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->[[center: [[Characters/ElGoonishShive Main Character Sheet]] | [[Characters/ElGoonishShiveMainCharacters Main Protagonists]] | Humans | [[Characters/ElGoonishShiveVillains Main Villains]] | [[Characters/ElGoonishShiveNonHumans Non-Humans]] | [[Characters/ElGoonishShiveFourthWallMailSlot Fourth Wall Mail Slot]]]]

[[foldercontrol]]

!!The Feds

[[folder:Mr. Verres]]
%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1358340762095640100
%% Do not replace with the former image; it's already in use on MrExposition.
%%
!! Edward Verres

[[quoteright:195:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/78da36831ce0117fcf9655939a5a0244.png]]

Tedd's father and a significant figure in the paranormal community. He works for a government organization tasked with dealing with the supernatural and extraterrestrial and does a pretty good job at it. He acts as a mentor figure to the kids and trusts them to keep a tight lid on the fantastic stuff that goes on. Has been known to spout expository dialog ad nauseum.
----

* AttractiveBentGender: One of the sketchbook drawings show us that he's a [[https://www.egscomics.com/sketchbook/2018-023 complete knockout as a woman]].
* BadassBookworm: How? He apparently stops a horde of aliens from invading and rampaging...through the power of exposition.
* BadassLongcoat: Whenever circumstances require him to take the field.
* BadLiar: As Elliot notes at one point early on, despite it being his job to cover stuff up, he doesn't seem to be very good at lying beyond that, like when he tells Grace that nothing is wrong... right before telling her to stay away from the windows...
* BarrierWarrior: Claims that he has a [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-122 barrier spell]] for defense.
* BigGood: The closest the comic has, anyway. {{Lampshaded}} when he was explicitly compared to [[Literature/HarryPotter Dumbledore]] and [[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings Gandalf]].
* BigNo: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2006-02-13 He agrees to buy pizza for eight teenagers without thinking]].
* ClosetGeek: If he's not into geeky things, he's at least extremely familiar with them in his role as the man behind covering up real-life SF & fantasy shenanigans. For example, when Grace wanted to wear some alien spandex for a workout.
--> '''Mr. Verres:''' Okay, ''fine''. But if anyone asks, you're {{cosplay}}ing as an [[OriginalCharacter oc]] from your [[Creator/DCComics dc]] superheroes [[FanFic ff]].\\
'''Grace:''' I'm ''what''?
** He's been stated to be familiar with the term "Delayed Blast Fireball"
* CrazyPrepared: Mostly when the RuleOfFunny requires it.
* DeathGlare: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=563 Gives one at the end of Painted Black]], though his expression quickly softens.
** He also gives one [[spoiler: to Abraham [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2009-11-03 after attacking him for fighting with Nanase]]]]
* TheDreaded: With very good reason. [[http://egscomics.com/comic/qa8-07 Even Voltaire didn't dare attack Tedd directly in order to avoid his wrath.]]
--> '''Voltaire:''' One does not provoke the wrath of Edward Verres lightly, not to mention his monster hunter ex-wife.
* EyesOutOfSight: Like Tedd, Mr. Verres has OpaqueLenses which hide his eyes. [[spoiler: His eyes were [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-150 finally revealed]] after his glasses were knocked off in battle, showing he has heterochromia. Only took ~20 years]].
* TheIllegible: His handwriting it so bad it is called "[[InkBlotTest Ink Blot]] Handwriting" in a title. The kids he is with all come to diffetent interpretations of what his letter to Tedd actually said. Justin thought it wasn't handwriting at all.
-->'''Justin:''' Maybe, it's a map?
* InnocentlyInsensitive: His son is genderfluid, but Mr. Verres is convinced that Tedd's frequent genderbending can't be good for him. This has not helped Tedd in being comfortable with his gender identity.
* InterspeciesRomance: As of more recently, [[spoiler:with his Uryuom assistant Lavender]].
* KickedUpstairs: As a result of his actions in Sister II. Apparently, no one wants him fired. Even the guy kicking him upstairs would raise hell if he was axed. (Given some of the feats he has accomplished, it's pretty clear why.) For related reasons he still has genuine responsibility for a decent chunk of his old job (the parts that involve speaking with paranormal entities) -- it just supposedly is a higher-ranking position now.
* LockedOutOfTheLoop: Even he [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/party-266 didn't know]][[spoiler:about his wife's facial scars]] and estimates that the only time she could have gotten such an injury was ''20 years'' ago.
* MartialPacifist: Edward manages to deescalate a situation where one non-human being almost attacks another non-human being out of reactive fear by ''taking control of the attacker's spell'', dispelling it, and explaining that the cause of the fear is not a threat, just like himself, ''unless he has to be''.
* TheMenInBlack: He's good at cover-ups and got a reputation as more cooperative than others ([[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-07-26 like his successor]]), though the excess of personal involvement eventually led to being KickedUpstairs out of this position.
* MrExposition: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-11-26 "I am an]] '''[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-11-26 endless barrel]]''' [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-11-26 of exposition!"]] (and the current page image!)
* OpaqueLenses: His eyes have been hidden behind these for ''decades'' of real-life time, until they got knocked off in a scuffle in one 2022 comic.
* PapaWolf: Not just to Tedd, but an Uncle Wolf to Nanase as well.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Trusts the kids with the secrets of what's going on around the town and acts in their best interests behind the scenes.
* SayingTooMuch: Surprisingly, in the "allowed" circle "an endless barrel of exposition" is prone to [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2002-05-27 spilling]] more than is really needed. In the commentary for that comic, the author theorizes [[note]]although whether it really counts as theorizing given that he is the author is up for debate [[/note]] that Mr. Verres spends so much time lying and keeping secrets that he cannot help but spill information when he doesn't need to keep secrets.
* ShockAndAwe: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-122 Claims to have]] '''several''' "flavors" of lightning spells. Not counting [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2009-11-03 spells in wands]]
* RefugeInAudacity: Some of his cover-up plans seem to run off of this, especially when it comes to the Uryuom.
* WantedAGenderConformingChild: While Tedd's experiments, in general, don't faze him much anymore, he finds it unsettling that Tedd actually spends quite a bit of time in female forms. Or it might have something to do with [[NakedApron what Tedd wears when in female form.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Wolf and Cranium]]
!! Agents Wolf and Cranium

[[quoteright:155:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080901_rszd.png]]

Federal agents who work for Mr. Verres. Both are powerful wizards in their own right.
----
* AgentMulder: Wolf. He tends to be the more conspiratorial of the pair, and continually pesters [[HughMann Lavender]] with the "[[TheCuckoolanderWasRight wacky theory]]" that she's an alien. Given that Mr. Verres says that Uryuoms are an even better kept secret than magic, he likely doesn't have the clearance to know about them.
* AgentScully: Downplayed with Cranium, given the context. She's more focused and analytical than Wolf and is willing to suggest mundane possibilities, but she is still a wizard who works for the magic police.
* AgentsDating: And they are really bad at concealing this.
* BlessedWithSuck: [[spoiler:Her ability to observe places remotely is implied to be the example Pandora gave of someone with Sarah's power being strong-armed into government service]].
* CaptainErsatz: Of Mulder and Scully from the X-files.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Though we have yet to see them truly in action, Raven offhandedly describes Wolf as one of the most powerful wizards in the mid-western United States, and the security scan reveals he's surprisingly buff under his BadassLongcoat. Meanwhile, Cranium apparently has a clairvoyance spell similar to what [[spoiler:Sarah]] can cast. [[spoiler:Pandora]] made it clear when explaining that power just how strong and rare it was.
%%* LongLostRelative: [[spoiler:Given how genetic affinities work, and Pandora's implying that she's the one with the same spell as Sarah that was forced into government work, Cranium and Sarah might be related.]]
* TheMenInBlack: Their job.
* MeaningfulName: Emphasizing their parallels to ''Fox'' Mulder and Dana ''Scull''y.
* PowerPerversionPotential: Cranium has the ability to observe rooms without being in them. [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1695 Cue obligatory locker room peeping.]]
* WillTheyOrWontThey: Averted. In the words of the author, [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-10-26 "they have, they will again]], and [[EveryoneCanSeeIt they utterly fail at hiding it"]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Arthur]]
!! Arthur J. Arthur

[[quoteright:198:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1635907839_bal_2111_01_078_announce.png]]

->''"I do not waste time."''\\
\\

Mr. Verres' successor (and predecessor) as head of the office of Paranormal Affairs. [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-07-26 Reputed]] to [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-05-09 care more about keeping secrets than helping people]]. [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-11-18 Mr. Raven is on non-speaking terms with him]].
----

* ConnectedAllAlong: Long after [[spoiler: Jay is introduced, it is revealed that Arthur is Jay's grandfather]].
* CreatingLifeIsUnforeseen: [[spoiler: Kevin being sentient was not what he had intended]].
* DoNotTauntCthulhu: [[spoiler: While he wants a situation where magic will change how it works, he realizes that trying to force the hand of a SentientCosmicForce is like messing with a god, and is very careful not to try and push things too much in that regard, explaining that to his assistant when she questions why they aren't doing more to cause a change]].
* IAmAMonster: He believes in TheNeedsOfTheMany and has self-described himself as a monster in the service of the greater good. Some people, including Mr. Verres, do not entirely trust him because of this, though Tedd believes that none of this is relevant today.
* {{Masquerade}}: Though he stuns Mr. Verres when his first act is to reveal the Masquerade, not reinforce it, implying that he [[BatmanGambit may be playing a deeper game]]. [[spoiler:His goal is to get Magic itself to "knock over the board" and change the rules of magic.]]
* OnlyOneName: The J? It stands for ''Just''. As in "Arthur, Just Arthur."
* PatrioticFervor: He has a strong belief in the "[[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-084 ideal America]]", particularly the ideas of freedom and acceptance. That belief lets him accept Tedd's gender fluidity without question, even though he doesn't understand it. TheRant clarifies that Arthur doesn't necessarily love the USA unconditionally, but he firmly stands for what it ''should'' be.
* TheQuietOne: As his quote indicates, he gets right to the point.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Despite his initial portrayal as a callous individual, he has his moments.
** [[spoiler: Upon learning new information regarding Seers and how the mechanics of a system change for magic works, he quickly realized there's ''no'' hope of keeping magic a secret. He promptly changed his position during the consultation with the Will of Magic from a severe system change to minimal changes. He also offered Tedd funding and proper research facilities upon learning Tedd wants to find a way to increase everyone's magic resistance]].
** [[spoiler: He apologizes to Ellen, Elliot, and Ashley for magically putting them to sleep after realizing that it was Magus and Sirlek who were responsible for the mess at the facility, makes it clear that they aren't in trouble, and lets Ellen call Nanase to keep her from panicking]].
** [[spoiler: He also feels responsible for the sentient wand he created by accident, and lets him stay with Ashley]].
* {{Seers}}: [[spoiler: Is a Seer, like Tedd]].
* RepetitiveName: Arthur Arthur.
* WhamLine:
** [[spoiler: "The occasional casualty will not disrupt our long term objectives"]].
** [[spoiler: Concerning public knowledge of magic "...the next incident could be the last straw, and that would solve the problem for decades."]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sybil]]
!!Sybil

[[quoteright:216:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1506350263_20170920s3_181.png]]

Arthur's loyal assistant.
----
* NotSoStoic: One of the only times Sybil shows any emotion is when [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2018-04-13 she thinks Arthur was dying.]]
* OpaqueLenses: They help maintain her limited emotional range.
* SatelliteCharacter: She's only ever seen around Arthur.
* TheStoic: Almost always has no emotional reaction to anything.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Leifeld]]
!! Assistant Director Leifeld

[[quoteright:261:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100119_w9pa.png]]

->''"You have too many important friends who would raise hell, myself included."''\\
\\

Edward Verres' superior.
----
* LargeAndInCharge: A massively muscled man who regularly hits the gym and the superior to the head of the office of Paranormal Affairs.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Recognizes that Mr. Verres is too important to fire and that even he would raise hell if it were to happen. However, he [[KickedUpstairs promotes him to a non-existent position]] to keep him out of the field after he loses control due to a personal connection to the series of events. [[spoiler:A few months later it's revealed that he's been in on Arthur's plan to get Magic to knock the board over, but he was also assured by Arthur that it would solve the problems. Despite that, he's began to doubt the plan.]]
* NamedAfterSomeoneFamous: Was named after comic book writer Creator/RobLiefeld who's known for drawing people with his exact build.
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: The author commentary from his first appearance spells his name as Liefeld, but Arthur calls him Leifeld on-panel.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Knight]]
!! Agent Knight

[[quoteright:268:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1618180985_bal_2104_12_006_wayacd.png]]

-> '''''"WE'VE. BEEN. RECKLESS."'''''\\
\\

An agent assigned to keep magic under wraps and under control, injured by his own magic going out of control after the Will of Magic changed the rules of magic.
----
* AnimalMotifs: Wolves. Dan only called him Agent Knight because [[OneSteveLimit Agent Wolf was taken.]]
* ChessMotifs: To the knight piece, obviously, as according to the author, the knight piece "suggested ideals of nobility". Also, Knights move straight on a chess board and slightly bend (as in, bend the rules here, but stays mostly straight laced).
* GoodCopBadCop: The Good Cop to Bishop's Bad Cop. He's glad that the vandal he was chasing was uninjured, and thinks that they need more caution to prevent accidentally harming or killing people just because they were too confident in their magic.
--> "He deserved a smack upside the head and a talking to, not... not what I almost did."
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: After being injured by his own magic, he's glad that ''he's'' the one who got injured, rather than the magical vandal he was pursuing.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Bishop]]
!! Agent Bishop

[[quoteright:153:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1622606227_bal_2106_02_025_jftitleb.png]]

->''[[NightmareFace "We are the good guys."]]''\\
\\

Agent Knight's partner, who believes in TheNeedsOfTheMany.
----
* AnimalMotifs: [[SnakesAreSinister Snakes.]]
* BlackAndWhiteInsanity: Sees harming or killing people who abuse their access to magic as a heroic act, believes that anyone who abuses their magic is a complete monster, and sees no issue with the "chicken enchanter" potentially being injured by Knight's magic going haywire instead of Knight himself. She also snuck a warning card onto his dresser in his room ''while he was sleeping in said room'' after the incident.
* ChessMotifs: To the bishop piece, obviously. Unlike the straightforward nobility of the knight piece, the bishop piece travels diagonally across the chessboard, which, according to the author, "can be interpreted in all sorts of interesting ways".
* GoodCopBadCop: The Bad Cop to Knight's Good Cop. She believes that [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans harming others is justified if it means that they keep magic out of the lives of civilians]].
* TheNeedsOfTheMany: Is shown to believe in this.
* NightmareFace: Pulls off a [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-026 particularly frightening one]] while trying to reassure Knight that everything they do is for [[TheNeedsOfTheMany the greater good]].
* SlasherSmile: Her flavor of NightmareFace, with a side of ScaryFlashlightFace.
* TallDarkAndSnarky: She fits the bill, given her LadyOfBlackMagic appearance and snark towards those she dislikes, as well as WordOfGod confirming that she's 6'5", and thereby one of the tallest characters in the comic.
* YoureNotMyFather: Her attitude towards Mr. Verres after he took over for Arthur, as seen in this [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-106 dramatized flashback]]. It seems like Arthur had been something of a ParentalSubstitute to Bishop, and she didn't accept Edward taking over in his role.
[[/folder]]

!!Family

!!!Elliot and Ellen's Family
[[folder:The Dunkels]]
!!Mr. and Mrs. Dunkel

[[quoteright:158:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100312_9qmy.png]]

Elliot and Ellen's seemingly oblivious, [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-06 unflappable]], and [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-10 ridiculously]] permissive parents.
----

* AbsurdlyYouthfulMother: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-14 Implied]] by Elliot's mother responding to Ellen's arrival with thinking that she had always wanted a daughter and then that this time she won't have to drop out of anything, and then [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2013-02-25 confirmed]] when Sarah realizes that she would have had to have been 21 or younger when she gave birth to Elliot.
* {{Cloud Cuckoolander}}s: How else can you interpret their non-reactions to all the wackiness in their lives combined with their unexpected seriousness about things like going to the store for furniture?
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Basically their defining trait. Or, as the commentary puts it...
--> A good rule of thumb for writing Elliot and Ellen's parents is to go not serious enough, and/or too serious. \\
And yes, I do mean "and/or". They can easily be too serious about the wrong thing while also being not serious enough about another thing.
* CrazyPrepared: A pre-mission briefing -- complete with poster-sized charts -- for a ''trip to the store.'' An ersatz Ikea, but still.
* FantasticallyIndifferent: Capable of taking some very far out things in stride. [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-10 For example, their son breaking into a government facility and creating a female duplicate in the process]].
* HaHaHaNo: When Elliot asks if he can have a girl over while the elder Dunkels are out, Mr. Dunkel's first reaction is to laugh in his son's face that [[NiceGuy he]] would even ''think'' of doing anything objectionable on a second date. His second: [[NightmareFace SERIOUSLY DO YOU HAVE PROTECTION]].
* HiddenDepths: [[http://www.egscomics.com/comic/sister3-303 They know how to organize a search party including incorporating aerial assets]]. The comic {{Lampshades}} the fact that this would not normally be expected knowledge for an Accountant (Possibly?) and a stay-at-home Mum.
* MundaneMadeAwesome: Mr. Dunkel's overblown "assault plan" for ''furniture shopping.''
* MundaneUtility: Mrs. Dunkel cheerfully (and off-handedly) suggests that Elliot could use his GenderBender powers as a form of birth control.
--> '''Mrs. Dunkel:''' If you are going to do anything, however, maybe keep it between girls? Safety first!
* OneHourWorkWeek: Mr. Dunkel is not shown working, ever. Even Ellen and Elliot aren't sure what exactly their father's job is.
* OpenMindedParent: They're ridiculously lax and accepting of all the things their kids gets involved in, which is {{Lampshaded}} repeatedly.
-->'''Elliot:''' Your daughter is a cat. You could at least ''pretend'' this is odd.\\
''[later]''\\
'''Mr. Dunkel:''' [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-12-10 If you're going to be out late fighting evil, you need to call home first!]]\\
'''Ms. Dunkel:''' [[ItMakesSenseInContext That's right. It affects our ability to plan supper and alibis]].
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Brownies.
** [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1177 The author feels the need]] to specify that these contain no... questionable ingredients.
[[/folder]]

!!!Tedd's Family
[[folder:Edward]]
''See Mr. Verres above.''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Noriko]]
!!Noriko Verres

Tedd's estranged mother, a monster hunter with a long family history of powerful magic users. Upset by Tedd's apparent lack of magical ability, Noriko left when Tedd was little. Last known to be somewhere in Europe, pursuing a career in magic, or possibly a travel agent.
----

* BlackSheep: Her sister (Nanase's mother) has never forgiven her for walking out on Tedd and Edward.
* TheFaceless: Her face has yet to be revealed in the comic but it could be assumed to be similar to Nanase's given the apparently StrongFamilyResemblance.
** [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/party-244 Turns out]] there was a reason we never saw her face...
* FunctionalMagic: Has a reputation as a powerhouse magic user.
* JerkassHasAPoint: While it doesn't at all excuse her abandoning Tedd, [[spoiler: TheReveal of her [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/party-244 true face]] suggests that she had better reasons to be afraid for him than we'd thought.]]
* MissingMom: Bailed when Tedd was young. Tedd blames himself. We later learn that Adrian Raven sees himself as the real reason. [[spoiler: Turns out she may have learned her lesson, as she has been raising a son she had with another man after leaving the Verres household. Though considering Van was able to use magic young whilst Tedd could (apparently) not may have played a role.]]
* ShroudedInMyth: What we know of her is that she's a "A badass monster hunter" and a total powerhouse. Even Nanase didn't know this about her.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: According to [[spoiler:Not Tengu]], Noriko and Nanase very strongly resemble each other. Tedd also resembles her. [[spoiler:When we finally see her face, she does, in fact, resemble Nanase. Apart from the horrible facial scars.]]
* TwoFaced: Tedd theorizes that the transformation mirror in the basement was so Noriko could put on daily cosmetics without hassle. [[spoiler:It reveals that her true form has massive scarring on the left side of her head and face; her 'daily cosmetics' were to hide this. And not even her husband knew this.]]
* WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent: It's presumed that one of the reasons she abandoned Tedd is because he seemingly failed to inherit his parents' magical talent.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Van]]
!!Van

[[quoteright:223:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1617759641_20180228_s3_247_dhlkf_fix.png]]

A young British seer.
----
* ClingyChild: He spends the [[spoiler:meeting with Magic]] clinging to Tedd's legs because he's scared of Arthur.
* LongLostRelative: [[spoiler:Tedd's younger half-sibling. They actually met when summoned by Magic to decide if things should change or not, but Magic decides that, while Tedd shouldn't know of their relationship yet, Van should.]]
* MyDadCanBeatUpYourDad: The first thing he says after waking up [[spoiler:in the council with the Will of Magic]] is that his mum is a monster hunter and will cut you up if anyone hurts him.
[[/folder]]

!!!Sarah's Family
[[folder:Carol]]
!!Carol Brown

[[quoteright:166:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1426912667_np_150318_11b_testing.png]]

->''"[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-01-20 Ed, I grew up in Moperville. Weird stuff happens here]]."''\\
\\

Sarah's older sister. A pretty, determined, and gung-ho television reporter who covers the Moperville area. Apparently immune to the WeirdnessCensor that prevents other people from crediting the weird stuff that goes on in her home town.
----

* AloofBigBrother: It was years before she was [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=274 shown interacting with Sarah]] and ''didn't even recognize her little sister's best friend'' when she interviewed Susan.
* IntrepidReporter: How else do you describe a reporter who arrives on the scene via ''airdrop''?
* LegFocus: She exploits this trope by [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-01-22 wearing short skirts that show her legs to boost ratings]].
* SheIsAllGrownUp: The [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-11-05 in-universe reason]] that Elliot didn't recognize her.
* SiblingRivalry: Note Sarah's reaction when Elliot makes the above assertion.
[[/folder]]

!!!Grace's Family
[[folder:Dr. Sciuridae]]
!!Dr. Sciuridae

[[quoteright:118:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20050511_zhhq.gif]]

Grace's "grandfather" who substituted his own dead daughter's DNA (the original Grace) for the intended genetic sample when Project Lycanthrope created their fourth assassin "Shade Tail."
----
* DeadpanSnarker: Even in the most precarious of situations:
--> '''Dr. Sciuridae''': [We] were assigned to work on a project to create deadly super assassins.
--> '''Grace''': What kind of company would assign ''that''?!
--> '''Dr. Sciuridae''': [[CaptainObvious A shady one.]]
--> '''Grace''': Ah.
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: He knew his bosses' ideas were ''[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2004-02-20 completely nuts]]'', was fully aware of the dubious morality of his job, and [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2004-03-12 hated the company]], but...
* MotherlyScientist: Grew very attached to Grace, [[spoiler:because Grace is his genetic granddaughter]].
* TheStoolPigeon: [[spoiler:He was the snitch who gave out the Project Lycanthrope to Mr. Verres]] after he grew attached to Grace.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Grace's Siblings]]
''See Guineas, Hedge, and Vladia on Characters/ElGoonishShiveVillains.''
[[/folder]]

!!!Nanase's family
[[folder:Mrs. Kitsune]]
!! Mrs. Kitsune

[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20091201_dyhc.png]]

Nanase's overbearing and traditional Japanese mother. Initially a complete tyrant in her home, her later appearances made her somewhat more reasonable in the aftermath of Nanase's near death experience. Has a very strong opinions on duty to family in general and motherhood in particular. She apparently knows more than she lets on.
----

* BerserkButton (via the FourthWallMailSlot): Mentioning Tedd's mother triggers a vehement [[IHaveNoSon I Have No Sister]] reaction. It's stated she sided with Edward in her sister's divorce, essentially choosing her brother-in-law and nephew over her own sister.
* BrilliantButLazy: Has strong magical potential, like her sister and daughter, but apparently never really tried to reach her full potential in that field, perhaps related to her feelings about her sister.
* DelayedReaction: Upon finding out that Tedd has a girlfriend.
* EducationMama: She constantly hounds Nanase about her education ''in spite of'' wanting her to be a housewife.
* EveryoneHasStandards: She may have her bigotry issues and can be controlling, but she despises her sister Noriko (Tedd's mother) for abandoning her family.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: It can be pretty harsh to watch her excitedly freak out over Tedd and Grace's relationship but not even acknowledge Nanase and Ellen's as real.
* MyBelovedSmother:
** Downplayed. She constantly nags Nanase about her education, but is at worst mildly disapproving of Nanase's clothing choices.
** Perhaps as a reaction to her sister's [[MissingMom abandonment of Tedd]], she's shown to be comically emotionally overprotective of Tedd as well, commanding Nanase to help him out as much as possible (even though, as Nanase points out, Tedd doesn't really need it).
* NobleBigot: She may not acknowledge Nanase and Ellen's relationship, but she does care about her and her happiness.
* SecretSecretKeeper: Apparently knows not only that Nanase has Magic, but knows enough about Magic that she was consulted first when Nanase burned out, demanding that the Agents keep Nanase in the dark about the fact that she knows. Agent Cranium complies, though feels guilty for forcing Nanase to keep "Lying" and states as much to her Mother. Given the power levels of her Sister and Ex-Brother-In-Law (Whom she apparently maintains polite contact with) and her own untapped potential, this makes sense. Nanase has later started to suspect that she knows, but is unsure of how to get her to admit it to her.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mr. Kitsune]]
!! Mr. Kitsune

Background character. All we know about him is Nanase's belief that her father won't back her against her mother.
----
* DotingParent: [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=548 When he finally gets speaking lines]], he's promising Akiko three cookies when they get home, in spite of her protests that she only wants one. [[ParentalFavoritism He's yet to show this behavior towards Nanase]].
* HenpeckedHusband: Always in the background, rarely speaks, his wife is more important as a character and he never stands against his wife to defend his elder daughter. His only important trait is being the father of one of the most powerful characters in-universe.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Akiko]]
!!Akiko Kitsune

[[quoteright:198:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1481093906_np20161207_escape_40.png]]

Nanase's little sister. Brave enough to defy their mother (albeit in secret) by sneaking Nanase cookies, but a cypher otherwise. Rarely speaks.
----

* BoysHaveCooties: "''Real'' boys are [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2012-02-17 weird and gross.]]" Nevertheless, she does seem to (at least subconsciously) [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2012-02-29 appreciate the attractiveness]] of certain ''fictional'' boys...
* CheerfulChild: She's sweet, upbeat and well-behaved. In fact, she's ''so'' well-behaved that [[http://egscomics.com/egsnp/2016-12-07 she refuses more than one cookie because "cookies are a sometimes food."]]
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Though, as Ellen and Nanase are reminded, this does not mean that they're ''stupid.'' Akiko actually has a pretty sharp mind and is good at telling when someone's not being honest with her... but she doesn't quite have the capacity to grasp the complexities of sexuality, bigotry, and prejudices.
* {{Fangirl}}: She is [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2012-02-13 like this]]. Rapunzel, her own sister, and whatnot.
* HeroWorshipper: Towards her sister. Enough to disobey her mother by giving her cookies after Nanase was grounded.
[[/folder]]

!!!Justin's Family
[[folder:Jim]]
!!Jim Tolkiberry

[[quoteright:168:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jim_tolkiberry.png]]

Justin's uncle and the owner of the comic shop.
----
* AffectionateGestureToTheHead: Seen [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2012-05-29 here]] in a {{Flashback}} tussling Justin's hair back when he was still miserable after being outed.
* BenevolentBoss: He's a very laid-back guy and on good relationships with Justin and George. Plus, he outright gives the job to Grace just off of Justin's voucher, only asking her if she's sure she can live-up to Justin's insane work ethic.
* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: After appearing in the storyline where Grace gets hired, he disappeared from the comic. Presumably he exists somewhere off-panel, just like the many other unseen comic shop employees.
* InstantlyProvenWrong: George asks him if he warned Grace about how the attention she's going to get from male customers, which Jim fires back that he wouldn't insult a young woman's intelligence. It then cuts to Grace surrounded by boys, oblivious to all of them hitting on her. Jim then backtracks and adds that she'll get used to it.
* ManlyFacialHair: He has a notably epic mustache. When Grace first meets him, she blurts out "mustache" before correcting herself. He laughs it off and says his facial hair is [[LampshadeHanging quite the conversation piece]].
[[/folder]]

!!!Susan's Family
[[folder:Mrs. Pompoms]]
!! Mrs. Pompoms

[[quoteright:103:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100519_d60y.png]]

Susan's embittered mother. Appears to have lost all faith in men (and perhaps humanity in general) after her husband's betrayal. Embarrassingly over-aggressive when it comes to "protecting" Susan's interests.
----

* FreudianExcuse: Her husband cheated on her with another woman.
* LadyDrunk: First seen with a glass in hand and has a very misanthropic attitude.
* MyBelovedSmother: Bullied the school into allowing Susan to go on the field trip to France, much to Susan's embarrassment.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: A more minor example. She meant well but genuinely thought that telling her young daughter that Daddy cheated on Mommy because he's a man and men can't help that sort of thing was ''helpful'' since it kept Susan from thinking that Daddy did it because he didn't love her or Mommy.
* StrawFeminist: To the point where she openly wishes Susan were a lesbian because it would allow her to totally exclude men from her life.
[[/folder]]

!!!Diane's Family
[[folder:Rhea]]
!!Rhea

[[quoteright:136:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20130509_k8sh_1.png]]

Diane's older adoptive sister, as well as Charlotte's roommate.
----
* HappilyAdopted: Despite teasing Diane quite a bit, it's clear that Rhea cares for her as a sister.
* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: "Hard drinking" is maybe a bit of a stretch, but she gets pretty sloshed at her New Year's Eve party from a few too many drinking games.
[[/folder]]

!!Teachers & Mentors

[[folder:Principal Verrückt]]
!!Principal Verrückt

[[quoteright:166:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100114_hmaf.png]]

The strict and somewhat bumbling principal of Moperville North.
----
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: He first appeared in a ''very'' early strip for a CutawayGag where the principal was Hitler, complete with GratuitousGerman. He ditched the hairpiece in his next appearance and was a completely different character from then on, personality and appearance-wise.
* CutenessProximity:
** Ellen gets him to agree to go along with her cover story about being Elliot's cousin with a dose of the PuppyDogEyes.
** He lets Sarah slightly break the school's DressCode, because her beret is adorable. Much to Susan's annoyance.
* DodgyToupee: He originally wore one before Ellen pointed out it made him look like Adolf Hitler.
* InsistentTerminology: He only refers to Susan as [[EmbarrassingFirstName Tiffany]] or [[EmbarrassingLastName Ms. Pompoms]], since he [[InsaneTrollLogic refuses to use her "street name"]].
* MeaningfulName: German for "crazy".
* SternTeacher: He tries to be a "tough but fair" kind of principal, although his inability to understand kids makes him come off as just stern.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Greg]]
!! Sensei Greg

[[quoteright:163:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20110613_tv57.png]]

Master and founder of the now-closed School of Anime-Style Martial Arts, which he founded after a marathon anime viewing session, Greg is heavily versed in {{otaku}} culture and applies it in his fighting style.
----

* AscendedFanboy: Comic book & anime geek who learned how to unlock "ki" (MagicByAnyOtherName) after watching 168 hours of anime straight. Much of his instructor "wisdom" comes from comic books.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: He's a nice guy and a goofball, but he'll still threaten to punch you ''through'' your face if you do anything evil.
* BlackAndNerdy: Breaks the trope somewhat by being a seven-foot-tall martial artist.
* {{Cosplay}}: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-05-27 In fact]], Greg has dabbled in [[WholesomeCrossdresser crossplay]].
-->'''Dex:''' And... haven't I seen you cosplaying as [[Franchise/StreetFighter Chun-Li?]]\\
'''Greg:''' Yep!
* DirtyOldMan: Averted, but discussed. Because of anime martial arts examples such as [[Manga/RanmaOneHalf Happosai]] and [[Franchise/DragonBall Master Roshi]], he considers the fact that he does ''not'' fit this trope to be a point of shame.
* EnlightenmentSuperpowers: An already experienced martial artist invented his own style after a feat of ascetism ending with a big insight. Shive knows the classics, all right. In Greg's case, it's 168 hours of watching anime non-stop without breaks for lunch and sleep -- which accounts for the style's... peculiarity.
* GentleGiant: Easily towers over everyone in the main cast, yet as a black-belt level martial artist, he's not big on unnecessary violence.
* GiverOfLameNames: "[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-08-27 ...you might want to hire a marketing consultant]]."
* NoManShouldHaveThisPower: He closed the dojo in part due to worries that there's no way to ensure that good powers would be granted to the right people. Just before the dojo was wrecked by [[spoiler:a sleepwalking (and possibly mind-controlled) magic-user and a dragon]] anyway.
--> '''Greg:''' You three are good kids, but my training could inadvertently give a sociopath atomic breath or something. [[AndThatWouldBeWrong While awesome, that would be totally irresponsible]].
* ScaryBlackMan: Played with. While he certainly looks the part, he's actually more of a geeky otaku type at heart.
* SuperStrength: He once swatted a fly and ''exploded'' the punching bag it was on.
* SupernaturalMartialArts: Literally. As in "closed his dojo when he realized his training techniques only worked with people who already had a predisposition for magical powers".
* WholesomeCrossdresser: Has cosplayed as Chun-Li from the ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' series.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Raven]]
!!Adrian Raven

[[quoteright:163:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20090609_1uds.png]]
[[caption-width-right:163:[[labelnote:Click here to see his true form (spoilers).]][[quoteright:137:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1514788679_20180101_s3_222.png]] [[/labelnote]]]]

->''[[http://egscomics.com/comic/2009-06-25 "The lives of my students are more important.]]''\\
\\

Moperville South's apparently sinister and demanding history teacher. He's been a teacher there for a ''very'' long time and has quite the reputation as a menacing and cryptic individual.
----

* AccidentalPervert: He just can't seem to catch a break with Grace, his 18-year-old student who keeps getting him into... ''problematic'' situations. Grace is [[PingPongNaivete completely unaware of that]], poor Adrian is not, such as when Grace cheerfully tells him that she's not a minor, so he can "do all sorts of things with [her]"[[note]]they're talking about going on a hunt after a dangerous enchanted animal[[/note]] or when she shapeshifts in in front of him and ends up naked. He's appropriately horrified.
* ArmorPiercingResponse: [[spoiler:His mother brushes off most of his angry criticism toward her behavior, but when he responds to her justifying RevengeByProxy on werewolves over one killing his father by calmly stating "Father would hate what you've become", Pandora immediately falls silent and leaves a moment later, realizing that [[HeelRealization everything her son criticized her for is right]].]]
* BadassTeacher: Oh yes.
* BerserkButton: He hates it when people denigrate magical creatures. [[spoiler:[[HalfHumanHybrid There's a good reason for this]]]].
* BigGood: Shaping up to be the second one after Mr. Verres.
* BizarreAlienSenses: When in his true form, he can [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2011-12-27 taste magical potential. With his ears, apparently.]]
* CaptainErsatz: Of [[Literature/HarryPotter Severus Snape]] and [[VisualNovel/AceAttorney Miles Edgeworth]]. He even called 'objection' once.
* CelibateHero: His romantic encounters are rare enough that when he is informed he [[spoiler:fathered Diane and fathered Susan's family line]], he is quickly able to narrow down the possible times it could have happened.
-->'''Raven:''' My goodness I was in my ''actual twenties''...
* CombatPragmatist:
-->'''Abraham:''' Feigned frailty, no "En guarde"... Have you no honor?\\
'''Raven:''' The lives of my students are more important. Besides which, [[TooDumbToLive I]] ''[[TooDumbToLive did]]'' [[TooDumbToLive warn you]].
* DarkIsNotEvil: He can act "creepy and weird" and even comes off as somewhat sinister at times. His rather harsh attitude toward his students doesn't help. However, he's definitely on the side of the heroes and is noted to be, alongside Mr. Verres, one of the authority figures they know they can trust.
* EvilLaugh: Though not actually a villain, he's perfectly capable of them.
* GoodIsNotNice: He's very strict and intimidating, but his main purpose is [[spoiler:acting as a guardian towards magical or otherwise not entirely mundane students]].
* HalfHumanHybrid: [[spoiler:He's the son of a human and Chaos]].
* ImmortalProcreationClause: [[spoiler: Is sterile. At least, he ''believes'' himself to be...]]
* ItsAllMyFault: [[spoiler: Blames himself for Noriko abandoning her husband and son]].
* KubrickStare: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=995 Delivers one]] along with a [[TranquilFury soft-spoken]], but still very effective threat.
--> '''Raven:''' I can act directly if the situation involves magic or is an immediate threat to myself or others. [[WellIntentionedExtremist You]] are a homicidal wizard invading a public school. ''No one will care if I kill you''. Final warning. [[DontMakeMeDestroyYou Surrender, or die.]]
* LargeHam: Not always [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-02-27 screaming]], but he [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-06-13 puts up a good show]] whenever possible.
* LivingDistantAncestor: Is revealed to be this [[spoiler:to Susan]], who is a descendant of a woman Raven was with way back in his actual twenties.
* LongLostRelative: [[spoiler:Is Susan's distant ancestor and Diane's father]].
* MagicKnight: [[spoiler:Is a good spell user and knows how to fight with a sword]].
* MartyrWithoutACause: His greatest wish is to join the military, serve a noble cause, and to protect people -- but he's not allowed to. [[spoiler:His mother is opposed to him [[WeAreAsMayFlies risking his life for mortals]] and points out that his desire to serve "his country" is meaningless when he doesn't even really have a country]].
* MyGreatestFailure[=/=]MyGodWhatHaveIDone: According to him he was even more ''encouraging'' than he is now, especially to Tedd's parents and because of that considers himself completely at fault for [[TheGhost Mrs. Verres]] departure from her family.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: After discovering that [[spoiler:he is Susan's ancestor and Diane's father (it doesn't help that Pandora is forcibly reset immediately after this revelation, causing considerably more grief), he distraught over incidents he believed were simply one-night-stands of little consequence because he believed he was sterile - he knows who Diane's biological mother is, but he can't even remember her full name, much to his shame, and he isn't thrilled to tell Susan that her lineage likely began when ''he was in his actual twenties''.]]
--> '''Raven:''' "I'm a ''scoundrel!''"
* OlderAlterEgo: He disguises himself as an elderly man, but his true form [[ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty still looks to be his early 20s.]] Then again, the old man form is ''much'' younger than he really is, so maybe it's a younger alter ego?
* OlderThanTheyLook: Ellen speculates that he's much older than he looks, since he's been teaching at the school since at least Nanase's mother's time. [[spoiler:[[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld She's more right than she thinks]]]].
* OurElvesAreDifferent: [[spoiler:Is the resultant offspring of a human and an Immortal. Such hybrids are called elves]].
* ParentalSubstitute: He's raising Noah, whose parents were apparently killed by Damien.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: His exact age isn't known, but [[spoiler:Pandora was 156 when he was born and is believed to be at least 500]] suggesting that he is at least 350 years old.
* SecretKeeper: Mr. Raven's real job is [[spoiler:assisting and protecting students with magical abilities]].
* ShutUpHannibal: [[spoiler:To his own ''mother'', no less]].
* SpitTake: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1353 Grace's note to him nearly caused this reaction]].
%%* StealthMentor
* SternTeacher: Most definitely stern; the "loved by all his students" part, [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=940 not so much.]]
-->'''Nanase''': Raven's version of "liking" people is expecting the world of them. If you get ''anything'' less than an "A" on ''anything'', he ''will tear you a new one.''
* StrongFamilyResemblance: [[spoiler: In his natural form he strongly resembles his descendant, Susan's father]].
* SwordCane: Has a walking cane which hides a sword.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting
** [[spoiler:He reverts to his [[ShapeshifterDefaultForm elf form]] [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-06-18 when fighting Abraham]]]].
** [[spoiler:[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-11-18 Or occasionally at home]]]].
[[/folder]]

!!Students - Moperville North

[[folder:Catalina]]
!!Catalina Bobcat

[[quoteright:160:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1628652313_bal_2108_11_050_zffdde.png]]

->''"Jackasses!"'''\\
\\

A member of the Moperville North Feminist Club. She's loud, energetic, and often doesn't think through her actions, but she's also as loyal and brave as a friend can be. Although she had a crush on Susan, she started dating Rhoda after helping save her from a giant boar.
----

* CannotKeepASecret: She has [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2012-08-06 a hard time]] not yelling [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-039 any secrets she knows out loud]]. She did [[CharacterDevelopment learn to get better at it]] by keeping her relationship with Rhoda secret at her request, eventually to the point where she's able to keep quiet about having magic without cracking.
* CatchPhrase: She's a big fan of yelling the word "Jackass(es)". This gets a tragic and somewhat {{Bathos}}-y twist where she tearfully says "assjack" after [[spoiler:she asks Susan out only to find out that Susan's not a lesbian like she thought.]]
* CatGirl: As Elliot [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2007-11-16 put it]], she "seems just a tail short from being a cat-girl." Thanks to a magic mark from Pandora, [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=516 she actually gains the ability to turn into a cat girl]]. By default she's just ALittleBitBeastly, but can push herself all the way to [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-066 full-on werecat]].
* CuteLittleFangs: She's drawn with very prominent canines, which no other character has. They become even more pronounced when she's in her CatGirl form.
* DidntThinkThisThrough: When there was a rumour going around that Elliot was gay, [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2013-11-01 her solution was to tackle-kiss him in the hallway and declare herself to be his girlfriend]]. This (shockingly) helps, although only due to Elliot not playing along and just saying he's not gay but doesn't care if people think he is. The part she didn't think through was what she did [[OhCrap getting back to Rhoda]].
* DoesNotLikeMen: Downplayed. Susan describes her attitude toward men as "[they're] sleazy until proven otherwise." She was very friendly to Elliot and Tedd, even showing NoSenseOfPersonalSpace to the latter, because she deduced that any men Susan were willing to befriend must be decent.
* FieryRedhead: Has the right hair color and she is very hotheaded.
* GenkiGirl: Has plenty of enthusiasm and energy. Just look at her [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-050 doing a backflip while "pumped on awesomeness".]]
* GoshDangItToHeck: Involuntary; she sees herself more as [[SirSwearsalot Dame Diatribe]], but there are some lines she can't cross at school, and all the situations that make her want to swear are at school.
* IncompatibleOrientation: With Susan. Susan gets a lot of this, apparently. [[spoiler: Even with Susan realizing that she's not as heterosexual as she thought, she probably wouldn't have been comfortable with the making out that Catalina would likely have wanted to do, and views her more as a friend]].
* OurWerebeastsAreDifferent: She's able to turn into an intimidating werecat monster.
* PersonalityPowers: Defied. Being a CatGirl has absolutely nothing to do with Catalina's personality. As Pandora points out, the only reason she gets that spell is her [[StevenUlyssesPerhero name-based affinity]] blocking out more fitting magic. When Susan tries to not-so-subtly ask if Catalina has cat magic, she [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-059 dismisses it as boring]] and says she'd probably have [[MakeMeWannaShout loudspeaker magic]] instead, which Susan can't help but agree with.
* PowerTattoo: Grace learns through a dream that Catalina has a Magic Mark, and surprise surprise it turns her into a CatGirl, though more feral looking than most. [[spoiler:She also Awakened at some point off-screen, since [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-061 the mark is gone]] when Sarah and Susan are trying to figure out whether Catalina has magic or not.]]
* QuirkyCurls: Her hair is naturally flat, but she styles it this way to match her boisterous personality.
* RescueRomance: She meets Rhoda when she helped save her life from the giant boar, and the two start dating shortly afterwards.
* StevenUlyssesPerhero: Apparently, the reason Pandora was able to mark her with a CatGirl spell was that her ''very name'' resulted in her having an affinity for it. Although she points out that [[NonIndicativeName her tail is too long to actually be a bobcat.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Liz]]
!!Liz

[[quoteright:131:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1557476326_1904_p_11_jssdg.png]]

The Goth-esque member of the Feminist club. Originally addicted to cigarettes, [[CharacterDevelopment though not anymore]]. Friends with Ashley.
----
* ADayInTheLimelight: In the "Party" arc.
* AscendedExtra: She was just a background character at the beginning of the comic, but she started to appear more and more after Ashley was introduced.
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Part of why she's so protective of Ashley is because she helped her [[RecoveredAddict quit]] [[http://egscomics.com/comic/party-033 smoking]], despite having first met when Liz was [[http://egscomics.com/comic/party-034 cranky from withdrawal and snapped at Ashley when she bumped into her in the hallway]].
* BigSisterInstinct: Is extremely protective of Ashley to the point of making Elliot promise Ashley will be safe at the party for her [[http://egscomics.com/comic/party-030 here.]]
* FantasticallyIndifferent: Part of her charm is that crazy things can happen in front of her and she'd just go "meh".
* {{Fetish}}: She mentions that she likes fantasies about getting mind-controlled by a vampire, but she would never allow it to happen in real life.
* FlatCharacter: Her indifference is her entire characterization, until she gets more focus later on.
* OutOfFocus: After an introduction very early in the comic, Liz all but disappeared. According to Dan, he liked the character but didn't have many opportunities to use her since she had little relation with the main cast. Since then however, her friendship with Ashley has given her a lot more screen time.
* NotAMorningPerson: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1810 See her response to Ashley.]]
* PowerTattoo: Was marked by Pandora, though it's unknown what spell she has. Or if she's even currently ''aware'' of it.
* RecoveredAddict: She used to smoke, but Ashley helped her stop.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sandi]]
!!Sandi

[[quoteright:102:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080711_o5zi.png]]

The airheaded member of the Feminist's club. Tony's girlfriend.
----
* TheDitz: Some of her actions can be quite eccentric. When she rejoins the Feminist club, at the end she casually says that it wasn't her lunch period and she was ''skipping class'' just to say sorry.
* HeelRealization: She and a bunch of other girls rudely quit the Feminist Club right as Susan needed people the most. She eventually realizes how much of a jerk she was thanks to Tedd sticking up for Susan and officially rejoins as an apology.
* OutOfFocus: As Tony disappeared from the comic, Sandi, who already had less appearances, went with him,
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tony]]
!! Tony

[[quoteright:88:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080804_ltdq.png]]

School bully, Tedd's tormentor, and Elliot's nemesis.
----
* TheBully: Picks on Tedd a lot because of how girly he looks.
* DemotedToExtra: He appeared constantly in early comics as a major source of conflict. Over time, he started showing up less and less. His disappearance not-so-coincidentally happened alongside Tedd becoming more comfortable with their appearance and gender identity. The last major story beat Tony had was [[spoiler:when it was revealed that his nameless friend was the "Ronin" that spread rumours about Elliot being gay]]. Otherwise, his character is sort of redundant at this point, being essentially a more actively malicious version of Rich.
* JerkJock: Is an athlete who bullies Tedd.
* StupidSexyFlanders: Grace theorizes that Tony is upset by his own attraction to Tedd's appearance, and [[ArmoredClosetGay she might be right]].
* WeUsedToBeFriends: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-101 With Elliot back in elementary school.]] Their friendship started getting strained after he [[http://www.egscomics.com/comic/2013-11-29 gay-bashed]] kids who were making fun of Elliot and him, and officially ended when Tony [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-102 shoved a girl]] (who was actually [[DudeLooksLikeALady Tedd]]).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Matt]]
!! Matt Cohen

[[quoteright:139:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080714_lwqc.png]]

The Head of the Student Council. Because of his position, he often has to announce the latest "ideas" of the Principal.
----
* AmbiguouslyJewish: His last name and hairstyle suggest that he might be Jewish, though it hasn't been explicitly stated.
* BeleagueredAssistant: Implied. He seems to love his job, but he is not a fan of the Principal's school uniform idea.
* DeadpanSnarker:
** He's gotten in one snark. It wouldn't be very noteworthy, except it was toward Susan. Whether this a defining trait, remains to be seen.
** His speech about the uniforms was full of this, seemingly designed to get across his contempt for the system and the principal. Kind of impressive, given that these were ''after'' he was told to stick to the cards.
--->'''Matt:''' Black ties are encouraged but not required for uniforms, for reasons [[SarcasmMode surely]] [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial not]] related to those costing extra.
* DoggedNiceGuy: Possibly... But considering Dan spent an extra comic because he didn't want to let Matt's intentions hang in the dark, it seems he's pure NiceGuy.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2007-09-14 This]] and [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-07-14 this]] turns out to be so for [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2012-03-06 this]]. All of this took place over the course of five years. Only Dan Shive, everybody...
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Matt seems to understand quite clearly that Susan doesn't want to date him, and respects it. When he hears that she's never dated at all, he gives an earnest piece of advice to think on whether or not she'd regret not dating in High School. Even if it's not with him, he just wanted to make sure Susan would be okay.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tom]]
!!Tom

[[quoteright:136:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1389769055_2014_01_15_eb68.png]]

A very effeminate boy who's interested in Susan. Ashley's ex, and far more manipulative than he first appears.
----
* AccidentalPublicConfession:
-->'''Tom:''' I am a fantastic liar!\\
'''Beat Panel:''' ''[[[OhCrap shows that every single woman in the (packed) cafeteria heard him]]]''\\
'''Susan:''' Not when a mark [[OffTheRails goes off-script]], you're not.
* AtLeastIAdmitIt: He tells Susan that everybody uses little lies and word choice to manipulate others. He claims he's more honest than most people because he at least is able to admit it to himself. [[JerkassHasAPoint Susan concedes that he's not entirely wrong]], but she adds that at least most people who do it have decent intentions. According to her [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech Tom toys with the feelings of others for his own selfish reasons, or deeper still, for his own amusement. As a result, nobody trusts or likes him.]]
* DudeLooksLikeALady: Which is lampshaded when Tom was drawn in color.
* InformedAbility: What his alleged skills as a ManipulativeBastard become in the face of Susan. When she unknowingly hits him with a SpannerInTheWorks, she starts to pick up on his rather sad attempts to recover his footing. It goes so far that he ends up yelling that he is a fantastic liar. Understandably, Susan answers by saying that he isn't when the mark goes off-script.
* NiceGuy: Not really, it's an act.
* ManipulativeBastard: Ashley revealed that he is ''incredibly'' underhanded and emotionally manipulative when he wants something. Currently, that something is Susan. When he is outed, he claims that ''everyone'' is just as manipulative, but as Susan points out, intention is what separates the average white lie from his selfish games.
* SelfProclaimedLiar: Combined with AccidentalPublicConfession above.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:"Good" Tom]]
!!Tom

[[quoteright:121:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1392709288_2014_02_18_eb90.png]]

A side-character who is good (unlike Tom, who is not).
----
* AscendedExtra: Appears [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1811 here]] briefly before Dan decided to use him again a year later.
* JumpedAtTheCall: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2027 "A puppy is in danger."]]
* OneSteveLimit: An inversion, as used as a gag in his [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1811 introductory page]].
* MySignificanceSenseIsTingling: As noted above, he has the ability to sense when a puppy is in danger, [[spoiler:[[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=494 thanks to Pandora marking him]]]].
* NiceGuy: The nicest, apparently. It seems to make him a bit annoying to hang out with, if his girlfriend's reaction is any indication.
[[/folder]]

!!Students - Moperville South

[[folder:Lucy]]
!!Lucy
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[[quoteright:197:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1543466467_sketch_181129_swap_1.png]]

The snarky member of Diane's GirlPosse.
----
* AmbiguouslyGay: Besides the avatar mentioned under HiddenDepths below, in the past after Diane defended her against a group of boys in Junior High, and told her that she was beautiful. Lucy developed a crush on Diane from that point on though whether it's because she's a full on lesbian or just a case of SingleTargetSexuality is still up for debate as she said she wouldn't care if Diane was a guy.
* AnguishedDeclarationOfLove: Gives one to Diane after Diane's very public attempt to dispel the rumors about her. [[spoiler: To her surprise it's recriprocated.]]
* ArmorPiercingQuestion: When Diane asks her why she kept going on double dates with her despite knowing of the "[[ReallyGetsAround reputation]]" they were getting, she doesn't react well, and doesn't answer before the bell rings.
* AscendedExtra: In a sense. She was always a tertiary character to Diane whose appearances could probably be counted on two hands. Even as Diane and Rhoda started appearing more frequently and with more importance she rarely showed up and seemed to be pretty much forgotten about. Come "The Legend of Diane" she's given a [[CharacterDevelopment large amount of focus]] eventually resulting in her [[spoiler: starting a romantic relationship with Diane]].
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Her feelings for Diane seem to have developed at least in part due to Diane's defense of her against boys who were giving her unwanted attention after she started "developing", and reassuring her that she was beautiful.
* BetaBitch: She's the naughty and snarky member of Diane's group. She wasn't always like that however and her greater focus in ''The Legend of Diane'' arc heavily implies it developed over a long period of time due to her unrequited crush on Diane. [[spoiler: Or, at least, she thought her crush was unrequited.]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: A bit regarding Diane, which is why her attitude towards Rhoda improved when she realized that [[spoiler: she and Catalina were dating]].
* DCupDistress: Went from being bullied for being tall to being [[BuxomBeautyStandard an object of desire]] for boys in junior high once she started developing. Unfortunately for her, this wasn't a positive development.
* DeadpanSnarker: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2007-06-19 Observe her response to Diane's reasoning to concluding Ellen and Grace are new students]].
* DemotedToExtra: It's pretty easy to forget that she's part of Diane and Rhoda's group, but she got more focus in the "Legend of Diane" storyline.
* WithFriendsLikeThese: She's quite critical of Rhoda. And anyone [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-01-08 else]], for that matter. To a lesser degree, [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2007-06-19 even Diane]].
** Although Dan [[https://danshive.tumblr.com/post/78121202978/im-curious-as-to-why-diane-would-hang-out-with has stated]] that Lucy and Diane's friendship is strong enough to have lasted since childhood implying that the two know each other well enough to be honest, even brutally honest, without offending each other.
* HeightAngst: When in Junior High, boys made fun of her for her height, then hit on her when she started "developing".
* HiddenDepths: It's veeeeeery subtle, buuut... observe [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1634 this avatar-based online-chat]]. Diane is wearing the same avatar as Susan was a bit earlier (providing more fodder for the 'sisters' reveal), but isn't Lucy's avatar of a female, dragonslaying knight strangely familiar too? Maybe a reference to [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=34 a certain novel Nanase was reading 9 years earlier]], back when she was still in the closet?
** A [[https://egscomics.com/comic/tlod-008 flashback to Junior High]] reveals that she had some major insecurities regarding her appearance, particularly her height, due to boys making fun of her (and, after she stared "developing", hitting on her) before Diane defended her and complimented her, and her comment about how she wishes Diane was a boy implies that she may have feelings for her.
* RelationshipUpgrade: [[spoiler: With Diane.]]
* SecretSecretKeeper: [[spoiler: Like Diane, she knew about Rhoda dating Catalina, which is why she started to be nicer towards her]].
* ShoutOutThemeNaming: Like the other girls in her posse, Lucy is named after a famous sitcom character. Her namesake is Lucille Ball from ''Series/ILoveLucy''.
* StatuesqueStunner: Bordering on AmazonianBeauty, she's far taller and far more "developed" than any other female character. Her height looks like it might even rival most of the ''male'' characters. Just compare her to [[http://egscomics.com/comic/tlod-002 Diane and Rhoda]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rhoda]]
!!Rhoda
%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=16646024440.10017700
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[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1385876026_fgs20131201.png]]
->''[[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2010-12-29 "You are [giant] to me... but I might have a distorted perception of scale."]]''\\
\\

A ShrinkingViolet who became a member of Diane's GirlPosse by way of having Diane as a math tutor. She serves as Diane's MoralityPet and is often picked on by Lucy. After being saved from an encounter with a magically-enlarged boar, she started dating her savior Catalina.
----
* AffectionateNickname: Diane calls her pup.
* AmbiguouslyBrown: Dan is [[https://egscomics.tumblr.com/post/177837167958/what-is-rhodas-ethnicity specifically keeping her ethnicity vague]] until it becomes relevant.
* AnimalMotif: Rhoda is often compared to and treated like a puppy. She's also commonly seen with dog ears, paws, or a tail in {{Fantasy Sequence}}s and the choker she usually wears looks like a collar. It sets up a minor CatDogDichotomy with her girlfriend.
* TheArchmage: [[spoiler:Is apparently one of the most [[http://egscomics.com/egsnp/2016-11-09 powerful]] and [[http://egscomics.com/egsnp/2017-07-23-ellen-demo-15 versatile]] magic-users in the comic, on the same tier as ''Nanase''. When Luke catches a glimpse of her aura, it appears as [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-067 a giant, flaming beacon]] around her.]]
* BorrowedCatchphrase: Apparently she has spent enough time with her girlfriend that she's picked up Catalina's favourite insult, as shown when she [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-055 gets frustrated by a fellow student]] cutting in line while waiting for pizza.
--> '''Rhoda''': '''Back of the line, Jackass!'''
* BreastExpansion: This was [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/2016-11-11 one of the things she tried]] while [[spoiler:experimenting with her SizeShifter powers. She also briefly considers [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/2017-01-20 giving Kitty gigantic boobs]] to stop her from chasing her and Catalina, but quickly decides that's a terrible idea.]]
* ComboPlatterPowers: Although her magic is primarily based around [[spoiler:changing the size of things, Rhoda has the potential to gain a wide variety of different spells if she keeps practicing. Similar to Nanase, her power level is to the point where she could theoretically get any kind of spell she needed. In TheRant for one comic, Dan said she was basically a wizard in EGS terms minus the actual PowerCopying.]]
* EverybodyKnewAlready: [[spoiler: Both Diane and Lucy figured out that she and Catalina were dating well before she told them. She is ''not'' happy about that, since she kept it secret and caused herself anxiety for nothing]].
* {{Fetish}}: Rhoda seems to have a CatGirl fetish, which makes perfect sense given her relationship with Catalina.
* HugeGuyTinyGirl: Non-romantic version. Rhoda is so petite, she looks tiny next to just about any guy. Six-foot Justin [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-12-29 practically towers over her]]. This is actually why she's only been shown interested in girls despite being bisexual--she gets freaked out by people who are much bigger than her, which most guys are.
* MoralityPet: She served as one to Diane even before the latter started {{defrosting|IceQueen}}. Diane doesn't seem so bad when she's comforting a sobbing Rhoda who forgot her math homework.
* PersonalityPowers: [[spoiler:Given magic's habit of this and her issues with size perception, shrinking and growing things is a fitting starting power.]]
* PintSizedPowerhouse: Despite being a little bean, Rhoda is possibly ''the most'' powerful magic user in the comic. [[spoiler:Her {{Sizeshifter}} powers are effortless and several magnitudes more powerful than what Tedd can do, and that's with very little practice or training. A non-canon NP storyline gave a [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/2017-09-15 taste of what she could do with more practice]], never mind other spells she'll unlock along the way.]]
* PowerPerversionPotential: [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/2016-11-02 Take a look at]] the immediate first thought she had for [[VictoriasSecretCompartment how to sneak a tiny Catalina out of the mall]]. Catalina definitely had the same idea.
* PowerTattoo: She didn't know about it for a time, but she has one [[spoiler:that lets her alter the size of herself or anything she points her palms at. By the time of the EGS:NP arc ''Escape From the Mall'', she's at least learned about her powers and told Catalina about them. And then the same arc reveals that she's somehow Awakened in the meantime, meaning the tattoo is now gone.]]
* PrecisionFStrike: She did not take it lightly when she found out that [[spoiler:Diane and Lucy already knew/suspected that she had a girlfriend when she came out to them, despite having kept it a secret like she did in the first place due to fearing their reactions]].
--> '''Rhoda''': '''You #&%$ing knew?!'''
* ShipTease: Dan [[PlayingDumb specifically says that he knows nothing about either]] [[{{Shipping}} boats or mailing things that wouldn't fit in envelopes]] [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-11-04 once she and Catalina meet]].
* SizeShifter: [[spoiler:The PowerTattoo granted by Pandora gives her the ability to alter both her own size and others. She usually tends to shrink herself and make others grow, but the events of ''Escape From The Mall'' end up reversing that norm out of necessity.]]
* ShoutOutThemeNaming: Like the other girls in her posse, Rhoda is named after a famous sitcom character. Her namesake is Rhoda Morgenstern from ''Series/TheMaryTylerMooreShow'' and ''{{Series/Rhoda}}''.
* ShrinkingViolet: Rhoda's perception of her own size literally shrinks when she feels intimidated.
* TookALevelInBadass: [[spoiler:''Escape From The Mall'' reveals that at some point she'd Awakened when Pandora wasn't looking]]. She also becomes generally more confident and outgoing [[spoiler: after growing into her magical powers]].
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler:Being attacked by a wild boar accidentally set off her PowerTattoo, [[MakeMyMonsterGrow which made the boar grow]] into an enormous, territorial brute]].
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: [[spoiler:Unlocked such a spell at some point after Awakening, allowing her to transform into a busty adult woman with long hair. It's unclear if the spell grants her a distinct new form or more general shapeshifting abilities.]]
* WigDressAccent: After getting fed-up with people harassing her for appearing on the news [[spoiler:when Pandora manifested]], she [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2010-12-27 disguised herself]] with a ponytail, NerdGlasses, and baggier clothing. She kept it up until everyone forgot about the incident.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Melissa]]
!!Melissa

[[quoteright:134:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20110330_ihgc.png]]

Justin's former best friend who outed him after he told her he was gay by thoughtlessly confiding in her blabbermouth sister, and who hasn't exactly repaired their relationship with her subsequent behavior.
----

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Invoked. Justin tells Susan that Melissa is a SmugSnake who almost destroyed his life. Noah tells Elliot that Melissa is a [[TragicHero tragic heroine]] who nearly destroyed her own life as well. Their respective stories are pretty consistent in the details, it's just that Justin seems to hold her more responsible than he does her sister and is thus less willing to forgive her.
* TheAtoner: See SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong below.
* ClingyJealousGirl: See PsychoExGirlfriend below.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: She got a surprising SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome by [[spoiler:jumping between knocked down "Cheerleadra" and a monster and ''trying to stare it down'']].
* DrivenToSuicide: If Elliot hadn't stepped in and saved Justin from the gay-bashing bullies, Noah pretty much spelled out that Melissa would've done this.
* HiddenDepths:
** Dan claims that her referring to Series/MythBusters is a subtle hint of this.
** Less subtly, she said her faith in Noah was based on seeing how he had beaten ''something'', compared to which a bulldog faced fireball-breathing dragon the size of a half truck is a misbehaving pup. Which also explains her treatment of it.
** When Cheerleadra gets hurt, Melissa is also quick to make sure she doesn't show any signs of a concussion, implying she has at least some basic medical knowledge.
* IncompatibleOrientation: She's still attracted to Justin, but it certainly isn't mutual. [[spoiler:It's strongly implied that she's gotten over it as of the end of "New and Old Flames".]]
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Eventually gets the hint that Justin wants nothing to do with her, and promises to leave him alone. Doubles as a TearJerker as it comes from the realization / belief that if it took Justin this long to forgive her, then they probably shouldn't and won't be friends again anyway.
* LastHetRomance: Justin's first, last and only ''girl''friend.
* LoveMakesYouCrazy[=/=]LoveMakesYouDumb: Pick the one you prefer. When her obsession with Justin kicks in, she acts like a complete lunatic unless she [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-04-04 remembers]] to DopeSlap herself out of it.
** PsychoExGirlfriend: An annoying example... Except that it's been revealed that her motives are a bit more complex than that. Not to mention that she is fully aware that her attempts to win over Justin are pointless and do nothing but make her come off as annoying and quite possibly psychotic, but can't seem to stop herself.
* RetCon: Originally, she was just some girl who Justin dated once and who wouldn't let go, but later became a childhood friend who had been in love with him for a long time, making her story more tragic.
* SecretKeeper: [[spoiler:Knows about Noah's powers as she knew screaming would bring him to fight a dragon-like monster.]]
* SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong: Noah believes that Melissa has deluded herself into thinking she can make everything right again by winning Justin back.
* ThisIsForEmphasisBitch: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-04-26 Here comes a new challenger, bitch!]]
* WoundedGazelleWarcry: When encountering a monster, she first comes off as a hysterical ScreamingWoman, but it becomes clear that she invoked this to [[spoiler:alert her super-powered boyfriend to come and handle the monster, which she knows he's capable of.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Noah]]
!!Noah Raven

[[quoteright:217:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100322_wa8v.png]]

->''"I have been told I can make straight men see rainbows."''\\
\\

Melissa's androgynous boyfriend who rarely uses contractions. An orphan, Noah is the adopted son of Mr. Raven and made friends with Elliot during the Swedekea arc.
----

* AgentPeacock: He's quite effeminate in [[DudeLooksLikeALady appearance]] and [[CampStraight personality]], but that doesn't make him any less badass.
* AmbiguousGender: Noah, whom we know as a boy only because it was said and in comparison to whom Tedd doesn't look "''that'' androgynous" at all, despite this being an old RunningGag.
-->'''Elliot:''' Who's this... ''guy?'' I ''[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-03-17 think?]]''\\
'''Student:''' Oh, it's that weird [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-03-14 girl]].
* AmbiguouslyBi: Elliot was rather surprised to hear he has a girlfriend.
* AmbiguouslyHuman: Apparently his aura is similar to Grace's, and the person commenting this also refers to his pigtails as "prehensile tendrils." His hair does look suspiciously similar to the antennae Ellen's half-human friend Archie had in her dreams. There is a ''lot'' of evidence that he might be a seyunolu beyond just his hair (which has been shown to be able to move on its own accord). Examples include that he values his relationship with Melissa for "physical warmth and comfort", another common trend in seyunolus, and his apparent lack of social exposure.
--> '''Noah''': Have you ever heard of a television show called "The Simpsons?"\\
'''Elliot''': I am aware of it.
** [[spoiler:The ambiguity is finally dropped [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/brother-014 here]], where it's revealed that he's a human-uryuom seyunolu.]]
* BerserkButton: [[PayEvilUntoEvil Intentionally evil acts cry out for vengeance!]]
* BestServedCold: [[spoiler:He trained for years to kill Damien to avenge someone long dead]].
* BewareTheNiceOnes: He speaks formally in order to control his temper, which is [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-01-31 apparently pretty bad if pushed too far]].
* BizarreAlienSenses: [[spoiler:He has the same feedback sense as Grace, which lets him pick up details from his surrounding. Unlike Grace though, he doesn't seem to be able to turn it off.]]
* BlackBeadEyes: Well, black bead ''eye''. One of his eyes [[spoiler:takes from his uryuom heritage.]]
* CampStraight: His speech and mannerisms might point to homosexuality but he has a girlfriend.
* CannotTellALie: Lending credence to his AlternativeCharacterInterpretation of Melissa.
* CaptainObvious: He has a tendency to say incredibly obvious things as if they were mind-blowing facts. He is very smart, but [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2011-12-12 sometimes doesn't understand what is or isn't common knowledge.]]
* ChekhovsGunman: First appeared six years before his formal introduction.
* ClosetKey: He's [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2348 apparently]] the reason that [[spoiler:Elliot]] realized that he has some attraction to men.
* CloudCuckoolander: He has some strange and often absent-minded ways of doing things, such as [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-03-23 entering Raven's office]] [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-03-25 through the ceiling.]]
* DarkIsNotEvil: [[spoiler:His "The Child Left Behind" form looks like a black silhouette with white outlines]], similar to Magus. He's definitely one of the good guys.
* DudeLooksLikeALady: Even more so than Tedd in that he also dresses in androgynous clothing. He killed a RunningGag: in comparison with ''Noah'', Tedd doesn't look "just that androgynous" at all.
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Discussed.
-->'''Noah:''' Is it jealousy? I have been told I could make straight men see rainbows.
* FaceFault: He actually manages to trip while sitting down. ''Twice.''
* FlyingBrick: [[spoiler:"The Child Left Behind" is super-strong, tough, and can fly.]]
* FriendlessBackground: Wants friends, but has difficulty making them because he is shy and has poor social skills. He also hated having to lie about [[spoiler:his antennae and BizarreAlienSenses]], which made him come off as even more of a loner to other kids.
* FriendsWithBenefits: He's dating Melissa despite her still being in love with Justin, and they "provide close comfort and pleasure for each other."
* GutturalGrowler: Implied that he does this [[spoiler:as "The Child Left Behind"]].
* HalfHumanHybrid: [[spoiler:He's at least part human and part uryuom.]]
* HappilyAdopted: Lives with [[spoiler:Raven]], who he considers a father-figure. Later revealed he'd been pondering for awhile on how to ask for permission to call him Dad. Eventually he casually calls him that while trying to comfort him about [[spoiler:Pandora's "Death]] before immediately backpedaling on it, only to be hugged.
* HiddenDepths:
** Nearly won a race through the "[[FictionalCounterpart Swedekea]]" store with [[SupernaturalMartialArts super-powerful martial artist]] Elliot, and later tells Raven that he was ''holding back.'' To be fair, Elliot was too, but still...
** In gym class, he faked mediocrity so well that Ellen remembered him at all only because of his strange hairdo.
** He also once beat the snot out of two guys who later went on to become college football offensive linemen.
* InTheHood: Wears one when fighting magical beings that obscures all of his features, except white dots for his eyes and a drape of hair.
* {{Keet}}: Quieter than most, but the dude can flounce and produce sparkles at will.
* KingIncognito: He implies that he's royalty, since he tried to knight Raven. Of course, Raven points out that he doesn't ''actually'' have the authority to knight people, so who knows.
* MysteriousPast: All we know of his past is that his parents are dead, [[spoiler:presumably at Damien's hand]].
* OpenSecret: [[spoiler:Him being The Child Left Behind. To be fair, it's kind of hard to keep your SecretIdentity when you disappear suddenly then a mysterious shadowy guy shows up just in time to save your girlfriend's life, all right in front of Justin]]. Noah and Melissa still act like it's a secret afterwards.
* PeekABangs: One of his eyes is covered by his hair at nearly all times. [[spoiler:It's because the eye that's always hidden is an almond-shaped uryuom eye. Presumably the few times both eyes have been seen, it's either shapeshifted away or hidden with an illusion.]]
* RevengeBeforeReason: In a throwaway gag, he reveals that he was looking into selling his soul for power before Raven dissuaded him.
* SensoryOverload: [[spoiler:His antennae give him feedback on his surroundings to a minute extreme, which makes him uncomfortable in crowds. He describes everything as being "loud".]]
* ShockAndAwe: [[spoiler:He attacks the pug-dragon with [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-04-26 a lightning blast]].]]
* SpockSpeak: One of his more notable traits.
* UnknownRelative: As the adopted son of Adrian Raven, Noah is [[spoiler:Diane's brother and Susan's distant uncle, as well as distantly related to Tedd]]. It's not by blood, but he still introduces himself to [[spoiler:Diane as her brother]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Victor]]
!!Victor von Hip

[[quoteright:89:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080416_gs18.png]]

A self-publishing schoolboy who tries to be very helpful.
----

* BadassBoast: "The Greek God Of Pamphlets!"
* CrazyPrepared: He already has pamphlets for every occasion, [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-04-16 no matter how strange]]. [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-05-12 Check out]] his pamphlet on his pamphlets.
* NewAgeRetroHippie: Has the looks and some of the mannerisms.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Charlotte]]
!!Charlotte

[[quoteright:126:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1447399914_2015_11_13c100_maybegasp.png]]

An enthusiast of the supernatural who graduated from Moperville South.
----

* AFriendInNeed: Despite having been angry a moment ago with Diane for her thoughtless outburst (see under DidYouThinkICantFeel), Charlotte unhesitatingly tackles a monster threatening her. When Diane expresses astonishment at her doing that for her, Charlotte says simply, "Of course I did. You're my friend."
* BewareTheQuietOnes: Charlotte is introverted and socially retiring, yet manages to tackle a spider-vampire about to launch a surprise attack on Diane. The creature easily tosses her away, but still.
* BlackAndNerdy: Charlotte spends her free time either investigating the supernatural, discussing it online, or gaming.
* DidYouThinkICantFeel: Despite her normally [[TheStoic stoic]] demeanour, she reacts to Diane's outburst, "[[ArmorPiercingQuestion Have you ever even been on a date?]]" with a genuinely hurt look and retreats into silence, testily rebuffing Diane's attempt to apologize.
* NoSocialSkills: While she's not completely lacking in sense of humour or conversational ability, her introverted nature makes her uncomfortable in conventional social situations. When her housemate Rhea throws a party, Charlotte, upon meeting Nanase and Ellen, [[HatesSmallTalk cuts right to the chase]] about their paranormal investigative abilities and, ignoring Rick's invitation to join the party, suggests the couple join her upstairs for video games.
* NotSoStoic: Her near-emotionless veneer cracks in the fifth chapter of "So a Date at the Mall." When Diane casually dismisses Tara's intuition that [[spoiler:she has vampire-hunting potential]] as nonsense, and instead focuses on her own romantic prospects or lack thereof with Elliot, Charlotte is genuinely appalled and castigates her for her priorities. Then, when Diane counters with an angry jab at her introversion and thoughtlessly asks whether she's ever dated, Charlotte shows her hurt feelings so visibly, if silently, that Diane realizes she's gone too far.
* OnlyOneName: As of current her last name is unknown. Lampshaded in an NP stoyline where she and Susan are the inventors of a super army robot (Grace). In the final strip she addresses Susan as "Dr. Pompoms", who responds by calling her Dr. Last Name Not Known Yet.
* TheSpock: Charlotte is all about logical deduction. She generally has a [[TheStoic limited emotional range]], and her facial expressions rarely veer from DullSurprise or FascinatingEyebrow except when startled, annoyed or amused; even then, her face normally shows those reactions as minimally as possible. She even uses SpockSpeak in the strip that introduces her, almost completely avoiding contractions and informal speech; this is relaxed in her subsequent scenes.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jay]]
!!Jay

[[quoteright:325:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1615595726_1904_p_q7_lsffdghgh.png]]

A student at Moperville South who is also a wizard. Is also Arthur's granddaughter, who apparently does ''not'' get along with her grandfather for whatever reason.
----
* CompellingVoice: When delivering the pizza to the party, her text style changes into the same font as Diane's when she's using her own CompellingVoice, and Jay even notes under her breath that "she's not even using it right". [[spoiler:It's very likely that Jay copied the spell from Diane at some point, probably when she used it in the cafeteria.]]
* ConnectedAllAlong: Long after Jay is introduced, it is revealed that Arthur is Jay's grandfather.
* DelinquentHair: A shaved mohawk and a long, flowing ponytail. It fits with her style and rebellious attitude.
* EveryoneHasStandards: She may be intrusive and not just a little bit stalker-ish, but she draws the line at invading people's dreams to milk personal information out of them, as her first NP storyline shows.
-->'''Narration''': Jay may not be a saint, but come on now.
* IHaveManyNames: She refers to herself as "Jay", but the teachers call her "Jill" (prompting a comparison to Susan), and in an NP storyline she calls herself "Jack" as an alias.
* OurMagesAreDifferent: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/party-159 Refers to]] Diane as "a bard" and Grace as "a druid" which isn't wrong, necessarily, but isn't correct in universe either. The terms do accurately describe their abilities, though.
* PowerCopying: [[spoiler:As a wizard, she can copy the spells of others if she sees them use them, and seems to be deliberately seeking out transformation spells. She cannot copy Grace's transformations, however.]]
* SuperSmoke: [[spoiler:One of her copied transformation spells allows her to take on a smoke-like form.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Camelia]]
!!Camelia

[[quoteright:132:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1644901526_np_2202_15_a_34_pgffgdg.png]]

A student at Moperville South who attends gym class with Grace.
----
* AscendedExtra: She appeared as a reoccurring background student at South before getting some characterization (and a name) in the Jestful Statement NP arc.
* EarlyInstallmentCharacterDesignDifference: She was drawn extremely angular [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/tlod-005 early on]], being made almost entirely of triangle shapes. This was [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/jestful-26 significantly toned down]] later.
* InnocentlyInsensitive:
** She's one of the students who was spreading untrue rumours about Diane... unknowingly right to Diane's face, since she didn't recognize her.
** The "Jestful Statement" storyline starts because she poked fun at Grace for her weird mannerisms.
* MeaningfulName: She's named after a type of evergreen tree with rose-like flowers, in reference to her spiky AnimeHair.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Conan]]
!!Conan

[[quoteright:137:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1646453266_np_2203_05_a_41_pfhdffg.png]]

An absurdly buff nerd at Moperville South.
----
* CompetitionFreak: He admits that this is the reason he challenged Grace to a volleyball contest.
* GeekPhysique: Inverted. He is extremely buff, despite being a nerd.
* MeaningfulName: Conan is both a ShoutOut to ''Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian'' and a name that means "exalted" in reference to his intelligence.
* SmartPeopleWearGlasses: As part of his nerd getup.
* StereotypeFlip: He's first introduced like he's a standard jock (minus the {{jerk|Jock}} part) wearing gym clothes. When he see him in his normal outfit, it's revealed that he's actually a [[LiteralMetaphor huge nerd]].
[[/folder]]

!!Other Humans

[[folder:George]]
!! George

[[quoteright:182:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1410857186_2014_09_16c126_iseeyohair.png]]

An average nerd and Justin's coworker at the comic book shop.
----

* AmbiguouslyGay:
** There are some only slightly ambiguous hints that George has a crush on Justin, but this isn't confirmed and could be a RedHerring. All of the signs (except perhaps for one) could realistically be due to other reasons.
** In one of the "Summer Moments" comics, [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1821 George has a pretty curious expression]] towards two guys going out to the movies with each other. It is still pretty ambiguous.
** And finally [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2000 confirmed here]] (or at least confirmed that characters in universe are thinking the same way), with the commentary even stating that, for some readers, it was [[EverybodyKnewAlready a "FINALLY" moment]].
* AuthorAvatar: He parrots what Dan says a lot in the commentary and interrupted a Q&A in comic to act as his mouth piece. However, he's not solely existent for that. Dan's actual AuthorAvatar has shown up less since he was created, though.
* DeadpanSnarker: It's probably easier to count the number of conversations where he's NOT snarking at the person he's talking to.
* EntertaininglyWrong: Despite usually being pretty on-the-mark at figuring out people's secrets, he has made a few wrong assumptions.
** He assumed that Elliot was Justin's boyfriend, which led to him acting a lot more surly until he was corrected. According to him, it was because Justin having a boyfriend made him uncomfortable. [[AmbiguouslyGay Up to interpretation.]]
** He figures that since Ellen acts like Elliot but is more confident, is dating the girl that Elliot used to date, and George knows that Elliot can turn into Cheerleadra, then Elliot and Ellen must be the same person. Dan admits in TheRant that this makes way more sense than [[OppositeSexClone what actually happened]].
* {{Fanboy}}: A parody of opinionated geeks as a straight-up {{Expy}} of the Comic Book Guy from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.
* FanonDiscontinuity: Invoked: George feels this way about Franchise/StarWars ep. 1-3.
* FantasticallyIndifferent: He's pretty observant, noticing for example Tedd's hair color change in the middle of the game tournament, but doesn't pass it more than a nonchalant comment.
* GeekPhysiques: Of the obese sort.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's rude and obnoxious, but not actually a bad person, and surprisingly generous with [[JerkassHasAPoint honest advice]]. Sarah sums him up as a "giant rude [[Franchise/StarWars Yoda]]."
* MetaGuy: The reason he was created.
* SecretKeeper: Both for Elliot being Cheerleadra and for some of Tedd's magical shenanigans.
* TheSocialExpert: Despite appearing rather indifferent most of the time, he actually has a good insight into people.
* StealthMentor: Dispenses surprisingly good advice to the kids while feigning indifference, coaches Sarah in the card tournament when everyone else is too preoccupied to notice.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Dex]]
!!Dex

[[quoteright:194:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1407737960_2014_08_11c101_doublesnap.png]]

A regular in the comic shop where George and Justin work, a very hairy and very unkempt guy of less than athletical body shape, though not quite emaciated. He found himself right in the epicenter of the magic mayhem in "New And Old Flames" arc.
----

* AscendedFanboy: A fan of anime, videogames and the like before getting a spell that lets him summon various creatures.
* ChekhovsGunman: He was just a creepy dude who hung around the comic shop where Justin worked. And then [[spoiler:he walked into Greg's dojo]]...
* ItsASmallWorldAfterAll: He and Greg remember seeing each other [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-04-11 at a convention]].
%%* TheKnightsWhoSaySquee
* PowerTattoo: [[spoiler:Though he can't remember how he got this, probably due to not being sober-minded at the time]].
* SummonMagic: [[spoiler:With just his own power, he can do something like Susan's twist of Nanase's fairy doll spell. When empowered by an immortal, his mark is powerful enough to summon fire demons and dragons]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tensaided]]
!!Mr. Tensaided

[[quoteright:152:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1409917930_2014_09_05c120_alphageek.png]]

Susan's, and (during the summer) Elliot's, boss at the video rental store. A huge nerd who has an entire leveling system for his employees, he was unimpressed with Elliot's unfamiliarity with movie references and only hired him because Susan told the half-truth that Elliot knows Cheerleadra. Is bombastic and hammy, and rather obsessed with the things he's a fan of.
----

* {{Fanboy}}: Perhaps even more so than George, in presentation though he's a lot more enthusiastic rather than snarky but angers easy when people don't get references he makes whereas George would just snark them.
* GracefulLoser: He's a {{Munchkin}} [[MinMaxing Min-Maxer]] who is often sure of his strategies (and to his credit, [[InsufferableGenius he's pretty good]]), but he'd be the first to admit defeat when it happens, even by luck.
* IncomingHam: Tends to make an entrance with a loud booming voice or a quote of some sort.
* InformedAbility: He's never actually ''won'' a game on-panel.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold:
** He was more than willing to let Grace borrow his Star Wars [=DVDs=] regardless of winning or losing against Justin (he just made the wager to beat him in a card game). He also invited her to join his roleplay group due to just how into the Magic game she was getting.
** During the card game storyline of "Squirrel Prophet," he taunted Sarah for not considering "a deck to win the game". When Sarah won their match, Tensaided made a loud and dramatic declaration that she is "a true geek", mostly to make sure she wouldn't get picked on by the more abrasive geeks like Larry and Rich.
** And then, after Sarah defeats Larry, he gives him a piece of his mind after hearing him treat Sarah so poorly.
* TheKnightsWhoSaySquee: A big fan of Cheerleadra, [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1439 as evidenced by his :D face]].
* MundaneUtility: He hit upon a way to turn Elliot's ignorance of movies into an asset by turning Susan's education sessions into a web show.
* PunnyName: Tensaided's name is derived from the ten-sided [[DontExplainTheJoke dice used for role playing games]]. It doesn't carry a particular deep meaning other than the fact that he's a nerd.
* ShoutOut: Likes to pepper his speech with movie quotes, like when he quoted ''Film/{{Ghostbusters|1984}}'' to describe Elliot's worthiness for a summer job.
* SitcomArchNemesis: For Justin, who he believes lacks sufficient respect for old-school gamers and gaming. Probably not all the time, but certainly during game nights.
* StoutStrength: Not really apparent in the main story but [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/gam-11 his appearance]] during the non-canon Grace-A-Monsters arc shows that he's got a decent amount of muscle and WordOfGod is that this part of his appearance is canon.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Luke]]
!!Luke

[[quoteright:136:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1411153256_2014_09_19c129_wasntkidding.png]]

A freshman in college and former ''Magickal Gatherings'' nerd with a PowerTattoo that gives him AuraVision. Shows up in "Squirrel Prophet Part 2" to get a look at Justin's aura, and ends up competing in the tournament.
----
* AuraVision: The ability granted by his magic mark. He's not precisely sure what it does, just that it lets him see auras, that people with powers like his have slightly larger auras and that he can apparently -- in usual circumstances, at least -- tell if someone has a mark or not ([[spoiler: he has not learned to recognize the difference between someone who has a mark and someone who ''had'' a mark yet]]). He doesn't really know what it means when he gets blinded from trying to look at [[spoiler:Tedd]].
-->'''Luke:''' Was that even an aura? Was it from that guy? Or that pink haired guy? Or something I can't see? Oh my god we're dealing with magic ''it could totally be something I can't see''.
* BerserkButton: He was originally planning to lose his first game as fast as possible without making it obvious that he wasn't trying to win. [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1876 That went out the window when Rich called his fairy gay]].
* EatingTheEyeCandy: "''[[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2004 Abs...]]''"
* HeroicWannabe: Camdin convinced Luke that they were meant to be superheroes (not hard considering a real superhero had recently surfaced and a bunch of people had woken up with inexplicable magic powers). Luke becomes rapidly disillusioned with that idea when no supervillains or monster attacks showed up for them to stop and he saw some really scary auras. Justin explaining what was really going on plus Camdin starting to act like a {{Jerkass}} were just the final nails in the coffin.
* NotDistractedByTheSexy: He disapproves of Slave Leia in ''Return of the Jedi'', because he finds it pointless and an insult to her character. Grace uses the fact that he didn't drool all over her to prove to Justin that he's gay.
* PlayerArchetypes: In standard ''Magic'' terminology, he's a Spike, the guy who plays to win. He's something of a retired example (so to speak) due to problems with his old comic shop, but even when he's trying to lose, he ends up constructing a powerhouse deck almost by accident that [[CurbStompBattle completely curb-stomps Rich]] when he decides to play for real.
* PowerTattoo: He has one of the random tattoos Pandora's been handing out. His gives him AuraVision.
* StraightGay: Justin wasn't even certain he ''was'' gay until he saw Luke's reaction to his abs.
* SupernaturalSensitivity: He can tell who has magic powers via the aura they give off. Unlike some other magic detectors, they don't have to be actively using magic for Luke to see them and he can use it to see uryuom abilities, however he can't tell what spells they actually have, only vaguely how strong they are.
* WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway: This is how Luke feels about his AuraVision, at least in terms of Camdin's idealized "We're superheroes!" belief. Luke points out that if he really was supposed to be a superhero, his power is basically useless for fighting crime. All he can do is see how hard his ass will get kicked before it actually happens.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sam]]
!!Sam

[[quoteright:151:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1416399598_2014_11_19c162_sosmooth.png]]

One of the regulars at the comic book shop. He's recognizable by his excessive number of pockets and his tiny little beard. Turns out he's actually a transgender man.
----
* AscendedExtra: Not Sam himself, but rather his appearance was originally that of a nameless extra before Dan decided he liked it and made it Sam's. It's to the point that he has his own arc called The Secret of Sam.
* BeardedLady: Grace mistakes him for one in a flashback. When he catches her staring at him, she apologizes and innocently says "It's just I thought only ''boys'' could grow be--" before he shuts her up. It's later revealed to be fake.
* CrazyPrepared: He really likes his pockets. After the reveal that he's trans, it becomes clear that they're at least partly to hide his any feminine figure he might have.
-->'''Tedd:''' What ''do'' you have in those pockets?\\
'''Sam:''' Anything I could possibly need ever.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Apparently figured out that something was different about himself at an early age, but assumed, due to misconceptions and poor information, that he was just a lesbian, which was why he felt so masculine. He only figured the truth out ''after'' he had already come out as a lesbian, and he implies that the experience was rather trying, hence why he doesn't want to come out again. He realizes that his [[spoiler:magic mark]] means that he'll have to do so eventually, but he's still trying to put it off for as long as he can, in part because [[spoiler:he doesn't want to be the first person whose coming out involves magic]].
* GenderBender: [[spoiler:[[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/tsos-28 Has apparently]] gained a magic mark that allows him to alter his physical form and become biologically male]].
* GenderBlenderName: Invoked. He gives Tedd some quick advice on choosing a less masculine name (Tess) on the assumption that he's male-to-female transgender.
* KeepingSecretsSucks: Eventually he's actually glad that Grace ended up learning about him being trans, since he had literally ''no one'' else he could talk to about it.
* PowerTattoo: [[spoiler:[[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/tsos-28 Pandora]] gave him a magic mark that allows him to transform into a body that matches his true self and back as one of her last acts before being reset]].
* StupidSexyFriend: He apparently finds Grace attractive, though he seems to know that she wouldn't reciprocate.
* TransEqualsGay: He knew that he liked girls early on, and due to lack of information and misconceptions about lesbians he had when he was younger, assumed that since [[ButchLesbian he was attracted to girls, it made sense that he was masculine]], only to realize the full story later due to being drawn to male roles in plays and cosplay. Part of why he keeps it secret is to avoid having to go through coming out "again".

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rich]]
!!Rich

[[quoteright:141:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1410956313_2014_09_17c127_littleprogress.png]]

A regular at the comic shop. Close friends with Larry.
----
* AbhorrentAdmirer: Not realizing Tedd was a guy, Rich tried flirting with him, which made Tedd incredibly uncomfortable. Rich did not stop even when Tedd was being obvious about his discomfort.
* CasanovaWannabe: He thinks he's a hotshot, but he's not.
* ConspiracyTheorist: Alien conspiracy to be precise. The irony is that he's close to the truth but misses the point: aliens do exist but the real menace is a magical/mythical one; he suspects Tedd of being an alien but doesn't notice anything about his girlfriend.
* EveryoneHasStandards: He isn't the most pleasant person to be around, but even he is appalled by animal sacrifice, and he goes from determined to prove Ellen is an overconfident GameMaster to rescuing the kidnapped chicken of their roleplaying game.
* FatIdiot: He's fat, and thinks he's smarter than he is.
* HeteronormativeCrusader: Constantly throws out homophobic slurs, and even tells Larry that it would matter to him if he was gay.
-->'''Rich''': What if you hit on me or something?\\
'''Larry''': That's really not something you'd need to worry about.
* {{Jerkass}}: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1081 Right from]] [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1082 his first appearance]].
* KnowNothingKnowItAll: He's a lot dumber than he thinks he is. Aside from his insistence that all the weirdness in Moperville is an alien conspiracy rather than a magical one, he also makes constant assumptions about people that he is convinced are right. Case in point in the "Who is Ellen?" NP storyline where he assumes that Ellen is a fake nerd while Nanase must be a super-nerd RPG expert, when actually Ellen has (second-hand) role-playing experience and Nanase has no idea what's going on.
* StrawMisogynist: Goes on an unseen tangent rant about Susan's feminist views, which are well after her own transition from a StrawFeminist to a more normal one, calling them "man-hating dumbness".
* ThoseTwoGuys: With Larry at first, but rifts have started forming between them during The Squirrel Prophet storyline.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Larry]]
!!Larry

[[quoteright:150:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1407211928_2014_08_05c097_bwuh_1.png]]

A regular at the comic shop. Close friends with Rich.
----
* AbhorrentAdmirer: Albeit not quite as much as Rich, in that at least he was capable of, and did, learn better.
* AmbiguouslyBi: He admits he still thinks Tedd is cute after learning he's a guy... although, it's still [[DudeLooksLikeALady Tedd]]. The ambiguity is dropped, at least to the audience, when he outright says he's bi in a Q&A comic. No word on whether he's realised that in canon yet.
* CasanovaWannabe: Thought he was all that, but other people told him he's not. At least, he's improving, which is more than can be said for his friend Rich.
* EveryoneHasStandards: Even before [[TookALevelInKindness acknowledging his poor behavior and working on fixing it]], he is disturbed by Rich's flagrant homophobic behavior.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Potentially. While he was exactly as rude as Rich in their first appearance together, he's at least shown since that he can be taught. And there's something strangely admirable about the fact that [[spoiler:he wasn't turned off pursuing Tedd romantically when he came to the conclusion he was a gender-switching alien]].
* ThoseTwoGuys: With Rich at first, but rifts have started forming between them during The Squirrel Prophet storyline.
* TookALevelInKindness: During the card game tournament, he takes all the pointers on his bad behavior to heart and not only apologizes directly to Sarah and Tedd for it, but promises to work on bettering himself so he doesn't do stuff like that again.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kitty]]
!!Kitty

[[quoteright:155:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1485483418_np20170125_escape_61.png]]

A girl with a fixation on cat girls.
----
* BlatantLies: She vehemently denies having any interest in cat girls beyond a purely aesthetic one. That's even after discussing her totally-platonic interests gets her visibly hot around the collar.
* MeaningfulName: Her affinity for cat girl spells might be name-based, which is why Pandora missed her (though Pandora admits that she could have developed an affinity for cat girl spells as a result of her name rather than an inherent affinity and marks her).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Felix]]
!!Felix

[[quoteright:133:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1488213216_np20170227_escape_75.png]]

Kitty's goth friend.
----
* CatGirl: Kitty's first use of her new spell transforms them, and they like it.
* {{Fetish}}: They want to be Kitty's pet cat girl. Even though Pandora notes that they have gender dysphoria, the specifications of their fantasy clearly goes a lot deeper than that.
* PowerTattoo: Pandora is implied to have given them a magic mark, though we don't yet know what ability it grants.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Blaike]]
!!Blaike Raven

[[quoteright:150:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1468111630_20160708_s3_003_f.png]]

A wandering adventurer, Pandora's mortal lover, and the father of Adrian Raven.
----
* ItsTheJourneyThatCounts: A firm believer of this, he rejected Pandora's offer to help because that would ruin his quest for him. This is what led to Pandora following him around and sparking an interest in him.
* MayflyDecemberRomance: He was in one with the immortal Pandora, which led to the birth of their son Adrian Raven.
* MoralityChainBeyondTheGrave: After Adrian does some CallingTheOldManOut with his mother, Pandora is forced to reassess her actions. Being TheFairFolk, immortals have trouble grasping human morality already, and having lived longer than two centuries, Pandora finds it even more difficult and starts basing her morality on what she thinks Blaike would have wanted.
* TheLostLenore: He was married to Pandora. While the problem of a MayflyDecemberRomance troubled her, she felt it wouldn't be a real problem since she would be at about the right age to reset when he succumbed to old age, at which point she could continue to be part of her son's family. But Blaike ultimately died young, trying and failing to save a group of travelers from a monster. As a result, Pandora did not reset, and now suffers from WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity.
* ManlyFacialHair: He's a fearless adventurer who willingly marched blind into the unknown, and he's shown wearing a full beard.
* PlotTriggeringDeath: ''Everything'' to do with Pandora and her son Adrian extends from his tragic death.
* PosthumousCharacter: Killed by a rampaging monster, he's long dead centuries before the events of the comic take place.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: Only in three strips of the entire comic, but he's the reason Pandora went past the DespairEventHorizon.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Camdin]]
!!Camdin

[[quoteright:190:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1545625155_1816_tsos_19_christmas.png]]

One of Luke's friends, who was also marked by Pandora. First appears in "The Secret of Sam".
----
* BaitAndSwitch: [[spoiler:Camdin is set up to be the "Smoke" character that appears in The Secret of Sam. Then the camera cuts to him on the other side of town eating a sandwich.]]
* ChewingTheScenery: His body language is extremely exaggerated. He practically moves in rubber hose animation.
* DirtyCoward: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-043 Based on his apology]] and the conversation, it's likely Camdin was mostly in a blind panic when he ran. It's clear he isn't happy with his reaction, but the situation was clearly caused by his naivety and overeagerness. What isn't known is whether Camdin was running or using smoke powers and whether or not he could knock someone down in smoke form (and his powers can't presumably be used to turn other people into smoke or drag them to safety anyways so he was powerless to help Luke regardless). He clearly didn't mean to knock Luke down, but he did abandon him. [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-065 Then we finally see what happened.]]
* EarlyBirdCameo: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2014-03-31 Camdin's mark]] appeared in the comic almost five years before he did.
* HeroicWannabe: When he and a few other people gained magic powers shortly after Cheerleadra appeared in Moperville, Camdin was convinced they'd been chosen by a higher power to be {{superhero}}es. He doesn't like the idea that they were basically picked at random.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Based on the look on his face, he's really not happy he knocked Luke down and "left him to die".
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: When talking to Luke about their close encounter, he barely moves as fluidly as normal and stands stiff with shock after Luke verbally beats him down.
* PermaStubble: He has a blot of SolidCartoonFacialStubble at all times.
* PersonalityPowers: He moves like fluid and turns into smoke.
* SmugSnake: All in all, Camdin is [[HeroicWannabe nowhere near as "heroic" or logical as he thinks he is]]. He dismisses Justin as an information source almost ''immediately'' on the grounds that only [[KnowNothingKnowItAll "clueless people"]] would just call the magical beings that [[SuperEmpowering were giving people powers]] "Immortals." One [[DramaticIrony wonders]] how his superhero narrative would have held up to the revelation that the "proper name" he was looking for was ''[[TheFairFolk fairies]].'' He also points out to Luke in the ''most'' condescending way possible that in a world with countless flavors of shapeshifting magic, [[JerkassHasAPoint Luke can't guarantee]] that Grace ''isn’t'' Cheerleadra, despite looking and acting nothing like her. Camdin's attempts at leadership culminate in him [[spoiler: completely ignoring [[SensorCharacter Luke's]] warnings to approach two girls ''in a deserted parking lot after midnight'' looking for answers, only to [[DirtyCoward cut and run]] as soon as said girls displayed their powers in self-defense, leaving Luke behind.]] Unsurprisingly, Luke [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere is not at all interested]] in listening to him after that fiasco.
* SuperSmoke: Thanks to his magic mark, he's able to transform into a smoke-like form.
* VerbalTic: He exclusively calls women "chicks". [[spoiler:This is the first sign that "Smoke" wasn't him.]]
[[/folder]]

----

to:

->[[center: [[Characters/ElGoonishShive Main Character Sheet]] | [[Characters/ElGoonishShiveMainCharacters Main Protagonists]] | Humans | [[Characters/ElGoonishShiveVillains Main Villains]] | [[Characters/ElGoonishShiveNonHumans Non-Humans]] | [[Characters/ElGoonishShiveFourthWallMailSlot Fourth Wall Mail Slot]]]]

[[foldercontrol]]

!!The Feds

[[folder:Mr. Verres]]
%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1358340762095640100
%% Do not replace with the former image; it's already in use on MrExposition.
%%
!! Edward Verres

[[quoteright:195:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/78da36831ce0117fcf9655939a5a0244.png]]

Tedd's father and a significant figure in the paranormal community. He works for a government organization tasked with dealing with the supernatural and extraterrestrial and does a pretty good job at it. He acts as a mentor figure to the kids and trusts them to keep a tight lid on the fantastic stuff that goes on. Has been known to spout expository dialog ad nauseum.
----

* AttractiveBentGender: One of the sketchbook drawings show us that he's a [[https://www.egscomics.com/sketchbook/2018-023 complete knockout as a woman]].
* BadassBookworm: How? He apparently stops a horde of aliens from invading and rampaging...through the power of exposition.
* BadassLongcoat: Whenever circumstances require him to take the field.
* BadLiar: As Elliot notes at one point early on, despite it being his job to cover stuff up, he doesn't seem to be very good at lying beyond that, like when he tells Grace that nothing is wrong... right before telling her to stay away from the windows...
* BarrierWarrior: Claims that he has a [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-122 barrier spell]] for defense.
* BigGood: The closest the comic has, anyway. {{Lampshaded}} when he was explicitly compared to [[Literature/HarryPotter Dumbledore]] and [[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings Gandalf]].
* BigNo: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2006-02-13 He agrees to buy pizza for eight teenagers without thinking]].
* ClosetGeek: If he's not into geeky things, he's at least extremely familiar with them in his role as the man behind covering up real-life SF & fantasy shenanigans. For example, when Grace wanted to wear some alien spandex for a workout.
--> '''Mr. Verres:''' Okay, ''fine''. But if anyone asks, you're {{cosplay}}ing as an [[OriginalCharacter oc]] from your [[Creator/DCComics dc]] superheroes [[FanFic ff]].\\
'''Grace:''' I'm ''what''?
** He's been stated to be familiar with the term "Delayed Blast Fireball"
* CrazyPrepared: Mostly when the RuleOfFunny requires it.
* DeathGlare: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=563 Gives one at the end of Painted Black]], though his expression quickly softens.
** He also gives one [[spoiler: to Abraham [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2009-11-03 after attacking him for fighting with Nanase]]]]
* TheDreaded: With very good reason. [[http://egscomics.com/comic/qa8-07 Even Voltaire didn't dare attack Tedd directly in order to avoid his wrath.]]
--> '''Voltaire:''' One does not provoke the wrath of Edward Verres lightly, not to mention his monster hunter ex-wife.
* EyesOutOfSight: Like Tedd, Mr. Verres has OpaqueLenses which hide his eyes. [[spoiler: His eyes were [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-150 finally revealed]] after his glasses were knocked off in battle, showing he has heterochromia. Only took ~20 years]].
* TheIllegible: His handwriting it so bad it is called "[[InkBlotTest Ink Blot]] Handwriting" in a title. The kids he is with all come to diffetent interpretations of what his letter to Tedd actually said. Justin thought it wasn't handwriting at all.
-->'''Justin:''' Maybe, it's a map?
* InnocentlyInsensitive: His son is genderfluid, but Mr. Verres is convinced that Tedd's frequent genderbending can't be good for him. This has not helped Tedd in being comfortable with his gender identity.
* InterspeciesRomance: As of more recently, [[spoiler:with his Uryuom assistant Lavender]].
* KickedUpstairs: As a result of his actions in Sister II. Apparently, no one wants him fired. Even the guy kicking him upstairs would raise hell if he was axed. (Given some of the feats he has accomplished, it's pretty clear why.) For related reasons he still has genuine responsibility for a decent chunk of his old job (the parts that involve speaking with paranormal entities) -- it just supposedly is a higher-ranking position now.
* LockedOutOfTheLoop: Even he [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/party-266 didn't know]][[spoiler:about his wife's facial scars]] and estimates that the only time she could have gotten such an injury was ''20 years'' ago.
* MartialPacifist: Edward manages to deescalate a situation where one non-human being almost attacks another non-human being out of reactive fear by ''taking control of the attacker's spell'', dispelling it, and explaining that the cause of the fear is not a threat, just like himself, ''unless he has to be''.
* TheMenInBlack: He's good at cover-ups and got a reputation as more cooperative than others ([[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-07-26 like his successor]]), though the excess of personal involvement eventually led to being KickedUpstairs out of this position.
* MrExposition: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-11-26 "I am an]] '''[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-11-26 endless barrel]]''' [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-11-26 of exposition!"]] (and the current page image!)
* OpaqueLenses: His eyes have been hidden behind these for ''decades'' of real-life time, until they got knocked off in a scuffle in one 2022 comic.
* PapaWolf: Not just to Tedd, but an Uncle Wolf to Nanase as well.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Trusts the kids with the secrets of what's going on around the town and acts in their best interests behind the scenes.
* SayingTooMuch: Surprisingly, in the "allowed" circle "an endless barrel of exposition" is prone to [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2002-05-27 spilling]] more than is really needed. In the commentary for that comic, the author theorizes [[note]]although whether it really counts as theorizing given that he is the author is up for debate [[/note]] that Mr. Verres spends so much time lying and keeping secrets that he cannot help but spill information when he doesn't need to keep secrets.
* ShockAndAwe: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-122 Claims to have]] '''several''' "flavors" of lightning spells. Not counting [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2009-11-03 spells in wands]]
* RefugeInAudacity: Some of his cover-up plans seem to run off of this, especially when it comes to the Uryuom.
* WantedAGenderConformingChild: While Tedd's experiments, in general, don't faze him much anymore, he finds it unsettling that Tedd actually spends quite a bit of time in female forms. Or it might have something to do with [[NakedApron what Tedd wears when in female form.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Wolf and Cranium]]
!! Agents Wolf and Cranium

[[quoteright:155:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080901_rszd.png]]

Federal agents who work for Mr. Verres. Both are powerful wizards in their own right.
----
* AgentMulder: Wolf. He tends to be the more conspiratorial of the pair, and continually pesters [[HughMann Lavender]] with the "[[TheCuckoolanderWasRight wacky theory]]" that she's an alien. Given that Mr. Verres says that Uryuoms are an even better kept secret than magic, he likely doesn't have the clearance to know about them.
* AgentScully: Downplayed with Cranium, given the context. She's more focused and analytical than Wolf and is willing to suggest mundane possibilities, but she is still a wizard who works for the magic police.
* AgentsDating: And they are really bad at concealing this.
* BlessedWithSuck: [[spoiler:Her ability to observe places remotely is implied to be the example Pandora gave of someone with Sarah's power being strong-armed into government service]].
* CaptainErsatz: Of Mulder and Scully from the X-files.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Though we have yet to see them truly in action, Raven offhandedly describes Wolf as one of the most powerful wizards in the mid-western United States, and the security scan reveals he's surprisingly buff under his BadassLongcoat. Meanwhile, Cranium apparently has a clairvoyance spell similar to what [[spoiler:Sarah]] can cast. [[spoiler:Pandora]] made it clear when explaining that power just how strong and rare it was.
%%* LongLostRelative: [[spoiler:Given how genetic affinities work, and Pandora's implying that she's the one with the same spell as Sarah that was forced into government work, Cranium and Sarah might be related.]]
* TheMenInBlack: Their job.
* MeaningfulName: Emphasizing their parallels to ''Fox'' Mulder and Dana ''Scull''y.
* PowerPerversionPotential: Cranium has the ability to observe rooms without being in them. [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1695 Cue obligatory locker room peeping.]]
* WillTheyOrWontThey: Averted. In the words of the author, [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-10-26 "they have, they will again]], and [[EveryoneCanSeeIt they utterly fail at hiding it"]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Arthur]]
!! Arthur J. Arthur

[[quoteright:198:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1635907839_bal_2111_01_078_announce.png]]

->''"I do not waste time."''\\
\\

Mr. Verres' successor (and predecessor) as head of the office of Paranormal Affairs. [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-07-26 Reputed]] to [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-05-09 care more about keeping secrets than helping people]]. [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-11-18 Mr. Raven is on non-speaking terms with him]].
----

* ConnectedAllAlong: Long after [[spoiler: Jay is introduced, it is revealed that Arthur is Jay's grandfather]].
* CreatingLifeIsUnforeseen: [[spoiler: Kevin being sentient was not what he had intended]].
* DoNotTauntCthulhu: [[spoiler: While he wants a situation where magic will change how it works, he realizes that trying to force the hand of a SentientCosmicForce is like messing with a god, and is very careful not to try and push things too much in that regard, explaining that to his assistant when she questions why they aren't doing more to cause a change]].
* IAmAMonster: He believes in TheNeedsOfTheMany and has self-described himself as a monster in the service of the greater good. Some people, including Mr. Verres, do not entirely trust him because of this, though Tedd believes that none of this is relevant today.
* {{Masquerade}}: Though he stuns Mr. Verres when his first act is to reveal the Masquerade, not reinforce it, implying that he [[BatmanGambit may be playing a deeper game]]. [[spoiler:His goal is to get Magic itself to "knock over the board" and change the rules of magic.]]
* OnlyOneName: The J? It stands for ''Just''. As in "Arthur, Just Arthur."
* PatrioticFervor: He has a strong belief in the "[[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-084 ideal America]]", particularly the ideas of freedom and acceptance. That belief lets him accept Tedd's gender fluidity without question, even though he doesn't understand it. TheRant clarifies that Arthur doesn't necessarily love the USA unconditionally, but he firmly stands for what it ''should'' be.
* TheQuietOne: As his quote indicates, he gets right to the point.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Despite his initial portrayal as a callous individual, he has his moments.
** [[spoiler: Upon learning new information regarding Seers and how the mechanics of a system change for magic works, he quickly realized there's ''no'' hope of keeping magic a secret. He promptly changed his position during the consultation with the Will of Magic from a severe system change to minimal changes. He also offered Tedd funding and proper research facilities upon learning Tedd wants to find a way to increase everyone's magic resistance]].
** [[spoiler: He apologizes to Ellen, Elliot, and Ashley for magically putting them to sleep after realizing that it was Magus and Sirlek who were responsible for the mess at the facility, makes it clear that they aren't in trouble, and lets Ellen call Nanase to keep her from panicking]].
** [[spoiler: He also feels responsible for the sentient wand he created by accident, and lets him stay with Ashley]].
* {{Seers}}: [[spoiler: Is a Seer, like Tedd]].
* RepetitiveName: Arthur Arthur.
* WhamLine:
** [[spoiler: "The occasional casualty will not disrupt our long term objectives"]].
** [[spoiler: Concerning public knowledge of magic "...the next incident could be the last straw, and that would solve the problem for decades."]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sybil]]
!!Sybil

[[quoteright:216:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1506350263_20170920s3_181.png]]

Arthur's loyal assistant.
----
* NotSoStoic: One of the only times Sybil shows any emotion is when [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2018-04-13 she thinks Arthur was dying.]]
* OpaqueLenses: They help maintain her limited emotional range.
* SatelliteCharacter: She's only ever seen around Arthur.
* TheStoic: Almost always has no emotional reaction to anything.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Leifeld]]
!! Assistant Director Leifeld

[[quoteright:261:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100119_w9pa.png]]

->''"You have too many important friends who would raise hell, myself included."''\\
\\

Edward Verres' superior.
----
* LargeAndInCharge: A massively muscled man who regularly hits the gym and the superior to the head of the office of Paranormal Affairs.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Recognizes that Mr. Verres is too important to fire and that even he would raise hell if it were to happen. However, he [[KickedUpstairs promotes him to a non-existent position]] to keep him out of the field after he loses control due to a personal connection to the series of events. [[spoiler:A few months later it's revealed that he's been in on Arthur's plan to get Magic to knock the board over, but he was also assured by Arthur that it would solve the problems. Despite that, he's began to doubt the plan.]]
* NamedAfterSomeoneFamous: Was named after comic book writer Creator/RobLiefeld who's known for drawing people with his exact build.
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: The author commentary from his first appearance spells his name as Liefeld, but Arthur calls him Leifeld on-panel.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Knight]]
!! Agent Knight

[[quoteright:268:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1618180985_bal_2104_12_006_wayacd.png]]

-> '''''"WE'VE. BEEN. RECKLESS."'''''\\
\\

An agent assigned to keep magic under wraps and under control, injured by his own magic going out of control after the Will of Magic changed the rules of magic.
----
* AnimalMotifs: Wolves. Dan only called him Agent Knight because [[OneSteveLimit Agent Wolf was taken.]]
* ChessMotifs: To the knight piece, obviously, as according to the author, the knight piece "suggested ideals of nobility". Also, Knights move straight on a chess board and slightly bend (as in, bend the rules here, but stays mostly straight laced).
* GoodCopBadCop: The Good Cop to Bishop's Bad Cop. He's glad that the vandal he was chasing was uninjured, and thinks that they need more caution to prevent accidentally harming or killing people just because they were too confident in their magic.
--> "He deserved a smack upside the head and a talking to, not... not what I almost did."
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: After being injured by his own magic, he's glad that ''he's'' the one who got injured, rather than the magical vandal he was pursuing.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Bishop]]
!! Agent Bishop

[[quoteright:153:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1622606227_bal_2106_02_025_jftitleb.png]]

->''[[NightmareFace "We are the good guys."]]''\\
\\

Agent Knight's partner, who believes in TheNeedsOfTheMany.
----
* AnimalMotifs: [[SnakesAreSinister Snakes.]]
* BlackAndWhiteInsanity: Sees harming or killing people who abuse their access to magic as a heroic act, believes that anyone who abuses their magic is a complete monster, and sees no issue with the "chicken enchanter" potentially being injured by Knight's magic going haywire instead of Knight himself. She also snuck a warning card onto his dresser in his room ''while he was sleeping in said room'' after the incident.
* ChessMotifs: To the bishop piece, obviously. Unlike the straightforward nobility of the knight piece, the bishop piece travels diagonally across the chessboard, which, according to the author, "can be interpreted in all sorts of interesting ways".
* GoodCopBadCop: The Bad Cop to Knight's Good Cop. She believes that [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans harming others is justified if it means that they keep magic out of the lives of civilians]].
* TheNeedsOfTheMany: Is shown to believe in this.
* NightmareFace: Pulls off a [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-026 particularly frightening one]] while trying to reassure Knight that everything they do is for [[TheNeedsOfTheMany the greater good]].
* SlasherSmile: Her flavor of NightmareFace, with a side of ScaryFlashlightFace.
* TallDarkAndSnarky: She fits the bill, given her LadyOfBlackMagic appearance and snark towards those she dislikes, as well as WordOfGod confirming that she's 6'5", and thereby one of the tallest characters in the comic.
* YoureNotMyFather: Her attitude towards Mr. Verres after he took over for Arthur, as seen in this [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-106 dramatized flashback]]. It seems like Arthur had been something of a ParentalSubstitute to Bishop, and she didn't accept Edward taking over in his role.
[[/folder]]

!!Family

!!!Elliot and Ellen's Family
[[folder:The Dunkels]]
!!Mr. and Mrs. Dunkel

[[quoteright:158:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100312_9qmy.png]]

Elliot and Ellen's seemingly oblivious, [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-06 unflappable]], and [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-10 ridiculously]] permissive parents.
----

* AbsurdlyYouthfulMother: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-14 Implied]] by Elliot's mother responding to Ellen's arrival with thinking that she had always wanted a daughter and then that this time she won't have to drop out of anything, and then [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2013-02-25 confirmed]] when Sarah realizes that she would have had to have been 21 or younger when she gave birth to Elliot.
* {{Cloud Cuckoolander}}s: How else can you interpret their non-reactions to all the wackiness in their lives combined with their unexpected seriousness about things like going to the store for furniture?
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Basically their defining trait. Or, as the commentary puts it...
--> A good rule of thumb for writing Elliot and Ellen's parents is to go not serious enough, and/or too serious. \\
And yes, I do mean "and/or". They can easily be too serious about the wrong thing while also being not serious enough about another thing.
* CrazyPrepared: A pre-mission briefing -- complete with poster-sized charts -- for a ''trip to the store.'' An ersatz Ikea, but still.
* FantasticallyIndifferent: Capable of taking some very far out things in stride. [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-10 For example, their son breaking into a government facility and creating a female duplicate in the process]].
* HaHaHaNo: When Elliot asks if he can have a girl over while the elder Dunkels are out, Mr. Dunkel's first reaction is to laugh in his son's face that [[NiceGuy he]] would even ''think'' of doing anything objectionable on a second date. His second: [[NightmareFace SERIOUSLY DO YOU HAVE PROTECTION]].
* HiddenDepths: [[http://www.egscomics.com/comic/sister3-303 They know how to organize a search party including incorporating aerial assets]]. The comic {{Lampshades}} the fact that this would not normally be expected knowledge for an Accountant (Possibly?) and a stay-at-home Mum.
* MundaneMadeAwesome: Mr. Dunkel's overblown "assault plan" for ''furniture shopping.''
* MundaneUtility: Mrs. Dunkel cheerfully (and off-handedly) suggests that Elliot could use his GenderBender powers as a form of birth control.
--> '''Mrs. Dunkel:''' If you are going to do anything, however, maybe keep it between girls? Safety first!
* OneHourWorkWeek: Mr. Dunkel is not shown working, ever. Even Ellen and Elliot aren't sure what exactly their father's job is.
* OpenMindedParent: They're ridiculously lax and accepting of all the things their kids gets involved in, which is {{Lampshaded}} repeatedly.
-->'''Elliot:''' Your daughter is a cat. You could at least ''pretend'' this is odd.\\
''[later]''\\
'''Mr. Dunkel:''' [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-12-10 If you're going to be out late fighting evil, you need to call home first!]]\\
'''Ms. Dunkel:''' [[ItMakesSenseInContext That's right. It affects our ability to plan supper and alibis]].
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Brownies.
** [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1177 The author feels the need]] to specify that these contain no... questionable ingredients.
[[/folder]]

!!!Tedd's Family
[[folder:Edward]]
''See Mr. Verres above.''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Noriko]]
!!Noriko Verres

Tedd's estranged mother, a monster hunter with a long family history of powerful magic users. Upset by Tedd's apparent lack of magical ability, Noriko left when Tedd was little. Last known to be somewhere in Europe, pursuing a career in magic, or possibly a travel agent.
----

* BlackSheep: Her sister (Nanase's mother) has never forgiven her for walking out on Tedd and Edward.
* TheFaceless: Her face has yet to be revealed in the comic but it could be assumed to be similar to Nanase's given the apparently StrongFamilyResemblance.
** [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/party-244 Turns out]] there was a reason we never saw her face...
* FunctionalMagic: Has a reputation as a powerhouse magic user.
* JerkassHasAPoint: While it doesn't at all excuse her abandoning Tedd, [[spoiler: TheReveal of her [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/party-244 true face]] suggests that she had better reasons to be afraid for him than we'd thought.]]
* MissingMom: Bailed when Tedd was young. Tedd blames himself. We later learn that Adrian Raven sees himself as the real reason. [[spoiler: Turns out she may have learned her lesson, as she has been raising a son she had with another man after leaving the Verres household. Though considering Van was able to use magic young whilst Tedd could (apparently) not may have played a role.]]
* ShroudedInMyth: What we know of her is that she's a "A badass monster hunter" and a total powerhouse. Even Nanase didn't know this about her.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: According to [[spoiler:Not Tengu]], Noriko and Nanase very strongly resemble each other. Tedd also resembles her. [[spoiler:When we finally see her face, she does, in fact, resemble Nanase. Apart from the horrible facial scars.]]
* TwoFaced: Tedd theorizes that the transformation mirror in the basement was so Noriko could put on daily cosmetics without hassle. [[spoiler:It reveals that her true form has massive scarring on the left side of her head and face; her 'daily cosmetics' were to hide this. And not even her husband knew this.]]
* WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent: It's presumed that one of the reasons she abandoned Tedd is because he seemingly failed to inherit his parents' magical talent.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Van]]
!!Van

[[quoteright:223:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1617759641_20180228_s3_247_dhlkf_fix.png]]

A young British seer.
----
* ClingyChild: He spends the [[spoiler:meeting with Magic]] clinging to Tedd's legs because he's scared of Arthur.
* LongLostRelative: [[spoiler:Tedd's younger half-sibling. They actually met when summoned by Magic to decide if things should change or not, but Magic decides that, while Tedd shouldn't know of their relationship yet, Van should.]]
* MyDadCanBeatUpYourDad: The first thing he says after waking up [[spoiler:in the council with the Will of Magic]] is that his mum is a monster hunter and will cut you up if anyone hurts him.
[[/folder]]

!!!Sarah's Family
[[folder:Carol]]
!!Carol Brown

[[quoteright:166:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1426912667_np_150318_11b_testing.png]]

->''"[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-01-20 Ed, I grew up in Moperville. Weird stuff happens here]]."''\\
\\

Sarah's older sister. A pretty, determined, and gung-ho television reporter who covers the Moperville area. Apparently immune to the WeirdnessCensor that prevents other people from crediting the weird stuff that goes on in her home town.
----

* AloofBigBrother: It was years before she was [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=274 shown interacting with Sarah]] and ''didn't even recognize her little sister's best friend'' when she interviewed Susan.
* IntrepidReporter: How else do you describe a reporter who arrives on the scene via ''airdrop''?
* LegFocus: She exploits this trope by [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-01-22 wearing short skirts that show her legs to boost ratings]].
* SheIsAllGrownUp: The [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-11-05 in-universe reason]] that Elliot didn't recognize her.
* SiblingRivalry: Note Sarah's reaction when Elliot makes the above assertion.
[[/folder]]

!!!Grace's Family
[[folder:Dr. Sciuridae]]
!!Dr. Sciuridae

[[quoteright:118:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20050511_zhhq.gif]]

Grace's "grandfather" who substituted his own dead daughter's DNA (the original Grace) for the intended genetic sample when Project Lycanthrope created their fourth assassin "Shade Tail."
----
* DeadpanSnarker: Even in the most precarious of situations:
--> '''Dr. Sciuridae''': [We] were assigned to work on a project to create deadly super assassins.
--> '''Grace''': What kind of company would assign ''that''?!
--> '''Dr. Sciuridae''': [[CaptainObvious A shady one.]]
--> '''Grace''': Ah.
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: He knew his bosses' ideas were ''[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2004-02-20 completely nuts]]'', was fully aware of the dubious morality of his job, and [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2004-03-12 hated the company]], but...
* MotherlyScientist: Grew very attached to Grace, [[spoiler:because Grace is his genetic granddaughter]].
* TheStoolPigeon: [[spoiler:He was the snitch who gave out the Project Lycanthrope to Mr. Verres]] after he grew attached to Grace.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Grace's Siblings]]
''See Guineas, Hedge, and Vladia on Characters/ElGoonishShiveVillains.''
[[/folder]]

!!!Nanase's family
[[folder:Mrs. Kitsune]]
!! Mrs. Kitsune

[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20091201_dyhc.png]]

Nanase's overbearing and traditional Japanese mother. Initially a complete tyrant in her home, her later appearances made her somewhat more reasonable in the aftermath of Nanase's near death experience. Has a very strong opinions on duty to family in general and motherhood in particular. She apparently knows more than she lets on.
----

* BerserkButton (via the FourthWallMailSlot): Mentioning Tedd's mother triggers a vehement [[IHaveNoSon I Have No Sister]] reaction. It's stated she sided with Edward in her sister's divorce, essentially choosing her brother-in-law and nephew over her own sister.
* BrilliantButLazy: Has strong magical potential, like her sister and daughter, but apparently never really tried to reach her full potential in that field, perhaps related to her feelings about her sister.
* DelayedReaction: Upon finding out that Tedd has a girlfriend.
* EducationMama: She constantly hounds Nanase about her education ''in spite of'' wanting her to be a housewife.
* EveryoneHasStandards: She may have her bigotry issues and can be controlling, but she despises her sister Noriko (Tedd's mother) for abandoning her family.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: It can be pretty harsh to watch her excitedly freak out over Tedd and Grace's relationship but not even acknowledge Nanase and Ellen's as real.
* MyBelovedSmother:
** Downplayed. She constantly nags Nanase about her education, but is at worst mildly disapproving of Nanase's clothing choices.
** Perhaps as a reaction to her sister's [[MissingMom abandonment of Tedd]], she's shown to be comically emotionally overprotective of Tedd as well, commanding Nanase to help him out as much as possible (even though, as Nanase points out, Tedd doesn't really need it).
* NobleBigot: She may not acknowledge Nanase and Ellen's relationship, but she does care about her and her happiness.
* SecretSecretKeeper: Apparently knows not only that Nanase has Magic, but knows enough about Magic that she was consulted first when Nanase burned out, demanding that the Agents keep Nanase in the dark about the fact that she knows. Agent Cranium complies, though feels guilty for forcing Nanase to keep "Lying" and states as much to her Mother. Given the power levels of her Sister and Ex-Brother-In-Law (Whom she apparently maintains polite contact with) and her own untapped potential, this makes sense. Nanase has later started to suspect that she knows, but is unsure of how to get her to admit it to her.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mr. Kitsune]]
!! Mr. Kitsune

Background character. All we know about him is Nanase's belief that her father won't back her against her mother.
----
* DotingParent: [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=548 When he finally gets speaking lines]], he's promising Akiko three cookies when they get home, in spite of her protests that she only wants one. [[ParentalFavoritism He's yet to show this behavior towards Nanase]].
* HenpeckedHusband: Always in the background, rarely speaks, his wife is more important as a character and he never stands against his wife to defend his elder daughter. His only important trait is being the father of one of the most powerful characters in-universe.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Akiko]]
!!Akiko Kitsune

[[quoteright:198:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1481093906_np20161207_escape_40.png]]

Nanase's little sister. Brave enough to defy their mother (albeit in secret) by sneaking Nanase cookies, but a cypher otherwise. Rarely speaks.
----

* BoysHaveCooties: "''Real'' boys are [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2012-02-17 weird and gross.]]" Nevertheless, she does seem to (at least subconsciously) [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2012-02-29 appreciate the attractiveness]] of certain ''fictional'' boys...
* CheerfulChild: She's sweet, upbeat and well-behaved. In fact, she's ''so'' well-behaved that [[http://egscomics.com/egsnp/2016-12-07 she refuses more than one cookie because "cookies are a sometimes food."]]
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Though, as Ellen and Nanase are reminded, this does not mean that they're ''stupid.'' Akiko actually has a pretty sharp mind and is good at telling when someone's not being honest with her... but she doesn't quite have the capacity to grasp the complexities of sexuality, bigotry, and prejudices.
* {{Fangirl}}: She is [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2012-02-13 like this]]. Rapunzel, her own sister, and whatnot.
* HeroWorshipper: Towards her sister. Enough to disobey her mother by giving her cookies after Nanase was grounded.
[[/folder]]

!!!Justin's Family
[[folder:Jim]]
!!Jim Tolkiberry

[[quoteright:168:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jim_tolkiberry.png]]

Justin's uncle and the owner of the comic shop.
----
* AffectionateGestureToTheHead: Seen [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2012-05-29 here]] in a {{Flashback}} tussling Justin's hair back when he was still miserable after being outed.
* BenevolentBoss: He's a very laid-back guy and on good relationships with Justin and George. Plus, he outright gives the job to Grace just off of Justin's voucher, only asking her if she's sure she can live-up to Justin's insane work ethic.
* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: After appearing in the storyline where Grace gets hired, he disappeared from the comic. Presumably he exists somewhere off-panel, just like the many other unseen comic shop employees.
* InstantlyProvenWrong: George asks him if he warned Grace about how the attention she's going to get from male customers, which Jim fires back that he wouldn't insult a young woman's intelligence. It then cuts to Grace surrounded by boys, oblivious to all of them hitting on her. Jim then backtracks and adds that she'll get used to it.
* ManlyFacialHair: He has a notably epic mustache. When Grace first meets him, she blurts out "mustache" before correcting herself. He laughs it off and says his facial hair is [[LampshadeHanging quite the conversation piece]].
[[/folder]]

!!!Susan's Family
[[folder:Mrs. Pompoms]]
!! Mrs. Pompoms

[[quoteright:103:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100519_d60y.png]]

Susan's embittered mother. Appears to have lost all faith in men (and perhaps humanity in general) after her husband's betrayal. Embarrassingly over-aggressive when it comes to "protecting" Susan's interests.
----

* FreudianExcuse: Her husband cheated on her with another woman.
* LadyDrunk: First seen with a glass in hand and has a very misanthropic attitude.
* MyBelovedSmother: Bullied the school into allowing Susan to go on the field trip to France, much to Susan's embarrassment.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: A more minor example. She meant well but genuinely thought that telling her young daughter that Daddy cheated on Mommy because he's a man and men can't help that sort of thing was ''helpful'' since it kept Susan from thinking that Daddy did it because he didn't love her or Mommy.
* StrawFeminist: To the point where she openly wishes Susan were a lesbian because it would allow her to totally exclude men from her life.
[[/folder]]

!!!Diane's Family
[[folder:Rhea]]
!!Rhea

[[quoteright:136:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20130509_k8sh_1.png]]

Diane's older adoptive sister, as well as Charlotte's roommate.
----
* HappilyAdopted: Despite teasing Diane quite a bit, it's clear that Rhea cares for her as a sister.
* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: "Hard drinking" is maybe a bit of a stretch, but she gets pretty sloshed at her New Year's Eve party from a few too many drinking games.
[[/folder]]

!!Teachers & Mentors

[[folder:Principal Verrückt]]
!!Principal Verrückt

[[quoteright:166:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100114_hmaf.png]]

The strict and somewhat bumbling principal of Moperville North.
----
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: He first appeared in a ''very'' early strip for a CutawayGag where the principal was Hitler, complete with GratuitousGerman. He ditched the hairpiece in his next appearance and was a completely different character from then on, personality and appearance-wise.
* CutenessProximity:
** Ellen gets him to agree to go along with her cover story about being Elliot's cousin with a dose of the PuppyDogEyes.
** He lets Sarah slightly break the school's DressCode, because her beret is adorable. Much to Susan's annoyance.
* DodgyToupee: He originally wore one before Ellen pointed out it made him look like Adolf Hitler.
* InsistentTerminology: He only refers to Susan as [[EmbarrassingFirstName Tiffany]] or [[EmbarrassingLastName Ms. Pompoms]], since he [[InsaneTrollLogic refuses to use her "street name"]].
* MeaningfulName: German for "crazy".
* SternTeacher: He tries to be a "tough but fair" kind of principal, although his inability to understand kids makes him come off as just stern.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Greg]]
!! Sensei Greg

[[quoteright:163:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20110613_tv57.png]]

Master and founder of the now-closed School of Anime-Style Martial Arts, which he founded after a marathon anime viewing session, Greg is heavily versed in {{otaku}} culture and applies it in his fighting style.
----

* AscendedFanboy: Comic book & anime geek who learned how to unlock "ki" (MagicByAnyOtherName) after watching 168 hours of anime straight. Much of his instructor "wisdom" comes from comic books.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: He's a nice guy and a goofball, but he'll still threaten to punch you ''through'' your face if you do anything evil.
* BlackAndNerdy: Breaks the trope somewhat by being a seven-foot-tall martial artist.
* {{Cosplay}}: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-05-27 In fact]], Greg has dabbled in [[WholesomeCrossdresser crossplay]].
-->'''Dex:''' And... haven't I seen you cosplaying as [[Franchise/StreetFighter Chun-Li?]]\\
'''Greg:''' Yep!
* DirtyOldMan: Averted, but discussed. Because of anime martial arts examples such as [[Manga/RanmaOneHalf Happosai]] and [[Franchise/DragonBall Master Roshi]], he considers the fact that he does ''not'' fit this trope to be a point of shame.
* EnlightenmentSuperpowers: An already experienced martial artist invented his own style after a feat of ascetism ending with a big insight. Shive knows the classics, all right. In Greg's case, it's 168 hours of watching anime non-stop without breaks for lunch and sleep -- which accounts for the style's... peculiarity.
* GentleGiant: Easily towers over everyone in the main cast, yet as a black-belt level martial artist, he's not big on unnecessary violence.
* GiverOfLameNames: "[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-08-27 ...you might want to hire a marketing consultant]]."
* NoManShouldHaveThisPower: He closed the dojo in part due to worries that there's no way to ensure that good powers would be granted to the right people. Just before the dojo was wrecked by [[spoiler:a sleepwalking (and possibly mind-controlled) magic-user and a dragon]] anyway.
--> '''Greg:''' You three are good kids, but my training could inadvertently give a sociopath atomic breath or something. [[AndThatWouldBeWrong While awesome, that would be totally irresponsible]].
* ScaryBlackMan: Played with. While he certainly looks the part, he's actually more of a geeky otaku type at heart.
* SuperStrength: He once swatted a fly and ''exploded'' the punching bag it was on.
* SupernaturalMartialArts: Literally. As in "closed his dojo when he realized his training techniques only worked with people who already had a predisposition for magical powers".
* WholesomeCrossdresser: Has cosplayed as Chun-Li from the ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' series.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Raven]]
!!Adrian Raven

[[quoteright:163:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20090609_1uds.png]]
[[caption-width-right:163:[[labelnote:Click here to see his true form (spoilers).]][[quoteright:137:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1514788679_20180101_s3_222.png]] [[/labelnote]]]]

->''[[http://egscomics.com/comic/2009-06-25 "The lives of my students are more important.]]''\\
\\

Moperville South's apparently sinister and demanding history teacher. He's been a teacher there for a ''very'' long time and has quite the reputation as a menacing and cryptic individual.
----

* AccidentalPervert: He just can't seem to catch a break with Grace, his 18-year-old student who keeps getting him into... ''problematic'' situations. Grace is [[PingPongNaivete completely unaware of that]], poor Adrian is not, such as when Grace cheerfully tells him that she's not a minor, so he can "do all sorts of things with [her]"[[note]]they're talking about going on a hunt after a dangerous enchanted animal[[/note]] or when she shapeshifts in in front of him and ends up naked. He's appropriately horrified.
* ArmorPiercingResponse: [[spoiler:His mother brushes off most of his angry criticism toward her behavior, but when he responds to her justifying RevengeByProxy on werewolves over one killing his father by calmly stating "Father would hate what you've become", Pandora immediately falls silent and leaves a moment later, realizing that [[HeelRealization everything her son criticized her for is right]].]]
* BadassTeacher: Oh yes.
* BerserkButton: He hates it when people denigrate magical creatures. [[spoiler:[[HalfHumanHybrid There's a good reason for this]]]].
* BigGood: Shaping up to be the second one after Mr. Verres.
* BizarreAlienSenses: When in his true form, he can [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2011-12-27 taste magical potential. With his ears, apparently.]]
* CaptainErsatz: Of [[Literature/HarryPotter Severus Snape]] and [[VisualNovel/AceAttorney Miles Edgeworth]]. He even called 'objection' once.
* CelibateHero: His romantic encounters are rare enough that when he is informed he [[spoiler:fathered Diane and fathered Susan's family line]], he is quickly able to narrow down the possible times it could have happened.
-->'''Raven:''' My goodness I was in my ''actual twenties''...
* CombatPragmatist:
-->'''Abraham:''' Feigned frailty, no "En guarde"... Have you no honor?\\
'''Raven:''' The lives of my students are more important. Besides which, [[TooDumbToLive I]] ''[[TooDumbToLive did]]'' [[TooDumbToLive warn you]].
* DarkIsNotEvil: He can act "creepy and weird" and even comes off as somewhat sinister at times. His rather harsh attitude toward his students doesn't help. However, he's definitely on the side of the heroes and is noted to be, alongside Mr. Verres, one of the authority figures they know they can trust.
* EvilLaugh: Though not actually a villain, he's perfectly capable of them.
* GoodIsNotNice: He's very strict and intimidating, but his main purpose is [[spoiler:acting as a guardian towards magical or otherwise not entirely mundane students]].
* HalfHumanHybrid: [[spoiler:He's the son of a human and Chaos]].
* ImmortalProcreationClause: [[spoiler: Is sterile. At least, he ''believes'' himself to be...]]
* ItsAllMyFault: [[spoiler: Blames himself for Noriko abandoning her husband and son]].
* KubrickStare: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=995 Delivers one]] along with a [[TranquilFury soft-spoken]], but still very effective threat.
--> '''Raven:''' I can act directly if the situation involves magic or is an immediate threat to myself or others. [[WellIntentionedExtremist You]] are a homicidal wizard invading a public school. ''No one will care if I kill you''. Final warning. [[DontMakeMeDestroyYou Surrender, or die.]]
* LargeHam: Not always [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-02-27 screaming]], but he [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-06-13 puts up a good show]] whenever possible.
* LivingDistantAncestor: Is revealed to be this [[spoiler:to Susan]], who is a descendant of a woman Raven was with way back in his actual twenties.
* LongLostRelative: [[spoiler:Is Susan's distant ancestor and Diane's father]].
* MagicKnight: [[spoiler:Is a good spell user and knows how to fight with a sword]].
* MartyrWithoutACause: His greatest wish is to join the military, serve a noble cause, and to protect people -- but he's not allowed to. [[spoiler:His mother is opposed to him [[WeAreAsMayFlies risking his life for mortals]] and points out that his desire to serve "his country" is meaningless when he doesn't even really have a country]].
* MyGreatestFailure[=/=]MyGodWhatHaveIDone: According to him he was even more ''encouraging'' than he is now, especially to Tedd's parents and because of that considers himself completely at fault for [[TheGhost Mrs. Verres]] departure from her family.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: After discovering that [[spoiler:he is Susan's ancestor and Diane's father (it doesn't help that Pandora is forcibly reset immediately after this revelation, causing considerably more grief), he distraught over incidents he believed were simply one-night-stands of little consequence because he believed he was sterile - he knows who Diane's biological mother is, but he can't even remember her full name, much to his shame, and he isn't thrilled to tell Susan that her lineage likely began when ''he was in his actual twenties''.]]
--> '''Raven:''' "I'm a ''scoundrel!''"
* OlderAlterEgo: He disguises himself as an elderly man, but his true form [[ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty still looks to be his early 20s.]] Then again, the old man form is ''much'' younger than he really is, so maybe it's a younger alter ego?
* OlderThanTheyLook: Ellen speculates that he's much older than he looks, since he's been teaching at the school since at least Nanase's mother's time. [[spoiler:[[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld She's more right than she thinks]]]].
* OurElvesAreDifferent: [[spoiler:Is the resultant offspring of a human and an Immortal. Such hybrids are called elves]].
* ParentalSubstitute: He's raising Noah, whose parents were apparently killed by Damien.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: His exact age isn't known, but [[spoiler:Pandora was 156 when he was born and is believed to be at least 500]] suggesting that he is at least 350 years old.
* SecretKeeper: Mr. Raven's real job is [[spoiler:assisting and protecting students with magical abilities]].
* ShutUpHannibal: [[spoiler:To his own ''mother'', no less]].
* SpitTake: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1353 Grace's note to him nearly caused this reaction]].
%%* StealthMentor
* SternTeacher: Most definitely stern; the "loved by all his students" part, [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=940 not so much.]]
-->'''Nanase''': Raven's version of "liking" people is expecting the world of them. If you get ''anything'' less than an "A" on ''anything'', he ''will tear you a new one.''
* StrongFamilyResemblance: [[spoiler: In his natural form he strongly resembles his descendant, Susan's father]].
* SwordCane: Has a walking cane which hides a sword.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting
** [[spoiler:He reverts to his [[ShapeshifterDefaultForm elf form]] [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-06-18 when fighting Abraham]]]].
** [[spoiler:[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-11-18 Or occasionally at home]]]].
[[/folder]]

!!Students - Moperville North

[[folder:Catalina]]
!!Catalina Bobcat

[[quoteright:160:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1628652313_bal_2108_11_050_zffdde.png]]

->''"Jackasses!"'''\\
\\

A member of the Moperville North Feminist Club. She's loud, energetic, and often doesn't think through her actions, but she's also as loyal and brave as a friend can be. Although she had a crush on Susan, she started dating Rhoda after helping save her from a giant boar.
----

* CannotKeepASecret: She has [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2012-08-06 a hard time]] not yelling [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-039 any secrets she knows out loud]]. She did [[CharacterDevelopment learn to get better at it]] by keeping her relationship with Rhoda secret at her request, eventually to the point where she's able to keep quiet about having magic without cracking.
* CatchPhrase: She's a big fan of yelling the word "Jackass(es)". This gets a tragic and somewhat {{Bathos}}-y twist where she tearfully says "assjack" after [[spoiler:she asks Susan out only to find out that Susan's not a lesbian like she thought.]]
* CatGirl: As Elliot [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2007-11-16 put it]], she "seems just a tail short from being a cat-girl." Thanks to a magic mark from Pandora, [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=516 she actually gains the ability to turn into a cat girl]]. By default she's just ALittleBitBeastly, but can push herself all the way to [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-066 full-on werecat]].
* CuteLittleFangs: She's drawn with very prominent canines, which no other character has. They become even more pronounced when she's in her CatGirl form.
* DidntThinkThisThrough: When there was a rumour going around that Elliot was gay, [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2013-11-01 her solution was to tackle-kiss him in the hallway and declare herself to be his girlfriend]]. This (shockingly) helps, although only due to Elliot not playing along and just saying he's not gay but doesn't care if people think he is. The part she didn't think through was what she did [[OhCrap getting back to Rhoda]].
* DoesNotLikeMen: Downplayed. Susan describes her attitude toward men as "[they're] sleazy until proven otherwise." She was very friendly to Elliot and Tedd, even showing NoSenseOfPersonalSpace to the latter, because she deduced that any men Susan were willing to befriend must be decent.
* FieryRedhead: Has the right hair color and she is very hotheaded.
* GenkiGirl: Has plenty of enthusiasm and energy. Just look at her [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-050 doing a backflip while "pumped on awesomeness".]]
* GoshDangItToHeck: Involuntary; she sees herself more as [[SirSwearsalot Dame Diatribe]], but there are some lines she can't cross at school, and all the situations that make her want to swear are at school.
* IncompatibleOrientation: With Susan. Susan gets a lot of this, apparently. [[spoiler: Even with Susan realizing that she's not as heterosexual as she thought, she probably wouldn't have been comfortable with the making out that Catalina would likely have wanted to do, and views her more as a friend]].
* OurWerebeastsAreDifferent: She's able to turn into an intimidating werecat monster.
* PersonalityPowers: Defied. Being a CatGirl has absolutely nothing to do with Catalina's personality. As Pandora points out, the only reason she gets that spell is her [[StevenUlyssesPerhero name-based affinity]] blocking out more fitting magic. When Susan tries to not-so-subtly ask if Catalina has cat magic, she [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-059 dismisses it as boring]] and says she'd probably have [[MakeMeWannaShout loudspeaker magic]] instead, which Susan can't help but agree with.
* PowerTattoo: Grace learns through a dream that Catalina has a Magic Mark, and surprise surprise it turns her into a CatGirl, though more feral looking than most. [[spoiler:She also Awakened at some point off-screen, since [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-061 the mark is gone]] when Sarah and Susan are trying to figure out whether Catalina has magic or not.]]
* QuirkyCurls: Her hair is naturally flat, but she styles it this way to match her boisterous personality.
* RescueRomance: She meets Rhoda when she helped save her life from the giant boar, and the two start dating shortly afterwards.
* StevenUlyssesPerhero: Apparently, the reason Pandora was able to mark her with a CatGirl spell was that her ''very name'' resulted in her having an affinity for it. Although she points out that [[NonIndicativeName her tail is too long to actually be a bobcat.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Liz]]
!!Liz

[[quoteright:131:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1557476326_1904_p_11_jssdg.png]]

The Goth-esque member of the Feminist club. Originally addicted to cigarettes, [[CharacterDevelopment though not anymore]]. Friends with Ashley.
----
* ADayInTheLimelight: In the "Party" arc.
* AscendedExtra: She was just a background character at the beginning of the comic, but she started to appear more and more after Ashley was introduced.
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Part of why she's so protective of Ashley is because she helped her [[RecoveredAddict quit]] [[http://egscomics.com/comic/party-033 smoking]], despite having first met when Liz was [[http://egscomics.com/comic/party-034 cranky from withdrawal and snapped at Ashley when she bumped into her in the hallway]].
* BigSisterInstinct: Is extremely protective of Ashley to the point of making Elliot promise Ashley will be safe at the party for her [[http://egscomics.com/comic/party-030 here.]]
* FantasticallyIndifferent: Part of her charm is that crazy things can happen in front of her and she'd just go "meh".
* {{Fetish}}: She mentions that she likes fantasies about getting mind-controlled by a vampire, but she would never allow it to happen in real life.
* FlatCharacter: Her indifference is her entire characterization, until she gets more focus later on.
* OutOfFocus: After an introduction very early in the comic, Liz all but disappeared. According to Dan, he liked the character but didn't have many opportunities to use her since she had little relation with the main cast. Since then however, her friendship with Ashley has given her a lot more screen time.
* NotAMorningPerson: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1810 See her response to Ashley.]]
* PowerTattoo: Was marked by Pandora, though it's unknown what spell she has. Or if she's even currently ''aware'' of it.
* RecoveredAddict: She used to smoke, but Ashley helped her stop.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sandi]]
!!Sandi

[[quoteright:102:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080711_o5zi.png]]

The airheaded member of the Feminist's club. Tony's girlfriend.
----
* TheDitz: Some of her actions can be quite eccentric. When she rejoins the Feminist club, at the end she casually says that it wasn't her lunch period and she was ''skipping class'' just to say sorry.
* HeelRealization: She and a bunch of other girls rudely quit the Feminist Club right as Susan needed people the most. She eventually realizes how much of a jerk she was thanks to Tedd sticking up for Susan and officially rejoins as an apology.
* OutOfFocus: As Tony disappeared from the comic, Sandi, who already had less appearances, went with him,
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tony]]
!! Tony

[[quoteright:88:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080804_ltdq.png]]

School bully, Tedd's tormentor, and Elliot's nemesis.
----
* TheBully: Picks on Tedd a lot because of how girly he looks.
* DemotedToExtra: He appeared constantly in early comics as a major source of conflict. Over time, he started showing up less and less. His disappearance not-so-coincidentally happened alongside Tedd becoming more comfortable with their appearance and gender identity. The last major story beat Tony had was [[spoiler:when it was revealed that his nameless friend was the "Ronin" that spread rumours about Elliot being gay]]. Otherwise, his character is sort of redundant at this point, being essentially a more actively malicious version of Rich.
* JerkJock: Is an athlete who bullies Tedd.
* StupidSexyFlanders: Grace theorizes that Tony is upset by his own attraction to Tedd's appearance, and [[ArmoredClosetGay she might be right]].
* WeUsedToBeFriends: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-101 With Elliot back in elementary school.]] Their friendship started getting strained after he [[http://www.egscomics.com/comic/2013-11-29 gay-bashed]] kids who were making fun of Elliot and him, and officially ended when Tony [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-102 shoved a girl]] (who was actually [[DudeLooksLikeALady Tedd]]).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Matt]]
!! Matt Cohen

[[quoteright:139:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080714_lwqc.png]]

The Head of the Student Council. Because of his position, he often has to announce the latest "ideas" of the Principal.
----
* AmbiguouslyJewish: His last name and hairstyle suggest that he might be Jewish, though it hasn't been explicitly stated.
* BeleagueredAssistant: Implied. He seems to love his job, but he is not a fan of the Principal's school uniform idea.
* DeadpanSnarker:
** He's gotten in one snark. It wouldn't be very noteworthy, except it was toward Susan. Whether this a defining trait, remains to be seen.
** His speech about the uniforms was full of this, seemingly designed to get across his contempt for the system and the principal. Kind of impressive, given that these were ''after'' he was told to stick to the cards.
--->'''Matt:''' Black ties are encouraged but not required for uniforms, for reasons [[SarcasmMode surely]] [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial not]] related to those costing extra.
* DoggedNiceGuy: Possibly... But considering Dan spent an extra comic because he didn't want to let Matt's intentions hang in the dark, it seems he's pure NiceGuy.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2007-09-14 This]] and [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-07-14 this]] turns out to be so for [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2012-03-06 this]]. All of this took place over the course of five years. Only Dan Shive, everybody...
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Matt seems to understand quite clearly that Susan doesn't want to date him, and respects it. When he hears that she's never dated at all, he gives an earnest piece of advice to think on whether or not she'd regret not dating in High School. Even if it's not with him, he just wanted to make sure Susan would be okay.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tom]]
!!Tom

[[quoteright:136:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1389769055_2014_01_15_eb68.png]]

A very effeminate boy who's interested in Susan. Ashley's ex, and far more manipulative than he first appears.
----
* AccidentalPublicConfession:
-->'''Tom:''' I am a fantastic liar!\\
'''Beat Panel:''' ''[[[OhCrap shows that every single woman in the (packed) cafeteria heard him]]]''\\
'''Susan:''' Not when a mark [[OffTheRails goes off-script]], you're not.
* AtLeastIAdmitIt: He tells Susan that everybody uses little lies and word choice to manipulate others. He claims he's more honest than most people because he at least is able to admit it to himself. [[JerkassHasAPoint Susan concedes that he's not entirely wrong]], but she adds that at least most people who do it have decent intentions. According to her [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech Tom toys with the feelings of others for his own selfish reasons, or deeper still, for his own amusement. As a result, nobody trusts or likes him.]]
* DudeLooksLikeALady: Which is lampshaded when Tom was drawn in color.
* InformedAbility: What his alleged skills as a ManipulativeBastard become in the face of Susan. When she unknowingly hits him with a SpannerInTheWorks, she starts to pick up on his rather sad attempts to recover his footing. It goes so far that he ends up yelling that he is a fantastic liar. Understandably, Susan answers by saying that he isn't when the mark goes off-script.
* NiceGuy: Not really, it's an act.
* ManipulativeBastard: Ashley revealed that he is ''incredibly'' underhanded and emotionally manipulative when he wants something. Currently, that something is Susan. When he is outed, he claims that ''everyone'' is just as manipulative, but as Susan points out, intention is what separates the average white lie from his selfish games.
* SelfProclaimedLiar: Combined with AccidentalPublicConfession above.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:"Good" Tom]]
!!Tom

[[quoteright:121:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1392709288_2014_02_18_eb90.png]]

A side-character who is good (unlike Tom, who is not).
----
* AscendedExtra: Appears [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1811 here]] briefly before Dan decided to use him again a year later.
* JumpedAtTheCall: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2027 "A puppy is in danger."]]
* OneSteveLimit: An inversion, as used as a gag in his [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1811 introductory page]].
* MySignificanceSenseIsTingling: As noted above, he has the ability to sense when a puppy is in danger, [[spoiler:[[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=494 thanks to Pandora marking him]]]].
* NiceGuy: The nicest, apparently. It seems to make him a bit annoying to hang out with, if his girlfriend's reaction is any indication.
[[/folder]]

!!Students - Moperville South

[[folder:Lucy]]
!!Lucy
%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=16646024440.10017700
%% Please don't change or remove without starting a new thread.
%%
[[quoteright:197:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1543466467_sketch_181129_swap_1.png]]

The snarky member of Diane's GirlPosse.
----
* AmbiguouslyGay: Besides the avatar mentioned under HiddenDepths below, in the past after Diane defended her against a group of boys in Junior High, and told her that she was beautiful. Lucy developed a crush on Diane from that point on though whether it's because she's a full on lesbian or just a case of SingleTargetSexuality is still up for debate as she said she wouldn't care if Diane was a guy.
* AnguishedDeclarationOfLove: Gives one to Diane after Diane's very public attempt to dispel the rumors about her. [[spoiler: To her surprise it's recriprocated.]]
* ArmorPiercingQuestion: When Diane asks her why she kept going on double dates with her despite knowing of the "[[ReallyGetsAround reputation]]" they were getting, she doesn't react well, and doesn't answer before the bell rings.
* AscendedExtra: In a sense. She was always a tertiary character to Diane whose appearances could probably be counted on two hands. Even as Diane and Rhoda started appearing more frequently and with more importance she rarely showed up and seemed to be pretty much forgotten about. Come "The Legend of Diane" she's given a [[CharacterDevelopment large amount of focus]] eventually resulting in her [[spoiler: starting a romantic relationship with Diane]].
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Her feelings for Diane seem to have developed at least in part due to Diane's defense of her against boys who were giving her unwanted attention after she started "developing", and reassuring her that she was beautiful.
* BetaBitch: She's the naughty and snarky member of Diane's group. She wasn't always like that however and her greater focus in ''The Legend of Diane'' arc heavily implies it developed over a long period of time due to her unrequited crush on Diane. [[spoiler: Or, at least, she thought her crush was unrequited.]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: A bit regarding Diane, which is why her attitude towards Rhoda improved when she realized that [[spoiler: she and Catalina were dating]].
* DCupDistress: Went from being bullied for being tall to being [[BuxomBeautyStandard an object of desire]] for boys in junior high once she started developing. Unfortunately for her, this wasn't a positive development.
* DeadpanSnarker: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2007-06-19 Observe her response to Diane's reasoning to concluding Ellen and Grace are new students]].
* DemotedToExtra: It's pretty easy to forget that she's part of Diane and Rhoda's group, but she got more focus in the "Legend of Diane" storyline.
* WithFriendsLikeThese: She's quite critical of Rhoda. And anyone [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-01-08 else]], for that matter. To a lesser degree, [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2007-06-19 even Diane]].
** Although Dan [[https://danshive.tumblr.com/post/78121202978/im-curious-as-to-why-diane-would-hang-out-with has stated]] that Lucy and Diane's friendship is strong enough to have lasted since childhood implying that the two know each other well enough to be honest, even brutally honest, without offending each other.
* HeightAngst: When in Junior High, boys made fun of her for her height, then hit on her when she started "developing".
* HiddenDepths: It's veeeeeery subtle, buuut... observe [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1634 this avatar-based online-chat]]. Diane is wearing the same avatar as Susan was a bit earlier (providing more fodder for the 'sisters' reveal), but isn't Lucy's avatar of a female, dragonslaying knight strangely familiar too? Maybe a reference to [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp.php?id=34 a certain novel Nanase was reading 9 years earlier]], back when she was still in the closet?
** A [[https://egscomics.com/comic/tlod-008 flashback to Junior High]] reveals that she had some major insecurities regarding her appearance, particularly her height, due to boys making fun of her (and, after she stared "developing", hitting on her) before Diane defended her and complimented her, and her comment about how she wishes Diane was a boy implies that she may have feelings for her.
* RelationshipUpgrade: [[spoiler: With Diane.]]
* SecretSecretKeeper: [[spoiler: Like Diane, she knew about Rhoda dating Catalina, which is why she started to be nicer towards her]].
* ShoutOutThemeNaming: Like the other girls in her posse, Lucy is named after a famous sitcom character. Her namesake is Lucille Ball from ''Series/ILoveLucy''.
* StatuesqueStunner: Bordering on AmazonianBeauty, she's far taller and far more "developed" than any other female character. Her height looks like it might even rival most of the ''male'' characters. Just compare her to [[http://egscomics.com/comic/tlod-002 Diane and Rhoda]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rhoda]]
!!Rhoda
%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=16646024440.10017700
%% Please don't change or remove without starting a new thread.
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[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1385876026_fgs20131201.png]]
->''[[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2010-12-29 "You are [giant] to me... but I might have a distorted perception of scale."]]''\\
\\

A ShrinkingViolet who became a member of Diane's GirlPosse by way of having Diane as a math tutor. She serves as Diane's MoralityPet and is often picked on by Lucy. After being saved from an encounter with a magically-enlarged boar, she started dating her savior Catalina.
----
* AffectionateNickname: Diane calls her pup.
* AmbiguouslyBrown: Dan is [[https://egscomics.tumblr.com/post/177837167958/what-is-rhodas-ethnicity specifically keeping her ethnicity vague]] until it becomes relevant.
* AnimalMotif: Rhoda is often compared to and treated like a puppy. She's also commonly seen with dog ears, paws, or a tail in {{Fantasy Sequence}}s and the choker she usually wears looks like a collar. It sets up a minor CatDogDichotomy with her girlfriend.
* TheArchmage: [[spoiler:Is apparently one of the most [[http://egscomics.com/egsnp/2016-11-09 powerful]] and [[http://egscomics.com/egsnp/2017-07-23-ellen-demo-15 versatile]] magic-users in the comic, on the same tier as ''Nanase''. When Luke catches a glimpse of her aura, it appears as [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-067 a giant, flaming beacon]] around her.]]
* BorrowedCatchphrase: Apparently she has spent enough time with her girlfriend that she's picked up Catalina's favourite insult, as shown when she [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-055 gets frustrated by a fellow student]] cutting in line while waiting for pizza.
--> '''Rhoda''': '''Back of the line, Jackass!'''
* BreastExpansion: This was [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/2016-11-11 one of the things she tried]] while [[spoiler:experimenting with her SizeShifter powers. She also briefly considers [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/2017-01-20 giving Kitty gigantic boobs]] to stop her from chasing her and Catalina, but quickly decides that's a terrible idea.]]
* ComboPlatterPowers: Although her magic is primarily based around [[spoiler:changing the size of things, Rhoda has the potential to gain a wide variety of different spells if she keeps practicing. Similar to Nanase, her power level is to the point where she could theoretically get any kind of spell she needed. In TheRant for one comic, Dan said she was basically a wizard in EGS terms minus the actual PowerCopying.]]
* EverybodyKnewAlready: [[spoiler: Both Diane and Lucy figured out that she and Catalina were dating well before she told them. She is ''not'' happy about that, since she kept it secret and caused herself anxiety for nothing]].
* {{Fetish}}: Rhoda seems to have a CatGirl fetish, which makes perfect sense given her relationship with Catalina.
* HugeGuyTinyGirl: Non-romantic version. Rhoda is so petite, she looks tiny next to just about any guy. Six-foot Justin [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-12-29 practically towers over her]]. This is actually why she's only been shown interested in girls despite being bisexual--she gets freaked out by people who are much bigger than her, which most guys are.
* MoralityPet: She served as one to Diane even before the latter started {{defrosting|IceQueen}}. Diane doesn't seem so bad when she's comforting a sobbing Rhoda who forgot her math homework.
* PersonalityPowers: [[spoiler:Given magic's habit of this and her issues with size perception, shrinking and growing things is a fitting starting power.]]
* PintSizedPowerhouse: Despite being a little bean, Rhoda is possibly ''the most'' powerful magic user in the comic. [[spoiler:Her {{Sizeshifter}} powers are effortless and several magnitudes more powerful than what Tedd can do, and that's with very little practice or training. A non-canon NP storyline gave a [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/2017-09-15 taste of what she could do with more practice]], never mind other spells she'll unlock along the way.]]
* PowerPerversionPotential: [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/2016-11-02 Take a look at]] the immediate first thought she had for [[VictoriasSecretCompartment how to sneak a tiny Catalina out of the mall]]. Catalina definitely had the same idea.
* PowerTattoo: She didn't know about it for a time, but she has one [[spoiler:that lets her alter the size of herself or anything she points her palms at. By the time of the EGS:NP arc ''Escape From the Mall'', she's at least learned about her powers and told Catalina about them. And then the same arc reveals that she's somehow Awakened in the meantime, meaning the tattoo is now gone.]]
* PrecisionFStrike: She did not take it lightly when she found out that [[spoiler:Diane and Lucy already knew/suspected that she had a girlfriend when she came out to them, despite having kept it a secret like she did in the first place due to fearing their reactions]].
--> '''Rhoda''': '''You #&%$ing knew?!'''
* ShipTease: Dan [[PlayingDumb specifically says that he knows nothing about either]] [[{{Shipping}} boats or mailing things that wouldn't fit in envelopes]] [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-11-04 once she and Catalina meet]].
* SizeShifter: [[spoiler:The PowerTattoo granted by Pandora gives her the ability to alter both her own size and others. She usually tends to shrink herself and make others grow, but the events of ''Escape From The Mall'' end up reversing that norm out of necessity.]]
* ShoutOutThemeNaming: Like the other girls in her posse, Rhoda is named after a famous sitcom character. Her namesake is Rhoda Morgenstern from ''Series/TheMaryTylerMooreShow'' and ''{{Series/Rhoda}}''.
* ShrinkingViolet: Rhoda's perception of her own size literally shrinks when she feels intimidated.
* TookALevelInBadass: [[spoiler:''Escape From The Mall'' reveals that at some point she'd Awakened when Pandora wasn't looking]]. She also becomes generally more confident and outgoing [[spoiler: after growing into her magical powers]].
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler:Being attacked by a wild boar accidentally set off her PowerTattoo, [[MakeMyMonsterGrow which made the boar grow]] into an enormous, territorial brute]].
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: [[spoiler:Unlocked such a spell at some point after Awakening, allowing her to transform into a busty adult woman with long hair. It's unclear if the spell grants her a distinct new form or more general shapeshifting abilities.]]
* WigDressAccent: After getting fed-up with people harassing her for appearing on the news [[spoiler:when Pandora manifested]], she [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2010-12-27 disguised herself]] with a ponytail, NerdGlasses, and baggier clothing. She kept it up until everyone forgot about the incident.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Melissa]]
!!Melissa

[[quoteright:134:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20110330_ihgc.png]]

Justin's former best friend who outed him after he told her he was gay by thoughtlessly confiding in her blabbermouth sister, and who hasn't exactly repaired their relationship with her subsequent behavior.
----

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Invoked. Justin tells Susan that Melissa is a SmugSnake who almost destroyed his life. Noah tells Elliot that Melissa is a [[TragicHero tragic heroine]] who nearly destroyed her own life as well. Their respective stories are pretty consistent in the details, it's just that Justin seems to hold her more responsible than he does her sister and is thus less willing to forgive her.
* TheAtoner: See SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong below.
* ClingyJealousGirl: See PsychoExGirlfriend below.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: She got a surprising SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome by [[spoiler:jumping between knocked down "Cheerleadra" and a monster and ''trying to stare it down'']].
* DrivenToSuicide: If Elliot hadn't stepped in and saved Justin from the gay-bashing bullies, Noah pretty much spelled out that Melissa would've done this.
* HiddenDepths:
** Dan claims that her referring to Series/MythBusters is a subtle hint of this.
** Less subtly, she said her faith in Noah was based on seeing how he had beaten ''something'', compared to which a bulldog faced fireball-breathing dragon the size of a half truck is a misbehaving pup. Which also explains her treatment of it.
** When Cheerleadra gets hurt, Melissa is also quick to make sure she doesn't show any signs of a concussion, implying she has at least some basic medical knowledge.
* IncompatibleOrientation: She's still attracted to Justin, but it certainly isn't mutual. [[spoiler:It's strongly implied that she's gotten over it as of the end of "New and Old Flames".]]
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Eventually gets the hint that Justin wants nothing to do with her, and promises to leave him alone. Doubles as a TearJerker as it comes from the realization / belief that if it took Justin this long to forgive her, then they probably shouldn't and won't be friends again anyway.
* LastHetRomance: Justin's first, last and only ''girl''friend.
* LoveMakesYouCrazy[=/=]LoveMakesYouDumb: Pick the one you prefer. When her obsession with Justin kicks in, she acts like a complete lunatic unless she [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-04-04 remembers]] to DopeSlap herself out of it.
** PsychoExGirlfriend: An annoying example... Except that it's been revealed that her motives are a bit more complex than that. Not to mention that she is fully aware that her attempts to win over Justin are pointless and do nothing but make her come off as annoying and quite possibly psychotic, but can't seem to stop herself.
* RetCon: Originally, she was just some girl who Justin dated once and who wouldn't let go, but later became a childhood friend who had been in love with him for a long time, making her story more tragic.
* SecretKeeper: [[spoiler:Knows about Noah's powers as she knew screaming would bring him to fight a dragon-like monster.]]
* SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong: Noah believes that Melissa has deluded herself into thinking she can make everything right again by winning Justin back.
* ThisIsForEmphasisBitch: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-04-26 Here comes a new challenger, bitch!]]
* WoundedGazelleWarcry: When encountering a monster, she first comes off as a hysterical ScreamingWoman, but it becomes clear that she invoked this to [[spoiler:alert her super-powered boyfriend to come and handle the monster, which she knows he's capable of.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Noah]]
!!Noah Raven

[[quoteright:217:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20100322_wa8v.png]]

->''"I have been told I can make straight men see rainbows."''\\
\\

Melissa's androgynous boyfriend who rarely uses contractions. An orphan, Noah is the adopted son of Mr. Raven and made friends with Elliot during the Swedekea arc.
----

* AgentPeacock: He's quite effeminate in [[DudeLooksLikeALady appearance]] and [[CampStraight personality]], but that doesn't make him any less badass.
* AmbiguousGender: Noah, whom we know as a boy only because it was said and in comparison to whom Tedd doesn't look "''that'' androgynous" at all, despite this being an old RunningGag.
-->'''Elliot:''' Who's this... ''guy?'' I ''[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-03-17 think?]]''\\
'''Student:''' Oh, it's that weird [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-03-14 girl]].
* AmbiguouslyBi: Elliot was rather surprised to hear he has a girlfriend.
* AmbiguouslyHuman: Apparently his aura is similar to Grace's, and the person commenting this also refers to his pigtails as "prehensile tendrils." His hair does look suspiciously similar to the antennae Ellen's half-human friend Archie had in her dreams. There is a ''lot'' of evidence that he might be a seyunolu beyond just his hair (which has been shown to be able to move on its own accord). Examples include that he values his relationship with Melissa for "physical warmth and comfort", another common trend in seyunolus, and his apparent lack of social exposure.
--> '''Noah''': Have you ever heard of a television show called "The Simpsons?"\\
'''Elliot''': I am aware of it.
** [[spoiler:The ambiguity is finally dropped [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/brother-014 here]], where it's revealed that he's a human-uryuom seyunolu.]]
* BerserkButton: [[PayEvilUntoEvil Intentionally evil acts cry out for vengeance!]]
* BestServedCold: [[spoiler:He trained for years to kill Damien to avenge someone long dead]].
* BewareTheNiceOnes: He speaks formally in order to control his temper, which is [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-01-31 apparently pretty bad if pushed too far]].
* BizarreAlienSenses: [[spoiler:He has the same feedback sense as Grace, which lets him pick up details from his surrounding. Unlike Grace though, he doesn't seem to be able to turn it off.]]
* BlackBeadEyes: Well, black bead ''eye''. One of his eyes [[spoiler:takes from his uryuom heritage.]]
* CampStraight: His speech and mannerisms might point to homosexuality but he has a girlfriend.
* CannotTellALie: Lending credence to his AlternativeCharacterInterpretation of Melissa.
* CaptainObvious: He has a tendency to say incredibly obvious things as if they were mind-blowing facts. He is very smart, but [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2011-12-12 sometimes doesn't understand what is or isn't common knowledge.]]
* ChekhovsGunman: First appeared six years before his formal introduction.
* ClosetKey: He's [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2348 apparently]] the reason that [[spoiler:Elliot]] realized that he has some attraction to men.
* CloudCuckoolander: He has some strange and often absent-minded ways of doing things, such as [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-03-23 entering Raven's office]] [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-03-25 through the ceiling.]]
* DarkIsNotEvil: [[spoiler:His "The Child Left Behind" form looks like a black silhouette with white outlines]], similar to Magus. He's definitely one of the good guys.
* DudeLooksLikeALady: Even more so than Tedd in that he also dresses in androgynous clothing. He killed a RunningGag: in comparison with ''Noah'', Tedd doesn't look "just that androgynous" at all.
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Discussed.
-->'''Noah:''' Is it jealousy? I have been told I could make straight men see rainbows.
* FaceFault: He actually manages to trip while sitting down. ''Twice.''
* FlyingBrick: [[spoiler:"The Child Left Behind" is super-strong, tough, and can fly.]]
* FriendlessBackground: Wants friends, but has difficulty making them because he is shy and has poor social skills. He also hated having to lie about [[spoiler:his antennae and BizarreAlienSenses]], which made him come off as even more of a loner to other kids.
* FriendsWithBenefits: He's dating Melissa despite her still being in love with Justin, and they "provide close comfort and pleasure for each other."
* GutturalGrowler: Implied that he does this [[spoiler:as "The Child Left Behind"]].
* HalfHumanHybrid: [[spoiler:He's at least part human and part uryuom.]]
* HappilyAdopted: Lives with [[spoiler:Raven]], who he considers a father-figure. Later revealed he'd been pondering for awhile on how to ask for permission to call him Dad. Eventually he casually calls him that while trying to comfort him about [[spoiler:Pandora's "Death]] before immediately backpedaling on it, only to be hugged.
* HiddenDepths:
** Nearly won a race through the "[[FictionalCounterpart Swedekea]]" store with [[SupernaturalMartialArts super-powerful martial artist]] Elliot, and later tells Raven that he was ''holding back.'' To be fair, Elliot was too, but still...
** In gym class, he faked mediocrity so well that Ellen remembered him at all only because of his strange hairdo.
** He also once beat the snot out of two guys who later went on to become college football offensive linemen.
* InTheHood: Wears one when fighting magical beings that obscures all of his features, except white dots for his eyes and a drape of hair.
* {{Keet}}: Quieter than most, but the dude can flounce and produce sparkles at will.
* KingIncognito: He implies that he's royalty, since he tried to knight Raven. Of course, Raven points out that he doesn't ''actually'' have the authority to knight people, so who knows.
* MysteriousPast: All we know of his past is that his parents are dead, [[spoiler:presumably at Damien's hand]].
* OpenSecret: [[spoiler:Him being The Child Left Behind. To be fair, it's kind of hard to keep your SecretIdentity when you disappear suddenly then a mysterious shadowy guy shows up just in time to save your girlfriend's life, all right in front of Justin]]. Noah and Melissa still act like it's a secret afterwards.
* PeekABangs: One of his eyes is covered by his hair at nearly all times. [[spoiler:It's because the eye that's always hidden is an almond-shaped uryuom eye. Presumably the few times both eyes have been seen, it's either shapeshifted away or hidden with an illusion.]]
* RevengeBeforeReason: In a throwaway gag, he reveals that he was looking into selling his soul for power before Raven dissuaded him.
* SensoryOverload: [[spoiler:His antennae give him feedback on his surroundings to a minute extreme, which makes him uncomfortable in crowds. He describes everything as being "loud".]]
* ShockAndAwe: [[spoiler:He attacks the pug-dragon with [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-04-26 a lightning blast]].]]
* SpockSpeak: One of his more notable traits.
* UnknownRelative: As the adopted son of Adrian Raven, Noah is [[spoiler:Diane's brother and Susan's distant uncle, as well as distantly related to Tedd]]. It's not by blood, but he still introduces himself to [[spoiler:Diane as her brother]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Victor]]
!!Victor von Hip

[[quoteright:89:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20080416_gs18.png]]

A self-publishing schoolboy who tries to be very helpful.
----

* BadassBoast: "The Greek God Of Pamphlets!"
* CrazyPrepared: He already has pamphlets for every occasion, [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-04-16 no matter how strange]]. [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-05-12 Check out]] his pamphlet on his pamphlets.
* NewAgeRetroHippie: Has the looks and some of the mannerisms.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Charlotte]]
!!Charlotte

[[quoteright:126:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1447399914_2015_11_13c100_maybegasp.png]]

An enthusiast of the supernatural who graduated from Moperville South.
----

* AFriendInNeed: Despite having been angry a moment ago with Diane for her thoughtless outburst (see under DidYouThinkICantFeel), Charlotte unhesitatingly tackles a monster threatening her. When Diane expresses astonishment at her doing that for her, Charlotte says simply, "Of course I did. You're my friend."
* BewareTheQuietOnes: Charlotte is introverted and socially retiring, yet manages to tackle a spider-vampire about to launch a surprise attack on Diane. The creature easily tosses her away, but still.
* BlackAndNerdy: Charlotte spends her free time either investigating the supernatural, discussing it online, or gaming.
* DidYouThinkICantFeel: Despite her normally [[TheStoic stoic]] demeanour, she reacts to Diane's outburst, "[[ArmorPiercingQuestion Have you ever even been on a date?]]" with a genuinely hurt look and retreats into silence, testily rebuffing Diane's attempt to apologize.
* NoSocialSkills: While she's not completely lacking in sense of humour or conversational ability, her introverted nature makes her uncomfortable in conventional social situations. When her housemate Rhea throws a party, Charlotte, upon meeting Nanase and Ellen, [[HatesSmallTalk cuts right to the chase]] about their paranormal investigative abilities and, ignoring Rick's invitation to join the party, suggests the couple join her upstairs for video games.
* NotSoStoic: Her near-emotionless veneer cracks in the fifth chapter of "So a Date at the Mall." When Diane casually dismisses Tara's intuition that [[spoiler:she has vampire-hunting potential]] as nonsense, and instead focuses on her own romantic prospects or lack thereof with Elliot, Charlotte is genuinely appalled and castigates her for her priorities. Then, when Diane counters with an angry jab at her introversion and thoughtlessly asks whether she's ever dated, Charlotte shows her hurt feelings so visibly, if silently, that Diane realizes she's gone too far.
* OnlyOneName: As of current her last name is unknown. Lampshaded in an NP stoyline where she and Susan are the inventors of a super army robot (Grace). In the final strip she addresses Susan as "Dr. Pompoms", who responds by calling her Dr. Last Name Not Known Yet.
* TheSpock: Charlotte is all about logical deduction. She generally has a [[TheStoic limited emotional range]], and her facial expressions rarely veer from DullSurprise or FascinatingEyebrow except when startled, annoyed or amused; even then, her face normally shows those reactions as minimally as possible. She even uses SpockSpeak in the strip that introduces her, almost completely avoiding contractions and informal speech; this is relaxed in her subsequent scenes.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jay]]
!!Jay

[[quoteright:325:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1615595726_1904_p_q7_lsffdghgh.png]]

A student at Moperville South who is also a wizard. Is also Arthur's granddaughter, who apparently does ''not'' get along with her grandfather for whatever reason.
----
* CompellingVoice: When delivering the pizza to the party, her text style changes into the same font as Diane's when she's using her own CompellingVoice, and Jay even notes under her breath that "she's not even using it right". [[spoiler:It's very likely that Jay copied the spell from Diane at some point, probably when she used it in the cafeteria.]]
* ConnectedAllAlong: Long after Jay is introduced, it is revealed that Arthur is Jay's grandfather.
* DelinquentHair: A shaved mohawk and a long, flowing ponytail. It fits with her style and rebellious attitude.
* EveryoneHasStandards: She may be intrusive and not just a little bit stalker-ish, but she draws the line at invading people's dreams to milk personal information out of them, as her first NP storyline shows.
-->'''Narration''': Jay may not be a saint, but come on now.
* IHaveManyNames: She refers to herself as "Jay", but the teachers call her "Jill" (prompting a comparison to Susan), and in an NP storyline she calls herself "Jack" as an alias.
* OurMagesAreDifferent: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/party-159 Refers to]] Diane as "a bard" and Grace as "a druid" which isn't wrong, necessarily, but isn't correct in universe either. The terms do accurately describe their abilities, though.
* PowerCopying: [[spoiler:As a wizard, she can copy the spells of others if she sees them use them, and seems to be deliberately seeking out transformation spells. She cannot copy Grace's transformations, however.]]
* SuperSmoke: [[spoiler:One of her copied transformation spells allows her to take on a smoke-like form.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Camelia]]
!!Camelia

[[quoteright:132:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1644901526_np_2202_15_a_34_pgffgdg.png]]

A student at Moperville South who attends gym class with Grace.
----
* AscendedExtra: She appeared as a reoccurring background student at South before getting some characterization (and a name) in the Jestful Statement NP arc.
* EarlyInstallmentCharacterDesignDifference: She was drawn extremely angular [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/tlod-005 early on]], being made almost entirely of triangle shapes. This was [[https://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/jestful-26 significantly toned down]] later.
* InnocentlyInsensitive:
** She's one of the students who was spreading untrue rumours about Diane... unknowingly right to Diane's face, since she didn't recognize her.
** The "Jestful Statement" storyline starts because she poked fun at Grace for her weird mannerisms.
* MeaningfulName: She's named after a type of evergreen tree with rose-like flowers, in reference to her spiky AnimeHair.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Conan]]
!!Conan

[[quoteright:137:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1646453266_np_2203_05_a_41_pfhdffg.png]]

An absurdly buff nerd at Moperville South.
----
* CompetitionFreak: He admits that this is the reason he challenged Grace to a volleyball contest.
* GeekPhysique: Inverted. He is extremely buff, despite being a nerd.
* MeaningfulName: Conan is both a ShoutOut to ''Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian'' and a name that means "exalted" in reference to his intelligence.
* SmartPeopleWearGlasses: As part of his nerd getup.
* StereotypeFlip: He's first introduced like he's a standard jock (minus the {{jerk|Jock}} part) wearing gym clothes. When he see him in his normal outfit, it's revealed that he's actually a [[LiteralMetaphor huge nerd]].
[[/folder]]

!!Other Humans

[[folder:George]]
!! George

[[quoteright:182:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1410857186_2014_09_16c126_iseeyohair.png]]

An average nerd and Justin's coworker at the comic book shop.
----

* AmbiguouslyGay:
** There are some only slightly ambiguous hints that George has a crush on Justin, but this isn't confirmed and could be a RedHerring. All of the signs (except perhaps for one) could realistically be due to other reasons.
** In one of the "Summer Moments" comics, [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1821 George has a pretty curious expression]] towards two guys going out to the movies with each other. It is still pretty ambiguous.
** And finally [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2000 confirmed here]] (or at least confirmed that characters in universe are thinking the same way), with the commentary even stating that, for some readers, it was [[EverybodyKnewAlready a "FINALLY" moment]].
* AuthorAvatar: He parrots what Dan says a lot in the commentary and interrupted a Q&A in comic to act as his mouth piece. However, he's not solely existent for that. Dan's actual AuthorAvatar has shown up less since he was created, though.
* DeadpanSnarker: It's probably easier to count the number of conversations where he's NOT snarking at the person he's talking to.
* EntertaininglyWrong: Despite usually being pretty on-the-mark at figuring out people's secrets, he has made a few wrong assumptions.
** He assumed that Elliot was Justin's boyfriend, which led to him acting a lot more surly until he was corrected. According to him, it was because Justin having a boyfriend made him uncomfortable. [[AmbiguouslyGay Up to interpretation.]]
** He figures that since Ellen acts like Elliot but is more confident, is dating the girl that Elliot used to date, and George knows that Elliot can turn into Cheerleadra, then Elliot and Ellen must be the same person. Dan admits in TheRant that this makes way more sense than [[OppositeSexClone what actually happened]].
* {{Fanboy}}: A parody of opinionated geeks as a straight-up {{Expy}} of the Comic Book Guy from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.
* FanonDiscontinuity: Invoked: George feels this way about Franchise/StarWars ep. 1-3.
* FantasticallyIndifferent: He's pretty observant, noticing for example Tedd's hair color change in the middle of the game tournament, but doesn't pass it more than a nonchalant comment.
* GeekPhysiques: Of the obese sort.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's rude and obnoxious, but not actually a bad person, and surprisingly generous with [[JerkassHasAPoint honest advice]]. Sarah sums him up as a "giant rude [[Franchise/StarWars Yoda]]."
* MetaGuy: The reason he was created.
* SecretKeeper: Both for Elliot being Cheerleadra and for some of Tedd's magical shenanigans.
* TheSocialExpert: Despite appearing rather indifferent most of the time, he actually has a good insight into people.
* StealthMentor: Dispenses surprisingly good advice to the kids while feigning indifference, coaches Sarah in the card tournament when everyone else is too preoccupied to notice.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Dex]]
!!Dex

[[quoteright:194:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1407737960_2014_08_11c101_doublesnap.png]]

A regular in the comic shop where George and Justin work, a very hairy and very unkempt guy of less than athletical body shape, though not quite emaciated. He found himself right in the epicenter of the magic mayhem in "New And Old Flames" arc.
----

* AscendedFanboy: A fan of anime, videogames and the like before getting a spell that lets him summon various creatures.
* ChekhovsGunman: He was just a creepy dude who hung around the comic shop where Justin worked. And then [[spoiler:he walked into Greg's dojo]]...
* ItsASmallWorldAfterAll: He and Greg remember seeing each other [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2011-04-11 at a convention]].
%%* TheKnightsWhoSaySquee
* PowerTattoo: [[spoiler:Though he can't remember how he got this, probably due to not being sober-minded at the time]].
* SummonMagic: [[spoiler:With just his own power, he can do something like Susan's twist of Nanase's fairy doll spell. When empowered by an immortal, his mark is powerful enough to summon fire demons and dragons]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tensaided]]
!!Mr. Tensaided

[[quoteright:152:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1409917930_2014_09_05c120_alphageek.png]]

Susan's, and (during the summer) Elliot's, boss at the video rental store. A huge nerd who has an entire leveling system for his employees, he was unimpressed with Elliot's unfamiliarity with movie references and only hired him because Susan told the half-truth that Elliot knows Cheerleadra. Is bombastic and hammy, and rather obsessed with the things he's a fan of.
----

* {{Fanboy}}: Perhaps even more so than George, in presentation though he's a lot more enthusiastic rather than snarky but angers easy when people don't get references he makes whereas George would just snark them.
* GracefulLoser: He's a {{Munchkin}} [[MinMaxing Min-Maxer]] who is often sure of his strategies (and to his credit, [[InsufferableGenius he's pretty good]]), but he'd be the first to admit defeat when it happens, even by luck.
* IncomingHam: Tends to make an entrance with a loud booming voice or a quote of some sort.
* InformedAbility: He's never actually ''won'' a game on-panel.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold:
** He was more than willing to let Grace borrow his Star Wars [=DVDs=] regardless of winning or losing against Justin (he just made the wager to beat him in a card game). He also invited her to join his roleplay group due to just how into the Magic game she was getting.
** During the card game storyline of "Squirrel Prophet," he taunted Sarah for not considering "a deck to win the game". When Sarah won their match, Tensaided made a loud and dramatic declaration that she is "a true geek", mostly to make sure she wouldn't get picked on by the more abrasive geeks like Larry and Rich.
** And then, after Sarah defeats Larry, he gives him a piece of his mind after hearing him treat Sarah so poorly.
* TheKnightsWhoSaySquee: A big fan of Cheerleadra, [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1439 as evidenced by his :D face]].
* MundaneUtility: He hit upon a way to turn Elliot's ignorance of movies into an asset by turning Susan's education sessions into a web show.
* PunnyName: Tensaided's name is derived from the ten-sided [[DontExplainTheJoke dice used for role playing games]]. It doesn't carry a particular deep meaning other than the fact that he's a nerd.
* ShoutOut: Likes to pepper his speech with movie quotes, like when he quoted ''Film/{{Ghostbusters|1984}}'' to describe Elliot's worthiness for a summer job.
* SitcomArchNemesis: For Justin, who he believes lacks sufficient respect for old-school gamers and gaming. Probably not all the time, but certainly during game nights.
* StoutStrength: Not really apparent in the main story but [[http://www.egscomics.com/egsnp/gam-11 his appearance]] during the non-canon Grace-A-Monsters arc shows that he's got a decent amount of muscle and WordOfGod is that this part of his appearance is canon.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Luke]]
!!Luke

[[quoteright:136:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1411153256_2014_09_19c129_wasntkidding.png]]

A freshman in college and former ''Magickal Gatherings'' nerd with a PowerTattoo that gives him AuraVision. Shows up in "Squirrel Prophet Part 2" to get a look at Justin's aura, and ends up competing in the tournament.
----
* AuraVision: The ability granted by his magic mark. He's not precisely sure what it does, just that it lets him see auras, that people with powers like his have slightly larger auras and that he can apparently -- in usual circumstances, at least -- tell if someone has a mark or not ([[spoiler: he has not learned to recognize the difference between someone who has a mark and someone who ''had'' a mark yet]]). He doesn't really know what it means when he gets blinded from trying to look at [[spoiler:Tedd]].
-->'''Luke:''' Was that even an aura? Was it from that guy? Or that pink haired guy? Or something I can't see? Oh my god we're dealing with magic ''it could totally be something I can't see''.
* BerserkButton: He was originally planning to lose his first game as fast as possible without making it obvious that he wasn't trying to win. [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1876 That went out the window when Rich called his fairy gay]].
* EatingTheEyeCandy: "''[[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2004 Abs...]]''"
* HeroicWannabe: Camdin convinced Luke that they were meant to be superheroes (not hard considering a real superhero had recently surfaced and a bunch of people had woken up with inexplicable magic powers). Luke becomes rapidly disillusioned with that idea when no supervillains or monster attacks showed up for them to stop and he saw some really scary auras. Justin explaining what was really going on plus Camdin starting to act like a {{Jerkass}} were just the final nails in the coffin.
* NotDistractedByTheSexy: He disapproves of Slave Leia in ''Return of the Jedi'', because he finds it pointless and an insult to her character. Grace uses the fact that he didn't drool all over her to prove to Justin that he's gay.
* PlayerArchetypes: In standard ''Magic'' terminology, he's a Spike, the guy who plays to win. He's something of a retired example (so to speak) due to problems with his old comic shop, but even when he's trying to lose, he ends up constructing a powerhouse deck almost by accident that [[CurbStompBattle completely curb-stomps Rich]] when he decides to play for real.
* PowerTattoo: He has one of the random tattoos Pandora's been handing out. His gives him AuraVision.
* StraightGay: Justin wasn't even certain he ''was'' gay until he saw Luke's reaction to his abs.
* SupernaturalSensitivity: He can tell who has magic powers via the aura they give off. Unlike some other magic detectors, they don't have to be actively using magic for Luke to see them and he can use it to see uryuom abilities, however he can't tell what spells they actually have, only vaguely how strong they are.
* WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway: This is how Luke feels about his AuraVision, at least in terms of Camdin's idealized "We're superheroes!" belief. Luke points out that if he really was supposed to be a superhero, his power is basically useless for fighting crime. All he can do is see how hard his ass will get kicked before it actually happens.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sam]]
!!Sam

[[quoteright:151:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1416399598_2014_11_19c162_sosmooth.png]]

One of the regulars at the comic book shop. He's recognizable by his excessive number of pockets and his tiny little beard. Turns out he's actually a transgender man.
----
* AscendedExtra: Not Sam himself, but rather his appearance was originally that of a nameless extra before Dan decided he liked it and made it Sam's. It's to the point that he has his own arc called The Secret of Sam.
* BeardedLady: Grace mistakes him for one in a flashback. When he catches her staring at him, she apologizes and innocently says "It's just I thought only ''boys'' could grow be--" before he shuts her up. It's later revealed to be fake.
* CrazyPrepared: He really likes his pockets. After the reveal that he's trans, it becomes clear that they're at least partly to hide his any feminine figure he might have.
-->'''Tedd:''' What ''do'' you have in those pockets?\\
'''Sam:''' Anything I could possibly need ever.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Apparently figured out that something was different about himself at an early age, but assumed, due to misconceptions and poor information, that he was just a lesbian, which was why he felt so masculine. He only figured the truth out ''after'' he had already come out as a lesbian, and he implies that the experience was rather trying, hence why he doesn't want to come out again. He realizes that his [[spoiler:magic mark]] means that he'll have to do so eventually, but he's still trying to put it off for as long as he can, in part because [[spoiler:he doesn't want to be the first person whose coming out involves magic]].
* GenderBender: [[spoiler:[[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/tsos-28 Has apparently]] gained a magic mark that allows him to alter his physical form and become biologically male]].
* GenderBlenderName: Invoked. He gives Tedd some quick advice on choosing a less masculine name (Tess) on the assumption that he's male-to-female transgender.
* KeepingSecretsSucks: Eventually he's actually glad that Grace ended up learning about him being trans, since he had literally ''no one'' else he could talk to about it.
* PowerTattoo: [[spoiler:[[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/tsos-28 Pandora]] gave him a magic mark that allows him to transform into a body that matches his true self and back as one of her last acts before being reset]].
* StupidSexyFriend: He apparently finds Grace attractive, though he seems to know that she wouldn't reciprocate.
* TransEqualsGay: He knew that he liked girls early on, and due to lack of information and misconceptions about lesbians he had when he was younger, assumed that since [[ButchLesbian he was attracted to girls, it made sense that he was masculine]], only to realize the full story later due to being drawn to male roles in plays and cosplay. Part of why he keeps it secret is to avoid having to go through coming out "again".

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rich]]
!!Rich

[[quoteright:141:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1410956313_2014_09_17c127_littleprogress.png]]

A regular at the comic shop. Close friends with Larry.
----
* AbhorrentAdmirer: Not realizing Tedd was a guy, Rich tried flirting with him, which made Tedd incredibly uncomfortable. Rich did not stop even when Tedd was being obvious about his discomfort.
* CasanovaWannabe: He thinks he's a hotshot, but he's not.
* ConspiracyTheorist: Alien conspiracy to be precise. The irony is that he's close to the truth but misses the point: aliens do exist but the real menace is a magical/mythical one; he suspects Tedd of being an alien but doesn't notice anything about his girlfriend.
* EveryoneHasStandards: He isn't the most pleasant person to be around, but even he is appalled by animal sacrifice, and he goes from determined to prove Ellen is an overconfident GameMaster to rescuing the kidnapped chicken of their roleplaying game.
* FatIdiot: He's fat, and thinks he's smarter than he is.
* HeteronormativeCrusader: Constantly throws out homophobic slurs, and even tells Larry that it would matter to him if he was gay.
-->'''Rich''': What if you hit on me or something?\\
'''Larry''': That's really not something you'd need to worry about.
* {{Jerkass}}: [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1081 Right from]] [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1082 his first appearance]].
* KnowNothingKnowItAll: He's a lot dumber than he thinks he is. Aside from his insistence that all the weirdness in Moperville is an alien conspiracy rather than a magical one, he also makes constant assumptions about people that he is convinced are right. Case in point in the "Who is Ellen?" NP storyline where he assumes that Ellen is a fake nerd while Nanase must be a super-nerd RPG expert, when actually Ellen has (second-hand) role-playing experience and Nanase has no idea what's going on.
* StrawMisogynist: Goes on an unseen tangent rant about Susan's feminist views, which are well after her own transition from a StrawFeminist to a more normal one, calling them "man-hating dumbness".
* ThoseTwoGuys: With Larry at first, but rifts have started forming between them during The Squirrel Prophet storyline.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Larry]]
!!Larry

[[quoteright:150:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1407211928_2014_08_05c097_bwuh_1.png]]

A regular at the comic shop. Close friends with Rich.
----
* AbhorrentAdmirer: Albeit not quite as much as Rich, in that at least he was capable of, and did, learn better.
* AmbiguouslyBi: He admits he still thinks Tedd is cute after learning he's a guy... although, it's still [[DudeLooksLikeALady Tedd]]. The ambiguity is dropped, at least to the audience, when he outright says he's bi in a Q&A comic. No word on whether he's realised that in canon yet.
* CasanovaWannabe: Thought he was all that, but other people told him he's not. At least, he's improving, which is more than can be said for his friend Rich.
* EveryoneHasStandards: Even before [[TookALevelInKindness acknowledging his poor behavior and working on fixing it]], he is disturbed by Rich's flagrant homophobic behavior.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Potentially. While he was exactly as rude as Rich in their first appearance together, he's at least shown since that he can be taught. And there's something strangely admirable about the fact that [[spoiler:he wasn't turned off pursuing Tedd romantically when he came to the conclusion he was a gender-switching alien]].
* ThoseTwoGuys: With Rich at first, but rifts have started forming between them during The Squirrel Prophet storyline.
* TookALevelInKindness: During the card game tournament, he takes all the pointers on his bad behavior to heart and not only apologizes directly to Sarah and Tedd for it, but promises to work on bettering himself so he doesn't do stuff like that again.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kitty]]
!!Kitty

[[quoteright:155:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1485483418_np20170125_escape_61.png]]

A girl with a fixation on cat girls.
----
* BlatantLies: She vehemently denies having any interest in cat girls beyond a purely aesthetic one. That's even after discussing her totally-platonic interests gets her visibly hot around the collar.
* MeaningfulName: Her affinity for cat girl spells might be name-based, which is why Pandora missed her (though Pandora admits that she could have developed an affinity for cat girl spells as a result of her name rather than an inherent affinity and marks her).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Felix]]
!!Felix

[[quoteright:133:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1488213216_np20170227_escape_75.png]]

Kitty's goth friend.
----
* CatGirl: Kitty's first use of her new spell transforms them, and they like it.
* {{Fetish}}: They want to be Kitty's pet cat girl. Even though Pandora notes that they have gender dysphoria, the specifications of their fantasy clearly goes a lot deeper than that.
* PowerTattoo: Pandora is implied to have given them a magic mark, though we don't yet know what ability it grants.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Blaike]]
!!Blaike Raven

[[quoteright:150:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1468111630_20160708_s3_003_f.png]]

A wandering adventurer, Pandora's mortal lover, and the father of Adrian Raven.
----
* ItsTheJourneyThatCounts: A firm believer of this, he rejected Pandora's offer to help because that would ruin his quest for him. This is what led to Pandora following him around and sparking an interest in him.
* MayflyDecemberRomance: He was in one with the immortal Pandora, which led to the birth of their son Adrian Raven.
* MoralityChainBeyondTheGrave: After Adrian does some CallingTheOldManOut with his mother, Pandora is forced to reassess her actions. Being TheFairFolk, immortals have trouble grasping human morality already, and having lived longer than two centuries, Pandora finds it even more difficult and starts basing her morality on what she thinks Blaike would have wanted.
* TheLostLenore: He was married to Pandora. While the problem of a MayflyDecemberRomance troubled her, she felt it wouldn't be a real problem since she would be at about the right age to reset when he succumbed to old age, at which point she could continue to be part of her son's family. But Blaike ultimately died young, trying and failing to save a group of travelers from a monster. As a result, Pandora did not reset, and now suffers from WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity.
* ManlyFacialHair: He's a fearless adventurer who willingly marched blind into the unknown, and he's shown wearing a full beard.
* PlotTriggeringDeath: ''Everything'' to do with Pandora and her son Adrian extends from his tragic death.
* PosthumousCharacter: Killed by a rampaging monster, he's long dead centuries before the events of the comic take place.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: Only in three strips of the entire comic, but he's the reason Pandora went past the DespairEventHorizon.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Camdin]]
!!Camdin

[[quoteright:190:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1545625155_1816_tsos_19_christmas.png]]

One of Luke's friends, who was also marked by Pandora. First appears in "The Secret of Sam".
----
* BaitAndSwitch: [[spoiler:Camdin is set up to be the "Smoke" character that appears in The Secret of Sam. Then the camera cuts to him on the other side of town eating a sandwich.]]
* ChewingTheScenery: His body language is extremely exaggerated. He practically moves in rubber hose animation.
* DirtyCoward: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-043 Based on his apology]] and the conversation, it's likely Camdin was mostly in a blind panic when he ran. It's clear he isn't happy with his reaction, but the situation was clearly caused by his naivety and overeagerness. What isn't known is whether Camdin was running or using smoke powers and whether or not he could knock someone down in smoke form (and his powers can't presumably be used to turn other people into smoke or drag them to safety anyways so he was powerless to help Luke regardless). He clearly didn't mean to knock Luke down, but he did abandon him. [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/balance-065 Then we finally see what happened.]]
* EarlyBirdCameo: [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2014-03-31 Camdin's mark]] appeared in the comic almost five years before he did.
* HeroicWannabe: When he and a few other people gained magic powers shortly after Cheerleadra appeared in Moperville, Camdin was convinced they'd been chosen by a higher power to be {{superhero}}es. He doesn't like the idea that they were basically picked at random.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Based on the look on his face, he's really not happy he knocked Luke down and "left him to die".
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: When talking to Luke about their close encounter, he barely moves as fluidly as normal and stands stiff with shock after Luke verbally beats him down.
* PermaStubble: He has a blot of SolidCartoonFacialStubble at all times.
* PersonalityPowers: He moves like fluid and turns into smoke.
* SmugSnake: All in all, Camdin is [[HeroicWannabe nowhere near as "heroic" or logical as he thinks he is]]. He dismisses Justin as an information source almost ''immediately'' on the grounds that only [[KnowNothingKnowItAll "clueless people"]] would just call the magical beings that [[SuperEmpowering were giving people powers]] "Immortals." One [[DramaticIrony wonders]] how his superhero narrative would have held up to the revelation that the "proper name" he was looking for was ''[[TheFairFolk fairies]].'' He also points out to Luke in the ''most'' condescending way possible that in a world with countless flavors of shapeshifting magic, [[JerkassHasAPoint Luke can't guarantee]] that Grace ''isn’t'' Cheerleadra, despite looking and acting nothing like her. Camdin's attempts at leadership culminate in him [[spoiler: completely ignoring [[SensorCharacter Luke's]] warnings to approach two girls ''in a deserted parking lot after midnight'' looking for answers, only to [[DirtyCoward cut and run]] as soon as said girls displayed their powers in self-defense, leaving Luke behind.]] Unsurprisingly, Luke [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere is not at all interested]] in listening to him after that fiasco.
* SuperSmoke: Thanks to his magic mark, he's able to transform into a smoke-like form.
* VerbalTic: He exclusively calls women "chicks". [[spoiler:This is the first sign that "Smoke" wasn't him.]]
[[/folder]]

----
[[redirect:Characters/ElGoonishShive]]
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* DCupDistress: Went from being bullied for being tall to being [[BuxomIsBetter an object of desire]] for boys in junior high once she started developing. Unfortunately for her, this wasn't a positive development.

to:

* DCupDistress: Went from being bullied for being tall to being [[BuxomIsBetter [[BuxomBeautyStandard an object of desire]] for boys in junior high once she started developing. Unfortunately for her, this wasn't a positive development.

Added: 705

Changed: 347

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--> '''Noah''': Have you ever heard of a television show called "The Simpsons?"
--> '''Elliot''': I am aware of it.

to:

--> '''Noah''': Have you ever heard of a television show called "The Simpsons?"
-->
Simpsons?"\\
'''Elliot''': I am aware of it.it.
** [[spoiler:The ambiguity is finally dropped [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/brother-014 here]], where it's revealed that he's a human-uryuom seyunolu.]]



* BizarreAlienSenses: [[spoiler:He has the same feedback sense as Grace, which lets him pick up details from his surrounding. Unlike Grace though, he doesn't seem to be able to turn it off.]]
* BlackBeadEyes: Well, black bead ''eye''. One of his eyes [[spoiler:takes from his uryuom heritage.]]



* FriendlessBackground: Wants friends, but has difficulty making them because he is shy and has poor social skills.

to:

* FriendlessBackground: Wants friends, but has difficulty making them because he is shy and has poor social skills. He also hated having to lie about [[spoiler:his antennae and BizarreAlienSenses]], which made him come off as even more of a loner to other kids.



* HalfHumanHybrid: [[spoiler:He's at least part human and part uryuom.]]



* PeekABangs: One of his eyes is covered by his hair at nearly all times.

to:

* PeekABangs: One of his eyes is covered by his hair at nearly all times. [[spoiler:It's because the eye that's always hidden is an almond-shaped uryuom eye. Presumably the few times both eyes have been seen, it's either shapeshifted away or hidden with an illusion.]]


Added DiffLines:

* SensoryOverload: [[spoiler:His antennae give him feedback on his surroundings to a minute extreme, which makes him uncomfortable in crowds. He describes everything as being "loud".]]
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Added DiffLines:

* EveryoneHasStandards: He isn't the most pleasant person to be around, but even he is appalled by animal sacrifice, and he goes from determined to prove Ellen is an overconfident GameMaster to rescuing the kidnapped chicken of their roleplaying game.

Added: 243

Changed: 30

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Noah refers to himself as "Noah Raven" in the latest comic.


!!Noah

to:

!!Noah
!!Noah Raven



Melissa's androgynous boyfriend who rarely uses contractions. An orphan, Noah appears to be the ward of Mr. Raven and made friends with Elliot during the Swedekea arc.

to:

Melissa's androgynous boyfriend who rarely uses contractions. An orphan, Noah appears to be is the ward adopted son of Mr. Raven and made friends with Elliot during the Swedekea arc.


Added DiffLines:

* UnknownRelative: As the adopted son of Adrian Raven, Noah is [[spoiler:Diane's brother and Susan's distant uncle, as well as distantly related to Tedd]]. It's not by blood, but he still introduces himself to [[spoiler:Diane as her brother]].
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Shes Got Legs is currently a disambiguation


* ShesGotLegs: [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-01-22 And she knows how to use them]].

to:

* ShesGotLegs: LegFocus: She exploits this trope by [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2009-01-22 And she knows how wearing short skirts that show her legs to use them]].boost ratings]].

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