Characters / The Kindness Of Devils Supernatural Threats And Criminals

The Kindness of Devils Characters
Main Characters | Denizens of Hell | Denizens of Heaven | Outer Gods & Great Old Ones | Allies | Supernatural Threats & Criminals

The Snuff Film Ring

Rich Jacobs

Rich Jacobs born Ricardo Jimenez

Appears in: Girls on Film | Nights In Lonesome Arkham

"I'm gonna see what makes a legend break. Then I'm gonna film it."

The Big Bad of Girls on Film. The illegitimate son of Wallace Malcolm Hargrove, Jacobs was turned into a vampire at a young age and now maintains a snuff film operation he uses to distribute snuff porn across the deep web, kept covert by his father's resources.

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• Arch-Enemy: Sees Hardestadt as one.
• Bad Boss: Casually mutilates, disfigures, and murders his own men for any reason he can think of.
• Bastard Bastard: An illegitimate child, and just as much of a bastard as his father.
• Berserk Button: He gets...pretty furious at the mention he's nothing without 'daddy's money.' He also hates being called a coward.
• Big Bad: Of Girls on Film, as the snuff films were all his idea.
• Boomerang Bigot: Is pretty racist towards Hispanics, despite the fact that he's Latino on his mother's side.
• Butt-Monkey: After he's revived in Arkham, he's constantly getting chewed out by Nyarlathotep, gets pathetically nipped by sunlight, and has his ego crushed a countless number of times. Granted, he deserves everything he gets.
• Child by Rape: Jacobs is illegitimate, having been fathered by Hargrove's assault on a Hispanic women, something his father dismisses as 'just fun.'
• Country Matters: Almost calls Emma one in Nights in Lonesome Arkham.
• Daddy's Little Villain: Gender-flipped variation. Like evil father, like evil son.
• Deader than Dead: After being eaten by Cthulhu, safe to say he's gone for good.
• Demoted to Dragon: Come Nights in Lonesome Arkham, where he's resurrected as Nyarlathotep's enforcer. Even then, he's still capable of doing much more damage than he was as a simple vampire and hates serving the powerful Outer God.
• Dirty Coward: While all talk, Rich can't back it up when Hardestadt manages to break free, leaving his men behind to fight the far more powerful demon as he runs away in terror. This holds true for when he's later revived by Nyarlathotep and becomes powerful; even against Hardestadt with his new powers, he still prefers to hide in the shadows while Hardestadt lays waste to his henchmen.
• Dragon-in-Chief: Jacobs' scheme is enabled by his father, but Jacobs knows his old man is late for the world and dangles the promise of vampirism over his head until the day he chokes to keep him complacent and to keep his resources under his control.
• Eaten Alive: His final fate, courtesy of a pit of starved ghouls he uses to dispose of bodies. Double after his resurrection in Arkham, with Cthulhu taking a bite out of him instead.
• Faux Affably Evil: Under a superficial charm and friendliness, he's an unrepentant monster and sadist who lacks any good will whatsoever.
• Fantastic Racism: Sees vampires as the "real master race".
• Final Boss: Served as this for Girls on Film. In Nights in Lonesome Arkham however, he served as the penultimate boss before Nyarlathotep.
• The Heavy: His plans in Girls on Film drive most of the plot, while his evil old man lays back in the shadows.
• Karmic Death: Twice over. The first time he's made into ghoul chow and is torn apart while on camera, the subject of a last snuff film. The second time, the woman he tormented so badly deals him an absolutely agonizing series of wounds, gouges out his eyes and throws him to Cthulhu.
• Killed Off for Real: Jacobs is resurrected as Nyarlathotep's eldritch servant in Nights in Lonesome Arkham, but toward the end of the book, meets his final end at the jaws of Cthulhu itself.
• Lack of Empathy: Possesses zero regard or empathy for any other living being, and when he learn his father is very likely suffering in the afterlife, his response is "Fuck him."
• Laughably Evil: Despite being an evil little thing, Rich is sometimes so gleefully aware about how horrible he is, that he's oftentimes funny.
• Mad Artist: Seems to regard his snuff films as a sort of depraved artwork on their own with a special focus on the death and suffering of his victims.
• Moral Myopia: He's enraged at Emma and Dani for helping Hardestadt overthrow him and throw him to his ghouls. Him being a snuff film maker and murderous sadist doesn't really seem to mitigate his anger over this.
• Never My Fault: He is incapable of ever accepting responsibility for any of his own failings or anything ever going wrong.
• No Kill like Overkill: In Nights in Lonesome Arkham, it wasn't bad enough that he got sliced, gutted, and had his eyes gouged out, but then he had to get dumped into black water and get eaten by Cthulhu himself.
• Older Hero vs. Younger Villain: Is thousands of years younger than Hardestad and thinks he's a washed up old man.
• Politically Incorrect Villain: An open misogynist with a racist streak as well, despite his claims of seeing only vampires as the 'master race.'
• Sadist: Absolutely revels in tormenting and harming people, especially women and Hardestadt.
• Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: The torture, rape, and murder of hundreds of women is all nothing to Jacobs and his daddy's money.
• Smug Snake: Jacobs is insufferably arrogant and, despite a clever trick which briefly gets the best of Hardestadt, nowhere near as in control as he thinks he is. Once Hardestadt frees himself and mows through his vampiric soldiers, Jacobs folds like wet tissue.
• Spoiled Brat: The result of growing up under a wealthy father just as horrible as the boy he raised. Rich always expects getting exactly what he wants, and goes on yelling sprees when things don't go his way.
• The Starscream: He wants to be this to Nyarlathotep, already plotting on a way to betray the Outer God. As Nyarlathotep is....Nyarlathotep, it never really gets past ineffective seething.
• Ungrateful Bastard: Despite his father showering him with money and connections, helping him with his snuff film ring, and even curing him of a fatal disease by having him turned into a vampire, Rich still hates his old man's guts, and is glad when he hears the news of his death.
• Villainous Breakdown: He has a huge one when Hardestadt gets free and proceeds to tear his men apart.

Wallace Malcolm Hargrove

Wallace Malcolm Hargrove

Appears in: Girls on Film

"They were nothing. Just women."

The CEO of BoldTech and Rich Jacobs' father, as well as his financier.

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• Big Bad Wannabe: Thinks himself The Man Behind the Man to his son but Jacobs' supernatural strength and stringing along of Hargrove with the false promise to make him into a vampire, leaves him as an old man with little time left being played like a pawn.
• Corrupt Corporate Executive: A wealthy, corrupt man with a series of rape allegations against him on top of also funding a vampiric snuff film operation, even providing them with victims all across the world.
• Dark Lord on Life Support: Due to his age, Hargrove's been confined to a breathing apparatus and later life support to keep him alive. Predictably, Hardestadt kills him by taking him off of it.
• Evil Old Folks: At the end of his years, but no less monstrous than he was in his prime.
• Hate Sink: Utterly zero redeeming features about him, and he lacks even the occasional flash of effective cunning his son has.
• He-Man Woman Hater: Hargrove is an unrepentant misogynist who dismisses all the women he's had shipped to Jacobs as "just women!"
• Humans Are Bastards: While an ordinary human in a world with demons, vampires, and other supernatural beings, he still manages to be one of the most evil, disgusting opponents Hardestadt ever encountered.
• Hypocrite: Claims that he doesn't fear death, only to beg for his life when Hardestadt pulls the plug on his life support.
• Immortality Immorality: Is willing to give countless innocents to his son for his videos, just for a shot at Jacobs finally turning him.
• Karmic Death: After having sneered at the face of the law for decades while expecting his vampiric son would make him immortal even at the end of his life, Hargrove lives just long enough to see both his legacy and his meal ticket to immortality die, his crimes uncovered, and his life's work collapse before him, all before Hardestadt takes him off life support and causes him to suffocate while pleading for his life. Receives extra karma when Jacobs refuses to have him revived from the painful afterlife.
• Lack of Empathy: Couldn't care for his son Rich, only saving his life so that he can be turned into a vampire like him. When Hardestadt brings up Rich's death, Wallace could hardly care.
• Post-Climax Confrontation: Taken care of after Jacobs is defeated with the confrontation being Hardestadt taking him off life support and watching as he asphyxiates to death after utterly destroying his reputation and legacy.
• Retired Monster: Retiring by the time the story starts, and while he's still providing for his son's scheme, both he and Jacobs know his time and involvement is coming to an end.
• Serial Rapist: On top of providing for his son's operation, Hargrove is revealed to have to have raped or otherwise assaulted around a dozen women on his own time, one of which father his son Jacobs.
• The Sociopath: He shows absolutely no remorse for the horrible things he has done, calling his victims "just women."
• Wardens Are Evil: Built a series of brutal prisons back in the day, earning him the moniker "Wally the Warden" from the media.

Pine Creek

Siegfried Gunmarsohn

Siegfried Gunmarsohn

Appears in: Under The Cold Moon | The Wolves of War | Le Chevalier

"The wolf has found you in the woods at last, little girl."

(Credit)

The main villain of Under the Cold Moon, an ancient, evil werewolf.

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• Abusive Parents: Treats his kids horribly, personally murders them if he decides it's necessary, and raised hundreds to be disposable cannon fodder in his war against his sister.
• Ax-Crazy: Underneath his thin demeanor of control, Siegfried is completely insane and relishes being able to embrace the beast within when slaughtering innocents.
• Back from the Dead:
  • Had supposedly died decades ago at the hands of Hardestadt and Grete, only to return some time later thanks to making a pact with Ithaqua prior to his death.
  • Also comes back from the dead after the events of Under the Cold Moon left him destroyed. Of course, he's an imposter—but not of the willing sort.
• Bad Boss: Siegfried is liable to brutalize any of his underlings for contradicting him. The only one who seems exempt from physical harm is Sieglinde Nomura and even she knows not to push him too far.
• Berserk Button: Any betrayal of his expectations for what a proper werewolf should act like is liable to set him off, especially begging or apologizing to him.
• Big Bad: The main villain of Under the Cold Moon. It turns out he's actually The Dragon to Ithaqua.
• Birds of a Feather: His child whom he most gets along with and is his "favorite" is Sieglinde Nomura, who, like him, is a sadistic sociopath. Of course, given that they are sociopaths, he doesn't much care when she's killed, since she'd already done what he needed her to do.
• Cain and Abel: To both his siblings, especially his sister Thorunn who was his arch-nemesis for centuries.
• Child Eater: His preferred prey is children.
• Child Soldiers: Kidnaps children he's fathered to be raised as fighters to die for his cause-or more specifically, to save his hide when the going gets tough.
• Combat Pragmatist: As part of his hypocritical nature, Siegfried acts like a proud warrior but is willing to cheat to achieve his ends. In his duel with his mother, he poisoned her with silver dust beforehand, and he killed Thorunn by begging for mercy, only to stab her with a silver dagger while her guard was down. His narration has him condemning tradition in his head, prioritizing victory at all cost.
• Deal with the Devil: While not with the devil, before his death, Siegfried made a pact with Outer God Ithaqua to resurrect him in return for his services.
• Dirty Coward: For all his bluster about being a warrior, Siegfried is a coward who will cheat his way to victory if his opponent actually poses a threat, flee if he's backed into a corner, or flat-out beg for mercy if both of those fail.
• The Dragon: To Ithaqua, whom he's trying to free under the promise of being given the Earth in exchange for his services.
• The Dreaded: To Thorunn's nation of werewolves, Siegfried is seen as 'the beast,' with all knowing and fearing him.
• Evil Is Deathly Cold: Siegfried has a deathly cold body temperature, and beyond that, he's also the chief servant of Ithaqua himself.
• Evil Is Petty: Flourishes his normal diabolical behavior with several plain dickish touches — like knocking away Hardestadt's cane.
• Evil Redhead: His hair is red and they don't come much eviler than he is.
• Evil Uncle: To Grete, since her mother Thorunn was his younger sister.
• Eye Scream: When she was a child, Grete ripped his eye out.
• Faux Affably Evil: Acts very friendly whenever he's around others, but is willing to abuse and murder his companions, children, and even his fellow werewolves should they annoy him.
• Ghostapo: The Wolves of War reveals that he worked for the Nazis back in World War II. Not surprising given his Social Darwinist beliefs.
• Good Scars, Evil Scars: Has a series of horrible ones around his missing eye, caused when Grete took his eye out.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: Turns violent upon the drop of a hat, dropping all of his friendly demeanor in the process.
• Hate Sink: While not as smug and immature as Rich Jacobs, Siegfried is vile without any of Nyarlathotep's charisma or class, being a vicious child killer and sadistic beast who relishes in his own monstrosity.
• The Heavy: He's the villain driving the plot of Under the Cold Moon even though he's secretly serving Ithaqua, who's imprisoned in his own realm.
• Human Sacrifice: He's been engaging in this for years, using even his own children as fodder for it, to slowly rebuild Ithaqua's strength and let him enshroud the world in an eternal blizzard.
• Hunting the Most Dangerous Game: His lottery chooses some of his citizens to be hunted by him and his fellow werewolves. Hardestadt even calls him General Zaroff at one point.
• Hypocrite: Siegfried believes in survival of the fittest, and says he's a warrior, but he's quick to do whatever he has to in order to save his own hide, from cheating in duels to fleeing at the first sign of trouble to sacrificing his own minions and children.
• I'm a Humanitarian: He eats people alive, his "safe community" really a hunting reserve for himself and his children. Children are his preferred prey.
• Karmic Death: Chooses Ithaqua to herald his domination of humanity. Grete forces him to embrace Ithaqua's hell, consequentially, and tosses him to die an agonizing death to burn and freeze within the Great Old One's flames, possibly for all time.
• Lack of Empathy: He has zero, absolutely zero, regard for the feelings of others. Even when his favorite child Sieglinde Nomura dies, Siegfried gets over it in moments of realizing her death.
• Offing the Offspring: In addition to using his kids as canon fodder, he personally kills his son, Marcus, as a human sacrifice, simply because it's convenient.
• Older Hero vs. Younger Villain: Siegfried is ancient for a werewolf, but he's still about a fifth of Hardestadt's age.
• One-Winged Angel: Thanks to summoning the power of Ithaqua, he grows bigger, his fur turns from red to white, and he becomes more powerful.
• Politically Incorrect Villain: Strongly implied he's quite racist and considers anything less than pure Germanic blood in werewolves to be an affront.
• Proud Warrior Race Guy: He believes werewolves should be warriors and is disgusted by his henchmen whenever they display fear of him.
• Really 700 Years Old: About two thousand years old and was born just some centuries before the Battle for Teutoberg Forect.
• Sadist: Probably one of the most sadistic foes Hardestadt has ever come across, reveling in the pain and fear he causes.
• Self-Made Orphan: Took control of the werewolf clans by killing his own mother in a duel-after he poisoned her first.
• Serial Killer: Not just content to be a savage warrior, Siegfried loves to target and murder children.
• Slasher Smile: More than any other villain in the series, he loves flashing frightening grins with his sharp teeth.
• Smug Snake: One of the most infuriatingly arrogant in the entire series. Siegfried's a sadistic beast who's all too confident of his control over the situation, but he utterly folds when he's confronted by a greater threat like Thorunn or Hardestadt and, ultimately, Grete.
• Social Darwinist: Believes only the strongest of the wolves should be allowed to live.
• Villainous Breakdown: Siegfried's an animal under his paper-thin veneer of condescension and confidence — and when Hardestadt truly rattles him, Siegfried lets the animal forth and becomes a monster figuratively and literally in his last mad attempt to slaughter everything before him.
• Villains Want Mercy: When he's well and truly fucked, he tends to resort to begging.
• Wicked Pretentious: He makes an effort at to appear cultured, but Hardestadt quickly points out the flaws (he only knows a few general quotes to give the impression he's well-read and when he drinks expensive wine, he holds the glass improperly and gulps most of it down in one go).
• Would Hurt a Child: He eats, sleeps and breathes this trope, even his own niece couldn't escape it from him.

Sieglinde Nomura

Sieglinde Nomura

Appears in: Under The Cold Moon| The Wolves of War | Le Chevalier

"I've been through tens of thousands of subjects and I so rarely get to do a vivisection."

(Credit)

Siegfried's Japanese-German daughter and his scientist second-in-command appearing in Under the Cold Moon.

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• Asian and Nerdy: Comes with being a doctor. She's got a hell of a resume, too.
• Beware the Quiet Ones: Nomura is far quieter and more relaxed than her boisterous father. She is at least as dangerous as he is, and in some ways even moreso.
• Back from the Dead: Come back from the dead after the events of Under the Cold Moon left her destroyed. Of course, she's an imposter —but not of the willing sort.
• Birds of a Feather: She's the only henchman who actually banters with Siegfried. Given that they're both sadists and sociopaths, this is unsurprising.
• Daddy's Little Villain: Shares her father's careless and casual sadism. She happens to be her father's "favorite," not that a sociopath like Siegfried spends more than a few seconds "mourning" her before moving on since she'd outlived her usefulness.
• The Dragon: Serves a higher command than Siegfried's other "children".
• The Evil Genius: The Mad Scientist in Siegfried's group and the brains providing the serums needed to keep her people alive during the upcoming winter apocalypse.
• Faux Affably Evil: Like father, like daughter. She acts polite and pleasant, but she's a sadist beneath that veneer, who's barely any less savage than her father.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: Nomura ends up killed when Erin poisons the stimulant she uses to keep herself awake with silver dust.
• I Am a Humanitarian: She loves the taste of human flesh, albeit as a more delicate eater than Siegfried.
• Ironic Death: Nomura makes an effort to resist her animalistic instincts for the most part. The one time she gives in—giving Erin a head start so she can hunt her—buys Erin enough time to poison Nomura's stimulant with silver dust.
• Mad Scientist: Willing to experiment on multiple werewolves and human beings. Enough that her notes fill pages and pages of countless books.
• Morally Ambiguous Doctorate: When Hardestadt meets her, he actually doubts she's a real doctor, only for Nomura to reveal that she has earned her doctorate.
• Oh, Crap!: When she realizes she's injected pure silver into her veins.
• Sadist: Takes great pleasure in her operations.
• Serial Killer: She's killed hundreds of thousands of people through her experiments.
• The Sociopath: Utterly devoid of empathy and compassion. When Erin looks at her eyes, she likens it to staring into the windows of a vacant home.

Gregory Haines

Gregory Haines

Appears in: Under The Cold Moon | A Conspiracy of Serpents

A wealthy businessman who specializes who provides the financial backing for Pine Creek in exchange for being turned into a werewolf.

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• Asshole Victim: Gregory Haines, a willing asset to Siegfried's Pine Creek scheme, is visited by the mysterious "Mr. Z" and left to the whims of his sadistic partner Kasarian, for ten minutes...
• Corrupt Corporate Executive: Gregory Haines, a wealthy businessman who specializes in human trafficking and provided the financial backing for Pine Creek in exchange for being turned into a werewolf.
• Expy: Gregory Haines's relationship with Siegfried is similar to Wallace Hargrove's relation with Jacobs. Both are Corrupt Corporate Executives backing supernatural creatures with promises of becoming supernatural themselves. In Haines case Siegfried could not convert him even if he wanted to.
• I Am a Humanitarian: Siegfried forces Gregory Haines to consume human flesh with promises it'll help him change eventually. Siegfried's breed of werewolf is born, not made. Siegfried is simply amusing himself.
• The Quisling: Haines is willingly helping Siegfried in his apocalyptic plan in exchange for being turned into a werewolf himself. He even eats raw human meat at Siegfried's insistence to prepare himself for the transformation. The deluded twit doesn't even realize wolves like Siegfried are born, not made.
• The Renfield: Gregory Haines is serving Siegfried in order to be turned into a werewolf. He doesn't know that werewolves like Siegfried and his children aren't turned, they're born.
• You Have Failed Me: The mysterious "Mr. Z" is quite unimpressed with Gregory Haines, and leaves him to the mercy of his Torture Technician Kasarian.

The Conspiracy of Serpents

Apophis

Apophis

Appears in: A Conspiracy of Serpents

"Eternity itself dies between my jaws. I am the King of Serpents, and what I bring is your ruin."

The King of Serpents, The World Encircler, the counterpart to Ra and the serpentine Egyptian embodiment of chaos. The Big Bad of A Conspiracy of Serpents.

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• Adaptational Nice Guy: Apophis starts off as an evil Omnicidal Maniac like his original mythological counterpart, but eating souls gives him new emotions that gradually makes him more sympathetic as the story goes on, culminating in a tragic end where he feels remorse for his crimes and reconciles with his brother, Ra. This is a stark contrast to his original counterpart, who remains an evil and despicable serpent god who hates all life in the universe and never feels remorse or empathy.
• Alas, Poor Villain: His dying moments are curiously somber, as he reflects on what may have been different, accepts Ra accompanying him to death and feels deep sorrow at all he failed at.
• Ancient Evil: One of the oldest and most primordial in all the setting, matched only by those like Nyarlathotep.
• Big Bad: Of A Conspiracy of Serpents.
• Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: Apophis turns out to be seeking his own, dissatisfied with both Ra's answer, and his own nature, attempting to find a compromise between the two.
• Dragons Are Demonic: Apophis is an infernal serpent that serves as the story's Big Bad, though he gradually shifts to a more honorable and tragic villain, and Orochi proves to be even worse than him.
• Establishing Character Moment: Earns his credentials as a Hero Killer by butchering two Devils, a feat that hasn't been accomplished in eons.
• Even Evil Has Standards: He seems dissatisfied by some of Yamada's excesses, notably displeased Yamada killed Kaliya's family without his orders, though he notes he still needs Yamada.
• Evil Laugh: One of the first indications Apophis has evolved his usual, emotionless self is when he suddenly lets loose a chilling laugh.
• Face Death with Dignity: When he realizes he's done for, seeing Ra and Satannus's spirits behind Hardestadt, Apophis peacefully closes his eyes and accepts the final blow.
• Foil: Apophis serves as one to Nyarlathotep. Both of them are cunning and villainous chaos gods that are vastly old, related to Egypt, have strained relationships with their family members, view Hardestadt as a Worthy Opponent, and got curb-stomped by Aleviel, but those are the only traits the King of Serpents and the Crawling Chaos have in common.
  • Apophis starts off as a typical Omnicidal Maniac like his original counterpart, but he becomes far more sympathetic in comparison after developing new emotions like love and joy from eating souls and changing his goal from destroying all life in the universe to replacing the entire Afterlife with himself because he wants to preserve the Teraverse in awe of its beauty from his newfound emotions while feeding on souls to satisfy his nature as a primordial predator. Nyarlathotep on the other hand is just as, if not, more vile than his original counterpart, he stays evil throughout the entire saga, and he's an actual Omnicidal Maniac because he seeks to destroy all of reality, save for the few pieces he keeps so he can torture them for all eternity.
  • Apophis is a true Egyptian deity, whereas Nyarlathotep is a Lovecraftian deity who only has superficial connections to Egypt.
  • Apophis holds no emotional attachment to make his foes suffer; instead, he goes straight for the kill. Nyarlathotep has a twisted fix on his foes and toys with them before trying to kill them.
  • Apophis shows genuine honor towards his foes, like sincerely respecting Hardestadt the more they clash and remembering Satannus' name after defeating her. Nyarlathotep's "respect" for his foes is one-sided at best because it comes from a place of sadism rather than genuine nobility.
  • Lastly, Apophis has a tragic yet dignifying death where he feels remorse and sorrow for the first and final time and reconciles with his estranged brother, Ra, who returns the affection by refusing to leave his side as the two embrace each other to the last embers of their dying lives. Nyarlathotep, however, dies a miserable and well-deserving death where he gets Eaten Alive by his apathetic father, Azathoth, whom he despises to the very end.
• Foreshadowing: Bits and bobs are dropped that Apophis' goal extends beyond just eating the Teraverse. "Eternity itself dies between my jaws" actually refers to Apophis' intent to devour the afterlife itself, and replace it with himself.
• God of Chaos: He's the serpentine Egyptian god of chaos.
• Master Swordsman: Apophis is fully capable of engaging Hardestadt on equal terms with a sword, and even goes against Satannus herself.
• Noble Demon: Apophis' Character Development gruadually changes him into a more honorable villain that respects his foes, never indulges in sadism, and seeks to preserve the Teraverse out of awe for its beauty while satiating his nature as a primordial predator of souls. He also expresses disgust towards Orochi when he learns that the eight-headed serpent slaughtered Kaliya's beloved family without his orders.
• Not So Stoic: Initially incredibly stoic, he begins emoting more, culminating in laughter and even shock and awe by the end.
• Omnicidal Maniac: His ultimate goal is to devour the Teraverse entire and the souls of all within. Except the truth is more complicated; introspective on himself as a result of his newfound emotional range results in him vying to preserve the Teraverse to observe its life—and to replace the afterlife, so all who die instead have their souls go to him so he can feed on them forevermore.
• Sealed Evil in a Can: Apophis was sealed away by Ra eons ago. Unfortunately, Apophis' seal was weakened by the battles between Hardestadt and Nyarlathotep, giving the King of Serpents a chance to escape.
• Soul Eating: His primary power. Anyone who has their souls devoured by him is rendered Deader than Dead in the process.
• Snakes Are Sinister: Apophis is the most powerful of the serpents within Conspiracy of Serpents, and bar none the most nightmarish and evil of them. Although it turns out Yamada is actually quite a bit more evil than he is.
• The Stoic: An interesting case. Apophis begins as an utterly cold, emotionless monster, but the more he devours, the more his emotional range starts to emote, which begins a very new, gradual change in identity within Apophis as he considers what this means for him.
• Together in Death: As they die together, Ra refuses to leave him as they fall to oblivion and death together.
• Villain Respect: After his clash with Satannus, he genuinely promises to remember her when all is said and done.
• We Used to Be Friends: He and Ra were once best friends, when Ra reached out to him outside of their battles. Apophis, however, began to fill unfulfilled with everything in his life and eventually betrayed him.
• What Is This Feeling?: Being a being of primordial darkness, Apophis spent eons without emotions. When he begins feeling them, he's often unable to pin down just what he's expressing.
• Worthy Opponent: Initially regards anything outside himself with utter contempt, but he starts to legitimately respect Hardestadt the more they clash.
• Your Soul Is Mine!: His forte in devouring souls. It's also what he's planning to do on a Teraversal level by literally replacing the afterlife with himself, so the souls of all those who die are taken by him instead of passing on.

Yamada

Yamada

Appears in: A Conspiracy of Serpents

"My motivations are simple. I simply enjoy watching things in motion before the end. I have made entire worlds my laboratories. Harvested billions of screaming souls to feed the growing strength of Apophis."

The right-hand man of Apophis in the conspiracy of serpents. A sadistic, cruel man whose true identity is Orochimaru of legend, as well as the Eight-Headed dragon, the Yamata no Orochi.

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• Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: His true form is an eight headed serpent even stronger and bigger than Jormungandr and he uses it to great effect in Japan.
• Berserk Button: He really, really hates being reminded of how Susanoo disposed of him by getting him drunk on sake in the past.
• Dragged Off to Hell: His final fate is being yanked into an infuriated Yig's cage, who has complaints to register about how Yamada treated him and other snakes.
• The Dragon: A literal and figurative sense. He's Apophis's right-hand in the conspiracy, while being an eight-headed dragon in his true form.
• Dragons Are Demonic: Especially more so than The King of Serpents. Unlike Apophis, who becomes more noble and tragic as the story goes on, Orochi is nothing more than a sadistic and psychopathic eight-headed serpent that enjoys experimenting on innocents.
• The Dreaded: Everyone is terrified with Yamada for good reason. The Yamata no Orochi's reign over Japan is remembered largely in hushed whispers.
• Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Yamada is deathly pale and has black hair.
• Hero Killer: Yamada is feared as a major force, is cripplingly effective against the heroes and even kills Susanoo with ease when they duel again. He also kills Kaliya by ripping his heart out.
• Humans Are Bastards: The most evil of the serpents is the one who used to be a human himself and sought to surpass his mortal limits.
• It's Personal with the Dragon: Grete and Kasumi engage Yamada with an incredibly personal stake after all he's done to the Yokai.
• Lack of Empathy: His utter sociopathy exceeds even Apophis himself. While Apophis possesses some standards and doubts, Yamada has none.
• Mad Scientist: Yamada loves experimenting on innocent people.
• Nigh-Invulnerable: Even for this series, Yamada is unbelievably hard to put down, able to regenerate from all his heads severed and taking an incredible amount of damage he bounces back from.
• Noble Top Enforcer: Inverted. Apophis retains doubts and standards, but Yamada is the most vile and wicked of the Serpents without a trace of goodness or humanity to him. Ironic as he's the only one who was ever human.
• Off with His Head!: Yamada was defeated in the past by being beheaded, all eight of his heads being severed. The battle of Japan becomes all about taking each of them off again.
• Person of Mass Destruction: Yamada is capable of obliterating a country with no effort.
• Was Once a Man: Yamada was once a normal human sage who harnessed the energies of Yig to transform himself.
• We Used to Be Friends: Yamada used to be friends with his fellow sages Jiraiya and Tsunade, but now bears them nothing but hatred.
• Would Hurt a Child: Yamada has no compunction killing Yokai children, the children of multiple worlds or dissecting the Naga Kaliya's children.

Kaliya

Appears in: A Conspiracy of Serpents

A Hindu serpent and a reluctant member of the conspiracy.

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• Beat Still, My Heart: Kaliya is on the receiving end of this trope by Orochi.
• Forced into Evil: The Naga Kaliya would far rather not be serving the serpent conspiracy but states it is necessary to save those he loves.
• I Have Your Wife: Kaliya is forced to serve the Serpents as Apophis had taken his wives and children hostage. Yamada killed them not an hour after Kaliya pledged himself to the Serpent conspiracy.
• Taking You with Me: Kaliya tries to throw himself and Yamada off the branches of Yggdrasil so Nidhoggr can devour both of them. It doesn't work, but props for the effort.
• Token Good Teammate: Kaliya is the only good member of the conspiracy because he was forced to join them when they held his beloved family hostage.

Jormungandr

Appears in: A Conspiracy of Serpents

A Norse Serpent.

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• Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: Assumes his true forms as a gigantic, massive serpent during the Battle of Japan.
• Person of Mass Destruction: Jormungandr is a special case, as he's a snake who can encircle a planet. Just him thrashing about in the ocean creates tidal waves and typhoons that do devastation all over the world.
• Redemption Equals Death: Jormungandr turns on Yamada at the end at cost of his life.
• Revenge Before Reason: Jormungandr is working for the Serpent Conspiracy to see the soul of Odin devoured by Apophis in retribution for all he's done to Jormungandr's family. Further moral concerns have ceased to matter to him.

Count von Krolock and minions

Count Nicolai Gabriel von Krolock

Count Nicolai Gabriel von Krolock

Appears in: In the Castle of the Night

"I will leave a trail of corpses. Not enough to deplete the larder, but enough to make them remember why they used to huddle around the fires, to pray we did not come calling."

An evil Strigoi Mort vampire residing in Romania, whose spirit desires to be resurrected. He serves as the Big Bad of In the Castle of the Night.

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• And I Must Scream:
  • Pulls this on his brother's final descendant, Stefan. Making him his anchor, he used magic to keep him alive for centuries, where he hid him under his bed in complete darkness with no food or water.
  • This is implied to be his ultimate fate after Stadt defeats him, the mysterious powers he made a bargain with come to collect their due.
• Aristocrats Are Evil: A Count by birth, and as evil as it gets.
• Back from the Dead: Hopes to achieve this on Hallows Eve by sacrificing loads of people.
• Bad Boss: Shows no care for the his henchmen and followers, and murders Frederick Hughes once he'd outlived his usefulness. One instance had him nearly kill Kryder for displeasing him, only relenting after his brother's had begged for mercy on his behalf. Nicolai agreed to be "merciful" and ordered Kryder to cut out his own tongue in order to keep his life.
• Big Bad: Of In the Castle of the Night.
• Cain and Abel: He despised his goodhearted brother Serghei. When the heroes enter the von Krolock family crypt, Serghei's coffin has his skeleton with the head torn off and placed between its legs.
• Classical Movie Vampire: Of a sense. He's aristocratic, caped and very much in the vein of a Hammer Horror vampire count.
• Deal with the Devil: He's made pacts with dark powers for strength. He seems to be under the delusion that it was Satan he made a pact with, but Stadt corrects him by saying his father would never deal with someone like Krolock. Whatever Krolock bargained with, they come to personally collect on his deal after he's beaten by Stadt.
• Dragged Off to Hell: Implied to be his final fate, as he's dragged screaming into the "hungry dark" after whatever dark powers he'd been bargaining with decide it's time to cash in on his debt. Where he's going, hell might've been preferable.
• Dream Walker: Thanks to being mostly dead, his spirit can enter people's dreams, though they have to have entered his castle in order to do so.
• Final Solution: Has nearly wiped out the fay population all of the sake of fueling his magic.
• Genius Loci: Somewhat. After he was killed, his spirit resided inside his own castle thanks to the help of Stefan, his anchor.
• Master Swordsman: He is one of the only villains in the entire series to be able to go one on one with Hardestadt with a sword, which says a lot.
• Mystical Plague: Has created a plague that turns people into monstrous creatures, having used it on the city of Wisborg centuries ago, which wiped it out utterly.
• Our Vampires Are Different: He's a Strigoi Mort from folklore, but he's enhanced himself heavily.
• Sadist: Revels in the terror and murder he commits.
• Sibling Murder: Has murdered his entire sibling bloodline for the sake of inheriting his castle.
• Supernatural Gold Eyes: His eyes are completely yellow, and can be seen in the dark along with his yellow fangs.
• Torture Technician: He enjoyed torturing people in the past in his castle dungeons, savoring the victims' blood for either magical experiments, or for himself to consume.
• Vampire Monarch: Leads an army of rabid Pricolici wolves, along with the last remnants of his monstrous servants that include Moroi and other Strigoi, and serves as the ruler of Castle Krolock.

Kraan Brothers

Appears in: In the Castle of the Night

Three brothers, vampires named a Radu and Ravok, and werewolf named Krolock. They serve Count Krolock.

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• Alliterative Name: Kryder Kraan.
• Alliterative Family: Played straight with Radu and Ravok, but averted with Kryder.
• Co-Dragons: Function as von Krolock's chief subordinates.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Stadt versus Radu Kraan can't even be called a fight. Radu ends up chopped up into pieces with strikes from Stadt's sword too fast to be seen.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: They seem to genuinely love one another. In the backstory, Krolock was about to kill Kryder for angering him, his brothers begged for mercy, getting him spared but at the cost of his tongue. When Kryder is killed, Radu and Ravok swear to avenge him, an oath Ravok doubles down on after Radu is killed.
• Fur Against Fang: Averted, like the original Dracula novel, the werewolf Kraan brother Kryder is just a loyal a minion of the vampire Von Krolock as his own vampiric brothers Radu and Ravok.
• Tuckerization: Ravok Kraan is named after Ravok, a friend and fellow troper to the author Lightysnake.

Frederick Hughes

Appears in: In the Castle of the Night

A human servent of Count Krolock

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• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing:, Seems like nothing more than an affable man who ropes in tourists for trips to Castle Krolock. At one point he even seems to sacrifice himself to buy time for Elsie to escape wolves controlled by Krolock. In actuality, he's a faithful servant of von Krolock and delivers these people as sacrifices to his master.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Is killed for his blood the moment the Count tires of him, despite loyally lured people to Castle Krolock for the Count to prey upon.

Krampus and minions

Krampus

Krampus

Appears in: And to All a Good Night

"But really, Hardestadt Delac. You were expecting someone else?"

The Krampus himself, who seeks to destroy Christmas and defeat Santa Claus. Appears in And To All A Good Night.

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• Affably Evil: He isn't exactly a bloodthirsty sadist, and amicably commends Hardestadt for deducing his plans and acts chummy with Santa.
• Archenemy: Is Santa Claus's arch-foe.
• Big Bad: Of And To All A Good Night.
• Card-Carrying Villain: Krampus cheerfully acknowledges he's the bad guy and love it.
• The Chessmaster: His plan to destroy Christmas nearly goes off without a single hitch if not for the Yule Lads being slow to burn a vital clue.
• Friendly Enemy: Is rather cheerful with Santa at the end, being more a friendly rival than a deadly foe.
• Joker Immunity: He's a vital part of Christmas lore in the modern age and can't really be punished overmuch, which he takes full advantage of.
• Karma Houdini: While defeated, Krampus simply makes it clear he's going to just help fix Christmas, but try the same thing again later. It's what he does.
• Manipulative Bastard: He plays everyone in And To All A Good Night like fiddles.
• Would Hurt a Child: He is Santa's Evil Counterpart, after all; he seeks to establish a new holiday where children are punished rather than rewarded on Christmas, and the crux of his plan revolves around letting the Gryla eat a half-dozen kids to distract Hardestadt.

Gryla and the Yule Lads

• Child Eater: Eat naughty children.
• Karma Houdini: They get locked up and monitored, but otherwise suffers little punishment.
• Our Ogres Are Hungrier: Really want to go back to eating naughty kids.
• Would Hurt a Child: They want to get back to eating naughty kids come Yule.

Gryla

Appears in: And to All a Good Night

The Icelandic mother of the ogreish Yule Lads

• Big Bad: The Gryla, scheming to destroy the holiday so she can devour bad children. She's in the pocket of Krampus, as it turns out.
• Disc-One Final Boss: The Gryla is set up as the story's main villain, and is defeated in Chapter 2, but then it's revealed that the Krampus was the one behind her, and was using her as a distraction for Hardestadt.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: The Gryla loves her boys, even if she's a child eating ogress.
• Evil Matriarch: The Gryla, an ogress with a massive number of sons she sends out to collect naughty children for her to cook.

Yule Lads

Appears in: And to All a Good Night

Orges that seek to eat naughty children.

• Affably Evil: They are surprisingly adamant about being in the spirit of Christmas cheer and friendship for thuggish, child-eating ogres. Heck, once Azmodan succeeds in tricking them into thinking he's a fellow child-eater, the Yule Lads welcome him, Emma and Hardestadt with open arms.
• Dumb Muscle: They are not the sharpest bulbs in the shed. Azmodan is able to play them like a fiddle with minimal effort.
• Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: They are child-eating ogres, but they sure do love their mama, the Gryla. Granted, their mother's not the nicest lady herself not that you'd ever want to tell the Yule Lads that. At one point the heroes get them fighting each other by getting them arguing over who's their mother's favorite.
• Kick the Dog: Quite literally with the Cu Sith puppy, whom they enslave and kick around.
• Obliviously Evil: They don't seem to think there's anything wrong with kidnapping children so their mama can cook them and they can eat them. They are naughty children, after all!
• Villain Song: They get their own coordinated song about eating bad children. Emma is quite confused how it rhymes so well in English.

Scarlet Saint Conspiracy

Lord Silas Ruthven

Lord Silas Ruthven

Appears in: The Unquiet Grave | Stories Never Told

• Big Bad: The mysterious Silas Ruthven, the uncle of Carmilla Karnstein is the primary antagonist of the story.
• Body Horror: Ruthven's master plan is built entirely off of this. To fuel his ritual to transform Hardestadt Delac into a god he calls the Scarlet Saint, Ruthven intends to twist every person in London into a living cathedral of agonized, merged human beings, the agony of which will fuel his deification spell. He attempts similar experiments earlier in the novel, to disturbing effect:
  The humans before them, living beings of flesh, bone and blood were stitched together, their bodies stretched and pulled beyond all mortal limits, threaded until none could not tell where one screaming, agonized being ended and another began. They had been pulled all around the room, forming a macabre tent of flesh, bound by stitching of shadow that seemed to pierce them all through. Spires of shadows rose, bodies of the teachers suspended, impaled so the inky black spikes jutted from their mouths, the eyes seeking help as the bodies vainly twitched.
• Dragged Off to Hell: Ruthven's final fate is dragged into the depths of the City by the Consultant of Shadows for a horrific end.
• Evil Uncle: He's the brother of Carmilla's mother and a vicious tormentor to her.
• Fate Worse than Death: Ruthven ends the story trapped in the City of Never and caught by the Shadows' Consultant who drags him off for 'entertainment' purposes.
• Foil: Serves as first to the villain of Sangue Serenissima, Eliphas Coyte, even to the point of pointing out as such in-story. The two of them both harness monsters from the City for their plans (the Writhe for Coyte, and the Nocturne for Ruthven), but while Coyte keeps the Writhe and its sub-realm literally tethered to his hideout Ruthven merely "borrows" the Nocturne. Both seek the power of gods, but while Coyte intends to become one, Ruthven intends to create one, and while Coyte has degenerated to something less than human Ruthven is a fiend in human form. The ultimate parallel comes in their final fates; Coyte makes the mistake of pissing off Nyarlathotep, who neglects to save Coyte from the Ending Eye at a crucial moment. Ruthven pisses off Nyarlathotep's thematic counterpart, the Consultant, resulting in him being dragged off for a horrible fate.
• Religion of Evil: Ruthven is a devotee of sorts of the Scarlet Saint, who doesn't actually exist; so Ruthven plans to create it by using Hardestadt, to sanction a legacy of murder and predation.
• Serial Killer:
  • Silas Ruthven is as wicked a killer as they come, frequently ingratiating himself to victims and killing those around them.
  • He is also indirectly responsible for Jack the Ripper.
• Shout-Out: Borrows his surname from The Vampyre, and his first name, Silas, references Uncle Silas, Sheridan Le Fanu's novel.
• Sliding Scale of Vampire Friendliness: Ruthven is far from friendly and even when he's not cooking up schemes of godhood, he's a vicious murderer.
• The Soulsaver: Seems to turn Hardestadt into his god, the Scarlet Saint, so that Hardestadt will save his soul from damnation, allowing him to commit murder and atrocity to his heart's content.
• Toxic Friend Influence: He drives his 'friends' into shattered pawns for his schemes.

Carmilla Karnstein

Carmilla Karnstein

Appears in: The Unquiet Grave

• Birds of a Feather: Grete and Carmilla are both lovers of poetry and drama, being quite kindred spirits.
• Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Averted. Like in the original novel, Carmilla has a lovely and rosy complexion.
• Foregone Conclusion: Grete falls in love with her during this story, which takes place during the 1880s. Grete's soulmate ends up being the kitsune Kasumi from A Conspiracy of Serpents onward. Unfortunately, this in the end entails Carmilla's death.
• Grave-Marking Scene: Grete's final scene is visiting the grave of Carmilla, referencing the song, 'The Unquiet Grave' and promising to remember her lost love.
• Heel–Face Turn: Resolves to work against Ruthven behind his back, and she and Akhenaten manage to secretly ally with the heroes to screw over Ruthven at a crucial moment.
• I Hate You, Vampire Dad: Inverted. Ruthven had Carmilla transformed into a vampire by paying another vampire. he proceeded to grind her will down until she was dependent on him before he had her turn him once he had perfected certain spells to deal with vampiric weaknesses.
• Horror Hunger: Ruthven exploits this to keep her in control. Carmilla is not good at controlling her thirst for blood.
• Interspecies Romance: Carmilla, a vampire, in love with Grete, a werewolf.
• Lesbian Vampire: Is a vampire who only has eyes for women. Unlike the original novel, however, her care for Grete is portrayed as genuine and not predatory.
• Redemption Equals Death: Carmilla dies in the process of turning against Ruthven, fading to ash when the sun touches her.
• Serial Killer: Is compelled to kill those she cares about more often than not, often draining her victims to death.
• Tragic Villain: Carmilla is a sad, lonely example who was forcibly turned into a monster against her will by Ruthven's machinations.
• Turned Against Their Masters: Contrives a plan to help bring Ruthven down.
• The Vamp: Carmilla is a tragic deconstruction of this. Carmilla has used her looks and her wiles to sneak into the hearts of her victims—except Carmilla doesn't want to kill anyone and is being forced to do so by Ruthven, who himself has a predilection for getting close to his victims before dealing the killing blow.

Akhenaten

Akhenaten

Appears in: The Unquiet Grave

• Affably Evil: Is impeccably polite despite being a life-draining mummy compelled to drain the lives of others to keep his own intact, even to the point of repeatedly apologizing for his actions and (rather forced) alliance with Ruthven.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Is a life-devouring mummy who was willing to sacrifice many to create a god of his own, but he's revolted by Ruthven.
• Heel–Face Turn: Resolves to work against Ruthven behind his back, and he and Carmilla manage to secretly ally with the heroes to screw over Ruthven at a crucial moment.
• Life Drinker: How Akhenaten's powers work, sustaining his life by feeding off the lifeforce of others.
• Redemption Equals Death: Akhenaten dies as price for turning against Ruthven, but he is allowed to pass onto the next world during his judgment for his actions.
• Tortured Monster: Akhenaten is a mummy who despises his undead nature and sucking the life from others.
• Turned Against Their Masters: Contrives a plan to help bring Ruthven down.

Edgar Wulfenheim

Edgar Wulfenheim

Appears in: The Unquiet Grave

• Flat-Earth Atheist: Despite working with vampires and mummies, he does not believe in the supernatural to any great degree, deciding that all must have some logical explanation.
• Mad Scientist: Is an Expy of Dr. Frankenstein who experiments on corpses to conquer death.

Independent Antagonists

Koschei the Deathless

Koschei the Deathless

Appears in: Give Us Forever

"You may speak to me of redemption, of attempting to atone, but what you have not been is properly punished for your actions."

One of Hardestadt's old allies back in the days before he became the Dragon, and one half of the Big Bad Duumvirate in Shadow of the Dragon.

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• Affably Evil: Quite courteous to anyone not named Hardestadt, and even then he eventually softens, especially when Alineia and Hardestadt meet for the first time.
• Alas, Poor Villain: His end has him calmly accepting his end and entrusting Hardestadt with the future, even sharing a last few swigs of vodka with him before he crumbles to dust.
• Anti-Villain: Koschei's merciless, but the only people he ever kills in the present day are a group of white supremacist vampires who deserve it and he's quite cordial and principled otherwise.
• Big Bad Friend: One of the main villains of Shadow of the Dragon and once Hardestadt's good friend.
• Cool Uncle: He's called "Uncle Koschei" by Alineia, and he seems as endlessly fond of her as she is of him.
• Evil Former Friend: Played with. He's become much darker, but this is because Hardestadt was his evil former friend who betrayed him.
• Face–Heel Turn: An interesting case in that the main protagonist's own Face–Heel Turn causes this; Hardestadt's since redeemed himself and vowed to atone for this, but Koschei decides Hardestadt hasn't been punished enough takes it upon himself to bring Hardestadt to his knees.
• Fallen Hero: Once a great hero in his own right, his fall was caused by Hardestadt's fall and betrayal of him. In present, he longs for the capacity for forgiveness, but he cannot forgive his former friend and resorts to brutal means to punish him.
• He Who Fights Monsters: Downplayed. Koschei's too ruthless to be called a hero anymore, but his moral compass was only tarnished instead of simply leaving: the innocents he and Baba Yaga supposedly put in danger were never in harm's way, and while he's ruthless in testing Hardestadt's resolve it's all to prove his mettle to see if he's able to protect the Teraverse, and Koschei entrusts the future to him once again.
• Healing Factor: He heals instantly from any wound there.
• Honorary Uncle: He's considered an uncle to little Alineia Vasilisa Maria. It's implied the latter two names were his idea.
• Husky Russkie: He's huge, wielding a two-handed sword with one hand easily, and he's a Russian folklore character.
• Last Chance to Quit: Mixed in somewhat with You Will Be Spared: Koschei tells Hardestadt's allies they are free to walk away if they so choose as Hardestadt's old crimes do not make them targets. They refuse.
• Major Injury Underreaction: He once gets impaled through the chest and simply treats it like a papercut. Of course, he is immortal.
• Master Swordsman: He's almost as good as Hardestadt himself.
• "Not So Different" Remark: He admits that his pursuit of justice is turning him dark and violent, just as Hardestadt's own once did.
• One-Handed Zweihänder: He uses a gigantic sword and wields it one-handed. Bonus points as it actually is a Zweihander.
• One Last Smoke: Shares a drink of vodka with Hardestadt before he expires.
• Our Liches Are Different: He's functionally mostly human, but freakishly big and strong, with his soul hidden inside a needle. He's invulnerable as long as it's intact.
• Pay Evil unto Evil: Koschei is a believer in killing evildoers swiftly and brutally.
• Pet the Dog: Quite literally. One sign that he hasn't become wholly monstrous in his quest for revenge is his mutual affection with Erin and Hardestadt's pet Cu Sith Nyx.
• Really 700 Years Old: Koschei is immortal and at least a thousand years old.
• Self-Disposing Villain: Koschei turns himself upon Hardestadt's own blade during their final fight, letting his own life fill the hole to keep Amatsu-Mikaboshi from breaking into Creation while also letting Hardestadt pass the test.
• Soul Jar: His soul is contained within a needle. If it's destroyed, he dies as well.
• This Is Unforgivable!: He tells Hardestadt in no uncertain terms he finds his actions as the Dragon impossible to forgive.
• We Used to Be Friends: He and Hardestadt were once dear friends, before the latter's monstrous Face–Heel Turn.
• Who Wants to Live Forever?: Koschei is exhausted with his immortal life, tired of living with nothing but hate and pain driving him.
• Would Hurt a Child: Seems ready to murder Alineia at Baba Yaga's command. Of course, it's all just another one of her tests.

Baba Yaga

Baba Yaga

Appears in: Give Us Forever

"I have been known by many names, in many tongues. I was old when this world was fashioned, old when even the world was new. I was known by many names before the spoken word. Young Lucifer once knew me well. Even he was wary in my woods."

An unfathomably ancient old woman and legendary Russian bogeyman, and one half of the Big Bad Duumvirate in Shadow of the Dragon.

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• Above Good and Evil: Conventional notions of right and wrong mean very, very little for her. She's ultimately on the heroes' side anyways, but she has her own unique style of doing things.
• Affably Evil: She's quite cheery and pleasant despite her ruthlessness.
• The Chessmaster: There is scarcely a single moment that does not go perfectly according to her plan.
• Cool Old Lady: To Alineia, whom she saved from death when she materialized outside the notice of even her mother Aleviel (supposedly). Baba Yaga, for all her aloof cruelty, adores her little Ali Vasya.
• Cryptic Conversation: Everything she says has wheels within whels.
• Eldritch Abomination: The little old woman she is is not an approximation of her true form. Whatever she is, she's ancient and a being that predates Creation itself.
• Everyone Has Standards: Baba Yaga disdains hypocrisy and needless cruelty. And she says if Hardestadt had truly chosen to kill his innocent little sister for the easy way out, she would have slain him on the spot.
• Manipulative Bastard: Baba Yaga has people dancing to her tune without any effort.
• Miniature Senior Citizen: She's pretty tiny and takes the form of an old woman. Underestimate her at your peril.
• Never Mess with Granny: She takes the form of a little old woman, but she's hands down one of the most powerful beings in the setting, and at no point is Hardestadt being able to defeat her even considered.
• No, Mr. Bond, I Expect You to Dine: When Hardestadt is at her hut, she calmly serves him a bowl of stew to enjoy with Koschei and Alineia.
• Pet the Dog: She is a loving, caring grandmotherly figure to Hardestadt's sister Alineia Vasilisa Maria, or 'Little Ali Vasya.'
• Sacred Hospitality: She's a big believer in this, telling Erin to offer her a snack as proof she means no harm when under her roof.
• Sadistic Choice: Cheeriness or not, she's very fond of invoking this in her various tests; suffer excruciating pain to save the lives of innocents, stand aside as others are forced to reckon with the danger themselves, and in the climax, forcing Hardestadt to kill Alineia or watch as Koschei does it instead. Naturally, all of these are rigged; nobody except Hardestadt is ever in any genuine danger at any point.
• Secret Test of Character: Every trial she puts Hardestadt through is to gauge whether or not he's worthy of truly standing up to being the savior of the Teraverse when he's already fallen to darkness once. Baba Yaga veils this from Hardestadt himself, and the fact none of these tests are actually putting anyone in harm's way.
• Sink or Swim Mentor: She does intend to train the good guys, but she is not nice about it. Fail her tests, you go down. Period.
• Stealth Mentor: Much of what she does is designed to help and challenge Hardestadt to be better.
• Time Abyss: Baba Yaga is one of the oldest beings in the settings—Lucifer, who himself was around at the dawn of Creation, was a kid when she was already ancient.
• Tough Love: She's not without affection, but her methods are harsh.
• Training from Hell: She'll put people through utter nightmares to ensure they receive proper training.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: Her methods are harsh, but she wishes to safeguard the Teraverse's existence.

The Pijavica

The Pijavica

Appears in: None Too Holy

"Majka's here."

A wicked, murderous Eastern-European type of vampire targeting an orphanage in Maryland. The Big Bad of None Too Holy.

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• Achilles' Heel: A Pijavica is incapable of feeding until it wipes out its family from mortality. She intends to murder Aleksandar, her last living family, and then start stuffing herself.
• Back from the Dead: Came back and turned into a pijavica upon her resurrection. This is something that can happen to people who are evil enough, particularly through acts of incest. In her case raping her own son for years ended up with her becoming a Pijavica upon death.
• Child Eater: Intends to murder Aleksander so that she can feast on all the children in the orphanage.
• Double Standard Rape: Female on Male: Horribly, horribly averted. The reveal of the Pijavica's molestation of her son Aleksander is portrayed as horrific, with not only Aleksandar's father killing the future Pijavica, but Aleksander himself becoming a traumatized mute because of the whole ordeal.
• Evil Matriarch: Turns out she's this to Aleksandar, being her incestuous, vile mother who now wants to reclaim him and murder all his friends after she initially lost him.
• Faux Affably Evil: Upon revealing her true identity and nature to Aleksandar, she still acts like a lightly chiding, loving mother to Aleksandar even though she gleefully plans to rape him again before killing him and then target Hope and then the rest of the orphanage.
• Kill and Replace: Did this to the real Sister Viola, for the purpose of getting close to her son to take away the charm that prevented her from feeding.
• Kill It with Fire: Hardestadt kills her this way, lighting her up like a dry log and watching her burn until she stops moving.
• Nuns Are Spooky: Disguises herself as the goodhearted Sister Viola after murdering the real one.
• Off with His Head!: As an extension to Kill It with Fire Hardestadt lops off her head and buries her with it placed between her legs as the sure way to prevent her from ever coming back.
• Offing the Offspring: Decides to help herself to Aleksandar "one more time" before trying to murder him as both punishment for revealing her and so she can finally start feeding.
• Til Murder Do Us Part: When she was still a human, she ensured her husband hanged for her murder after he caught him raping her own son, albeit at the cost of her own death.
• Villainous Incest: Did this to her own son, for the purpose of coming back as a pijavica. Every indication when she finds him again is to repeat this process before murdering him.
• Walking Spoiler: The Pijavica's true identity and connection to Aleksandar in particular spoil the big twist of None Too Holy.
• What the Hell Are You?: Her last words when she's overpowered by a very pissed off Hardestadt, verbatim.
• Would Hurt a Child: Molested her son Aleksander, and was not afraid to murder the kids at the orphanage.

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