also killed a year into the war during a crossfire between the PER and the police]].
* GenerationXerox: [[spoiler: Her legacy of dealing with ponies (and her brave {{Determinator}} streak) have been passed down to Marcus]]. Lampshaded by Canon!Applejack.
-->'''Applejack:''' ([[spoiler:while watching a clip of Megan fighting against Tirek]]) "And suddenly, a lot of [Marcus'] antics make sense. Gotta be something {{in the blood}} an' bone."
* [[GoodParents Good Parent]]
* HonoraryAunt: Was this towards Porter as a kid.
* [[spoiler: KidHero]]: [[spoiler: Was one in her youth]].
* MisBlamed: InUniverse... Kinda. [[spoiler:Turns out that she visited ''Canon!Equestria'' in the past, so the Bag of Tirek in TCB!Equestria basically [[MisplacedRetribution is taking revenge on the "wrong" Megan]]]].
* PosthumousCharacter
* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler:Thanks to TheReveal that she is the very same Megan that ventured through Dream Valley and defeated Tirek]].
* WidowWoman: After her husband's death in the Gulf War, she raised Marcus and Jacob all by herself.

!!Stalwart Heart (real name: Jacob Renee)
Marcus's brother and TCB!Twilight's late husband, whom Marcus was forced to kill after Jacob turned into a Newfoal.

* CainAndAbel: The kind where Abel slays Cain, and the latter wasn't responsible for their actions.
* CynicismCatalyst: Not that Marcus was ever much of an idealist to begin with, but killing his own little brother added another layer of trauma to his psyche.
* DistressedDude: If [[spoiler: having his very soul broken and bound to Queen Celestia's will]] and being imprisoned in an alien's body doesn't qualify him as one, nothing will.
* DoubleStandardRapeFemaleOnMale: Averted. While his bedroom activities with TCB!Twilight is one of the few things the story doesn't go into detail about, the Newfoals' lack of ability to say no to anything is treated as appropriately horrifying.
** Doctor Fluffy wasn't above making a joke about how Twilight made Jacob give her a "[[WesternAnimation/TheVentureBros Rusty Venture]]", however.
* FlatCharacter: He's Marcus' deceased brother, worked for the Secret Services, fell to the potion, got claimed by TCB!Twilight for her own, and... that's really all we know about him.
* OurFounder: The Solar Empire, presumably to spite Marcus, advertises Stalwart Heart as an example of the perfect Newfoal.
* PosthumousCharacter
* PraetorianGuard: Served as one of the U.S. President's Secret Servicemen.
* UnholyMatrimony: Was briefly married to TCB!Twilight.
* WeCanRuleTogether: Makes this offer to Marcus during the attack on Washington D.C.; when he refuses, Stalwart threatens Cheerilee, forcing Marcus to kill him.

!!Flower Pepper (real name: Eun-Hee Lee)
A former reporter for KBS News who was among those attending the fateful press conference in Switzerland that ended with her and numerous other reporters forcibly ponified on camera.

* TheCameo: The ''Shades of the Unsung'' side story features a newspaper article/propaganda piece written by her.
* DeadlineNews: Her and her fellow reporters' forceful ponification on live TV is what [[ThisMeansWar kicked off the war]].
* FlatCharacter: She was a news reporter, a friend of Yon-Soo's, was Porter's girlfriend, got ponified... and that's basically it.
* HotScoop: Was this as a human.
* InformedAttribute: She was friends with Yon-Soo (due to them working in the same TV station), but not a lot has been explored on that.
* TheLostLenore: For Porter. She can also count as a platonic example to Yon-Soo.
* MeaningfulName: [[http://www.fimfiction.net/blog/380738/lets-meet-some-ponies Word of Kizuna]] states the "pepper" part of her newfoal name is a reference to how Korean food can often be [[FireBreathingDiner quite spicy]]. Flower pepper is also an alternate name of the Szechuan pepper, which was suggested by a commenter.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: Her eyes turned bright red after she was ponified.
* YoureInsane: She screamed at Queen Celestia that she can't force ponification on the humans. She gets subjected to AFateWorseThanDeath for her defiance.

!!Isaac Acevedo
The protagonist of the Starvation Side-Story. Works as a guard for Crowe Labs in Rio de Janeiro. Appears to have been an avid artist before the war broke out, judging from the various hobbies mentioned.

* TheAtoner
* BiTheWay
* GenreSavvy: At least where alternate history is concerned.
* GunNut: Really likes his guns, if the story is any indication.
* GunPorn: He tries to go in depth about his Taurus revolver before Button Mash cuts him off.
* HeroicBSOD[-/-]MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Surviving in his universe means doing things one will regret.
* IcyBlueEyes: He says they look like a husky's.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Button Mash.
* InUniverseNickname: "TheButcher". And he isn't proud of it...
* [[spoiler: NoPartyLikeADonnerParty]]: [[spoiler: His hunger drives him to eat a dead Newfoal which had tried to kill him]].
* ParentalSubstitute: Adopts a pegasus filly named Autumn Showers. [[spoiler: It's part of his atonement for cannibalizing a Newfoal]].
* PopCulturedBadass: He loves ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'' and ''Film/PacificRim'', and throws many other {{Shout Out}}s through his monologue. Also, he's a fan of AlternateHistory novels, specifically ''Literature/SixteenThirtyTwo'', and plans to use his knowledge of Alternate History tropes to find out where TCB!Equestria went wrong. [[spoiler: Needless to say, he doesn't like the answers, but it doesn't change his opinions on TCB!Lyra]].
* PurpleProse: The entire story is a rambling monologue by him. Possibly justified in that he's in shock and trying to rationalize a horrible situation.
* SleepingWithTheBoss: Thaddeus Crowe mentions that Isaac is ''very'' good in bed, though it's unclear if they're an actual couple or just FriendsWithBenefits.
* WarRefugees
* WhiteMaleLead: Zigzagged - he's ethnically Brazilian but has Caucasian features, the extent which include dark brown hair and IcyBlueEyes. Not much else is known, other than the fact that he has a mustache.

!!Dr. Isaac Dan Der Grimnebulin (real name unknown)
A doctor also living in Rio, Acevedo's roommate, who specializes in fixing pegasus wings.

* AmbiguouslyBrown
* AttentionDeficitOohShiny: Has a minor problem with that... at least in casual conversation. It doesn't seem to affect his medical prowess though.
* ButNotTooForeign: His ethnic background is unknown, but it's implied to be varied. Lampshaded when Twilight admits his facial features don't match with any one human ethnicity she's seen.
* CloudCuckooLander: He has no bedside manner whatsoever, frequently going off on only slightly related tangents.
* DeadpanSnarker: Upon Icewind's betrayal:
-->"Well, ''this'' won't bite us in the ass later."
* TheMedic
* MotorMouth: He does ''not'' stop talking.
* MysteriousPast: For starters, "Isaac Dan Der Grimnebulin" is not his real name, and he's implied to be Turkish. He also mentions treating an HLF soldier at least once.
* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: He's well-versed in magic, equine and human biology, among several other subjects.
* OneSteveLimit: Averted. He and Acevedo live in an apartment with "The Two Isaacs of Rio" written on the door. Although Isaac isn't his birth name.
* ShoutOut: His name is one to ''Literature/PerdidoStreetStation''. Not only that, but it's mentioned that he knows how to treat pegasus wings, which is similar to the project that the protagonist of ''Perdido Street Station'' undertakes at the beginning of the novel.
* WarRefugees

!![[WebAnimation/ButtonsAdventures Button Mash]] (TCB)
A young earth colt refugee from Queen Celestia's regime, friend to Acevedo.

* AdaptationalAttractiveness[-/-]HeIsAllGrownUp: He's older than his canon universe counterpart and Canon!Rarity and Canon!Octavia comment he grew up into quite a handsome stallion.
* {{Fanboy}}: Of video games, naturally.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Acevedo.
* MouthyKid: Has his moments.
* ShipTease: With TCB!Sweetie Belle, whom he intends to see again once the war is over.
* TheSmartGuy: Knows how a railgun works. In great detail too.
* VagueAge: Octavia thinks his canon counterpart is either nine or eleven, claiming that [[LampshadeHanging it's so hard to tell how old colts and fillies in Ponyville are]]. TCB!Button's most definitely a teenager at this point, though.
** What's odd about this is that one of Button's first lines on ''WebAnimation/ButtonsAdventures'' is that he's eight years old.
* WarRefugees

!![[WebAnimation/ButtonsAdventures Button Mash's Mother]] (TCB)
Button's mother, also a refugee. She has a currently undefined job at a hospital, which involves caring for children – including Newfoals.

* DotingParent: Was one to Button when he was little, but see EveryoneHasStandards.
* EveryoneHasStandards: According to Button, she absolutely cannot stand working with Newfoal children. Considering the fact that she actually survived raising [[MouthyKid Button]], this says volumes about how unbearable they are. Not only that, but the unicorn Newfoals [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior kept stabbing her so much that she had to order specially-made horn blockers]].
* TheGhost: Is only briefly mentioned in the Starvation Side-Story.
* HiddenDepths[-/-]IMinoredInTropology: Has a degree in child psychology, of all things.
* WarRefugees

!!Thaddeus Crowe
A prominent industrialist operating from Rio de Janeiro, whose company specializes in the majority of the {{Magitek}} products made on Earth.

* AdultChild: Has various moments of questionable maturity.
** DumbassHasAPoint: However, he's one of the very few characters that points out the utter absurdity of the situation:
-->"Sum, you're technically an alien to us. You're a magical unicorn from another universe, the leader of which is currently trying to turn us all into horse zombies. [[ArbitrarySkepticism What's so silly about aliens from beyond our solar system]]?"
* AttentionDeficitOohShiny: Though it's more of a tendency to go off on tangents while still remembering the original subject.
* BenevolentBoss
* HonestCorporateExecutive: Though no [[VideoGame/DeusExHumanRevolution David Sarif]], he's far more scrupulous than the average tycoon in a {{Cyberpunk}} setting. On top of that, he seems to genuinely want to help the PHL and holds a moral compass, having kept information about harvesting alicornal tissue from newfoals private to keep people from going crazy with it. And there's this quote:
-->'''Crowe:''' "Yeah, continued survival is better than cash in this case. I am NOT extorting the guys that are saving the human race."
* InterspeciesRomance: Crowe isn't mentioned to have a steady partner, but he is open to inviting his pony subordinates for dinner.
* InUniverseNickname: "[[WesternAnimation/TheVentureBros Rusty]]".
* IOwnThisTown: Prior to the war, he apparently was making some headway in improving Rio's general quality of life; this went south very quickly after the war began and refugees began flooding into Rio.
* OfficeRomance: "Romance" may not be the right term, yet he does inwardly mention that he found Isaac Acevedo to be good in bed.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Delivers one to a concept rather than a person when he lays out in detail why [[HomeworldEvacuation trying to flee the planet]] from an enemy that can hop between dimensions would be a fool's errand.
* StraightGay

!!Enitan Adebayo
A radio show narrator from Nigeria who tells of stories on the front line of Africa, often broadcasting live.

* ActionGirl
* {{Expy}}: Is a black, female Nigerian expy of [[Podcast/WelcomeToNightVale Cecil Gershwin Palmer]].
* MeaningfulName: Her first name means "person of stories," or "sum total of all the myths, songs, histories and other cultural concepts which make up religion and society" in Yoruban. Ironically, her last name means "(s)he came in a joyful time". [[EarthIsABattlefield At least]], [[HopelessWar not at]] [[CrapsackWorld the moment]].
* MsExposition
* RousingSpeech: Comes with her job.
* ShownTheirWork: Her full name is in fully accurate Yoruban.
* TheStoic: Has a level headed demeanor and an even tone in her narration.
** NotSoStoic: Though she can deliver passionate and charged speeches when the occasion calls for it.
* StraightGay: Mentions having a wife.
** FridgeLogic: Nigerian homosexuality laws must have a changed a lot since the war began...
*** FridgeBrilliance: Of course, the initial chaos of the war might have something to do with it.
* VoiceOfTheResistance

!!Obayana Adebayo
Enitan Adebayo's brother, a huge Nigerian man in charge of his PHL-allied unit.

* ActionDad: He doesn't know what happened to his daughter in the evacuation of Lagos. He's still fighting.
* AFatherToHisMen
* {{Badass}}
* {{BFG}}: Carries a "huge" (and made up) NS2018 shotgun.
* TheBigGuy
* GunsAkimbo: Fires a semiautomatic shotgun and a Kalashnikov with a 60-round magazine, [[VideoGame/{{Borderlands 2}} Salvador-style]].
* {{Mangst}}: He doesn't know what happened to his daughter, Yekemi, and he's afraid he could end up killing her when fighting Newfoals. Still, he hopes she is still alive.
* RevolversAreJustBetter: Carries a large revolver, presumably a HandCannon, that Enitan says he looted from HLF units.
* ShoutingShooter:
-->"YOU THINK YOU CAN TAKE MY FAMILY?! YOU THINK YOU CAN TAKE THESE MEN AND WOMEN?! BRING IT ON! BEND OVER AND TAKE IT, [[ThisIsForEmphasisBitch BITCH]]!"
* {{Transplant}}: Shares the name of a character in Doctor Fluffy's deviantart, from another project of his.
* YouWouldntLikeMeWhenImAngry[-/-]HairTriggerTemper: Don't piss him off.

!!Coal Embers
A young unicorn defector from TCB!Equestria, who records her exploits for Crowe Labs.

* AxCrazy: She's a bit ''too'' enthusiastic about lighting Newfoals and PER agents on fire.
* BerserkButton: Being called a filly.
* BigEater: Really loves her pasta.
* DefectorFromDecadence
* {{Expy}}: Her color scheme is lifted from [[Anime/KillLaKill Ryuko Matoi]].
* KillItWithFire: How she fights off the PER and Newfoals.
* LittleMissBadass
* PurpleProse: Her record logs are like rambling monologues. Justified in that she has to go into as much detail as possible – there's a mention of the accu-vox manual stating she needs to be descriptive.
* TrainingFromHell: She suggests that Cheerilee put herself through this to become more proficient with her runic magic.
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: This quote says it all:
-->"No, let the fucker burn!"
* VagueAge: She's fairly young but doesn't take kindly to being treated like a little kid. Most possibly she's around the pony equivalent of a teenager.

!!Dr. Ernst Kasparek
An ex-PER member who grew disillusioned with the methods his allies were using. He defected to the PHL, bringing enchanted equipment that helped them to make leaps and bounds in magic enhancements. The good doctor suffered for his change of heart, though – [[GeniusCripple thanks to the beatings he received while trying to deliver the gear, his body is a wreck]].

* TheAtoner
* DefectorFromDecadence
* TheDeterminator: Need to get to America? Steal a plane and land in New York, with only a shotgun for defense. Legs broken by PER? Use cruise control to drive instead.
* GeniusCripple: Granted, the "cripple" part is a new development thanks to the PER.
* HerrDoktor: Subverted, he's Latvian.
* IHaveNoSon: Inverted. He states his daughter has cut off all ties with him due to his association with the PER, and won't ever speak to him.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Holds a lot of guilt and self-hatred for his previous alignment with the PER.
* SirSwearsALot: Justified. He is very, very displeased about his previous faction, at one point saying that the PHL should do this to the PER's founder:
-->"Reitman? [[Anime/DeadLeaves Whack that evil whore for all the crap she put the world through, you've got to rip off her head and piss in her skull!]]"
* VagueAge: It's never made entirely clear how old he is. He refers to himself as an old man, but it's hinted his aged appearance was caused by the physical torture he underwent for his defection from the PER.
* YouNoTakeCandle: Speaks in an odd and somewhat broken fashion, similar to Anya's grandfather from ''VideoGame/WolfensteinTheNewOrder''. Justified as English likely isn't his first language.

!!Rebecca Kleiner
[[quoteright:298:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/captain_rebecca_kleiner__pacific_queen__by_haruaxeman-d8c75u2_6830.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:298:"The Pacific Queen."]]
A U.S. Navy Captain working to eradicate the PER all across the Southern Pacific Ocean.

* ActionGirl
* [[AFatherToHisMen A Mother to Her Men]]
* BattleCouple: With Thunderwing.
* ButNotTooForeign: She's half-Japanese, half-American.
* TheCaptain: Of the Stampede Fleet.
* TheDreaded: To the PER forces stationed in the Pacific.
* {{Expy}}: [[WordOfGod Doctor Fluffy states]] he based her looks off of [[Anime/GhostInTheShell Motoko Kusanagi]].
* InterspeciesRomance: With a pegasus stallion named Thunderwing.
* MilitaryBrat: Stated as such in her biography.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure
* RedBaron: Over the course of the war, she earned the nickname "The Pacific Queen".
* TakeOurWordForIt: Most of her and her crew's exploits are relegated to exposition, but they are credited for striking fear into the hearts of the PER that took up strongholds in the Southeastern Asian Islands and giving hope to the local refugees.
** We get to see the fleet in action in ''Calm Before the Storm''.
* ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend: For Thunderwing. Justified, as he was a target of HLF sympathizers on account of being a pony, and the PER and other Solar Empire loyalists would love nothing more than to punish him for his "betrayal". Thunderwing remembers her having threatened to throw people into boat propellers if they threatened him. She claims that she didn't, as that'd be a terrible way to do things.

!!Thunderwing
A pegasus stallion, lover of Capt. Rebecca Kleiner and one of the leaders of the Stampede Fleet, a military group dedicated to snuffing the PER out of Southeast Asia.

* AllMenArePerverts: With regards to his girlfriend at least.
* AwesomeMcCoolname
* BattleCouple: With Rebecca.
* BlowYouAway
* GeniusBruiser: His biography states he was a meteorologist before the war broke out.
* InterspeciesRomance: With Rebecca.
* RedBaron: He's known as "Storm Bringer".
* TakeOurWordForIt: His and Rebecca's exploits are mostly exposition from the ''Case Files'' side-story. We get to see them in action during ''Calm'' however.

!!Lightning Dust
The protagonist of ''Last Train From Oblivion'' and the canon counterpart of TCB!Dash's wingmare, who is mysteriously sent to Earth by the spiritual embodiments of the Elements of Harmony.

* [[ArrogantKungFuGuy Arrogant Speedy Flyer Gal]]
* BreakTheHaughty
* CosmicPlaything: As if it weren't enough for Lightning to get pulled out of her home dimension [[EquivalentExchange to compensate for Marcus's arrival in Equestria]], she also ends up on Earth a week prior to the events of the main story. On top of that, something somehow changed her cutie mark.
* FutureMeScaresMe: Seeing the kind of pony she could become serves as a wake-up call for her.
* {{Jerkass}}
** TookALevelInKindness: Earth has been so disturbing to her that she's actually developed moral standards.
* MadnessMantra: Earth's sheer ''difference'' from Equestria has, to put it lightly, not had the best effect on her sanity. "Work the problem" appears to be one for her.
* MistakenForBadass: The Solar Empire and PER think she's TCB!Lightning Dust. If they find out she's not, it won't end well.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Having initially been unaware of the full effects of the conversion potion, Lightning ponified several babies. The results are so horrifying and unsettling that she gets hit with a massive HeroicBSOD and then lashes out at Nurse Mercy.
* NaiveNewcomer: A less sympathetic example than most, but few people deserve all the trouble that has befallen her.
* {{Pride}}: Wants to beat the fabled exploit of a "young rainbow-maned filly from Cloudsdale" who pulled off a Sonic Rainboom. Since the story's Canon!Equestria is based on the show's continuity up until the end of Season 2, this Lightning [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E7WonderboltsAcademy never met or befriended Rainbow Dash]].
* RageBreakingPoint: She finally hits this after getting fed up with Maddy spouting off a bunch of pro-PER/Solar Empire rhetoric, screaming a BigShutUp and giving her a mild TheReasonYouSuckSpeech.
* TraumaCongaLine: Lightning is the very first of the Canon!Ponies to arrive on Earth, and it doesn't turn out to be a good day for her.

!!Verity Carter
An earth pony Newfoal, former HLF member and the only known human not to fully succumb to the effects of Conversion.

* AmbiguouslyEvil
* {{Animorphism}}
* AntiHero: She used to be an operative for the HLF and still shares some of their anti-pony views.
* BloodKnight
* ClosetGeek: Has a love of comic books which stems in no small part from her mother being a comic book artist.
* ColorMeBlack[-/-]KarmicTransformation: She was a member of the HLF, who are so violently anti-pony that they refuse to believe there actually are good ponies out there that really do want to help the humans. Her transformation into a pony (while still retaining her mind) forces her to gain some perspective on this.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Subverted. The HLF turned on her for becoming "one of the enemy", but she doesn't hold it against them much.
* {{Gayngst}}: Back in High School, she had a girlfriend named Astrid who broke up with her, calling their relationship [[InternalizedCategorism "wrong"]] (it's implied her father pressured her into the breakup) and she hasn't seen her since. This is just one of the [[YouKilledMyFather many]], ''[[KarmicTransformation many]]'' bits of baggage hanging off of her.
* HappilyAdopted: The timeline states that she was the result of an unplanned pregnancy and her birth mother put her up for adoption. Verity went on to live a happy life with the Carter family... until things went down the drain.
* ItsPersonal: Verity's mother, Jazmin, suffered from the early symptoms of Alzheimer's and took the ponification serum at a Boston hospital to cure it. Not only did Jazmin undergo the personality changes that come with being a newfoal, but [[spoiler:she was also UsefulNotes/{{Transgender}}, and was turned into a stallion by the potion]], and left the family shortly after getting turned, causing Verity and her father Mike to join the HLF.
* MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch: A Newfoal who neither worships Queen Celestia nor wants to convert humanity.
* NotSoDifferent[=/=]ShadowArchetype: [[https://www.fimfiction.net/group/206246/spectrum-crew/thread/150475/a-theory-about-kraber-and-verity Doctor Fluffy suspects this is true of her]] and Kraber, the idea being that the reason they hate each other is that they're very similar to each other.
* PhlebotinumRebel: For some (currently) unknown reason, she is the only Newfoal in existence that has managed to still retain her original personality and free will.
** Then again, considering how some people in the PHL stated that Verity is not actually a newfoal, it's questionable as to how much of a rebel she really is.
* SeekerArchetype: Is searching for Maud Pie; there seems to be little love lost between the two.
* SpicyLatina: Downplayed. She's of Hispanic descent thanks to her biological family, but she's not exactly a sexual person and any fanservice of her is nonexistent. She's definitely tough, brash and confrontational though.
* StraightGay: Given her mentions of an ex-girlfriend named Astrid.
* TheUnreveal: Has happened so many times that it almost qualifies as a RunningGag. It's nearly revealed, [[RuleOfThree three times]] in Calm, only for it to be interrupted once by newfoals attacking, another by an explosion, and the third by the end of the chapter. Kraber and Aegis get in a discussion about whatever it was that caused it in ''Many Faces'', while never actually explaining it, and ''Light'' has danced around the issue like a pretty ballerina.
* VitriolicBestBuds: 'Buds' would be stretching it, but she and Kraber do ''not'' get along, especially after she gets ponified. However, there's enough moments of understanding between them in chapter 5 of ''Light'' to qualify them as this.

!!Stellar Wind
The main character of ''Adrift'', he's unicorn who left Equestria in order to pursue a life on Earth, only to be dragged into a smuggler group.

* {{Adorkable}}
* AwesomeMcCoolname
* AudienceSurrogate: He serves as this.
* BeenThereShapedHistory: He witnessed the aftermath of the car bomb meant to kill Lyra.
* BloodSplatteredInnocents: Had three crewmembers shot right in front of him, and he gets forced to hide beneath their corpses.
* BreakTheCutie: The events he experienced in London and on board the ''Mamayev Kurgan'' is slowly doing this to him.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Has some shades of this; he claims to have witnessed humanoid robots in St. Paul's Cathedral.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Subverted. While he did leave TCB!Equestria, it wasn't because of a sense of growing wrongness. He's simply interested in humans.
* MrExposition: Considering that the entire story is told from his narration...
** He drops in a huge InfoDump at the end of the first chapter.
* NiceGuy
* TheEveryman: Is pretty much this compared to the other protagonists.
** UnfazedEveryman: In spite of all the weirdness surrounding TCB!Earth and Equestria, he takes it all with stride.
* ObliviousToLove: Ana is strongly hinted to have feelings for him. Naturally, Stellar doesn't notice this.
* ThePollyanna: In spite of Earth's impending doom, and the implication that [[spoiler: he's one of the last surviving crewmembers of the ''Mamayev Kurgan'']], he's surprisingly cheerful. Justified, as he spent most of the war in an Antarctic base.
** StepfordSmiler: However, it's also clear that he's in a lot of pain over leaving Equestria and seeing all the horrible things his fellow ponies have been doing to the humans. He also noticeably breaks his laid back demeanor when talking about the Newfoals beating up the bomber's corpse as well as when reminiscing about his old life in Equestria, knowing well that [[YouCantGoHomeAgain there's really no home for him to go back to there]].
* SuddenlyShouting: Tends to do this at times, most notably when talking about [[TheDreaded Viktor]] [[AxCrazy Kraber]].
* TokenGoodTeammate: While the other members of the crew are experienced with illegal activities, Stellar is an all-around NiceGuy who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

!!The Interviewer/Umbrella Man (real name: [[spoiler: Mycroft Holmes]])
A rather shady man who interviews Stellar in ''Adrift''. He works for the PHL in some unknown capacity. [[spoiler: As his database profile name implies, he's [[Series/{{Sherlock}} Mycroft Holmes]]]].

* AlmightyJanitor: His dialogue suggests that he holds a much higher office/position than just being an interviewer.
* TheComicallySerious: He's much more grounded and serious than many other characters in the Spectrumverse. That being said, he's often bewildered by the absurdities in ''Adrift''.
* CelebrityParadox: An odd variant is played out, due to the nature of alternate universes; the existence of ''Sherclop Pones'' baffles him, implying that ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' exists in Spectrum. [[spoiler: Actually played straight. The ''real'' reason why is because he's the older brother of Sherlock Holmes himself]].
* DeadpanSnarker: He gives jabs at the notion of Stellar failing to identify a foreign head head of state.
* GoodCopBadCop: Downplayed. Compared to the warm and kind Molly, he's much more distant and professional in his interview sessions.
* LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain: See NoodleIncident below.
* TheMenInBlack: Stellar speculates he is one of these.
* NoodleIncident:
** He's had a run in with Aegis before. He doesn't want to talk about it.
** He also had an encounter with a newfoal that he's had the "misfortune to witness", an oddly specific reference.
* NotSoAboveItAll: For all his professionalism, he just rolls with Stellar nicknaming him the Umbrella Man.
* OnlySaneMan: He's pretty stumped by some of the sillier aspects of the story and universe in general.

!!Mei Ling Yeung
The leader and founder of The Underground/The Bridle Path, a group of smugglers that help get human and pony refugees out of China.

* ActionGirl: An older example, as she's in her forties.
** LadyOfWar
* TheArcher: Uses a bow and arrow in the shadows.
* BoyishShortHair: As described by Yon-Soo. Justified, as long hair would be impractical to have in battle situations.
* TheLeader: For The Underground.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Crew and Passengers of the CPX-9782]]

Over the course of its journey, the last train to evacuate Halifax is host to a variety of refugees, warriors, madmen and sociopaths.

* BadassCrew: Subverted. Many of them are total strangers that can barely stand each other, and are struggling to get out of this one journey alive.
* CanadaEh: Jean-Eric and several other members of the train crew.
* DysfunctionJunction: Heh, junction...
* GratuitousFrench: Some of the crew are French-speaking Nova Scotians.
* RagtagBunchOfMisfits
* TeethClenchedTeamwork

!!Teresa "Tess" Jones
The Welsh-born conductor of the CPX-9782.

* ActionSurvivor: As [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/207968/5/last-train-from-oblivion/mercy-among-the-children#comment/5128769 Red Bomber]] pointed out, Tess can be read as a deconstruction of this. For all that she's survived, for all the levels in badass she's taking, it doesn't mean she isn't traumatized as can be.
* AloofDarkHairedGirl
* AntiHero: In a story filled with action heroes that fight in unison for humanity and ponykind, Tess stands out as a regular civilian who lacks proper training and skill with weapons, and harbors a strong dislike towards all ponies. And she slips further into darkness as her story progresses.
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Averted. Being a WrenchWench isn't glamorous to begin with, but lack of facilities has left her unable to shower either.
** CoveredInScars: From weeks of hard labor on the railroad without a rest break.
* DeathSeeker
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Despite the war having gone on for three long years by this point, the British-born Tess is still far less at ease about using firearms than her North American companions.
* EmotionlessGirl: Is very emotionally withdrawn, and the only feeling she seems able to express with any passion is a hatred of the ponies.
* EveryoneHasStandards: She hates the PER with every fiber of her being, but she does call Lightning out on cussing at Maddy, a ten year old PER member.
* FailureKnight: Mother of God, poor Tess.
* FantasticRacism: While she's no HLF fanatic, Tess has seen too many atrocities committed by ponies for her to trust the PHL.
* TraumaCongaLine: Tess is revealed to have faced one in the past – namely, she [[spoiler:left her family to die, completely on accident]]. And there's the fact that she's accidentally killed multiple civilians... twice. Losing Jean and even Firelock just adds even more to the list.
* WrenchWench: She also helps to maintain the functions of the train. Deconstructed to some degree, as in her own words, it's had a terrible effect on her health.
-->'''Tess:''' "You do not want to sniff my smalls... I've not had a shower in about two weeks, so my B.O could be used by Kagan Burakgazi as a chemical weapon, and I cut my hair with a pocket-knife. I sleep in boxcars and locomotive cabs. Half the insulation I've got against the cold comes from the grease and loco-grime I've picked up along the way. I wear gloves all the time because my hands are so dried-out from constantly handling paraffin and diesel, that the skin on my knuckles cracks every time I make a fist..."

!!Jean-Eric Voight
CPX-9782's engineer.

* BlackDudeDiesFirst: The first of the original crew to kick the bucket.
* CoolOldGuy
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: Tess is forced to MercyKill him as he's being converted.
* NiceGuy: Likely the most stable and moral person on the train, for what it's worth.
* OnlySaneMan
* ParentalSubstitute: Acts as one to Tess, though she tries to keep him at a distance for fear of being hurt again.
* TokenMinority: He is Caribbean-Canadian.

!!Ambrose Hex
A PHL colonel who briefly travels aboard the train while it flees Halifax.

* ColonelBadass: To some extent.
* DeadpanSnarker: Particularly in regards to Tess.
* {{Jerkass}}: Admittedly, it's hard to blame him under the circumstances.
* OnlySaneMan: Acts the part, but the truth of the matter is debatable.

!!Claire and Laura
A pair of PHL members the crew encounter in Truro.

* {{Blood Knight}}s
* GunNut: Their primary sidearms are both taken directly from the ''Hellsing'' mythos: Claire weilds Alucard's 13mm Jackal, while Laura carries his .454 Casul.
* PsychoLesbian: Well, Laura's psychotic, and she does go for the ladies, but she's not a stalker or madly in love with anyone.
* SociopathicHero: Laura fights only for the thrill of it and [[IFightForTheStrongestSide for what she believes will be the winning side]].
* TokenEvilTeammate: The PHL aren't a spotlessly "heroic" organization, but very few of them are as willfully depraved as Laura.
* {{Ubermensch}}: Laura believes she is one, enough to seek to mold other people into becoming amoral sociopaths. She seems to have succeeded with Claire, and has quickly planted a few ideas in Tess too.
** Although her intention to get a kick out of the world ending makes her closer to a NietzscheWannabe.

!!Firelock (TCB)
An orphan filly affiliated with the PHL.

* AscendedExtra: Based on a canon background filly commonly called "Firelock".
* ChildSoldier
* CreepyChild
* TheFundamentalist: Maybe. She swears in Lyra's name quite a bit, though Lyra never claimed to be a goddess or messiah.
* GunNut: Uses her knowledge of firearms to teach Tess how to use one properly.
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior
* WeHardlyKnewYe

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Dragons of the East]]

!!The Dragons of the East
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dragons_of_the_east_by_haruaxeman-d8c75xd_6442.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The Legends themselves. Want a bigger size? It can be found [[http://haruaxeman.deviantart.com/art/Dragons-Of-The-East-504219073 HERE]]. Humans (from left to right): Khan Aitmatov, Ivan Melnik, Yon-Soo Park, Porter Stanley, Hyong-Jin Kang and Sergei Zaslavski. Ponies (from left to right): Blizzard Flurry, Firebrand, Aquamarine Glimmer and Comet Tail.]]
The main characters of the Asia Side-Story. By the time of the main story, they are known as one of the greatest symbols of the Asian resistance. Their members include a mixture of humans and ponies who run the spectrum from professional soldiers to civilians who've taken the call to arms. Listed below are the tropes that apply to them as a group.

* BadassCrew
* {{Badass Normal}}s: The human members anyway. They might not have runes or magical weapons, but their resourcefulness, skills and teamwork have been valuable to their survival.
* TheDreaded: To any of their enemies, including the PER, HLF, and the Solar Empire's forces, due to the sheer amount of destruction they dish out.
* MultinationalTeam: Their roster includes a South Korean, an American, a North Korean, three Russians, and four ponies.
* RagtagBunchOfMisfits
* RedBaron: As a group, they have their Dragons moniker, which Porter's little brother finds rather funny.
* TrueCompanions: They will stick to each other till the end.

!!Yon-Soo Park
The protagonist of the Asia Side-Story. A former celebrity from South Korea who takes the call to arms when Queen Celestia declares war on humanity.

* ActionSurvivor: Started off as one. Justified, as he did have some military training long before the war.
* AudienceSurrogate[-/-]LeadYouCanRelateTo: Whereas Marcus and Stephan are career soldiers with a lot of previous wartime experience, and most other heroic characters have clearly been fighting a long time, Yon-Soo is more of a [[{{Everyman}} regular civilian]] (or as regular as an actor/singer/model can be) who takes on the CallToAdventure, and starts off scared and way in over his head, only surviving through sheer luck but he gets more competent over time (though he's still not quite used to the harsher and more visceral aspects of war).
* CelebritySurvivor: Was a [[IdolSinger pop star]], soap opera actor, and a model before the war.
* ComicBookFantasyCasting: He's modeled off South Korean actor Lee Min-Ho.
* DefiantToTheEnd: Decided to go out taking down as many PER and Newfoals as he could, and mouthed off at them when he thought he would get ponified.
* FriendToAllChildren: He helps to teach civilian human children how to defend themselves (and is disgusted at what the Empire is forcing humanity to resort to), and instantly befriends pegasus filly Comet Tail.
* TheHero: Of the Asia Side-Story. Though he could also count as a SupportingProtagonist. He is also technically TheLancer to Porter's [[TheLeader Leader]].
* HeroicBSOD: Gets a brief but hard one when he is forced to MercyKill a fellow soldier that got doused in the potion. He then recovers and channels his anger into fighting Newfoals.
* TheKirk: To Porter's [[TheSpock Spock]] and Hyong-Jin's [[TheMcCoy McCoy]].
* MyBelovedSmother: His mother has some shades of this.
* NiceGuy: One of the kindest people in this setting.
* OldShame: InUniverse; apparently, he has some very embarrassing music video floating around somewhere that he hopes no one ever finds out about.
* SouthKoreansWithMarines: He did fulfill his mandatory stint in the South Korean military, but had no intention of making a career out of it. He plays this more or less straight once the war begins.
* StressVomit: Has this after the evacuation and battle in St. Petersburg from a combination of feeling glad to be alive and just being overwhelmed by the fact that he had to do some brutal things to survive the ordeal.
* TookALevelInBadass: Goes from an ActionSurvivor to a competent soldier who doesn't hesitate to pull the trigger when he has to.
* UnclePennybags: Donated a lot of money to humanitarian causes when he was a celebrity, and he just considers himself one of many soldiers in the brave fight to protect earth. He's even rather flustered when Blizzard Flurry recognizes him and praises his work.
* WellDoneSonGuy: His parents didn't approve of his first career choice, but allowed him to pursue acting in the end. They also didn't want him risking his life out on the front lines, but that was more out of [[AdultFear fear for his safety]] rather than disappointment on their end.

!!Porter Stanley
An American soldier stationed in South Korea when the war began. He takes on the call to arms for especially personal reasons against the Solar Empire. He saves Yon-Soo's life and takes in Hyong-Jin, helping them train to become better fighters, unknowingly molding a group that would become a symbol of the Asian resistance.

* BadassNormal
* BigDamnHeroes: Saved Yon-Soo from getting ponified at the DMZ battle, kicking off the plot.
* ChildhoodFriends: Knew Marcus as a kid, due to their fathers having served in the Gulf War together.
* ComicBookFantasyCasting: WordOfGod states his looks are based on [[Series/FridayNightLights Scott Porter's]]. Though the other fantasy cast lists [[Series/{{Arrow}} Stephen Amell]] for him.
* [[CrusadingWidower Crusading Boyfriend]]: Part of Porter's motivation to go against the TCB Equestrians stems from his girlfriend, Eun-Hee, getting ponified on the day the war broke out.
* DadTheVeteran: His father served alongside Marcus' father in the Gulf War.
* ADayInTheLimelight: Has his own segment in ''Calm Before the Storm'', where he and his father discuss their connection to the Renee family.
* DeadpanSnarker
* {{Facepalm}}: Has one when Yon-Soo wastes a bunch of bullets during a training exercise.
* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: He has hints of this dynamic with his little brother Charlie, who is the more foolish one compared to Porter (though Charlie still does hold a decent job as a paramedic/nurse).
* ILetGwenStacyDie: He reveals in "The Face of the Enemy" that he convinced Eun-Hee to go to the conference in Berne where she ended up ponified.
** ItsAllMyFault: Because of the above, he carries a lot of guilt and self-hatred. He even states that if it wasn't for the support of his family and friends, he'd have just started indulging in RevengeBeforeReason like the HLF.
* ItGetsEasier: Subverted. He admits that as a soldier, one can never truly get used to killing and seeing death on a regular basis. All you can do is get sharper and more adaptive.
* ItsPersonal: Wants to get back at Queen Celestia for ponifying his girlfriend ([[DeadlineNews one of the reporters that got forcibly converted at the press conference in Berne]]).
* JerkassFacade: Can be a real hardass at times, yet his heart and head are in the right place.
* PinkElephants: A non-intoxicated example, when he sees a vision of David, Megan, Jacob, TCB!Lyra and the Scribe standing next to his family in chapter 5 of ''Calm Before the Storm''.
* SirSwearsAlot: Not quite as extreme as others, but he has his moments.
* TheSpock: To Yon-Soo's [[TheKirk Kirk]] and Hyong-Jin's [[TheMcCoy McCoy]].
* TheStoic: Is good at controlling himself and not letting emotion cloud his judgement on the battlefield.
* SupportingLeader: He's the one with the most military experience among the main characters of the Asia side story, though Yon-Soo's technically the main character.

!!Hyong-Jin Kang
A North Korean soldier that survived his squadron's ponification by running away. He crosses paths with Yon-Soo and Porter, and as time goes on, greatly expands his worldview.

* ConditionedToAcceptHorror: His harsh life in North Korea makes him better able to process the harsher aspects of battle than Yon-Soo.
* DirtyCoward: Initially. He gets much better as time goes on.
* DisappearedDad: His father died of an illness when he was younger, forcing him to take on the role and responsibilities as "the man of the house".
* GenreSavvy: Enough to know that it's never wise to say [[TemptingFate "It can't get any worse."]]
* HeterosexualLifePartners: Has developed this with Firebrand.
* ItsPersonal: Wants to destroy the PER and Royal Guards for ponifying his family and being responsible for the nuking of North Korea.
* TheMcCoy: To Yon-Soo's [[TheKirk Kirk]] and Porter's [[TheSpock Spock]]. Especially prevalent in Chapter Six, when he decries President Davis' decision to nuke Washington DC.
* NorthKoreansWithNodongs: Subverted – he's North Korean, and a soldier, but since the North Korean region is nothing but an irradiated wasteland, he's simply a Korean at this point.
* NotSoDifferent: Porter says the only difference between a North Korean and a Newfoal is that the latter would at least get a good meal three times a day. He does prove himself as time goes on.
** Yon-Soo also notes that Hyong-Jin could very easily have become just like a run-of-the-mill HLF member. Good thing he responded well to Lyra's visit and became friends with Firebrand.
* TookALevelInBadass
* TookALevelInKindness: He initially hated all ponies and didn't care if they did sympathize with the humans. Thankfully, an encounter with TCB!Lyra, as well as a developing friendship with Firebrand helped him to get over this sentiment.

!!Firebrand
A pegasus stallion that served as one of TCB!Lyra's bodyguards before deciding to stay at the military base in St. Petersburg with Yon-Soo, Porter and Hyong-Jin.

* {{Badass}}
* BruiserWithASoftCenter: He's deadly and dangerous in battle, but a very kind soul off the field.
* BullyHunter: He got his cutie mark (a pair of swords crossed over a shield) by defending someone from some bullies.
* DefectorFromDecadence
* DespairEventHorizon: He comes very close to crossing this when TCB!Lyra was executed. He's also horrified with himself after learning his fire tornado killed several civilians.
* {{Expy}}: Looks-wise, he's a gender-flipped version of Major Firebird from ''Fanfic/TheConversionBureauConquerTheStars''.
* FieryRedhead: A male example.
* ItsPersonal: Chapter Five of the Asia Side-Story reveals he has quite a deep-seated hatred for some of the Royal Guards. He explains that [[spoiler: he got kicked out of the Royal Guards after [[AlcoholInducedIdiocy drunkenly agreeing to do a stunt]] concerning a fire tornado that destroyed a part of his division's base and injured several soldiers, and the pony that dared him to do the stunt (one of Firebrand's good friends at the training camp) didn't stick up for him, starting his vendetta]].
** TCB!Lyra's death is another push in his desire to defeat the Solar Empire.
* KillItWithFire: His "fire tornado" is this.
* {{Metalhead}}: He briefly mentions loving rock music during "A Melody of Flames and Frost", and [[WordOfGod Word Of Kizuna]] confirms it more strongly.
* MoralityPet: In the time he gets to know the guys, he serves as a remedy for Hyong-Jin's initial hatred of the ponies. Yon-Soo even lampshades this after a scuffle with some HLF members.
-->As they walked in, Yon-Soo noticed Hyong-Jin and Firebrand having a small conversation with each other, and couldn't help but realize that Hyong-Jin could have very easily become like those people they just fought - a rabidly anti-pony warrior consumed by his hatred instead of seeing reason. He had to admit, he was very glad they had Firebrand around, who was not only a valuable teammate but also a good friend, and it was clear that pegasus had a good effect on Hyong-Jin in general.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight

!!Sergei Zaslavski
A Russian soldier that joins with the main group during and after the St. Petersburg evacuation and battle.

* {{Adorkable}}: Has a short moment of this when he gives "a filly needs a daddy, or at least a big brother" as his reason for staying with his unit.
* BerserkButton: Hurting innocent civilians (especially women and children).
* BigBrotherInstinct: Towards Comet.
** PromotionToParent[-/-]ParentalSubstitute: As of "The Face of the Enemy".
* DemolitionsExpert
* InterspeciesRomance: [[spoiler:With Aquamarine]].
* OlderThanTheyLook: He's described as a bit short and youthful looking, but VagueAge is in effect here.
* RussiansWithRustingRockets
* SixthRanger: He's the fifth member to be added on the team, but it still fits.
* StuffBlowingUp: His specialty.

!!Khan Aitmatov
An older Russian soldier, first seen during the evacuation of St. Petersburg alongside Melnik.

* ActionDad: It's revealed in "A Journey to the East" that he has a daughter who is living in America. He's very worried about her.
* BashBrothers: With Melnik
* BoisterousBruiser: He's a little too enthusiastic about killing Newfoals.
-->'''Aitmatov:''' "Like shooting fish in a barrel, it was. I don't think I've ever gone through a magazine in so little time. Hell, aim for the unicorns while they're casting spells, and they practically explode! I just remember thinking there, '[[ComicBook/{{Nextwave}} Oh my God! They explode! My life has new meaning now...]]'"
* DisappearedDad: He has one, evidently a Mongolian.
* FriendlySniper: He's a fairly jovial fellow.
* HiddenDepths: Who would have guessed that he read Cory Doctorow's book ''Literature/ForTheWin''? Or that he liked [[SoapWithinAShow "The Baker's Dilemma"]]?
* ImprobableAimingSkills: Manages to shoot an RPG out of the air... with a revolver. Granted, he was very lucky.
* InterspeciesRomance: Aitmatov and Blizzard Flurry are in a relationship.
* OldSoldier: Aitmatov is described as being much older than the core group. He states he's forty-three in "The Face of the Enemy".
* RevolversAreJustBetter: Carries an RSH-12 revolver.
* RousingSpeech: Gives a short but effective one to the team after Lyra's execution.
--> "The point is, we don't need Lyra to lead us to be the PHL. We don't need her to inspire us to fight, or resist being turned into zombies. We can do that ourselves. Even if she's gone, even if the PHL get downsized into oblivion, we still remember her. We still remember what she wanted us to do, and we can still fight alongside ponies that have decided a hopeless war is still better than the fascist shithole that is their home. Being PHL isn't about Lyra, or anything like that - it's about what she'd want us to do. It's about what she believed in. It's about standing up for that, for ponies and humans alike."
* ShoutOut: Named after Khan Aitmatov from ''Literature/{{Metro 2033}}''.
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: He's pretty enthusiastic about how fragile the Newfoals are.
* ThoseTwoGuys[-/-]HeterosexualLifePartners: With Melnik, to the point that Khan nearly flies into an UnstoppableRage when Melnik gets injured.

!!Ivan Melnik
Aitmatov's partner in kicking ass, he comes along with the team after the evacuation of St. Petersburg.

* TheAlcoholic: With a seemingly inexhaustible supply of booze.
* AnArmAndALeg: Melnik loses his left arm during a skirmish with the PER and HLF in "A Melody of Flames and Frost".
* AxCrazy: Downplayed. It's stated that he likes to get up close and personal in combat, and the fact that he [[ThisIsADrill specifically asked for a drill arm]] speaks volumes about his personality.
* BackToBackBadasses[-/-]BashBrothers: With Aitmatov.
* {{Cyborg}}: Thanks to a new arm from TCB!Lyra.
* DivergentCharacterEvolution: Used to be practically interchangeable with Aitmatov. As of Chapter Eight, this is changing.
* TheEeyore: Granted, he has plenty of happy moments, but he's quite the pessimist. [[CallForward Unfortunately, much of the pessimistic stuff he's said has been completely right.]]
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Aitmatov.
* OldSoldier: Refers to himself as an "old man" in Chapter Seven. Whether or not he is, however, is debatable, as VagueAge is fully in effect.
* RareGuns: Though [[TruthInTelevision it's mostly accurate to the setting]]. Chapter Eight claims Aitmatov's giving him an AN94.
* ShoutOut: Named after Melnik from ''Literature/{{Metro2033}}''
* ThisIsADrill: His prosthetic arm has a drill in it. [[Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann He wholeheartedly embraces any potential references that can be made with the thing.]]

!!Blizzard Flurry
A pegasus mare that fights alongside Aitmatov and Melnik.

* ActionGirl
* [[AnIcePerson An Ice Pony]]: Along with her name, her cutie mark is of snowflakes blowing in the wind, signifying her talent in snow and ice creation.
* AxCrazy: Shows hints of it in "Don't You Worry Child". She's a little unnerved by it.
* CoolBigSis: Becomes this towards Comet Tail.
* DefectorFromDecadence
* {{Fangirl}}: She recognizes Yon-Soo when she first meets him in person and states she finds him very funny in [[ShowWithinAShow his TV show]] ''The Baker's Dilemma''.
* InterspeciesRomance: With Aitmatov. Also counts as MayDecemberRomance since Aitmatov's older than her.
* OldShame: InUniverse: She did ''something'' in Equestria that made Aquamarine vaguely recognize her, and claims it's a good thing portable video cameras don't exist there.
* PoliceBrutality: Well, she was the victim of it during a peaceful protest.
* VagueAge: She's stated to be younger than Aitmatov and Melnik, but no exact number is given. [[http://www.fimfiction.net/blog/380738/lets-meet-some-ponies Word Of Kizuna]] states she's in her early twenties.
* WarRefugees: Implied, though it's clear she got off better than those on the Mercy Ships or in Rio.

!!Aquamarine Glimmer
A unicorn mare who was caught in the clutches of the Russian HLF with her pegasus daughter Comet Tail before getting rescued by Yon-Soo and his teammates.

* ActionMom: In her debut chapter, she summons a shield spell to protect Porter from getting shot. She learns to strengthen it more and get combat training to play this straighter.
** BarrierWarrior: The shield spell is also her signature move. It can even withstand a direct hit from a grenade!
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Her husband was a Royal Guard, and he welcomed the Newfoals completely. When Aquamarine brought up her discomfort with them, he accused her of being a traitor to the empire, forcing her to take Comet and escape from Equestria.
* DefectorFromDecadence
* InterspeciesRomance: [[spoiler:She chooses to pursue one with Sergei]].
* ItsPersonal: She wants to get back at the Empire for how it corrupted her husband and broke her family apart.
* LoveMartyr: Averted. [[spoiler:She still hopes Gale can be broken out of whatever controls his thoughts, but she decides to pursue a relationship with Sergei]].
* MamaBear: She [[spoiler:takes down an entire potioneer ship and its newfoal fleet ''all by herself'' when the newfoals promise to "heal" her and Comet of humanity's influence]].
* SoapPunishment: While not literally, she threatens to make Melnik regret swearing around Comet. Porter also makes reference to this as well.
* TeamMom: Is becoming this for the group.
* TrainingFromHell: Undergoes this to be of a better help to the soldiers.
** TookALevelInBadass
* TrueBlueFemininity: It's right there in her name.
* WarRefugees

!!Comet Tail
A pegasus filly who escaped from the Solar Empire with her unicorn mother Aquamarine Glimmer and was caught in the Russian HLF's clutches before getting rescued by Yon-Soo and his teammates.

* {{Adorkable}}: Especially when she gushes over human movies and music.
* CheerfulChild: Still maintains a sunny attitude despite her experiences.
* ChildSoldier: Comet actually ''wants'' to become one, because she's afraid of what'll happen if she's kept away from her mother.
* CorruptTheCutie: Shows signs of this in "The Face of the Enemy", when she gets a sick pleasure out of taunting an injured newfoal, and disowns her father. Justified in that she's a young kid and she's serving on the front lines of a war, so it's naturally going to have an effect on her mindset.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: See above with Aquamarine.
* DefectorFromDecadence
* HarmfulToMinors: Being locked up in a prison full of dead and mutilated ponies? Definitely harmful.
* InnocentSwearing: Spending time with a group of soldiers has colored her vocabulary up a bit, much to her mother's embarrassment.
** PrecisionFStrike: In general, her vocabulary is appropriate for a kid her age, but if a situation calls for it, she'll let one slip.
* ItsPersonal: Her vendetta with the Solar Empire stems form how it corrupted her father (a pegasus in the Royal Guards), split up her family, and took her friends away from her.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Her coat is pink.
* TagalongKid: Though she refuses to be TheLoad.
* TokenMiniMoe: Yon-Soo even lampshades how tooth-rottingly cute the filly is.
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: She begins exhibiting shades of this in "The Face of the Enemy", when she stumbles upon an injured newfoal and takes an especially disturbing amount of delight in taunting it and insulting Queen Celestia to its face. Not to mention her dropping a ClusterFBomb throughout...
* WarRefugees

!!Tatiana Barisov
A refugee from Ukraine and a high ranking member of The Underground. She joins the Dragons of the East.

* ActionGirl: It's hinted she helped teach many members how to fight.
* AmazonianBeauty: While she's of a more average height, she's noted to be toned and muscular.
* TheArcher
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold
* IcyBlueEyes
* MysteriousPast: It's implied she has quite a few stories to tell.


[[/folder]]

[[folder: The PER]]

!!Ponification For Earth's Rebirth
A group of human collaborators that denounced their humanity in support of the Solar Empire. They wish to speed up the process of humanity's "salvation" by ponifying everyone, regardless of whether they want it or not.

* AntiHumanAlliance: A group of humans dedicated to helping the Solar Empire conquer Earth.
* {{Asshole Victim}}s: No one in-universe really has a tear to shed over their deaths, no matter how brutal it can be. Kraber himself barely really carries much guilt over the way he tortured and killed the PER members he targeted, which [[TheAtoner has to say something]]. One soldier even states that he ''can'' torture a PER member he captured and absolutely no one is going to raise a stink over it.
* {{Baleful Polymorph}}s: In the making.
* {{Boomerang Bigot}}s: They're humans who hate being human and hate their own kind.
* BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood[-/-]ForYourOwnGood: They are completely convinced ponification will solve all of humanity's problems, regardless of any trade-offs.
* {{Category Traitor}}s: Needless to say, everyone that's against the Solar Empire hates the PER. The HLF especially have been known to post videos of themselves on the Internet, viciously torturing members.
* EqualOpportunityEvil: Doesn't matter where on planet Earth you hail from, you're welcome to join them in molding all of humanity into a whole new race.
* {{Evil Luddite}}s: Many human members are hardcore environmentalists that put humanity down as a virus or a disease while praising ponies for supposedly being one with nature.
* KillThePoor: Or ponify, as homeless people are especially easy targets to get at.
* [[KnightTemplar Knights Templar]]: They believe that ponification is the right way and they see nothing wrong with forcibly dosing innocent civilians.
* LesCollaborateurs: They're humans who are working with the Solar Empire.
* {{Mad Bomber}}s: Their preferred weapons are glass vials of ponification potion which they throw at their targets.
* [[MisanthropeSupreme Misanthropes Supreme]]: Many of the human PER operatives loudly and vociferously denounce humanity.
* {{Not So Harmless Villain}}s: Since most of them are civilians with little to no actual combat experience, they aren't very effective in a direct fight with armed forces. They are, however, far more dangerous when going undercover to ambush large crowds of civilians with the potion.
* ParanoiaFuel: InUniverse. Due to their activities, civilians generally consider it an unwise idea to go outside without wearing armor or a hazmat suit and carrying at least one gun with them (Acevedo being one of them). Richard Stanley, Porter's father, even noted in an interview that his neighbors all installed security systems into their homes and slept with the lights on.
* TheQuisling: They're all too willing to sell out their own species for their own selfish reasons.
* ReligionOfEvil[-/-]{{Cult}}: Some branches practically worship Queen Celestia as a goddess meant to deliver humanity from its vices. One defector, Ernst Kasparek, describes the group as such.
* WouldHurtAChild: They are known to go after children for being "easy" targets. ''Calm Before the Storm'' makes a reference to security camera recordings of PER members breaking into hospitals and ponifying sick children. They even go into maternity wards to convert infant babies!

!!Dr. Jacqueline Dionna Reitman
The founder of Ponification for Earth's Rebirth. A once respected medical doctor who first pushed the ponification serum as a miracle cure, she became the founder of a terrorist cell dedicated to carrying out the Solar Empire's work. She was captured during a raid in Arizona and is currently awaiting execution.

* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: The story states that she'll go down in history as one of the most hated people in the world. Other than Queen Celestia, she's the only representative of the Solar Empire whom everyone and everypony opposing the conversion bureaus truly wants to see dead and buried.
* BoomerangBigot: A human who hates humans.
* CategoryTraitor: A human who wants to see all of humanity under the Queen's hooves.
* DarkMessiah: She was seen as a "high priestess" by her more fanatical followers.
* DeathRow: The penalty she is given.
* DirtyCoward: She had no scruples over forcibly ponifying countless millions against their will. However, for all her talk about the pony species' superiority, she never wanted to take the potion herself (or at least was brainwashed not to take it).
* TheDragon: She was Queen Celestia's top human lackey.
** She had a Dragon of her own in Catseye, a white unicorn pony with an orange-pink mane and gold-rimmed glasses.
* DrJerk: "Jerk" doesn't [[{{understatement}} quite cover]] it.
* EvilCounterpart: A race-flipped one to TCB!Lyra, right down to the [[MessianicArchetype messianic]] [[DarkMessiah undertones]] and their similar dreams of believing in something beyond their respective worlds.
** NotSoDifferent: She makes this accusation at Lyra during their "debate" in Catseye's dream.
* EvilLuddite: Considers technology to be "soulless".
* EvilRedhead: She's described as having auburn colored hair.
* FreudianExcuse[-/-]MonsterSobStory: [[spoiler:She claims that, when she was a junior practitioner for Doctors Without Borders, she saw a bunch of children she'd vaccinated had their arms hacked off by the superstitious villagers, and the fact that said adults did this out of love utterly traumatized her]]. TCB!Lyra doesn't buy it however, and the fact that it's also a [[spoiler:dream vision 'Weaver' is making for Catseye]] calls its validity into question.
** Not only that, but that anecdote is actually directly lifted from ''Film/ApocalypseNow'', and it has never been proven to have actually happened. TCB!Lyra even says this of it, making its likelihood near nil.
-->'''Lyra:''' "I believe you're making up excuses for yourself, doctor – this sounds more like a terrible event you've appropriated just to have a sob story and justify your nihilistic cynicism."
* GodwinsLaw: Some of the other characters explicitly compare her to UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler.
* HateSink: The Solar Empire might not be slouches in the atrocities department, but it's also made clear that [[spoiler:they're all just pawns in the BiggerBad's master plan]]. Reitman, while she was clearly little more than a pawn for Queen Celestia, was a self-serving opportunist who sold out her species and had a direct hand in starting a nightmarish war of untold suffering just to fulfill her own desires.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Loathes humans, human culture, technology and science, all the while glossing over the fact that she herself is human, uses human technology and is a practitioner of human medicine.
** She also sneeringly refers to Lyra as "the Betrayer", ignoring that she herself is a remorseless Benedict Arnold to all mankind.
** To top it off, she wouldn't even consider taking the potion herself, while happily forcing it on countless others (though it's stated by the writers that Queen Celestia put a hypnotic suggestion into her mind that prevents her from taking the potion until [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness she outlived her usefulness]], since her usefulness would be [[TechnicallyLivingZombie greatly limited]] if she had been turned into a Newfoal sooner).
** She claims that humans and ponies can't be friends, in spite of the fact that she was friends with plenty of ponies, particularly TCB!Catseye. TCB!Lyra even points this out with an ArmorPiercingQuestion.
* KnightTemplar: She claims everything she did was for the greater good of humanity and the right thing.
* MadDoctor[-/-]DeadlyDoctor: Responsible for pushing for the ponification serum to be used by the public, and is the founder/leader of a terrorist cell even more hated than ''Al-Qaeda''.
* MisanthropeSupreme: As much of a misanthrope as the RealLife loon she's based on.
* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: Less "morally ambiguous" and more "traitorous".
* MoreThanMindControl: WordOfGod states that Queen Celestia placed a mental block in her mind to make her not take the potion until "the time was right" so as to milk every bit of usefulness she could've served.
* NietzscheWannabe: She's convinced of the worst of humanity.
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Dr. Reitman is based off the notorious [[FanFic/TheConversionBureau Conversion Bureau]] author Chatoyance.
* NoTrueScotsman: Makes this accusation against TCB!Lyra, saying she's not a "true" pony because of her association with humanity.
* {{Otherkin}}: Claims that she rejected her own humanity for all her life.
-->"I didn't choose to be born human! I had to make my way in the world, and I hated every minute of being human!"
* TheQuisling: She has the dubious honor of being the Vidkun Quisling to all of humanity, complete with the inevitable death by execution awaiting her.
* TheRightOfASuperiorSpecies: She firmly believes that the ponies are a perfect species that are inherently morally superior to humanity. When Marcus states that Queen Celestia had no right to pass down judgment on all of humanity, Reitman says this in response:
-->"She is a goddess, a superior being! Superior beings – truly superior beings – can do things that if a lesser being, like a human, were to do, it would indeed be evil!"
** RealityIsUnrealistic: This phrase may sound like it was written to make Reitman a StrawCharacter, except for one thing: Chatoyance really said that ''exact'' same quote, word-for-word.
** NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer: According to [[WordOfGod Doctor]] [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/178621/tcb-spectrum-case-files#comment/460979 Fluffy]], he put the comment "'''Disclaimer: Actual Chatoyance Quote'''" on the Google Docs draft so no one would edit it.
* SmallNameBigEgo[-/-]SmugSnake: She was the person to serve Earth to the Tyrant on a platter, but the fact that capturing Reitman does absolutely nothing to slow down the PER also has the flipside of showing she really isn't anywhere near as important to Celestia as she likes to think she is.
* TheSociopath: Shockingly, the good doctor ''[[AvertedTrope isn't]]'' this, given how quickly she breaks under pressure. Rather than being some cold, calculating mastermind, she's merely an opportunist who sold out the human race for her own advancement. Now, it's easy to hate her for what she did, yet how many people can truthfully claim they haven't had moments close to reaching that level of selfishness?
** In short, the most disturbing thing about Reitman is that however monstrous her crime, at the end of the day, she was just what she hated most – human. And nothing, not even ponification, will ever change that.
* TakeThat: A pretty vicious ''dual-tiered'' one directed at Chatoyance.
** Catseye, the unicorn who accompanied her is a physical match for Chatoyance's profile picture on [=FimFiction=].
** The doctor's initials are JDR, the exact same initials as Chatoyance's real name. "Jacqueline Dionna Reitman" even sounds phonetically similar to Jennifer Diane Reitz.
* VillainousBreakdown: Goes completely berserk and suffers a seizure after an interrogation with Colonel Renee that involved several {{Armor Piercing Question}}s which appear to break her (theorized) MindRape.

!!Nurse Merciful Light
A PER pegasus nurse whose allegiances may not be as they seem...

* BrokenBird
* DroppedABridgeOnHer: Lightning Dust would have beaten her to death if the HLF hadn't come in.
** BloodFromTheMouth: She gurgles her last words out as she's dying.
* TheEeyore: It's clear she's drowning in an ocean of sadness.
* EnigmaticMinion
* {{Expy}}: WordOfGod states that her appearance is modeled after Morning Glory from ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestriaProjectHorizons''.
* InterspeciesRomance: With a human woman named Jacqueline Jophish, who later became a Newfoal against Mercy's objections. (Note: This same Newfoal is the [[FalloutEquestriaProjectHorizons Blackjack]] {{Expy}} amongst the servants who turn against Fancy in the "Empire" chapter of ''Calm Before the Storm''.)
* TheMedic: For the Salvation Army.
* PunchClockVillain

!!Nepenthe (real name: Rio Deneter)
A woman who was a member of the PER. She voluntarily underwent ponification, only to regret her decision when it was too late.

* AndIMustScream: The ponification matrix has taken complete control over Nepenthe's mind. And she is capable of being remotely controlled.
* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: All Rio wanted was to be able to move on from her past, and she had hoped ponification would solve all of her problems and take the pain away. [[ForegoneConclusion It only made things worse.]]
* BrokenBird: Rio was this. Nepenthe meanwhile is a StepfordSmiler to the extreme.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: She was disowned by her family, [[WidowWoman lost her husband]], [[RapeAsBackstory got raped]] by someone she considered a friend and [[ChildByRape got pregnant as a result]] (though she did love her child), and then [[AdultFear her son went missing]]. After all that, it's not too hard to imagine why she thought the Solar Empire was a perfect paradise where she could live a happy life.
* DeaderThanDead: Implied through magic-babble in "Lost In Dispatches II". Most newfoals still have a fragment of the original human's soul [[AndIMustScream trapped inside them]], which hinders the magical output of unicorn newfoals in particular. The Configuration Daemon overseeing Nepenthe, however, says that the soul fragments of what used to be Rio will erode ''completely'' within a week, implicitly resulting in CessationOfExistence altogether even if Nepenthe isn't somehow euthanized before then.
* EliteMooks: Nepenthe was specifically made to be a soldier, but she's still an ExtremeDoormat towards natural born ponies.
* FightingFromTheInside: Readers are treated to a lengthy scene of Rio attempting to do this, yet losing a little more of herself with every passing second.
* FluffyTheTerrible: Nepenthe introduces herself with the [[TastesLikeDiabetes saccharine]] and cutesy phrase "Hi there! I'm Nepenthe, the Pretty Private!". This belies the fact that she's a SuperSoldier with a disturbingly wide sadistic streak.
* FreedomFromChoice: This is what Rio wanted. Unfortunately, she didn't consider that the Solar Empire would refuse her the choice in what life she'd lead, or even ''her own name''.
* MeaningfulRename: Not the name itself (though there is some relevance to nepenthe being a "drug of forgetfulness" in Greek mythology), but rather that she didn't get to be called "Nightingale" as she wished.
* MookMaker: She can actually create potion on the spot by mixing samples of a potential victim's DNA with random stuff lying around.
* MorphWeapon: As Nepenthe, her weapons can be dematerialized into liquid metal and reformed into another weapon.
* NightmareFuelStationAttendant: Every appearance she has made so far is full of NightmareFuel and MindRape aplenty.
* RewardedAsATraitorDeserves: Being a member of the PER made Rio more or less a traitor to her own species (even though she was nowhere near as bad as other PER members). The Solar Empire in turn betrayed her hopes and expectations by turning her into the things she did not want to become as a pony.
* RuleOfSymbolism: WordOfGod [[http://www.fimfiction.net/blog/374740/come-and-meet-some-ponies states]] that Nepenthe's cutesy greeting is intended to emulate a toy's "Try me!" phrase. This ties in with the repeated theme of Newfoals as toys.
* TokenGoodTeammate: Compared to the rest of the PER at least. While most of the other PER members were [[MisanthropeSupreme misanthropic]] [[EvilLuddite Luddites]], Rio was only in the organization because she honestly believed ponification would give her (and by extension, her fellow humans) a better life.
* SuperSoldier: What Nepenthe is intended to be.
* TorturedMonster: The whole point of Rio/Nepenthe's character is to showcase the horror of being a Newfoal.
** ThouShaltNotKill: She believed that the Solar Empire ponies were PerfectPacifistPeople, and she is utterly dismayed to hear that she will be a soldier...
** SexSlave[-/-]SexBot: ... before learning that her ''other'' function will be to serve as the plaything of the Royal Guards.
*** And just to rub extra salt into the wound, the potion also compels her to become ''a rapist herself,'' as John Birch learned the hard way.
** AFateWorseThanDeath: What else can you call it? Rio wanted to escape life's cruelties, and ended up subjected to her worst fears instead.
* TraumaCongaLine: Her life has been hellish enough that she actually ''wanted'' to become a newfoal.

!!Madeleine "Maddy" Liu
A ten-year-old girl that became a member of the PER after her parents were killed. She initially wanted to become a pony like her companions, but gets forced to rethink her position when things start going down the drain.

* BreakTheCutie: Losing her parental figures (Mercy and Rio), witnessing the more horrific side of the newfoals, almost getting turned into a [[SexSlave "Pretty]] [[SuperSoldier Private"]]? It hasn't been good for her.
* ButNotTooForeign: She's half-Chinese and half-Canadian.
* CreepyChild: She's a young child who actually looked forward to ponification and genuinely believed it was the right path for her. However, it's also made clear that being raised by the PER has left her brainwashed and she doesn't really know any better.
* HeelRealization: She's slowly but surely starting to realize that ponification is not right.
* MoralityPet: Is becoming one for Canon!Lightning Dust.
* ParentalAbandonment: Her parents died sometime during the war.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: The HLF]]

!!Human Liberation Front
The other major resistance faction on Earth. The HLF actually started off being called the Harriet Thomas Foundation (HTF), a support group for people whose friends and family members abandoned them after taking the potion. But when the war began and more and more people became suspicious of the Solar Empire, a multitude of unsavory characters overtook the organization and militarized it. Unlike in many anti-Conversion Bureau fanfics, they're not portrayed as being remotely heroic, amounting to little more than paranoid {{Right Wing Militia Fanatic}}s, {{Sociopathic Soldier}}s, or racist psychopaths. Putting it simply, they're rather useless to the war effort, serving as little more than a hindrance to humanity and Equestria alike.

* AbsoluteXenophobe: Towards all ponies, no exceptions. Not even '''[[BigGood Lyra]]''' was exempt.
** AntagonistInMourning: Nonetheless, Lyra's execution did evoke sorrow in a few of them.
* {{Advertised Extra}}s: In the main story; they have a rather more prominent role in the side-stories.
* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Compared to the PER anyway. ''Case Files'' states that the HLF, even at its worst moments, never stooped to the same level of depravity of the PER.
* AntimagicalFaction
* ArmiesAreEvil: Well, they certainly are in the HLF's case. They're, for lack of a better term, outright nuts, depicted as just as much of, if not [[EpicFail more]] of a threat to everyone's survival as the Solar Empire.
* ArmyOfThievesAndWhores: They don't exactly have the most reputable people in their ranks.
* ArrestedForHeroism: Act just as harshly towards PHL ponies as they are on the PER.
* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: Suicide is evidently a common death for them.
* CassandraTruth: We learn in ''Case Files'' that one of the factors that led to the Harriet Thomas Foundation turning into the Human Liberation Front was that the HTF's founder failed to get the FDA to take their concerns about the potion seriously.
* ColdBloodedTorture: A favorite operating method of theirs.
* EqualOpportunityEvil: One aspect that makes them NotSoDifferent from the PER is that they will accept humans of every race and creed into their ranks, so long as they show no mercy to anyone they consider an enemy.
* FantasticRacism: Whereas the UN and most remaining nations' military forces aren't afraid to join up with the PHL and use magic to augment their technology, the HLF just want to wipe out ponykind. In fact, they're so violently and viciously anti-pony that an unnamed Brazilian blogger (implied to be one of the characters of the ''Starvation'' side-story) claims that the HLF is [[NotHelpingYourCase "giving Celestia all the ammunition she needs!"]]
* {{Green Eyed Monster}}s: TCB!Cheerilee suggests this as a reason for the HLF's hatred of the PHL. The HLF want to stop the invasion with human – and ''only human'' – ingenuity and lots of guns, even though it's [[WrongGenreSavvy increasingly clear that isn't going to work]]; the [[MultinationalTeam PHL/UN Taskforce]] that our heroes are a part of, on the other hand, use every bit of Equestrian craft and magic they have at their disposal to fight the Empire and slow the Barrier, and much of the taskforce is composed of ponies. Most importantly, the taskforce's methods actually ''work'' and accomplish more than senseless deaths.
* HomemadeInventions[=/=]ImprovisedWeapon: ''Last Train'' and ''Calm'' both show them as using homemade and improvised weaponry, with the most notable ones being [[http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2014/09/15/drug-cartel-diy-open-bolt-automatic-rifles/ open-bolt .50 BMG automatic rifles]] (which Doctor Fluffy stated in Calm's author's notes [[NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer were, in fact, real]].) and the 'Panzerfaust' used by the Thenarder Guards, a "a homemade rocket-launcher welded up from scrap metal and a drainage pipes, covered in graffiti" that shoots a can of baked beans which is full of semtex. Justified, as the HLF would likely be in high need of weaponry.
* JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope: The HLF started off as a support group for people whose family members and friends had become Newfoals and left them behind, but the group attracted a multitude of unsavory characters looking for revenge against the Solar Empire. They gradually went further off the deep end, moving from killing Newfoals to killing all ponies on suspicion of them being Equestrian spies and showing a distinct lack of regard for civilian casualties. For the U.S. government, [[MoralEventHorizon the last straw came]] when they tried to murder Ambassador [[MessianicArchetype Lyra Heartstrings]] (who was reaching out to the HLF for negotiation) and they further crossed the line by releasing videos on the Internet of a pro-human pony nurse named Sutra Cross being raped, tortured and killed. Thankfully, their effectiveness began to decrease in proportion to their amorality.
** Unfortunately, since Lyra's death, the HLF has been experiencing a renewed surge in popularity amongst the North American public, which has emboldened them sufficiently to attack U.S. Army bases in violent protest of the federal government's cooperation with the PHL.
* [[KnightTemplar Knights Templar]]: By this stage of the war, posting videos of ponies getting tortured online is standard procedure for them, and they have no qualms about attacking humans who willingly work alongside ponies, the U.S. military included.
* LaResistance: A darker example, in that they're more akin to the KKK than a resistance group at this point, and most reasonable humans are afraid of them and their methods.
* LeaveNoSurvivors: Their modus operandi. Ponies, or any humans that work with them are all fair game.
* MilitaryMoonshiner: There's evidently quite a few in their ranks, judging by the infrequent mentions of 'HLF rotgut.'
* NotHelpingYourCase: Sure. Kill ''every'' pony outside the Barrier. That won't be used against you by Equestria as propaganda, alienating potential allies. Angus Reid even calls them out on this prior to his defection.
* RedshirtArmy[-/-]{{Mooks}}: Celestia thinks so little of them that she sends Newfoals to kill them.
* TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized: Played very straight. They are just as fanatically racist and single-minded as the Solar Empire.
* RightHandVersusLeftHand: ''Last Train From Oblivion'' reveals they're so poorly organized, with such an inane network of passcodes and code phrases and units that FriendlyFire incidents have broken out over inability to recognize passwords.
* {{Right Wing Militia Fanatic}}s: Their members hate the ponies and are completely indiscriminate in killing of every Equestrian they see, including pro-human defectors. An element of {{Deconstruction}} is likely involved, [[RealityEnsues showing how unlikely it is that most military forces would fall under their umbrella]], and their rigidness makes them remarkably ineffective at opposing Imperial Equestria.
* SmallNameBigEgo: Sort of. They ''are'' a threat, and they ''are'' dangerous, but they vastly overestimate their effectiveness against the PHL or any imperial forces. It's shown in ''Last Train'' that they also have delusions of professionalism. The best example of both of these is Tess' reaction to the barebones circular they made:
-->So far as she was aware, the HLF did not have much in the way of secrets, unlike the PHL, who kept tight-lipped about nearly all of their activities. On top of that, the most common cause of death (besides 'shot to death by PHL or civilians', 'death by bad rations', 'death by magic', 'suicide', and 'malnourishment') for HLF was publicly known to be ponification, common enough that it would have been a miracle if they still had any secrets left to keep.
* {{Sociopathic Soldier}}s: Practically the HLF's hat.
* VillainForgotToLevelGrind: Compare the HLF in the Asia Side-Story (which takes place early in the war) to their portrayal in in the main story chapter, "Trust". The Solar Empire has magic shields that make bullets useless and Newfoal armies to make them more of a threat, to which the PHL/UN Taskforce responds with magically enhanced weaponry. Due to the HLF's AbsoluteXenophobe stance, they didn't get any magically enhanced gear, and as a result, the conflict has left them behind. Neither the PHL/UN taskforce nor the Empire seem to take them seriously, with Cheerilee acting more annoyed than threatened by their insanity and claiming that they could easily be taken out with a Newfoal ZergRush.
* WouldHurtAChild: Pony foals are just as fair game as adult ponies, and the Asia side story makes references to young women often getting picked off by them.
* WrongGenreSavvy: While they, like most other people, want Queen Celestia gone and humanity saved, they completely ignore that ponies ''can'' work with humans, deriding any [[DefectorFromDecadence pro-human defectors]] as spies and the PHL as "an affront to humanity". Their desire to defeat the Solar Empire with purely human ingenuity also has its problems, because it's increasingly clear this isn't going to work, unlike the PHL/UN Taskforce's method of combining magic and technology. And yet the HLF still behave like they're in the middle of a heroic last stand, when in fact they are degenerating into violence and paranoia. Basically, while the PHL is getting the job done, the only thing the HLF has achieved is to [[NotHelpingYourCase practically prove the Tyrant right on humans being nothing but violent savages]].
** [[StarterVillain Thanks to this, they are a recurring threat in the Asia Side-Story]], [[VillainForgotToLevelGrind but by the time of the main story they have faded into the background...]] [[NotSoHarmlessVillain mostly]].

!!The Thenardier Guards
An HLF unit in the middle of Truro, fighting against the PHL, they're supposedly "about the closest thing the deranged, imbecilic bigots have got to a proper special-forces unit," and deadlier than any HLF unit seen thus far. Next to [[AdvancingWallOfDoom The Barrier]], they're likely the largest threat to CPX-9782 in ''Last Train'', obstructing it and attacking the crewmembers.

* ConspiracyTheorist: John Birch, known to other members as 'Batshit Birch'. The nickname is appropriate, as he's so completely off his rocker, that one HLF member states that [[BloodKnight Viktor]] [[AxCrazy Kraber]] is downright sane by comparison.
** TheCloudcuckoolanderWasRight: Birch also claims to have seen [[spoiler:ponies kidnapping people before Equestria manifested]]. He might or might not have actually seen this going down, but since it did happen, he's still right.
* GeneralRipper: Master Sergeant Birch.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Colonel Atlas Dagney Galt, who negotiated with the PER to steal drugs and medical supplies from a hospital.
* InternalReformist: They had one in the form of Redd Flamel, who honestly thought he could create something better than the PHL from the HLF by bringing some organization to their chaos. [[DroppedABridgeOnHim He's ponified before he even gets the chance]].
* NotSoHarmlessVillain: Unlike the HLF most other times they've been shown in the series, they're ''very'' competent, managing to take over Truro, "pulling off a coronary" as Verity puts it.
** StarterVillain: And even then, [[spoiler:they're taken out pretty quickly, with Galt getting ponified and Birch getting turned into a Pretty Private]].
* {{Ubermensch}}: Galt erroneously thinks he's one.

!!Kagan Burakgazi
A former member of the HLF, mentioned a scant few times and only appearing in a flashback in chapter 3 of ''Light Despondent'', who was especially close to Kraber.

* AllThereInTheManual: Most of what's known of his character is contained in the [[https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/402607/the-mostly-official-spectrum-timeline Spectrum-Verse Timeline]].
* {{Badass}}
** BadassGay: He had a relationship with Kraber during their time in the HLF.
** BadassNormal
* BashBrothers: Was this with Kraber.
* BirdsOfAFeather: He and Kraber are both fans of China Mieville, and they met by staging "lone-wolf" bombings of Conversion Bureaus in Turkey... at the same time.
* ButNotTooForeign: Is half-Turkish, half-Japanese.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Left the HLF at the same time Kraber did, but his own fate is unknown.
* TheGhost: He's only been mentioned in passing in the side stories. He makes a physical appearance in a flashback in ''Light''.
* TakeOurWordForIt: During his time in the HLF, he was apparently every bit as ruthless as Kraber and killed as many people and ponies as he did.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Canon!Equestria]]
Note: Any tropes found here relating to canon characters are best considered as existing simultaneously with their in-show traits. The character pages for the Mane Six are already quite long and do not need to be reproduced.

!!Princess Celestia
Regarding her evil counterpart's crimes as a personal affront, Equestria's noble alicorn ruler pledges to aid humanity take down the Solar Tyrant.

* AGodIAmNot
* AngstNuke: [[UpToEleven Try]] ''[[TheTunguskaEvent Angst Tunguska]]'' – when Celestia absorbs Marcus's memories, she's so horrified by what she sees that she flies to "Ponguska, Sibearia" and, following a rage-filled ReasonYouSuckSpeech to her evil opposite, creates an explosion that results in a massive crater.
** This has the potential to happen again [[spoiler: if she puts too much mental and physical stress on herself]].
* BerserkButton: Has two huge ones: 1) don't harm or threaten anyone she loves (especially her beloved sister and her faithful student), and 2) don't abuse the word "harmony".
* BigGood
* BreakTheBadass: Marcus' memories, and literally everything to do with the war. So far, in her grief over what she's seen, she's destroyed a lake in the aforementioned AngstNuke, and at least three mountains upon seeing [[spoiler:the unfortunate fate of TCB!Twilight]].
* {{Determinator}}: While Marcus' memories are sapping her sanity and she's been under a lot of stress lately, she's very determined to fight.
* [[spoiler: DeusExitMachina]]: [[spoiler: After the Scribe reveals that her soul didn't fully come together during the three tribes' epiphany on Hearth's Warming Eve, putting it in danger of fracturing under severe trauma, Celestia agrees to undergo a spiritual healing in preparation for the final battle]].
* TheGlomp: Gives both Marcus and Stephan a comforting bear hug when she sees just how traumatized they both have been by the war on a couple separate occasions.
* GoMadFromTheRevelation: When she and Marcus link their minds together, she willingly takes in and endures [[ObligatoryWarCrimeScene everything there was to bear]]... [[AnythingButThat until she sees that TCB!Twilight and the other Elements took part]]. Then she wakes up from the mind link, screams bloody murder, and teleports right out of there. Fortunately, Luna and Cadance track her down and help her regain her bearings.
--> '''Princess Celestia''': "You told the truth! My little ponies, they did that!?"
** Then there's her reaction to the events of [[WhamEpisode For Whom The Bell Tolls,]] which leads to her blasting apart several mountains in anger.
* GrewBeyondTheirProgramming: If [[spoiler: Discord]] is to be believed, she and Luna were only meant to move the sun and the moon, not to actually rule over the ponies.
* HeroicBSOD: Princess Celestia has one when she sees her counterpart's actions in Marcus's memories. Her reaction is... [[AngstNuke destructive.]]
* LadyOfWar
* LightIsGood
* MamaBear: To her subjects, especially towards Luna, Cadance, and Twilight.
* MyGreatestFailure: Carries a lot of emotional baggage from her long, long years of ruling the ponies, [[spoiler: right down to the fact that she was not even supposed to be their ruler in the first place]].
* NotSoStoic: [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment Let's just say that Celestia in this story isn't quite as calm and collected as on the show]].
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure
* ShesBack: To being the way most ponies see her, in "Sons of Legacies, Part 3". See TookALevelInBadass.
* ShellShockedVeteran: Due to absorbing Marcus' memories. [[SanitySlippage She hasn't taken them well, to say the least]].
* TookALevelInBadass: Emotionally, in "Sons of Legacies, Part 3", she steps up to the plate and vows above all else to be the leader Equestria deserves.
* [[spoiler: [[WellDoneSonGuy "Well Done, Daughter" Gal]]]]: [[spoiler: Yes, the Princess widely regarded as ponykind's "mother" is one to her own "mother", the alicorn Faust. A perceived sense of ParentalFavoritism is implied to play a major role in this, since while Discord was created by Faust herself, Celestia and Luna came much later from the mind of Faust's avatar, the Scribe]].
* YouKeepUsingThatWord: TCB!Celestia [[WouldBeRudeToSayGenocide claims]] that her xenocide of the humans is her way of spreading harmony, much to Canon!Celestia's disgust.
--> '''Princess Celestia:''' "Don't even say the word harmony! What you're doing is nothing of the sort!"
--> '''Queen Celestia:''' "You poor thing. Has he really filled your mind with such delusion in so little time? They're just misguided, resisting because they don't know the harmony we can bring them."
--> '''Princess Celestia:''' (Royal Canterlot Voice activated) "I SAID TO NOT ABUSE THAT WORD!"
* YouWouldntLikeMeWhenImAngry: When pushed past her breaking point, she can and will make you utterly regret crossing her. It is further suggested that you ''not'' abuse the word "harmony" in her presence. [[BerserkButton It]] [[BurningWithAnger will]] [[AngstNuke end]] [[SetTheWorldOnFire badly]].

!!Princess Luna
As Princess Celestia's younger sister, Luna is the first Canon!pony to be sent to Earth so they may forge an alliance.

* BreakTheBadass
* DarkIsNotEvil[-/-]TheSacredDarkness
* GenreSavvy: She's well aware that Canon!Catseye will screw everything up at some point, so she send guards out to keep a close eye on her.
* GrewBeyondTheirProgramming: If [[spoiler: Discord]] is to be believed, she and Celestia were only meant to move the sun and the moon, not to actually rule over the ponies.
* InformedAttribute: [[spoiler: The Scribe]] claims she is the more cool-headed of the Royal Sisters. Very little evidence is provided in the text to back up this statement.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Cadance, who is also her descendant.
* KillMeNowOrForeverStayYourHand: [[spoiler: She disproves Queen Celestia's lie to the PHL that she's the Tyrant's accomplice by willingly placing her forehead against the barrel of Kraber's magically enhanced firearm, which even if it didn't kill her would leave her with significant brain trauma]].
* LadyOfWar
* LeeroyJenkins
* NoIndoorVoice: Taken UpToEleven when she announces to the resistance that she and Canon!Equestria are here to help them.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Shaping up to become one like her big sister.
** Despite her reservations about what Canon!Catseye and her followers might do, Luna is not willing to abuse her power to get rid of them beforehand. Part of it is that she does not want Catseye to become a martyr to anyone sharing similar anti-human views.
* SuperpoweredEvilSide: Her anger makes it come back in full force after she witnesses [[spoiler: the memories of TCB!Twilight's experiments on humans]].
* UnstoppableRage: After [[spoiler:[[JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind fishing around in TCB!Twilight's mind]] to get information and witnessing how the TCB!Elements were corrupted and how the ponification potion was developed]], Luna flies into this and [[spoiler: transforms into Nightmare Moon]].

!!Princess Cadance
Celestia's honorary niece and Twilight's old foalsitter, Cadance is the latest alicorn princess to emerge in Equestria.

* ComesGreatResponsibility
* TheHeart
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Luna, who is also her ancestor.
* NaiveNewcomer: Apart from still getting acclimated to what it means to be an immortal, Cadance also stands in for the audience when Celestia first tells the story of [[spoiler: Faust and Tirek]].
* RightfulKingReturns: To the Crystal Empire.
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: She's genuinely afraid of the fact that she's going to outlive everyone she's ever cared for.

!!The Elements of Harmony
The Mane Six themselves, who are immediately horrified when they hear of their {{Evil Counterpart}}s' actions against humanity and vow to help Marcus and the PHL defeat TCB!Equestria.

* {{Action Girl}}s: Downplayed. While they've gone through plenty of adventures and are a bit tougher than the usual pony, it's clear they were only able to subdue a rampaging Marcus at first by nothing but sheer luck, plus incredible determination and resourcefulness on Twilight's part. The "Sons of Legacies" arc also shows they're still pretty innocent and uncomfortable with the idea of killing. Learning to let this go is part of their training to become true soldiers.
* BerserkButton: Fluttershy's response at seeing the crimes committed by the Solar Empire isn't to curl up and die...
--> "We're going to try and understand what we're fighting for," Fluttershy said with a determined tone. It was so rare to see her like this, but at the same time, it wasn't shocking. Fluttershy was nicknamed "the friend to all living creatures" and to see such an affront against all life like the barrier and the Newfoals would no doubt bring out that angry side of her. "If we have to suffer bad dreams, so be it! We need to know! How can we fight for them if we don't know enough?"
** The Solar Empire's campaign and the Newfoals hit Pinkie Pie's button as well. The idea of forcing happiness onto people by getting rid of all their other emotions utterly sickens her.
** Twilight is angered when she sees pictures of Newfoals and pro-Solar Empire factions burning and destroying books, as the deliberate destruction of history, knowledge and stories infuriates her.
* BewareTheNiceOnes[-/-]BewareTheSillyOnes: All of them, but Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy are especially determined to do whatever it takes to defeat their evil counterparts and help humanity in the ''Calm Before the Storm'' side-story. Justified because it hit their {{Berserk Button}}s, Fluttershy's being her anger at the existence of that kind of cruelty, Twilight's at how the Newfoals are destroying history and knowledge, and Pinkie Pie's her horror and outrage at [[GettingSmiliesPaintedOnYourSoul how the Newfoals just have this hollow happiness forced inside them]].
* {{Break The Cutie}}s: Canon!Twilight is especially horrified at the idea of Celestia becoming evil. And of course, they are also downright disgusted by what the TCB!Equestrians are doing to the humans.
* DemotedToExtra: Disappeared from the story for quite a while as Marcus was making his way to Canterlot Castle. They reappear in the "Sons of Legacies'' arc to begin their training.
* HeroicSelfDeprecation: Rainbow Dash admits she can be a jerk sometimes, much to Marcus' shock.
* {{Nice Girl}}s: Which Marcus is rather surprised to find out, considering what their TCB versions are like.
* OutOfCharacterMoment[-/-]OOCIsSeriousBusiness: As if Pinkie Pie saying "screw it" in a very serious and determined tone wasn't enough, there's also Fluttershy calling the Newfoals "mindless pony-shaped drones."
* TookALevelInBadass: What they plan to do by training with Stephan.
* TrainingFromHell

!!Lyra Heartstrings
A mint-green unicorn living in Ponyville, with a strange fixation on mythological beings known as humans...

* BreakTheCutie: Not only does her discovery of what's happening to Marcus's homeworld and her counterpart's death shake her up, there's also [[spoiler: realizing how close she could've come to being an UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom like her TCB counterpart]].
* BrilliantButLazy: She's hinted to be nearly as gifted as Twilight, but would much rather sleep in late, settle down with her villager girlfriend and pursue fantasies about humans than do any "serious" studying. Yet ironically, [[spoiler: the reason she never rose to the same heights as her counterpart is that she chose to practice for the Canterlot Royal Orchestra, whereas TCB!Lyra slacked off and went scuba-diving]].
* ChildhoodFriends: With Twilight.
* CloudCuckoolander: Downplayed, but it's there alright.
** TheCloudCuckooLanderWasRight: Yep, humans are real. And now Equestria has to go to war with its dark twin.
* CovertPervert: One of her first thoughts upon seeing Marcus' hands is imagining what she could do to Bon-Bon with such limbs.
* DareToBeBadass: This quote from her inner narration in ''Calm Before the Storm'' says it all:
-->Lyra could never live up to the uptime version of herself. She could never bring two worlds together single-hoofedly, but by Celestia she was going to try.
* DramaticIrony: [[spoiler:The ''one'' time she chose not to be a lazy bum really made all the difference]].
* ForWantOfANail: Her life is rather different from her TCB counterpart's. [[spoiler: For one thing, she never went on a scuba-diving trip to the Galloping Sea...]]
* MoralityChain: When Marcus first arrives in Canon!Equestria, her presence keeps him in check long enough for him to give the Mane Six a chance. It isn't completely effective, since Marcus temporarily discards her upon realizing she isn't the Lyra he knew, but it's the first step towards Canon!Equestria coming to Earth's aid.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler: Or rather, "My God, what did I almost do?" upon learning that her TCB counterpart unearthed the Bag of Tirek]].
* NiceGirl: One of the kindest characters in the setting.
* PluckyComicRelief: She isn't the most sensible of mares, though she does have her more serious moments.
* ThePollyanna: Initially.
* [[SixthRanger Seventh Ranger]]: To the canon Elements of Harmony.
* TrainingFromHell: Willingly undergoes this under Stephan's tutelage to help humanity.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Loyalist Conspiracy]]
Not everypony in Canon!Equestria is eager to help mankind in its time of need, hence certain Equestrians band together to undermine the war effort and pave the way for the Empire to "liberate" them from what they see as Nightmare Moon's takeover attempt.

!!Catseye
The Canon!Equestria counterpart of one of the founding members of the PER, a unicorn historian with a rather, let's say, "revisionist" approach to ponies' and humans' shared heritage. Not many people like her, but she does have followers.

* AbsoluteXenophobe: Aside from her hateful views on humans, she also doesn't have a high opinion of the other races on Equus, especially the griffons or minotaurs.
* AdHominem: She calls TCB!Lyra an "indolent little pervert" and several other kinds of insults when the latter's spirit comes to her in a dream and tries to make her see reason. [[InsultBackfire Lyra just shakes them off]].
* ArcVillain: Plays an instrumental role as an antagonist in the "Training Days" arc, seeking to undermine the heroes' efforts as they prepare for the assault on the Solar Empire.
* BoomerangBigot: Catseye's prejudices extend to half-pony hybrids of other species, and she herself is a half-pony hybrid. She also hates that part of herself, taking great measures to keep her heritage hidden to pass off as a pure unicorn.
* BrightIsNotGood: Her coat color is white.
* {{Expy}}: She's basically a pony version of Chatoyance and Dr. Reitman.
* FantasticRacism: She believes only ponies are truly pure and good, and isn't a fan of "multiculturalism".
* FourEyesZeroSoul: Wears glasses and is a [[FantasticRacism hardline]] xenophobe who's utterly unsympathetic to the plight of the humans.
* FreudianExcuse: WordOfGod and small blurbs in her introductory scene state that she had an especially troubled life brought on by some HalfBreedDiscrimination.
** MonsterSobStory: Being a half-pony hybrid, she faced considerable discrimination and prejudice, though it didn't stop her from believing in pony supremacy.
* KnightTemplar: She and her followers think they're [[DefectorFromDecadence Defectors From Decadence]] squaring off against a coup staged by Princess Luna/Nightmare Moon; [[WrongGenreSavvy the reality is rather different]].
* TheRival: To Lyra, particularly in their college days.
* TakeThat: Luna's summary of Catseye's work is this to Chatoyance's writings.
-->'''Luna:''' "I've read her work, and I am frankly unimpressed with how one-sided she is in her approach, research and confusion of fact with opinion... her theories are the worst kind of popular hype, her methods are sloppy and her conclusions highly questionable... as are her embarrassingly childish responses to criticism."
** The fact she's a hybrid who hates her heritage and takes great measures to deny it is a not-so-subtle reference to Chatoyance being a Male-To-Female transsexual with a reputation for coming off as [[DoesNotLikeMen rather misandric]].
* UnholyMatrimony: With Icewind. She's initially hesitant for fear of him discovering her half-pony nature, but goes for it after the first Loyalist meeting proves a stirring success.

!!Icewind
A pegasus who resigns from the Royal Guard after Canon!Equestria and the other nations of Equus side with mankind, believing his country to have fallen under the sway of monsters.

* DefectorFromDecadence: His [[WrongGenreSavvy belief]] that he is one serves as his primary motivation.
* TheDragon: To Catseye.
* FaceHeelTurn: Unwisely performs it in public, alerting Canon!Luna to the possible threat he poses.
* FantasticRacism: Towards humans, griffons and Changelings in particular. It's probably best to label him as a pony-supremacist.
* FutureLoser: Vinyl claims that she killed his TCB counterpart.
* InsigniaRipOffRitual: Shining Armor orders him to do a self-imposed variation on this by removing his whole uniform. [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere He willingly obliges]].
* KnightTemplar: What he does, he does in the name of Celestia, one version of which is a xenocidal maniac, while the other was unavailable to contradict him at the time.
* UnholyMatrimony: Doesn't take long before he starts flirting with Catseye.
** PetTheDog: WordOfGod states that his affection for her ''is'' genuine.
* VillainHasAPoint: Icewind's conviction is greatly helped by being partially based on legitimate points. For one thing, humans ''are'' a warlike species, many of the races that Canon!Equestria is allying with have shown less-than-friendly intentions in the past, and it is suspicious for [[spoiler: Princess Celestia to retreat from the public eye]] not long after the humans arrive.
* VillainousValor: The guy's alignment may be misplaced, but talking back to a pony as intimidating as Princess Luna is a sure sign of courage.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Beings of Equus]]
Note: As in the above folder, any tropes found here relating to canon characters are best considered as existing simultaneously with their in-show traits.

!!Queen Chrysalis
The Queen of the Changeling Hive who has more than a few bones to pick with Celestia, but may have to put her vendetta aside for the time being.

* EnemyMine: She may despise Celestia with a passion for banishing the changelings out of Equestria and into the Badlands, but is willing to join forces with her to help stop TCB!Equestria.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: She balks at Shining Armor's accusation that she raped him while she was disguised as Cadance, and is [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil even rather insulted that he would think such a thing]]. And of course, she's also disgusted at what Queen Celestia's doing.
* EvilMatriarch: Sincerely wants to feed her people, but does so without regards for the needs of others. Her argument with one of the Changeling elders suggests that not all of them agree with her methods.
* TheGadfly: Seems to love using her shapeshifting to get under others' skin.
* MamaBear: To her hive of Changelings.
* NotInThisForYourRevolution: Somewhat; she's partly motivated by her disgust with Queen Celestia's actions, and another part is out of preserving her hive since [[spoiler: the TCB Changelings were all killed off by the Newfoals' poisoned love, with TCB!Chrysalis herself living the last few years of her life out in [[LastOfHerKind loneliness and solitude]]]].
* PragmaticVillainy
* WellIntentionedExtremist: Or so she says.

!!King Spykoran the Elder
The king of the dragons, and a [[spoiler: grown up version of the MLP franchise's G1 Spike]].

* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler: Was Tirek's minion before turning against him, joining Megan and the Dream Valley ponies to vanquish him]].
* IdenticalGrandson: If [[spoiler: Discord]] is correct, King Spykoran is Spike's grandfather.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler: To keep the Bag of Tirek from corrupting or harming anyone else again, he had to kill the Dream Valley ponies, as well as the Six Princesses, and then cover the land in ash and lava to bury Tirek's castle, hoping to erase it from history altogether. When an Equestrian archaeologist tries to take the bag with him back home, Spykoran attacked the ship, sinking it. He still remembers their faces and screams, and can't [[OutDamnedSpot even take his hundred-year nap]]]].
** IDidWhatIHadToDo: [[spoiler: Nevertheless, he maintains he took the best course of action with dealing with the Bag of Tirek]].
* PurpleIsPowerful: And an incredibly rare color to be found on dragons.
* ShoutOut: His backstory is basically the same as found in ''Fanfic/TheElementsOfHarmonyAndTheSaviorOfWorlds''.

!!Sint Erklass
The ruler of the reindeer and the "Spirit of Hearth's Warming and Bringer of Gifts."

* BadassGrandpa: Seems to be building up into one.
** BadassSanta
* TheCameo: His TCB universe counterpart appears as one of the foreign dignitaries aboard the pre-war ''Great Equestrian'' airship in ''Last Train From Oblivion''.
** ADayInTheLimelight: TCB!Sint is one of the main focuses of ''Joy to the Worlds''.
* FriendToAllChildren: As befitting a Santa Claus {{expy}}, he is a bringer to gifts to all children in Equus. And of course, seeing the human children that were being hurt and harmed by the Solar Empire's campaign enrages him greatly.
* TheMarvelousDeer
* MeaningfulName: His name is based on the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinterklaas Dutch version of the spirit of Saint Nicholas]].
* NiceGuy: Very much so.
* ParentalSubstitute: He served as one for Celestia and Luna when they were foals, and still has a parental level of care and concern towards them. He's also this for his granddaughter Elsa.
* RousingSpeech: Gives one to his troops in "Training Days: First Days, Part 2".
* SantaClaus: Or an {{Expy}} thereof, anyway.
* TimeAbyss: Is even older than Celestia and Luna.

!!Elsa Erklass
"The Snow Maiden", Sint's granddaughter, arch-mage, and chief counselor.

* AndIMustScream: She's both an {{inversion}} and a {{subversion}}. Her consciousness is bound to a magical cloak courtesy of Discord [[EmergencyTransformation trying to save her from an illness]], and seizes control of the body of whomever wears the cloak. In theory, the wearer should be subjected to this, but Elsa's hosts [[WillingChanneler consider it the highest of honors to be the new vessel]] for the granddaughter of Sint Erklaas and don't mind putting their lives on hold for her. Elsa, meanwhile, feels shame over having to do this for her own survival.
* BigGood: While not apparent, the fact that Sint turns to Elsa to pass judgement on the Solar Empire suggests she holds this role to the reindeer.
* ChekhovsGunman: She was first mentioned (not by name) back in "Sanguine Meetings and Bloodied Past", before making her full appearance fifteen chapters later.
* AnIcePerson: As befits her title.
* MagicMirror: Can create one with her powers in which she can converse with the soul of her current host.
* SoulJar: Elsa's soul is bound to a magical cloak - the current wearer becomes the reigning "Snow Maiden" and their consciousness merges with Elsa's.
* TimeAbyss: While not stated explicitly, she is the scion of an immortal and stated to have been Celestia and Luna's nanny in their youth.
* WinterRoyalLady: A double example: she clearly draws upon Elsa from ''Disney/{{Frozen}}'', but her familial connection with Sint and her "Snow Maiden" title come from Snegurochka, a Russian mythological figure who was later recast by the Soviet Union as granddaughter and sidekick to Ded Moroz (Father Frost), their nonsecular Santa.

!!Elder Shaman Quagga
The elder leader of the Zebra Tribes.

* {{Druid}}: The zebras as a whole are this, but Elder Shaman Quagga most especially. He's especially knowledgeable in matters of the soul's health, and it's this knowledge that confirms there is [[spoiler: no cure to the Newfoals' condition. Other than [[MercyKill mass euthanasia]], anyway]].
* EthnicMagician: To an extent.
* SavagePiercings: Has several of these.
* WitchDoctor

!!Pack Leader Canis
[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin The pack leader]] for a large group of civilized Diamond Dogs who agrees on behalf of his race to aid in the battle.

* HeroicDog
* MeaningfulName: Named after the Latin word for dogs.
* MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch: He expresses annoyance with any Diamond Dogs that "go rogue" and cause trouble for the ponies and other races.

!!Queen Hedwig
The current leader of the Griffon Empire.

* BadassGrandma
* BigBadassBirdOfPrey
* TheHighQueen: With some shades of TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask.
* LargeAndInCharge: She's even larger than Celestia!
* MamaBear: For both her son Tobias, and her granddaughter Gilda.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure

!!King Sombra
The former [[EvilOverlord king]] of the Crystal Empire.

* BigBadWannabe: Marcus calls him out on this. Your mileage may vary on ''how'' much of a threat he is, but BigBad he is not.
-->'''Marcus:''' "We never saw you as a serious threat, unless we got really unlucky. You were just an inconvenient obstacle. You weren't even a player."
* BlackMagic: Sombra's magic is powered by negative emotions.
* CrazyPrepared: Just like in canon.
* DemonicPossession: He possesses Marcus, using MindRape to feed on his emotions.
* EvilOverlord: Well, yeah.
* LoveMakesYouEvil: [[spoiler: He blames the fact that Luna didn't return his feelings as part of why he went evil. Discord {{lampshade}}s this and calls it tired and cliché]].
* MindRape: His specialty.
* APupilOfMineUntilHeTurnedToEvil: He was Luna's personal student.
* SorcerousOverlord
* TeacherStudentRomance: [[spoiler: He had an unrequited crush on Luna, and his turn to evil contains a mixture of her not returning his feelings, sending him to the Crystal Empire, and trying to find ways to extend his lifespan. Discord even remarks on how trite this is]].
* ThisCannotBe: When the heroes manage to defeat him.
* VillainousBreakdown
* VoiceOfTheLegion: He speaks with his own voice when possessing Marcus.

!![[spoiler: Discord]]
Strange times make for strange bedfellows, including [[spoiler: the Royal Sisters' old enemy, the Lord of Chaos, who agrees to join forces with them to take down Queen Celestia]].

* AGodAmI: Averted, interestingly enough.
-->"Will there be a time for us so-called gods to stand away from this world and watch them grow on their own?"
* AntiVillain
* [[spoiler: DimensionalTraveller]]
* EnemyMine: [[spoiler: Is willing to put his enmity with Celestia and Luna aside to help them stop TCB!Equestria]].
* EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas: [[spoiler: Discord considers the alicorn Faust to be his mother, and she is one of the few beings he truly loves and cares about]].
* EvenEvilHasStandards: [[spoiler: Not only is he disgusted with what Queen Celestia is doing to the humans, but even he's frightened of [[TheDreaded Tirek]]]].
* HeelFaceTurn: Over time, he does fully come around to be on the heroes' side, even calling himself "an old sinner".
* {{Jerkass}}: Though not without a few PetTheDog moments.
* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Next to Queen Celestia.
* NeverMyFault: [[spoiler: Although his intentions could be considered benign, Discord had a bad case of this in the earlier chapters when he refused to acknowledge the damage he caused in attempting to bring Earth-like levels of "chaos" to Equus, and his own role in what he accuses Canon!Equestria of [[SugarBowl turning]] [[MedievalStasis into]]. His trip through the multiverse finally forces him to reconsider this view somewhat, and come "Sons of Legacies, Part 1", he readily admits his own mistakes and apologizes to Celestia for placing all of the blame on her]].
* [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Nice Job Breaking It, Anti-Villain]]: [[spoiler: He attributes Canon!Equestria's MedievalStasis to Princess Celstia's desire to let the ponies live in harmony, which he claims has only made them complacent and overly dependent on her and presumably, ill-prepared for their war with TCB!Equestria. However, the Princesses only took power because they felt it was their responsibility to clean up the damage Discord's carelessness with his chaos caused in the first place, leading to the misunderstanding and conflict between them that has lasted to the present day. To put it simply, both parties are equally guilty of failing to stick to the Scribe's plan for Equestria's future]].
* NightmareFuelStationAttendant: Naturally.
* OddFriendship: With Marcus.
* PureIsNotGood: [[spoiler: He's a rambunctious, destructive embodiment of pure chaos, but he's also the only one able to resist the lure of Tirek's Bag, something which not even [[BigGood Celestia]] or [[MessianicArchetype Lyra]] could do]].
* TookALevelInKindness: [[spoiler: In "Sons of Legacies, Part 1", he actually genuinely apologizes to Celestia for accusing her of coddling the ponies and [[NeverMyFault for refusing to admit responsibility]] for his own role in what Canon!Equestria has become. In "Part 3", he also admits he can see why Celestia nearly [[SanitySlippage lost her marbles]] when he takes a look into Marcus's psyche]].
* {{Troll}}: [[spoiler: This is ''Discord'' we're talking about here]].
* [[spoiler: UsedToBeASweetKid]]: [[spoiler: He was rather close in childhood to his "mother", Faust. Unfortunately, the lack of socialization he had at the time (given that Equus was a post-apocalyptic wasteland) caused him to never really mature emotionally or learn to understand ThePowerOfFriendship]].
* WalkingSpoiler: [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment Let's just say the authors have taken quite a few liberties with his character.]]
* WellIntentionedExtremist: He claims to be one, but a few {{Armor Piercing Question}}s and his experiences while [[spoiler:travelling the multiverse]] force him to rethink this position.
* [[YoureNotMyFather You're Not My Mother]]: [[spoiler: He doesn't say it outright, but the Scribe mentions during her monologue that he doesn't hold her in the same regard as their mutual creator, Faust. Sure enough, when Discord later meets her again, he can't help teasing her by [[PercussiveMaintenance knocking on her console]]]].

!!The Scribe / [[spoiler: Faust]]
[[spoiler: The last of the original alicorns, Faust waged a centuries-long battle with Tirek before leaving her mark on the world in the shape of an avatar known as the Scribe]].

* AGodIAmNot
* AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: [[spoiler: In fact, the Scribe is just one of several planes Faust ascended to, [[WorldTree the Tree of Harmony]] being another]].
* BlueAndOrangeMorality
* TheChessmaster: [[spoiler: Faust herself prepared for any eventuality of Tirek's return to power. Since EvilOnlyHasToWinOnce, this wasn't successful in every universe... but now one version of Tirek has brought ponykind into contact with some dangerous potential allies in the human world...]]
* DeusEstMachina
* DisappointedInYou: [[spoiler: She isn't very pleased at how Discord, Celestia and Luna have deviated from her plans, Celestia in particular for assuming leadership of the ponies, acquiring the Elements of Harmony ahead of time and locking away both her siblings. She lets it slide because there are more pressing matters to attend to]].
* GeneticMemory: The guardian of all ponykind's collective memories.
* GodIsGood: However...
** GoodIsNotSoft: The Scribe is benign in the grand scheme of things, but her methods are somewhat befitting the Old Testament.
** TheNeedsOfTheMany: She's perfectly willing to leave living creatures to die or even provoke their mutation in the name of rebuilding [[spoiler: the alicorn race]] and Equus' ecosystem. And then there's [[spoiler: the possibility she decided that sacrificing TCB!Lyra and millions of lives was needed to finally defeat Tirek]].
** FromACertainPointOfView: [[spoiler: It's implied she's being economical with the truth when she denies knowledge of how TCB!Lyra obtained the "redeemer" rune]].
* GuardianOfTheMultiverse: [[spoiler: Shares in the knowledge of every single pony throughout TheMultiverse, which leads the Princesses and Discord to consult their version of the Scribe on the subject of a powerful rune given to Marcus by TCB!Lyra]].
* LastOfHerKind
* LightIsGood
* MsExposition
* PetTheDog: An accidental example. While she did [[spoiler:create the timberwolves]], she also accidentally facilitated the creation of the domesticated dog in the process.
* PhysicalGoddess
* {{Precursors}}
* RedHeadedHeroine: [[spoiler: A direct shout-out to Creator/LaurenFaust drawn as an [[http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2013/029/a/2/lauren_fausticorn_by_hampshireukbrony-d5t5u0c.png alicorn]]]].
* SealedGoodInACan: In order to keep existing, which also places a limit on what she can do.
* ShoutOut: [[spoiler: To Lauren Faust, obviously]].
* TrulySingleParent: [[spoiler: Celestia, Luna and Discord are revealed to be her creations/brain-children. Considering that Discord calls Faust his "mother", this would technically make him Celestia's and Luna's brother. He even calls their trip at the end of "Sons of Legacies, Part 3" to seek her out "a good old fashioned family reunion."]]
** TangledFamilyTree: It's also revealed that [[spoiler: Celestia and Luna were also [[OurPhlebotinumChild created from small portions of Clover the Clever, Smart Cookie and Private Pansy's souls]] during the events depicted in "Hearth's Warming Eve"]]. Lampshaded by [[spoiler: Discord]].
-->"As if this family tree wasn't complicated enough," [[spoiler: Discord]] sighed, holding up a bonsai with bizarrely arranged branches. "Now I'll have to use the non-Euclidean bonsai..." He threw the tree off to the side, where it exploded.
* TheWatcher: Albeit more due to a strong case of GodsHandsAreTied than indifference.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: The Unsung Ones]]
A small group of civilian ponies that were wronged by the Solar Empire, sentenced to rot in one of the empire's largest prison camps. They refuse to accept their fate however, working from the shadows to topple the Empire.

!!Inkwell
A journalist pony from Canterlot and a former member of the PETN (Ponies for the Ethical Treatment of Newfoals) who tried to campaign for better living conditions for the Newfoals. However, his investigations lead him to discover the awful truth and get him into more trouble than he's prepared to take on.

* ActionSurvivor: Is slowly developing into this, growing tougher thanks to the hard conditions of the prison camp he's sent to.
* ButtMonkey: Things do not go well for this poor guy. His segment in ''Calm'' is even titled "The Worst Day of Your Life"! And it lives up to the name. The mistreatment continues in the prison camp, where the Head Warden has her eye on him, and his cellmate frequently belittles him.
** IronButtmonkey: Slowly turning into one.
* DyingAsYourself: He chooses to be taken into one of the Solar Empire's gulags instead of a reeducation center, so as to keep his own thoughts and mind intact.
* EveryoneHasStandards: Despite his (initial) support for the ponification of humanity, he refused to report his beloved grandfather (who expressed discomfort with the Newfoals) to the authorities.
* HeelRealization: The first part of his character arc revolves around him realizing that the Solar Empire is in the wrong...
** HeelFaceDoorSlam: ... and he ends up getting sent to a gulag for it.
* IntrepidReporter: Wants to be one. It does not end well for him.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Utters this nearly word-for-word.
* ObliviouslyEvil[-/-]HanlonsRazor: He genuinely believed in and approved of the Empire's conversion of humanity and believed this was helping them, at least until he sees the full picture of the matter.
* SupportingProtagonist: In ''Shades''. He's the "Chronicler" of Rockwell and Soundstorm's stories.
* WrongGenreSavvy: At first, Inkwell seemed to think of himself as some sort of brave whistleblower who would expose the cruel exploitation and treatment of the Newfoals that just wanted to come to Equestria for a better life and bring about change. Not only does he discover the picture is much murkier (as TCB!Equestria is ''dreadfully'' unprepared to support a population numbering in the billions), but there's also the truth behind the Newfoals and the nature of the potion...

!!Rockwell
An earth pony stallion who becomes Inkwell's cellmate after the young unicorn is shipped off to a prison camp. Inkwell suspects the old stallion has some secrets.

* TheAlcoholic: He drinks a lot of the prison camp's "home brew" which Inkwell describes as feeling like sandpaper running down the throat.
* BadassGrandpa[-/-]CoolOldGuy
* BadBlackBarf: Inkwell spies him vomiting up a black gunk that reminds him of the ponification potion. [[spoiler:Turns out that he was exposed to the Bag of Tirek]].
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Besides the things he went through that led to his imprisonment, he's also revealed to have been bullied a lot in his past and often felt small as a result, giving him his somewhat harsher outlook on life.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Though he hasn't had the same luck as many of the PHL ponies who at least got out of the Empire when they still could.
* TheEeyore: He doesn't show it much, but it's made clear in "A Tale Be Told From an Earth Pony" that he's drowning in an ocean of sadness.
* EmpoweredBadassNormal: [[spoiler: He's an Earth Pony who fulfilled his "true potential" - being stronger and faster, as well as being able to use a certain degree of magic]].
* FantasticRacism: He frequently calls Inkwell and other unicorns "pinheads", a derogatory slur for unicorns. He also is shown to mutter about wanting to brutally maim and kill newfoals in his sleep, but he doesn't have anything against humans themselves.
* [[GrumpyOldMan Grumpy Old Stallion]]: What he comes off as at first.
** JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Given everything he's gone through, it's understandable he's so tetchy. And he is ultimately a good guy.
* NayTheist: He doesn't hold a high opinion of Celestia, even before TCB!Equestria's corruption. He accuses Celestia of favoring the unicorns to the detriment of the other ponies, particularly the earth ponies. He goes so far as to say that [[SelectiveObliviousness she's blind to just how rotten her "little ponies" can be]].
* NervesOfSteel: Bordering on FearlessFool levels where a flashback reveals that before he was incarcerated, he mouthed off at Queen Celestia and the TCB!Elements, and fearlessly called Stalwart Heart (the newfoal form of Jacob Renee) a zombie to his face. He also isn't afraid to mouth off at the Head Warden of the prison camp and insult her newfoal lover (whom he calls a sex slave).
* NoodleIncident: No pony knows exactly ''how'' he ended up in prison (in between rumors that he's in for murdering someone with only his left hoof, robbing a bank with only a quill, or for smuggling Luna and Cadance out of the Solar Empire). Until Inkwell discovers that it was because [[spoiler:he prevented his brother from being taken over completely by the [[MindControl Geis]] that took over the Royal Guards, defying Queen Celestia and his unusual abilities being of interest to TCB!Twilight]] that got him in there.
* TheOldConvict: A far grumpier version, but he's generally well respected.

!!Soundstorm
A pegasus mare working alongside Rockwell in the prison camp Inkwell gets incarcerated at. She too has many of her own mysteries and secrets.

* ActionGirl: Is building up into one.
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Averted. She's CoveredInScars from all the beatings she took.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: There are many hints to it.
* PoliceBrutality: She was on the receiving end of this like Blizzard Flurry was during the Cloudsdale Protest.

!!The Mysterious Man/Unicorn
An as-of-yet unnamed unicorn stallion working behind the scenes to stop the Solar Empire. He was also the former Headmaster of Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and [[spoiler:came into contact with Tirek's Bag as well]], driving him to great lengths to save his beloved homeland.

* TheAtoner: [[spoiler:He also came into contact with the Bag of Tirek, which forced him to carry it over to Celestia]].
* BadassTeacher: A retired one, given his former position.
* CloudCuckoolander: Has some traits of this, mainly around Yon-Soo.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: [[spoiler:The Bag of Tirek used him to make sure it got itself to Celestia. Knowing the sheer power and darkness that relic possesses, it's little wonder the former Headmaster is probably a bit traumatized]].
* DefectorFromDecadence
* HumanityEnsues: He frequently shifts between using a human form and his natural unicorn form.
* NoNameGiven

!!Sunset Shimmer (TCB)
A unicorn that was once a personal protege of Celestia's before a falling out occurred between them, Sunset used a mirror that was a gateway to another dimension, biding her time to get payback on her old mentor. But then the Conversion War came calling on her doorstep, forcing her to put her old grudge aside.

* EveryoneHasStandards: She might not be very nice, but she's downright frightened by what Queen Celestia's planning to do.
* NotInThisForYourRevolution: Her main motivation to join the Mysterious Man/Unicorn is largely out of self-preservation (and to find a way to ascend to alicornhood herself).
* ShadowArchetype: A heroic example to TCB!Twilight, ironically enough. They were both personal pupils of Celestia's, but while Twilight learned to value friendship, Sunset did not. However, as Twilight fell to the same dark forces that corrupted all of TCB!Equestria, Sunset is fighting against it.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: The Equestrian Resistance]]
!!The Equestrian Resistance[-/-]The New Lunar Republic
Another anti-Solar Empire faction, its membership comprises of ponies and the surviving races of Equestria who know well that Celestia has gone mad, and wish to restore Equestria's honor.

* [[DefectorFromDecadence Defectors From Decadence]]: They are rebels against the Solar Empire fighting to bring TCB!Equestria back to being a more harmonious and benevolent state.
* {{Expy}}: They're based heavily on the German anti-Nazi group [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kreisau_Circle the Kreisau Circle]], being patriots that love their home country but recognize their governing bodies have become horribly corrupt. They also have shades of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Rose White Rose]] to them as well, due to their opposition to the militarization of Equestria and its establishment of a police state.
** The head of the Resistance is Miss Harshwhinny, who has elements of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_de_Gaulle Charles De Gaulle]] to her character.
* LaResistance: Being one with goals that primarily serve Equestria's interests and future.
* TheMole: Aside from spying on the Empire's workings, they also have spies planted within the PHL, and vice versa.
* MyCountryRightOrWrong: Subverted. They still love their home, and are determined to bring it back to its founding principles.
* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: Their membership is comprised of intellectuals, the industrial working-class, students, political reformists, and peace advocates.
* WeAreStrugglingTogether: Averted with the group's members themselves. Rather, it's more the fact that while they, like the PHL ponies, want to dispose of Queen Celestia and bring her to justice, they also care more for Equestria's interests than humanity.
** They're also less than enthusiastic about the prospect of human soldiers on Equestrian soil, fearing they will indulge in RevengeBeforeReason after all they've been through.

!!Maud Pie (TCB)
TCB!Pinkie Pie's sister, who knows a lot more than she's letting on. She'll appear later in ''Last Train''.

* BigSisterInstinct: For Pinkie Pie.
* DoubleReverseQuadrupleAgent: Has played every side just to advance her goals.
* KnightTemplarBigSister[-/-]TheUnfettered: It's implied that the lengths she went to so she could save her sister from the MindRape had terrible consequences for all involved.
-->'''Cheerilee:''' "She sold us all out. Just so she could rescue her sibling; even if Pinkie's salvation meant leaving the world to burn, she would have done it so long as she and her sister were left to roast marshmallows in the flames."
* TheStoic: As in canon.
* WildCard: Her only real goal is (or was) saving her sister. Everything else... didn't matter.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Solar Empire]]
The main opponent of the PHL/UN and humanity as a whole, they are a corrupted version of the Equestria we know. While their warfare capabilites during the Conversion War amount to newfoal rushes and outdated tactics (by human standards), their Barrier have proven to be more than a match for even the strongest of humanity's weapons.

!!Queen Celestia
The main antagonist of the story. Commonly referred to as the Solar Tyrant, the xenocidal alicorn despot of TCB!Equestria is engaged in a crusade to "save" the Earth from humanity.

* AGodAmI: In sharp contrast to Princess Celestia, who makes an effort to be loved by her citizens through her own actions.
* BigBad
* BigBrotherIsWatching: It's revealed that she has spies to keep an eye on her citizens. The totem proles are another method of making sure there's no dissent going on.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Where it usually takes a lot to get Canon!Celestia to even narrow her eyebrows in anger (though she has been given ample reason to as of late), Queen Celestia's kindness is only skin-deep. Possibly even fur-deep, [[{{Metaphorgotten}} if we're being charitable]]. She is very quick to apply force when honeyed words fail to make things go her way. TCB!Lyra even denounced her as an "unnatural brute" during her final speech.
* BreakThemByTalking: When [[spoiler: Avatar!]]Queen Celestia tries to prevent a human/Canon!Equestria alliance, she tries this. It almost works, except that Luna shows herself far more than willing to sacrifice herself, proving Celestia's words false.
* CrazyPrepared[-/-]DangerouslyGenreSavvy: [[spoiler: She had a feeling the humans would have some kind of ace up their sleeves, so she sent a [[ActuallyADoombot Mirror Pool clone]] of herself out to Boston]].
* TheDreaded
* DystopiaIsHard: Though the Tyrant is by no means incompetent, her campaign is putting such a strain on Equestria's economy that pollution and poverty are growing out of control. At this rate, Celestia will soon be ruling over an empire of walking corpses and plain old corpses.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: PlayedForLaughs, when it's revealed that she had TCB!Blueblood turned to stone and smashed to pieces because even ''she'' couldn't stand his attitude.
* {{Fallen Hero}}ine
* FauxAffablyEvil: See BitchInSheepsClothing.
* GodEmperor: Princess Celestia is one too, of course, but the Queen puts a lot more emphasis on the "god" and "emperor" parts of the job description.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen
* HumiliationConga: Immediately before the battle of Boston, Trixie blows her up and traps her in a collapsing fortress. Then, the first thing that happens to her when she arrives in Boston is Stephan putting a dent in her magical force field with his claymore. Then [[spoiler: Discord and Cheerilee both take turns at beating her into the ground, and Kraber obliterates her spine with a .50 BMG round]]. Subverted somewhat in that [[spoiler: the humiliations were inflicted on a Mirror Pool clone]].
** Then, in Calm Before The Storm, she's [[spoiler: caught up in an explosion courtesy of TCB!Fancy Pants. Again. For the second time in about a week]].
* ImmuneToBullets: Until the humans develop ''new'', magical bullets. She can still regenerate very quickly, though.
* [[ImplacableMan Implacable Mare]]: Even ''with'' the addition of said magical bullet. To quote [[spoiler: Canon!Discord]]:
-->"On top of that, she's stronger than she has any right to be, thanks to our little 'friend' here! (conjures an image of [[spoiler: the Bag of Tirek]]) I'm not convinced she's gonna die easily either. It took more missiles than I can count, two bullets meant to punch through armor that were modified with magic crystals, three beatings from me, a rune-enhanced earth pony and Lulu [[spoiler:turning into Nightmare Moon]], thousands of rounds of ammunition, and a gigantic enchanted sword just to get rid of a clone of her! (an OhCrap crosses his face) Oh Mother, it would take a '''lot''' to kill her!"
* InUniverseNickname: The Solar Tyrant.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Canon!Celestia and Enitan Adebayo suspect this of her. Honestly, it's hard to argue with them.
-->'''Enitan:''' "Though personally, I suspect that ponies of Equestria do not rank much higher [than dirt]. That Celestia cares for nothing but herself... Think on it. If Celestia valued ponydom so much, would she send natives and newfoals alike to die by the thousands? If PER are listening to this... think on that, would you? Think about how much Celestia would value your contribution as a newfoal, to send you to murder children’s minds as they sleep in their beds. Think of how very much she values you to send you to die with no weapons besides potion vials."
* KillItWithFire: Comes with being a sun goddess. Her "Ashes of Solaris" spell is especially horrifying.
* KnightTemplar: Absolutely refuses to see the goodness in mankind while remaining stubbornly blind to her own sins.
* LightIsNotGood: It once was. Not anymore.
* ManipulativeBitch: Whenever Luna questioned her decisions and actions prior to and during the early months of the war, Celestia immediately made her doubt herself by repeatedly asking her if she "feels like herself" or "needs to see a therapist." Given that TCB!Luna at the time had only recently returned from her exile and been cured of being [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Nightmare Moon]], it got her to doubt herself long enough to prevent her from impeding Celestia's warpath.
* MeetTheNewBoss: The ponies of the Crystal Empire are forced to mine for crystals under her rule, and kept under media blackout to make them more afraid of the humans than her.
* MindRape: Currently doing this on a global scale to mankind. [[spoiler: Has already done so to much of TCB!Equestria and the Mane Six]].
** [[spoiler: The ultimate irony is that Queen Celestia was the first to get mind-raped by the Bag of Tirek. Canon!Discord even theorizes that there might not even be much of her original self left anymore]].
* MoralMyopia: Accuses humans of being barbarians but is leading a hateful xenocidal crusade against humanity and calling it righteous.
* MultiversalConqueror: It's very clear once she's done ponifying all of humanity, she'll be targeting Canon Equestria next, and just keep going...
* [[PsychopathicManchild Psychopathic Marefoal]]: A commentator on ''Last Train From Oblivion'' described her as "little more than a destructive child [...] using the Newfoals and Humans as little more than playthings [...]".
* SmugSnake: Despite being the super-powered, immortal dictator of two realms, her biggest flaw is that she repeatedly underestimates her enemies' determination to stop her, much to her own detriment. [[spoiler: Plus, she isn't even the true brains behind the xenocide of humanity...]]
* StrawHypocrite: It turns out that [[spoiler: she probably doesn't even technically believe in the importance of ponification, and was only brainwashed to think that way by The Bag of Tirek]].
* SuicidalOverconfidence: To the point that it can probably be called her FatalFlaw. {{Lampshaded}} by Fancy Pants in ''Calm Before The Storm''.
-->'''Fancy:''' "I thank the Maker that whatever it is that has possessed you is incredibly overconfident."
* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans: Her excuse for wanting to wipe out humanity, whom she sees as monsters.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: To the ponies loyal to her. [[spoiler:Then again, she has brainwashed a lot of them]].
* VillainousBreakdown: As she takes more and more damage from [[spoiler: Discord]] during the fight in Boston, Queen Celestia starts losing more and more of her original cocky attitude and becomes an [[{{Angrish}} unhinged screaming nutjob]] who wants to spread [[spoiler: Discord's]] remains all over the city.
** It's clear in ''Calm Before the Storm'' that the growing resistance mounting against her rule is really beginning to test her patience.
* WeComeInPeaceShootToKill: Or ponify, as the case may be, but there isn't a whole lot of difference.
* WouldHurtAChild

!! Princess Luna (TCB)
Recently returned from exile on the Moon, Princess Luna was initially wary of challenging her sister again, but felt it needed to be done when she saw to what depths Queen Celestia had sunk.

* BroughtDownToNormal
* CainAndAbel: In a reversal of their previous roles, Luna is the Abel to Celestia's Cain.
* DarkIsNotEvil: Or even that dark; her mane turned white after Celestia stole her power.
* HeroicSacrifice: Her main mission was to bring Princess Cadance to Earth. When she realized Celestia was on their trail, she stayed behind to give Cadance, Lyra and Marcus time to escape.
* ImmuneToBullets: Even after being BroughtDownToNormal.
* MoralityPet: Subverted. Queen Celestia genuinely cared for her sister, but refused to let Luna make her see reason.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Celestia played Luna's insecurities over possibly turning into Nightmare Moon again against her, which made Luna unable to challenge her sister despite her doubts about the conversion bureaus and the war. When she finally gathered the courage to stand up to her sister, she was turned to stone for it.
* RebelliousPrincess: Tried to be one not long after coming back from exile for the last time, though for a far nobler cause.
* TakenForGranite: Celestia turned her to stone. Unlike when she did so to Lyra and Blueblood, however, she didn't smash the statue.

!! Discord (TCB)
As in the show, the Lord of Chaos broke free from his prison after a thousand years, but unlike the show, he found a nasty surprise waiting for him in the shape of Queen Celestia...

* AdmiringTheAbomination: Either inverted or played straight, depending on your perspective. Discord admires mankind for how it "thrives on chaos and order in equal measure".
* BroughtDownToNormal
* DefiantToTheEnd
* GoOutWithASmile: Tries to do so. Sadly for him, the pain is too great.
* NeverHurtAnInnocent: Downplayed. Apparently, Discord sees MindRape as acceptable, but letting innocent bystanders die is where he draws the line.
* RedemptionEqualsDeath: Saves a bunch of palace servants from falling rubble during his fight with the Queen.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: [[spoiler: See ThanatosGambit]].
* ThanatosGambit: [[spoiler: It's implied he placed a small part of himself into TCB!Twilight's mind so that he could use her to send Marcus to Canon!Equestria, ensuring humanity would get allies to turn the tide of the war in their favor and that his own death would not be in vain]].
* YoureInsane: A rare, mild example from one villain to another. He warned Queen Celestia that antagonizing humanity is [[BullyingADragon a bad idea]], because humans operate on levels of insanity well beyond either of them.

!![[spoiler: Tirek]]
[[spoiler: As seen in the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTVSpecials'', Tirek is an evil centaur (formerly an alicorn) defeated long ago by a human, Megan Williams. Now he wants revenge, and through the use of his Bag (which contains his very essence and all of his powers), the modern Equestria will help him achieve that goal...]]

* ArtifactOfDoom: [[spoiler: His Bag]].
* BiggerBad[-/-]TheManBehindTheMan: [[spoiler: According to King Spykoran and Canon!Discord, Tirek is using is basically using TCB!Celestia as his puppet to carry out his will]].
* TheCorrupter: [[spoiler: The Bag will corrupt anyone that comes into contact with it, no matter how pure their hearts are, by preying on their weaknesses, insecurities, and darker aspects. Aside from turning TCB!Celestia into a murderous tyrant, it is also heavily hinted that the Bag [[HijackedByGanon might have also corrupted Luna into becoming Nightmare Moon]] to bring about TheNightThatNeverEnds]].
* DisproportionateRetribution: [[spoiler: The attack on humanity is Tirek's revenge against the ''entire human race'' because '''one''' single human (Megan) defeated him a thousand years prior]].
** MisplacedRetribution: [[spoiler:Turns out that the Megan Williams of the Earth he's attacking went to a different Equestria altogether]].
* TheDreaded: [[spoiler:Even Discord is [[EvenEvilHasStandards frightened and disgusted by Tirek's sheer evil]]. In fact, hearing his very name will instinctively strike fear into the hearts of all ponies]].
* EvilIsNotAToy: [[spoiler:How Tirek's Bag works on its victims - it worms its way into their minds by offering them their greatest desires, preying on their insecurities and ultimately whittling their personalities away into nothing]].
* ForTheEvulz: [[spoiler:Topped off with a truly massive case of ItsAllAboutMe, according to Discord, who calls the pain and suffering caused by the war "the most colossal act of self-gratification ever seen"]].
* ItAmusedMe: [[spoiler:Turns out that he's doing all this not just for revenge, but because he gets off on the pain and suffering left in the wake of the war]].
* MindRape: [[spoiler: Did this to TCB!Celestia and the TCB!Elements, and pretty much all of TCB!Equestria. And of course, he's inflicting this on humanity too]].
* OmnicidalManiac: [[spoiler:As the embodiment of the Element of Magic (or Em) puts it:]]
-->'''Em:''' "[[spoiler:There shall be nothing but Tirek, and he will die alone in a lifeless multiverse of rusting automata, and rejoice in that death...]]"
* SatanicArchetype
* SealedEvilInACan
* WalkingSpoiler: It's difficult to talk about this character without spoiling some very major details about the plot and the other characters.

!!The Elements of Harmony (TCB)
Queen Celestia's six right-hoof mares, ruthlessly devoted to her cause.

* [[spoiler: AndIMustScream]] : [[spoiler: Each of them is imprisoned within their own minds, and their bodies are used as puppets by dark personalities implanted in their stead. All the girls have been able to do is helplessly watch as they go around committing evil in Queen Celestia's name]].
* BadBoss: TCB!Applejack is known to be quite a slave-driver.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: TCB!Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie still maintain their cheerful, happy attitudes despite the atrocities they commit.
* BreakTheCutie: [[spoiler: All of them]].
* TheBrute: TCB!Rainbow Dash.
* ButForMeItWasTuesday: TCB!Pinkie Pie takes a while to remember ponifying Kraber's kids, much to his anger.
* CoDragons: Though TCB!Twilight herself is most definitely still Queen Celestia's faithful student.
* [[spoiler: DeathSeeker]]: [[spoiler: The real TCB!Twilight begs and pleads with Canon!Luna to kill her and her friends to release them from their mental prisons. Rarity also attempts to kill herself when she momentarily is able to take back control of her own body. And from what Rockwell has seen, the rest of them are just as desperate to be freed from their prisons with the release of death]].
* {{Dark Action Girl}}s
* TheDarkChick: TCB!Rarity, right down to [[spoiler: being the one to fight the hardest against her evil conditioning]]. TCB!Fluttershy as well.
* DomesticAbuse: Implied in "Sons of Legacies, Part 3", which states that TCB!Twilight used her Newfoal husband, Stalwart Heart, as "little more than a toy." Doctor Fluffy has also said in the comments for the chapter that she made him give her a [[WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers Rusty]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykEGtwJuZIs Venture]], pointing out that thanks to him being a Newfoal, there's [[PowerPerversionPotential literally no way he could have said no]].
* TheDreaded: It's generally advised that PHL soldiers run like hell if any one of them is nearby.
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler: Rarity and Twilight (and by extension, the other four) just want to die. Too bad the homunculi that have taken them over won't let them...]]
* TheEvilGenius: TCB!Twilight.
* {{Expy}}: TCB!Twilight is basically a pony version of Josef Mengele. [[spoiler:Though it was '''''not''''' out of her own volition]].
* [[FallenHero Fallen Heroines]]
* [[spoiler: FightingFromTheInside]]: [[spoiler: According to Kraber, it seems like Rarity is able to do this somewhat, when she once froze in the middle of a collapsing building, while rubble was about to crush her]].
* LackOfEmpathy
* LateArrivalSpoiler: Certain later side-stories such as ''Shades of the Unsung'' operate under the assumption that readers are already familiar with the main story's chapter "[[WhamEpisode For Whom The Bell Tolls]]" and its revelations surrounding the Element Bearers.
* MindRape: TCB!Fluttershy's Stare had evolved into being capable of this.
** [[spoiler: It's also what has befallen their real personalities]].
* NotHerself: TCB!Big Mac describes Applejack as "a caricature that looks for all the world like her but has none of her soul inside". Justified in that [[spoiler: a dark personality was implanted into Applejack's head to use her body as a tool for the conversion of humanity, all the while her true self is kept locked up in a mental prison]].
* UnholyMatrimony: Twilight was married to Marcus's ponified brother before his death.
** Rainbow is in a relationship with TCB!Lightning Dust.
* VillainousVirtues: Zig-zagged. Each of them has retained their core traits (such as Applejack's inability to lie or Fluttershy's sweet-talking), but they've been so whittled down to their crudest form as [[{{Flanderization}} to be essentially worthless]].
* WouldHurtAChild

!!Spike (TCB)
TCB!Twilight's dragon assistant, who has developed a bit differently from in-canon...

* BeingTorturedMakesYouEvil: [[spoiler: Thankfully averted, but that was apparently Queen Celestia's rationale for making him suffer. Given that [[JustEatGilligan she could have simply brainwashed him]], it was almost certainly just ForTheEvulz]].
** FridgeBrilliance: [[spoiler: Spike is stated to be the grandson of G1 Spike, known as King Spykoran in this story. Tirek's Bag is influencing Celestia to prolong the suffering of those its creator hates the most]].
* BreakTheCutie
* ColdBloodedTorture: [[spoiler: Subjected to it on Queen Celestia's orders. The only consolation is that he's full-grown in the TCB-verse, so at least she wasn't torturing a child]].
* DistressedDude: A rather nightmarish example, and cruelly ironic, given that he's, well, a dragon.
* LastOfHisKind: He's the only living dragon in TCB!Equestria.
* ParentalBetrayal: Poor Spike saw Celestia and Twilight, the two people closest to him in childhood, turn into evil madmares. [[spoiler: And then, not only did the Queen have him tortured for trying to escape her rule, but the six Element bearers came to visit and ''mock'' him]].
--> '''Spike:''' [[spoiler: They saw me here, heard my cries, and laughed... Fluttershy threw me crumbs of bread while tittering at how 'spunky' I was... they weren't my... family, they were perversions, victims that had been... violated...]]
* ShipTease: In the TCB-verse, he and Rarity apparently did have something going on. [[spoiler: When they found out what was happening to the other Elements, they tried to escape, but failed and were captured]].
* WalkingSpoiler: Prior to "For Whom The Bell Tolls", the revelation of his fate is one of the darkest moments in the story.

!!Fleur de Lis (TCB)
The founder of the PETN (Ponies for the Ethical Treatment of Newfoals) and Minister of Newfoal Affairs, Fleur is a benevolent mare who is nonetheless loyal to Queen Celestia, unaware all the while of her husband Fancy Pants' illicit activities.

* DefectorFromDecadence[-/-]HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:After she's shown the true evil of the Solar Empire and loses everything]].
* {{Expy}}: Of French actress and animal rights activist Creator/BrigitteBardot.
* {{Foil}}: To Ambassador Lyra Heartstrings, another good-hearted pony who founded a group seeking to aid humans affected by the Solar Empire.
* HappilyMarried[-/-]MayDecemberRomance: With Fancy Pants.
* HiddenDepths: Being a socialite and written off as a trophy wife (though she and Fancy do legitimately love each other) no one took her or her little PETN group seriously. She proved them wrong though.
* MySecretPregnancy:
** ImperiledInPregnancy: [[spoiler: Just in case there was ''still'' any doubt in the reader's mind that Newfoals are no more than soulless monsters, the first thing one of her Newfoal servants does upon discovering Fancy works for the PHL is to attempt to crush her belly for carrying the child of a "Betrayer"]].
** [[spoiler: SomeoneToRememberHimBy]]: [[spoiler: Considering she breaks the news to Fancy the same night she discovers that he is a PHL informant and he goes down fighting to save her from the ungrateful Newfoals, it's a miracle he wasn't also two days from retirement]].
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: [[spoiler: She renounces the Empire after witnessing her Newfoal employees turn on her husband on the mere suspicion of him being a "Betrayer" and for trying to induce a miscarriage in her]].
* SpoiledSweet
* ToBeLawfulOrGood: Chooses to be Lawful, [[spoiler:but only because she thought she was choosing Good. When Fancy makes her see that Queen Celestia was EvilAllAlong, Fleur rapidly switches sides]].
* TokenGoodTeammate: For all the Imperial ponies' claims that they want to help mankind, few are willing to treat the Newfoals as equal to natural born ponies, which moves Fleur to step in and try assisting their integration into Equestrian society.
** ObliviouslyEvil: That said, she fully approved of the Solar Empire's xenocidal campaign and honestly believed they were helping the humans [[spoiler:until Fancy Pants opened her eyes on the matter]]. Summed up in this quote below:
-->It would be something of a stretch to say Fleur De Lis was a bad pony. She merely had that unique combination of social connections, ignorance of the world at large, and good intentions that made her position more an unfortunate quirk of circumstance than genuine villainy.
* TrophyWife: Subverted. She and Fancy genuinely love each other.
* WideEyedIdealist: Genuinely thinks she's still living in pre-Imperial Equestria, [[spoiler: until she herself almost falls victim to its cruelty]].

!!Weaver (real name unknown)
A personal assassin and spy of Queen Celestia's, charged with conducting "black ops" the [[CrapsaccharineWorld Solar Empire]] considers too sinister for public knowledge amongst the TCB!Equestrians. Though she's a devout follower of the Tyrant, there may be more to this unicorn than it first seems...

* AntiVillain: Type III.
* AffablyEvil: A polite, soft-spoken, humble lady... who will destroy you, your family and your species if given the order to by her goddess.
** TheMenFirst: Following the explosion of the "North Pole" mountain on Equus (which, admittedly, she herself caused), Weaver ignores her own wounds to provide treatment for the injured soldiers under her command. This sharply contrasts the lack of concern felt by most Imperials for collateral damage both times [[NighInvulnerable Celestia]] got caught in an explosion.
** IOweYouMyLife: Having lost her mask and cloak in the explosion, her face becomes known to Crumpit, the pegasus captain who saved her while she was falling. Rather than invoke HeKnowsTooMuch and kill him off, she lets him go with a caution ([[PragmaticVillainy though she may well have erased his memories afterwards]]).
* AppropriatedAppellation: "Weaver" is a name first given to her by TCB!Sint Erklass after she revealed she was a DreamWeaver.
* AristocratsAreEvil: She is a Canterlot unicorn and a Knight of the Realm.
* AsTheGoodBookSays: A rare example where the person quoting biblical passages uses them to support their own non-Abrahamic faith. For example, after she first brings down Sint Erklass, she compares the situation of the reindeer people (who, unlike humanity, are being straight-up slaughtered by the Empire) with Abraham sacrificing a ram in Isaac's stead.
* AuthorAvatar: A running gag amongst Team Spectrum is that Weaver is one for [=VoxAdam=], jokingly referred to as "[=FemaleEvilPonyVox=]", a term coined by co-author Sledge115 in ''Joy to the Worlds''. The truth of the matter has been met with ShrugOfGod, although the writer in question admits to basing some of her personality on his own experiences.
* {{Badass}}: Killing an immortal reindeer, the oldest living being in Equestria, will earn you this title.
** CulturedBadass[-/-]WickedCultured: Surprisingly knowledgeable about ''human'' culture, which she sees as a source of inspiration, even as the Solar Empire is busy wiping out all trace of mankind's existence.
** DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: Weaver succeeds in killing [[TimeAbyss Sint Erklass]], the oldest living being on Equus.
** LadyOfWar: For a Canterlot aristocrat, she's very good at handling herself in a no-holds-barred duel.
** WarriorMonk: Not part of any official order, but she worships Celestia as her god and leads a relatively ascetic lifestyle.
* {{BFS}}: Her weapon of choice is an orichalcum sword that can magically split into thirteen shards.
* DangerouslyGenreSavvy: Keeps Sint's grandchildren alive to use against him as leverage prior to their battle in a mystical place of his choosing. [[spoiler: Unfortunately for her, she gets OutGambitted when his blood spilt during the fight triggers the star-zodiac to his advantage]].
* UsefulNotes/{{Depression}}: Suffers from melancholia, or clinical depression, which she calls her "black dog". In his final moments, Sint speculates this may have [[DrivenToMadness driven her insane]] and over the DespairEventHorizon, turning her into the murderous fanatic for Celestia she is now.
** CursedWithAwesome[-/-]BlessedWithSuck: [[spoiler:Her personal inner demon makes her partially immune to Tirek's brainwashing... meaning she's doing this more or less of her own free will]].
* DreamWeaver: Has the ability to create and control dreams, a fairly rare talent in Equestria since Luna's exile a thousand years ago.
* EvilCounterpart: To Stephan Bauer and the Blue Spy.
* {{Expy}}: A courteous, sword-wielding assassin who knows they can't live in the "better" world they want to bring about? [[WordOfGod Word of Vox]] confirms that Weaver is based in part on [[Film/{{Serenity}} The Operative]].
* [[ImplacableMan Implacable Mare]]: No matter what Sint throws at her as they fight, she keeps coming back for more.
* KnightTemplar[-/-]WellIntentionedExtremist: Her awareness that she isn't a good person doesn't stop her from seeing her cause itself as still just.
* LightIsNotGood: The color of her coat is white, and some of those who glimpse it describe her as "the pale mare".
* [[MalevolentMaskedMen Malevolent Masked Mare]]: She wears a mask to protect her identity while committing her crimes. It's shaped like the upper half of a human face.
** WhiteMaskOfDoom: Inverted in that she's a white unicorn wearing a flesh-colored mask.
* MyMasterRightOrWrong: Whatever her personal feelings on the subject, this mare will carry out Queen Celestia's orders one way or another. Although sometimes, she does herself leave room for personal initiative.
* NecessarilyEvil: Sincerely convinced that Celestia is paving the way towards a brighter future for humanity and ponykind, yet also believes it will require sacrificing a lot, including her own soul.
* NoNameGiven[-/-]OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: ''Joy to the Worlds''' narration never refers to her by name, except towards the end when she adopts the codename "Weaver".
* NoPlaceForMeThere: She is well aware that she could never belong in the ideal world she seeks to create, and has already accepted that she will need to remove herself from the picture once the Empire's crusade is done.
* PureIsNotGood: Much to Sint's dismay, her genuine, untainted love for Celestia and the human race alike allow her to draw from the mystical zodiac atop the North Pole to power her magical capacity.
* RedBaron: Some of the ponies she commandeers only know her as "Celestia's Sword". By the end of the story, she herself adopts the nickname "Weaver".
* TheSpook: Next to nothing is known about who she is, or her past.
* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans
* VillainousBreakdown: Briefly undergoes one when Sint [[spoiler: calls upon the magic of the mountain to rebuff her attack]], but she soon gets over it and accordingly adapts to the situation.
* VillainousValor: [[spoiler: Chooses not to lie to the Tyrant about the escape of Sint and his grandchildren, knowing she will be punished for this failure]].
* VillainProtagonist: The {{Deuteragonist}} of ''Joy to the Worlds'' alongside TCB!Sint Erklass.
* VisionaryVillain
* WorthyOpponent: Unlike many Imperials, Weaver never shows any sign of hating mankind or pro-human ponies. While offhandedly mentioning Lyra Heartstrings to one of her subordinates, she even wonders if he'll notice the lack of scorn in her voice.
* WouldHurtAChild: Disturbingly, she sees it as her task to do reprehensible actions like this precisely so other ponies don't need to get their hooves dirty.

!!The Newfoals
Humans transformed into ponies by the [[MutagenicGoo ponification serum]]. They are unflinchingly and completely loyal to Queen Celestia. They really don't have much in the way of individuality, personality, or brain function, so it's fair game to list them as a singular entity.

* BerserkButton: They may be {{Extreme Doormat}}s, but they'll at least ''try'' to kick your butt if you insult Queen Celestia, harm one of the TCB!Elements, or say anything negative about Equestria.
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: They're unshakable fanatics for the Queen.
* CannonFodder: Anytime they're out in battle, they'll ponify every human they see, and will often get used as meat shields. Queen Celestia plans to take it a step further by modifying the potion to turn them into an army of soldiers.
* CreativeSterility: Newfoals can't get cutie marks. Unlike the "Dearth" of cutie marks suffered by native Equestrians, however, there is some InUniverse FridgeBrilliance for this: the Newfoals, by their very nature, are {{Extreme Doormat}}s that are so utterly drained of any kind of free will that it's questionable if they even have any kind of higher brain function, so there's no possible way they'd be able to make that realization of their talents.
* [[CreepyChild Creepy Foals]]: Human children transformed into Newfoals have the same empty, glassy-eyed smiles and general creepiness of any other Newfoal. It's combined with UncannyValley, given that they're all blank-flanks, something which isn't exactly unusual in Equestria. But to see them in such large numbers is a bit... unsettling.
** In the Starvation Side-Story, it's mentioned that [[WebAnimation/ButtonsAdventures Button's mom]] ''hates'' working with Newfoal children. Acevedo even expresses disbelief that [[DotingParent she]] had more patience for her [[MouthyKid obnoxious]] and [[ButtMonkey accident prone]] son than she does for the zombie-like shells of formerly human children. Even Button is shocked by it. It doesn't help that the unicorns kept trying to stab her all the time, forcing her to get protection gear for herself.
* EmergencyTransformation: At first, many people took the potion as a cure for their medical conditions. Needless to say, the costs far outweigh the benefits.
* EvenTheDogIsAshamed: Even several natural born Equestrian ponies ([[spoiler:who have also been brainwashed, mind you]]) don't like them. Still, they don't talk about it lest they get sent to one of the Solar Empire's gulags or to a re-education center.
* ExtremeDoormat: They're so completely drained of any kind of free will that Acevedo actually wonders if they even possess any kind of higher brain functioning. Canon!Twilight herself notes that the native-born ponies can treat them badly, and they wouldn't object. They'll also work themselves to death if they aren't told to take a break.
* FantasticSlur: While they're subject to many of the slurs that native Equestrians get, ([[FanFic/ShinzakurasAllAmericanGirl "Geldos," "Merry-Go-Round Toys," among others]]) they're also infrequently referred to as "zombies" by characters such as Acevedo, Kraber and Rockwell due to their lack of free will and the way they descend upon the resistance in ruthlessly determined droves.
* FeelNoPain: They can keep going in spite of their injuries, and during {{Zerg Rush}}es, they'll just keep charging at their human defenses, tripping over each other or even their own spilling entrails.
* GettingSmiliesPaintedOnYourSoul: UpToEleven doesn't even ''begin'' to describe it. [[spoiler:It's more like shattering the soul (literally) and then rearranging the pieces so that it looks like a smile]].
* GoshDangItToHeck: They also completely lose their ability to swear. {{Exploited}} by the fact that the PHL base's password to get in is "Fuck that Solar Bitch" and the failsafe code to [[spoiler:stop the Yellowstone volcano nukes from detonating (if it gets to that point) is "Celestia is a cock loving whore"]].
** BigStupidDooDooHead: Any insults they hurl out will amount to this.
* AMindIsATerribleThingToRead: The complex lattice of spellwork governing their minds is [[TakeOurWordForIt apparently]] [[YouDoNotWantToKnow so horrifying]] to see directly that it left TCB!Fancy Pants vomiting and suffering nightmares for the better part of a week when he went on a JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind of one.
* '''MindRape''': The process of turning into a Newfoal. There's no human left inside, barely any brain function, and they're little more than automatons that praise Celestia near-constantly.
* {{Mooks}}
** EliteMooks: Certain Newfoals such as Stalwart Heart and Focus Ray seem to possess a slightly higher degree of cunning than the others. Later on, in ''Last Train From Oblivion'', TCB!Twilight makes a new ponification serum designed specifically to make these types of Newfoals. One result of this modified potion is Nepenthe.
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Averted. Prince (briefly King) Charles Windsor of Great Britain got ponified and now spends his days singing the praises of the "One True Monarch".
* NotHimself: The potion completely takes away the victim's original personality, effectively killing them. According to ''Case Files'', the typical pattern is that they grow more and more distant from their human friends and loved ones, and eventually stop talking to them to the point it's like they never knew their old friends. And there's the fact that they constantly proselytize. "War March and Past Sins" delves into exactly why this is; [[spoiler: basically, the human convert's soul is ''shattered to pieces'' and then "bound in chains" to Queen Celestia's and the Bag of Tirek's will. Even worse, according to the Elder Shaman of the Zebras, it is completely impossible to repair those souls with any medicine or magic; only {{Mercy Kill}}ing them will make their souls whole again and set them free]]. To quote one ex-HLF member:
-->'''Andrew Silas:''' "We expected them to just be our friends and family with hooves and fur, we expected... I don't know what. The simplest way I can put it is that we expected it to be them. That they'd be something like the people we knew. Henry, though... you've heard this description a million times, but it just wasn't him in there."
* PerpetualSmiler: Not only that, but their eyes are also a bit too wide open and rather glassy, making them just a little creepier.
* PowerPerversionPotential: An unusual (and ''really'' messed-up) example, because it's not caused by the transformation but more by what the transformation invites. Thanks to the MindRape, Newfoals are polite, happy, and helpful to a fault. And, as Doctor Fluffy pointed out in the comments to "Sons of Legacies, Part 3", there's literally no way a Newfoal can say no to a natural-born Equestrian... like Twilight Sparkle, for example. [[FridgeHorror Just imagine the abuse they could be made to undergo...]] or, considering that we already linked to the Rusty Venture earlier, [[{{Squick}} don't]].
** Taken further in the ''Calm Before the Storm'' side-story when aspiring IntrepidReporter Inkwell sees a Newfoal brothel in Hoofington where they cater to the natural born pony clients' every whim.
* StepfordSmiler: The only emotion they exhibit is a hollow happiness and the smiles are just always a bit too wide to look genuine.
* TechnicallyLivingZombie: They're living, breathing beings, but they're completely drained of all free will, possess no survival instinct and only care to add other humans to their numbers, much like actual zombies.
* ThatManIsDead: Newfoals don't take kindly to being reminded that they were once human.
** DoNotCallMePaul: One Newfoal, Stalwart Heart, did ''not'' take kindly to being called by his old human name Jacob.
* TragicMonster: To some extent, due to how the potion warps the minds of the converted, the Newfoals' original human selves are completely trapped in their mental prisons and the only way to free them is to kill them. Focus Ray is one particular case.
-->The pain in the words was heart-wrenchingly real, and [Trixie] wondered if it was a scream from the golem that thought it was a pony, or the horror of a man pleading for deliverance from the nightmare he was living. She shivered in horror...
* TranshumanTreachery: Justified and subverted – most of their original personality is removed so that they can't really do anything else, and there's not much left of their original selves at all. Certainly not enough to consider defection or remain loyal.
* UncannyValley: InUniverse. Aside from everything else, Trixie points out that ''every'' Newfoal ever produced is a blank-flank, and she treats this as the unsettling icing on top of the creepiness cake. On top of that, according to one former HLF member, ''they never stop telling humans how good it is'', no matter how long it's been since they were ponified.
-->'''Andrew Silas:''' "A month [after he was ponified], it was like [Henry] never knew me, and when we did talk, the subject always turned to ponification and how great it felt. I've known transwomen and transmen before, and sometimes they ended up regretting it – [[SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped a sad truth, that is]] – and sometimes the novelty wore off after a month and they just started adjusting, but Henry just glowed as if it was the day after he'd been ponified, and never stopped. Plus, those people never proselytized about it... It was damned unnerving."
* UndyingLoyalty: To Queen Celestia. Anytime they're out on the battlefield, they can get shot at and still keep going, and they have ''no'' self-preservation either.
* TheUnsmile: When Canon!Pinkie Pie sees pictures of them, she ''flips out'' over how wrong their expressions look.
--> '''Pinkie:''' "They're not smiling! Whatever that face they're making is, it's not a smile!"
* WasOnceAMan
* WouldHurtAChild: Aside from happily ponifying human children (some as young as infants), there's also [[spoiler:how one of TCB!Fleur's Newfoal servants tried to crush her pregnant belly because she carried the child of a "Betrayer"]].
* ZergRush: The strategy of fresh Newfoals, who are used as meat shields for the Royal Guard.

[[/folder]]

* AuthorAvatar: A running gag amongst Team Spectrum is that Weaver is one for [=VoxAdam=], jokingly referred to as "[=FemaleEvilPonyVox=]". The truth of the matter has been met with ShrugOfGod, although the writer in question admits to basing some of her personality on his own experiences.

* {{Badass}}: Killing n immortal reindeer, ''the oldest living being in Equestria'' will give you this title.

** CursedWithAwesome[-/-]BlessedWithSuck: [[WordOfGod According to [=VoxAdam=]]], [[spoiler:her personal inner demon makes her partially immune to Tirek's brainwashing... meaning she's doing this more or less of her own free will]].

* NecessaryEvil: Sincerely convinced that Celestia is paving the way towards a brighter future for humanity and ponykind, yet also believes it will require sacrificing a lot, including her own soul.

* TheSpook: Next to nothing is known about who she is or her past.

* WellIntentionedExtremist

* NoodleIncident: He's had a run in with Aegis before. He doesn't want to talk about it.

* {{Badass}}: Killing ''the oldest living being in Equestria'' will give you this title.

** DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: Weaver succeeds in killing Sint Erklass, the oldest living being on Equus.

* AxCrazy: His sanity seems to decrease each chapter, [[spoiler:which nearly gets Luna killed, twice]]. Though he's a bit more self-aware about it than other examples, freely admitting that he's crazy and very, [[ShellShockedVeteran very traumatized]].