History Characters / SwordArtOnlineAbridged

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[EvilInc RECT Progress]] ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) [[PeripheryDemographic Faction Leaders]] [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[DeepSouth Salamanders]] ([[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[CloudCuckoolander [=Deezgunz=]]] [[TomTheDarkLord and Keith]]), [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Squeaker]], [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]], [[Mr. and Mrs. Kirigaya]], [[SadistTeacher Kazuto and Suguha's Grandfather]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[EvilInc RECT Progress]] ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) [[PeripheryDemographic Faction Leaders]] [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[DeepSouth Salamanders]] ([[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[CloudCuckoolander [=Deezgunz=]]] [[TomTheDarkLord and Keith]]), [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Squeaker]], [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]], [[SadistTeacher Kazuto and Suguha's Grandfather]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[EvilInc RECT Progress]] ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) [[PeripheryDemographic Faction Leaders]] [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[DeepSouth Salamanders]] ([[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[CloudCuckoolander [=Deezgunz=]]] [[TomTheDarkLord and Keith]]), [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Squeaker]], [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[EvilInc RECT Progress]] ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) [[PeripheryDemographic Faction Leaders]] [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]] [[CloudCuckoolander [=Deezgunz=]]] [[TomTheDarkLord and Keith]], [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Squeaker]], [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[EvilInc RECT Progress]] ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) [[PeripheryDemographic Faction Leaders]] [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]] [[[[CloudCuckoolander [=Deezgunz=]]] and [[TomTheDarkLord Keith]]]][[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Squeaker]], [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[EvilInc RECT Progress]] ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) [[PeripheryDemographic Faction Leaders]] [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Squeaker]], [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom SAO Devs]] ([[IncompetenceInc Bethesda and Argus]], [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy Kayaba Akihiko]]) [[RagtagBunchOfMisfits Moonlit Black Cats]] ([[KidWithTheLeash Keita]], [[TheMillstone Sachi]], [[ArtificialStupidity Gary]], [[TutorialFailure Charlie]], [[WelcomeToCorneria Derrick]]) [[BigBadWannabe Titan's Hand]] ([[BreakThemByTalking Rosalia]], [[AllMenArePerverts Rosalia's Minions]]) [[BewareTheSillyOnes Golden Apple]] ([[MissingStepsPlan Yolko]], [[DeadpanSnarker Kains]], [[ProperlyParanoid Schmitt]], [[EvilIsPetty Grimlock]], [[PosthumousCharacter Griselda]]) [[AdaptationalWimp Laughing Coffin]] ([[HolyHitman [=PoH=]]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning [=Red-Eyed XaXa=]]], [[CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon Johnny Black]]) [[RedShirtArmy Aincrad Liberation Front]] ([[InsaneTrollLogic Kibaou]], [[TheNeidermeyer General Corvatz]], [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter Yulier]], [[IronicName Thinker]]) [[OnlySaneMan Knights of the Blood Oath]] ([[RedBaron Heathcliff]], [[{{Fanboy}} Kuradeel]], [[TheRoleplayer Godfree]]) [[BeleagueredBoss Diabel]], [[GreaterScopeVillain Fluffles]], [[BestialityIsDepraved Nishida]], [[ExtremeDoormat Sasha]], [[AxCrazy "The King Of Ashes"]], [[TooDumbToLive Assorted SAO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom SAO Devs]] ([[IncompetenceInc Bethesda and Argus]], [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy Kayaba Akihiko]]) [[RagtagBunchOfMisfits Moonlit Black Cats]] ([[KidWithTheLeash Keita]], [[TheMillstone Sachi]], [[ArtificialStupidity Gary]], [[TutorialFailure Charlie]], [[WelcomeToCorneria Derrick]]) [[BigBadWannabe Titan's Hand]] ([[BreakThemByTalking Rosalia]], [[AllMenArePerverts Rosalia's Minions]]) [[BewareTheSillyOnes Golden Apple]] ([[MissingStepsPlan Yolko]], [[DeadpanSnarker Kains]], [[ProperlyParanoid Schmitt]], [[EvilIsPetty Grimlock]], [[PosthumousCharacter Griselda]]) [[AdaptationalWimp Laughing Coffin]] ([[HolyHitman [=PoH=]]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning [=Red-Eyed XaXa=]]], [[CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon Johnny Black]]) [[RedShirtArmy Aincrad Liberation Front]] ([[InsaneTrollLogic Kibaou]], [[TheNeidermeyer General Corvatz]], [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter Yulier]], [[IronicName Thinker]]) [[OnlySaneMan Knights of the Blood Oath]] ([[RedBaron Heathcliff]], [[{{Fanboy}} Kuradeel]], [[TheRoleplayer Godfree]]) [[BeleagueredBoss Diabel]], [[GreaterScopeVillain Fluffles]], [[ExtremeDoormat Sasha]], [[AxCrazy "The King Of Ashes"]], [[TooDumbToLive Assorted SAO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[EvilInc RECT Progress]] ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) [[PeripheryDemographic Faction Leaders]] [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] [[BackFromTheBrink RECT Progress]] ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) [[PeripheryDemographic Faction Leaders]] [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] SAO Devs ([[IncompetenceInc Bethesda and Argus]], [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy Kayaba Akihiko]]) [[RagtagBunchOfMisfits Moonlit Black Cats]] ([[KidWithTheLeash Keita]], [[TheMillstone Sachi]], [[ArtificialStupidity Gary]], [[TutorialFailure Charlie]], [[WelcomeToCorneria Derrick]]) [[BigBadWannabe Titan's Hand]] ([[BreakThemByTalking Rosalia]], [[AllMenArePerverts Rosalia's Minions]]) [[BewareTheSillyOnes Golden Apple]] ([[MissingStepsPlan Yolko]], [[DeadpanSnarker Kains]], [[ProperlyParanoid Schmitt]], [[EvilIsPetty Grimlock]], [[PosthumousCharacter Griselda]]) [[AdaptationalWimp Laughing Coffin]] ([[HolyHitman [=PoH=]]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning [=Red-Eyed XaXa=]]], [[CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon Johnny Black]]) [[RedShirtArmy Aincrad Liberation Front]] ([[InsaneTrollLogic Kibaou]], [[TheNeidermeyer General Corvatz]], [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter Yulier]], [[IronicName Thinker]]) [[OnlySaneMan Knights of the Blood Oath]] ([[RedBaron Heathcliff]], [[{{Fanboy}} Kuradeel]], [[TheRoleplayer Godfree]]) [[BeleagueredBoss Diabel]], [[GreaterScopeVillain Fluffles]], [[ExtremeDoormat Sasha]], [[AxCrazy "The King Of Ashes"]], [[TooDumbToLive Assorted SAO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] RECT Progress ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) Faction Leaders [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) [[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] SAO Devs ([[IncompetenceInc Bethesda and Argus]], [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy Kayaba Akihiko]]) Moonlit Black Cats ([[KidWithTheLeash Keita]], [[TheMillstone Sachi]], [[ArtificialStupidity Gary]], [[TutorialFailure Charlie]], [[WelcomeToCorneria Derrick]]) Titan's Hand ([[BreakThemByTalking Rosalia]], [[AllMenArePerverts Rosalia's Minions]]) Golden Apple ([[MissingStepsPlan Yolko]], [[DeadpanSnarker Kains]], [[ProperlyParanoid Schmitt]], [[EvilIsPetty Grimlock]], [[PosthumousCharacter Griselda]]) Laughing Coffin ([[HolyHitman [=PoH=]]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning [=Red-Eyed XaXa=]]], [[CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon Johnny Black]]) Aincrad Liberation Front ([[InsaneTrollLogic Kibaou]], [[TheNeidermeyer General Corvatz]], [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter Yulier]], [[IronicName Thinker]]) Knights of the Blood Oath ([[RedBaron Heathcliff]], [[{{Fanboy}} Kuradeel]], [[TheRoleplayer Godfree]]) Other SAO Players, [[BeleagueredBoss Diabel]], [[GreaterScopeVillain Fluffles]], [[ExtremeDoormat Sasha]], [[AxCrazy "The King Of Ashes"]], [[TooDumbToLive Assorted SAO Players]]) [[/labelnote]]
* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] RECT Progress ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) Faction Leaders [[FantasticRacism (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]], [[MeanCharacterNiceActor General Pantysmasher]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Cazmer]], [[OccidentalOtaku Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]], [[HeroWorshipper Kirito Prime]]) Others ([[FauxHorrific The Math Tree]], [[LostInCharacter Assorted ALO Players]]) [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] SAO Devs ([[IncompetenceInc Bethesda and Argus]], ([[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy Kayaba Akihiko]]) Moonlit Black Cats ([[KidWithTheLeash Keita]], [[TheMillstone Sachi]], [[ArtificialStupidity Gary]], [[TutorialFailure Charlie]], [[WelcomeToCorneria Derrick]]) Titan's Hand ([[BreakThemByTalking Rosalia]], [[AllMenArePerverts Rosalia's Minions]]) Golden Apple ([[MissingStepsPlan Yolko]], [[DeadpanSnarker Kains]], [[ProperlyParanoid Schmitt]], [[EvilIsPetty Grimlock]], [[PosthumousCharacter Griselda]]) Laughing Coffin ([[HolyHitman [=PoH=]]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning [=Red-Eyed XaXa=]]], [[CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon Johnny Black]]) Aincrad Liberation Front ([[InsaneTrollLogic Kibaou]], [[TheNeidermeyer General Corvatz]], [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter Yulier]], [[IronicName Thinker]]) Knights of the Blood Oath ([[RedBaron Heathcliff]], [[{{Fanboy}} Kuradeel]], [[TheRoleplayer Godfree]]) Other SAO Players, [[BeleagueredBoss Diabel]], [[GreaterScopeVillain Fluffles]], [[ExtremeDoormat Sasha]], [[AxCrazy "The King Of Ashes"]], [[TooDumbToLive Assorted SAO Players]]) [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Moonlit Black Cats ([[KidWithTheLeash Keita]], [[TheMillstone Sachi]], [[ArtificialStupidity Gary]], [[TutorialFailure Charlie]], [[WelcomeToCorneria Derrick]]) Titan's Hand ([[BreakThemByTalking Rosalia]], [[AllMenArePerverts Rosalia's Minions]]) Golden Apple ([[MissingStepsPlan Yolko]], [[DeadpanSnarker Kains]], [[ProperlyParanoid Schmitt]], [[EvilIsPetty Grimlock]], [[PosthumousCharacter Griselda]]) Laughing Coffin ([[HolyHitman [=PoH=]]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning [=Red-Eyed XaXa=]]], [[CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon Johnny Black]]) Aincrad Liberation Front ([[InsaneTrollLogic Kibaou]], [[TheNeidermeyer General Corvatz]], [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter Yulier]], [[IronicName Thinker]]) Knights of the Blood Oath ([[RedBaron Heathcliff]], [[{{Fanboy}} Kuradeel]], [[TheRoleplayer Godfree]]) Other SAO Players ([[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy Kayaba Akihiko]], [[BeleagueredBoss Diabel]], [[GreaterScopeVillain Fluffles]], [[ExtremeDoormat Sasha]], [[AxCrazy "The King Of Ashes"]], [[TooDumbToLive Assorted SAO Players]]) [[IncompetenceInc Bethesda and Argus]] [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedMajorCharacters Major Characters]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Introduced in season 1 ([[MaskOfSanity Asuna]], [[EmbarrassingNickname Klein]], [[HonestJohnsDealership Tiffany]], [[MotorMouth Silica]], [[{{Hikikomori}} Lizbeth]], [[GrewBeyondTheirProgramming Yui]]) Introduced in season 2 ([[AnnoyingYoungerSibiling Leafa]], [[NiceGuy Recon]])[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedMajorCharacters Major Characters]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Introduced in season 1 ([[MaskOfSanity Asuna]], [[EmbarrassingNickname Klein]], [[HonestJohnDealership Tiffany]], [[MotorMouth Silica]], [[Hikikomori Lizbeth]], [[GrewBeyondTheirProgramming Yui]]) Introduced in season 2 ([[AnnoyingYoungerSibiling Leafa]], [[NiceGuy Recon]])[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] RECT Progress ([[SmugSuper Oberon]], [[AbusiveParents Shouzou Yuuki]], [[KarmicTransformation Shoji Yanai and Kyle]], [[LostFoodGrievance Trisha]], [[DisposableIntern Sean]]) Faction Leaders (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene, General Pantysmasher, Prince Cazmer, Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan, Kirito Prime) Others (The Math Tree, Assorted ALO Players) [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedMajorCharacters Major Characters]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Introduced in season 1 (Asuna, Klein, Tiffany, Silica, Lisbeth, Yui) Introduced in season 2 (Leafa, Recon)[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Moonlit Black Cats (Keita, Sachi, Gary, Charlie, Derrick) Titan's Hand (Rosalia, Rosalia's Minions) Golden Apple (Yolko, Kains, Schmitt, Grimlock, Griselda) Laughing Coffin ([=PoH=], [=Red-Eyed XaXa=], Johnny Black) Aincrad Liberation Front (Kibaou, General Corvatz, Yulier, Thinker) Knights of the Blood Oath (Heathcliff, Kuradeel, Godfree) Other SAO Players (Kayaba Akihiko, Diabel, Fluffles, Sasha, "The King Of Ashes", Assorted SAO Players) Bethesda and Argus [[/labelnote]]
* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters Introduced In Season Two]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] RECT Progress (Oberon, Shouzou Yuuki, Shoji Yanai and Kyle, Trisha, Sean) Faction Leaders (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene, General Pantysmasher, Prince Cazmer, Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan, Kirito Prime) Others (The Math Tree, Assorted ALO Players) [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedMajorCharacters Major Characters]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Introduced in season 1 (Asuna, Klein, Tiffany, Silica, Lisbeth, Yui, Heathcliff) Introduced in season 2 (Leafa, Recon)[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Moonlit Black Cats (Keita, Sachi, Gary, Charlie, Derrick) Titan's Hand (Rosalia, Rosalia's Minions) Golden Apple (Yolko, Kains, Schmitt, Grimlock, Griselda) Laughing Coffin ([=PoH=], [=Red-Eyed XaXa=], Johnny Black) Aincrad Liberation Front (Kibaou, General Corvatz, Yulier, Thinker) Knights of the Blood Oath (Kuradeel, Godfree) Other SAO Players (Kayaba Akihiko, Diabel, Fluffles, Sasha, "The King Of Ashes", Assorted SAO Players) Bethesda and Argus [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters Introduced In Season One]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Moonlit Black Cats (Keita, Sachi, Gary, Charlie, Derrick) Titan's Hand (Rosalia, Rosalia's Minions) Golden Apple (Yolko, Kains, Schmitt, Grimlock, Griselda) Laughing Coffin (PoH, Red-Eyed XaXa, Johnny Black) Aincrad Liberation Front (Kibaou, General Corvatz, Yulier, Thinker) Knights of the Blood Oath (Kuradeel, Godfree) Other SAO Players (Kayaba Akihiko, Diabel, Fluffles, Sasha, "The King Of Ashes", Assorted SAO Players) Bethesda and Argus [[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonOneCharacters IntroducedInSeasonOne]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] Moonlit Black Cats (Keita, Sachi, Gary, Charlie, Derrick) Titan's Hand (Rosalia, Rosalia's Minions) Golden Apple (Yolko, Kains, Schmitt, Grimlock, Griselda) Laughing Coffin (PoH, Red-Eyed XaXa, Johnny Black) Aincrad Liberation Front (Kibaou, General Corvatz, Yulier, Thinker) Knights of the Blood Oath (Kuradeel, Godfree) Other SAO Players (Kayaba Akihiko, Diabel, Fluffles, Sasha, "The King Of Ashes", Assorted SAO Players) Bethesda and Argus [[/labelnote]]
* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedSeasonTwoCharacters IntroducedInSeasonTwo]][[labelnote:Click to Expand]] RECT Progress (Oberon, Shouzou Yuuki, Shoji Yanai and Kyle, Trisha, Sean) Faction Leaders (Queen Sakuya and King Eugene, General Pantysmasher, Prince Cazmer, Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan, Kirito Prime) Others (The Math Tree, Assorted ALO Players) [[/labelnote]]

[[foldercontrol]]

!Main Characters

!!Introduced in Season 1

* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedKirito Kazuto Kirigaya / Kirito / xVx_K1r1t0_xVx_KillMe]]
[[index]]

[[folder:Asuna Yuuki / Asuna / Titania]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pretend.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Hey, at least I '''pretend''' to be nice to people!"'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' [=Misanda=] (Episode 2), Carrie "[=xbubblemunkyx=]" Johnston (all other appearances)\\\

->'''Asuna:''' You know what Mom says -- doesn't matter if you're wrong, just dig in your heels, and ''never'' show weakness!\\\

Kirito's main LoveInterest, who rose from a gifted newbie to become a high-ranking member of the Knights of the Blood Oath able to match Kirito in stats and skill. She's something of a snarky jerk herself, with a temper to match, an occasional [[HeroicComedicSociopath sociopathic]] streak, and [[InnocentBigot unintentionally racist]] tendencies, but unlike [[JerkAss Kirito]] she's [[MaskOfSanity better at hiding it.]]\\\
She spends Season 2 in the captivity of Noboyuki Sugou, who intends to marry her and make her a submissive housewife, but she will not take that lying down and tries to make his plan as difficult as possible.
----
* AdaptationalBadass: While the canon version of Asuna wasn't exactly a pushover, the abridged series amps it up by removing or altering her more DamselInDistress moments:
** In Episode 8, her fleeing from Kuradeel was actually her manipulating Kirito into fighting in her place in order to keep her hands clean and for personal satisfaction.
** In Episode 9, the canon version of her fight with Kuradeel had her being tricked into sparing him, which forced Kirito to kill him instead. While in the abridged series, she subjects Kuradeel to a full-fledged CurbStompBattle, and kills him herself. Notably, this is in [[TruerToTheText keeping with the original]] ''SAO'' web novel, which also had Asuna kill Kuradeel herself.
** In Episode 12, she's far less submissive to Sugou. When he comes to visit and attempt to seduce her, rather than giving a "you'll never get away with this" speech, she proceeds to [[SpitefulSpit spit on his face]].
** In Episode 14, she bites Sugou when he tries to get too close to her, and [[CaughtMonologuing when he gets too caught up in his own speech]] manages to slip away and beat down a few guards in an escape attempt. By Episode 15, she effectively made her cage a CardboardPrison, with the guards [[TheDreaded terrified of her]]. It's only in Episode 16 that she attempts to actually escape, and that's only because [[NoChallengeEqualsNoSatisfaction they're giving her a wide berth to avoid being eaten]].
* AdaptationalJerkass: Like Kirito, she is shown to be a lot darker than her canon counterpart. See BeneathTheMask, HeroicComedicSociopath, and {{Yandere}} for more details.
* AdaptationalWimp: Asuna's ridiculous feat of breaking the dexterity speed limit to save Kirito is removed, and instead explained that Asuna had been following Kirito the whole time. Then again, the rest of the scene balances it out; her subsequent fight with Kuradeel is listed under AdaptationalBadass because she kills Kuradeel herself instead of being tricked with a fake surrender.
* AntiAdvice: She lives by the words of her mother about never backing down even when you're wrong. She briefly wonders whether that played a part in her parents' divorce, but refuses to think too much about it.
* ArentYouGoingToRavishMe: In episode 9, after dinner with Kirito, he's pretending to be a world-weary man for noticing the [[UnresolvedSexualTension awkwardness in the air between them]], only for Asuna to dim the lights and reveal that she's already in her underwear, which stuns Kirito.
-->'''Asuna:''' Why are your pants still on? We doing this, or what?
* AxCrazy: While the original Asuna was a bit of a ClingyJealousGirl, this incarnation is batshit insane.
* BadassInDistress: While she may be Sugou's [[DamselInDistress prisoner]] like in canon, her flagrant disrespect for him and frequent (and violent) escape attempts makes perfectly clear that Sugou's admin privileges are the only reason he's managed to keep her for so long.
* BeneathTheMask: She's not much better than [[HeroicComedicSociopath Kirito]] in terms of morality; she's just a lot better at [[MaskOfSanity hiding it]].
* BetterManhandleTheMurderWeapon: She's quite casual with handling the knife that killed Yolko, although the 'gets-blamed-for-murder' part of the trope is ultimately averted since SAO is a virtual reality game that doesn't have blood or fingerprints programmed in. [[spoiler:And Yolko didn't actually die.]]
* BigScrewedUpFamily: Her dad is money-hungry enough to consider euthanasia when she's in a coma to avoid hospital bills, her mom was never willing to compromise and caused the two to get a divorce, and Asuna herself took after both in the worst ways.
* BunnyEarsLawyer: See her entries for GeniusDitz and HopelessWithTech. Then consider that she still gets to be a high-rank commander in the Knights of the Blood.
* CharacterDevelopment: Like Kirito she undergoes development, with her false relationship with Kirito turning into genuine love which reaches its climax when she willingly [[HeroicSacrifice sacrifices herself]] to save him. Her {{yandere}} aspects also get dropped in the later episodes and she acts more like a normal girlfriend.
* CharacterExaggeration:
** Her debut episode amps up her canon counterpart's HopelessWithTech tendencies to ridiculous levels, thinking bread can be equipped and "DPS" is a sex thing. Though it gets dropped when she next returns.
** Asuna's clinginess for Kirito has gone from being a ClingyJealousGirl with some {{tsundere}} aspects, to a murderous {{yandere}} who won't let anyone else near Kirito. Lizbeth learned this the hard way.
** While she was already a bit of a DefiantCaptive, this version turns her "you won't get away with this" speech into a [[ToThePain "You will die screaming and I will enjoy it"]] speech, and her escape attempts are so frequent this time around that she has effectively become TheDreaded to Sugou's minions.
* CharacterizationMarchesOn:
** In her first appearance in episode 2, her main character trait is that she's a HopelessWithTech noob at the game. In her later appearances, this has been dropped completely due to having time to learn everything, and instead her characterization revolves around how she's no different from [[HeroicComedicSociopath Kirito]].
** Her {{yandere}} aspect gets downplayed after she and Kirito go from having a sociopathic relationship to genuine love, but still surfaces as her being a ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend.
* ClingyJealousGirl: Towards Kirito. [[{{Yandere}} She threatens to kill Lizbeth]] when she attempts to make a move on Kirito and [[SpeakIllOfTheDead not even the posthumous Sachi]] is spared of her scorn.
* CutYourHeartOutWithASpoon: Threatens Sugou with slowly gutting him, wearing his entrails like a scarf, mounting his decapitated head on a pike, and recording his screams and listening to them for her own amusement, after Sugou makes clear he is only allowing Kirito to play [=ALO=] to crush his hope seeing Asuna behind admin-enabled barriers. It freaks Sugou out enough to trigger a brief VillainousBreakdown.
* DamselOutOfDistress: She manages to briefly escape from Sugou in Episode 14 and beat his guards with her bare hands. It's said that this isn't the first time, and she's become TheDreaded to his goons. Episode 15 shows her as TheJuggernaut, painted as something akin to the xenomorph from ''Film/{{Alien}}''.
* DefiantCaptive:
** She refuses to submit to Kuradeel's whims. When Sugou attempts to intimidate her, Asuna gives him some SpitefulSpit to the face.
** In fact, Sugou's scientists and guards are very much afraid of Asuna, so much that some of them take their leave ''just to avoid her rampage''.
* TheDreaded:
** Tiffany and Lizbeth end up being terrified of her due to her [[InnocentBigot obnoxious demeanour]] or psychotic [[ClingyJealousGirl nature]] and will do anything to be away from her. This is solidified in the beginning of Episode 9.
--->'''Asuna:''' ''[entering the room]'' Hey Kirito, the commander wants to-\\
'''Lizbeth:''' AAAAHHH! I DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING [to Kirito], I SWEAR! ''[sound of breaking glass is heard]''\\
'''Tiffany:''' Wait for me! I know a shortcut! ''[more breaking glass]''
** She's evidently made quite an impression on Sugou's {{Mook}}s, because when she escapes her cage in Episode 14, their response is to scream "[[ItIsDehumanizing IT'S]] LOOSE!!"
** [[ThoseTwoGuys Kyle and Shoji]] in particular seem to fear her the most, to the point where Kyle [[DirtyCoward instantly teleports away]] when he sees her (despite her being restrained) and Shoji is willing to inflict a FalseRapeAccusation on himself to spare his dog of her wrath. It's also confirmed [[IAmAHumanitarian she made a habit out of killing their avatars]] while escaping her CardboardPrison.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Well, even AxCrazy [[NominalHero Nominal Heroes]] have loved ones, but still applies. Despite her being a crazy {{Yandere}} and a ManipulativeBitch, her love for Kirito (and later Yui) is one of her redeeeming qualities, though she does inflict some ToughLove on the former.
* ExplainExplainOhCrap: After hearing how stat altercations in the game are able to influence how interactions and combat are allowed to occur, Asuna barely speaks the word "Charisma" before she ''instantly'' figures out where [[HypnoTrinket Sugou's plan]] is going.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: It's easy to miss, but early in episode 5, Asuna is the only person ''not'' disturbed when [[spoiler:Kirito brutally kills the NPC Gary]]. This marks how she's wearing a MaskOfSanity.
* GeniusDitz: She's an excellent fighter and strategist who has never played [=MMOs=] before. This leads to things like having no idea what "XP" is or how to ''open the menu''. This doesn't last past her first episode, as she learns these things later.
* HeroicComedicSociopath: [[spoiler:Burns down Lizbeth's shop because the latter tried flirting with Kirito.]]
* HopelessWithTech: She doesn't even know how to open the menu, which is literally a matter of life or death given that most of the interactions within SAO are done through the menu. How she managed to survive the first month is nothing short of a miracle, and the ending of episode two shows she still has no idea how to open the damn thing. Also, while she is a competent fighter and strategist, she obviously hasn't played [=MMOs=] before, having no idea what "XP" stands for, and thinking that "DPS" has something to do with sex. Appears to be dropped by Episode 5, probably due to [[TimeSkip it being a long time passing since we last saw her]]. Crops up again by episode 17, when she is able to break into a server room and get admin access to the game, she ''somehow'' manages to fat-finger the buttons and press "Help Desk" instead of "Log Out."
* {{Hypocrite}}: Several of her criticisms of Kirito ([[HypocriteHasAPoint while valid]]) could easily apply to herself.
** She reprimands Kirito on several occasions for [[MomentKiller constantly ruining their romantic atmosphere]] with his witty comments, despite being a manipulative {{Tsundere}} and MasterOfTheMixedMessage herself.
** While she was right to cut ties with Kuradeel for stalking her, she herself isn't much better. In fact, the only reason Kirito doesn't press on her tailing him in Episode 9 is because it allowed her to save his life.
** Her preferred insult for Kirito is to ridicule him whenever he shows vulnerability, despite being incredibly emotionally dependent on him. This is somewhat mitigated by the fact that she [[SelfDeprecation self-deprecates]] whenever she cries in front of him, as she also doesn't like showing emotion.
* HypocriticalHumor:
** In Episode 15, she forces Kirito to confess that he's only helping investigate Kains' murder [[ItsAllAboutMe to prove himself correct]] about it being staged, and chews him out on it, [[RefugeInAudacity only to instantly admit]] that she's only helping to prove him ''wrong''. Kirito is rather shocked.
--> '''Asuna:''' [[BitchInSheepsClothing At least I ''pretend'' to be nice to people!]]
** When Yui tells the pair that she's a psychologist AI, she assumes she's there for Kirito, despite being arguably more deranged than him.
* IAmAHumanitarian: In Episode 16, it's revealed that she's been ''eating'' Sugou's employee characters to slow down their mind control research.
--> [=xbubblemunkyx=]
* InelegantBlubbering: Kirito compares her crying to that of a "surly drunk".
* InnocentBigot: Her relationship with Tiffany is strained because of this since her earnest efforts to not be racist keep coming around to being racist again. Speaking in JiveTurkey and apologizing for overusing terms like "calling the kettle black" is just the tip of her problems.
* InTheHood: During her introduction.
* {{Jerkass}}: Anytime her MaskOfSanity breaks, she reveals herself to be this, as Kirito, Tiffany, Lizbeth, Sasha and Yulier can attest to. She has no problem exploiting others for sympathy and ([[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes with the exception of Kirito]]) will instantly turn on her best friends at the slightest provocation.
* JiveTurkey: Her attempts to speak to Tiffany veer into this and Ebonics. It paints her as an InnocentBigot, since her attempts to not be racist are themselves very racist.
* KickTheDog: [[spoiler:She threatens to eat Shoji's dog Biscuit in episode 17 if he doesn't release her, and seems very excited about the prospect.]]
-->"Nom nom."
* MamaBear: When Yulier angrily threatens Yui, Asuna [[TranquilFury quietly tells her to back off or she'll kill Thinker herself]].
* ManipulativeBitch: She knows how to play to Kirito's flaws and traumas. In Episode 8 she's able to appeal to his pride to make him deal with one of her underlings so she can avoid some guild drama, and in Episode 9 pushes his TraumaButton to simultaneously demoralize and reassure him.
* MaskOfSanity: She's arguably even more messed up than Kirito, but hides it better. Asuna is personable to other players, and is able to convince a few players to help her. However, when the mask drops, Asuna is a BloodKnight who has no problem killing people, and is a {{yandere}} who wants Kirito all to herself. In fact, part of the reason she's so obsessive about Kirito is likely that he's the only one whose seen under her mask and ''hasn't'' immediately started treating her as TheDreaded.
* MirrorCharacter: The more we see of her, the more we learn that the only difference between her and Kirito is [[BeneathTheMask she's better able to wear a]] MaskOfSanity. Comes to a head in Episode 10, when both their subconscious selves are represented by two versions with themselves arguing with each other. They both agree that their marriage was rushed, but they don't want to admit it to the other and end up resorting to complicated mindgames of one-upping the other that only end up giving them more troubles. And they were both sent away from peace talks because Heathcliff is afraid that one of them will piss someone off and kill thousands. Episode 12 reveals they even have a similar FreudianExcuse; They both have [[BigBrotherBully a]] [[ParentalNeglect relative]] that act like [[ShadowArchetype even worse]] versions of (and were likely the inspiration for) their online personas.
* MoreDeadlyThanTheMale: Asuna and Kirito are BirdsOfAFeather when it comes to their anti-social behavior and trauma, but Asuna is the considerably more unhinged and volatile of the two. While Kirito has his moments of PayEvilUntoEvil, Asuna has done some truly heinous things for outright petty reasons, such as threatening to kill Lizbeth and later burning down her shop because she got too close to Kirito.
* ThePowerOfLove: As noted by Kayaba, the power of love was able to allow Asuna to break admin-induced paralysis.
* PragmaticHero: While she thinks of the other players as complete idiots like Kirito, she's at least willing to work with them on the rationalization that she has a better chance of surviving if she works with people... Or at least has a human shield in front of her.
* RealNameAsAnAlias: Much like her canon counterpart, she still goes by her real name in ''SAO''. Kirito even lampshades what a bad idea this is in Episode 10, as his name is Kazuto Kirigaya.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: After Sugou [[JustBetweenYouAndMe spills his entire plan]] to her [[SmugSnake believing she won't be able to stop him with force]], she bolts while he's monologuing and slaughters his guards.
* SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan: Seemingly part of what attracts her to Kirito in the first place; when [[AboveTheInfluence he doesn't take advantage of her as she slept next to him]] ([[FaceDoodling only drawing whiskers on her face as a prank]]), she sounds almost flabbergasted that the thought apparently never occurred to him. The fact that he proves to be her equal in terms of snark and mind-games just seals the deal.
* SpeakIllOfTheDead: After Kirito is forced to join the Knights of the Blood, Asuna tries to cheer him up by assuring him that she won't die "like that dumb bitch Sally."
* SpitefulSpit: Spits in Sugou's face at the end of Episode 12.
* StalkerWithACrush: This is how the abridged series explains her insanely good timing in saving Kirito from Kuradeel; she was following Kirito around.
* StatingTheSimpleSolution: [[spoiler:She points out that Kayaba could have easily blamed anonymous hackers for the death glitch rather than pretending it was all part of some master plan. Kayaba can only reply that he wishes he'd thought of that sooner.]]
* SupremeChef: Within ''SAO'', anyway. She leveled her cooking skill so much that basic sandwiches she makes are automatically delicious, and she's maxed out the skill by Episode 8. Her creating a meal with a max-rank ingredient creates such ImpossiblyDeliciousFood that it permanently ruins all other food (real or virtual) for Kirito, including anything else she makes.
* TakingTheBullet: [[spoiler:She somehow manages to shake off Kayaba's admin paralysis and takes a fatal blow for Kirito. [[ForegoneConclusion You should know she survives, though.]]]]
* TerrorHero: While protagonistic in the grander scheme of things, her actions induce fright in those around her, such as Lisbeth fleeing on sight in Episode 9 after Asuna burned down her shop in Episode 7. She's weaponizing this in [=ALfheim=] on the grounds that eating Sugou's support personnel is meant to scare them out of assisting his mind control research.
* ThatCameOutWrong: When speaking with Tiffany everything she says [[MistakenForRacist accidentally comes out sounding racist]]. Luckily Tiff is a very patient person and knows she doesn't mean it.
* TookALevelInBadass: By the time of her appearance in Episode 5, she appears to be much more savvy with how the game runs. Also, the abridged series gets rid of a few of her DamselInDistress moments, such as killing Kuradeel herself in Episode 9 instead of having Kirito do it.
* TookALevelInJerkass: She becomes ''considerably'' meaner as the series goes on. Then again, she's dealing with Kirito, so it's hard to blame her, and she's also stuck in a poorly-designed death game (which would take a toll on ''anyone's'' sanity). It's also implied that her (initial) friendliness is/was mainly a mask to hide this side of her.
* TookALevelInKindness: A relatively minor one, but Yui's death had much the same effect on her as it did on Kirito.
* ToughLove:
** She stalks, threatens, abuses and maniplulates Kirito endlessly, but she does love him; she just has a funny way of showing it. It tends to happen when you're a {{Tsundere}} and a {{Yandere}} at the same time.
** While she's mostly a FalseFriend to Lizbeth, her burning down her shop at the end can be considered this when you take into account [[{{Hikikomori}} how badly said shop was affecting her mental state]], something Asuna herself had pointed out numerous times.
* {{Tsundere}}: While she does have feelings for Kirito, she spends all her time arguing and belittling him. Her HiddenHeartOfGold-hiding façade is part of her MaskOfSanity, so it's close to what she actually believes. However, he gives as good as he gets from her, so it balances out.
* UndyingLoyalty: To Kirito. Since he's the only one who stuck around after she revealed her meaner side to him, she's now willing to do anything to keep him around, getting increasingly worried the more times he puts himself at risk and even TakingTheBullet for him in Episode 11.
* ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend:
** While Kuradeel stalking her wasn't enough to provoke her to kill him, his near-fatal attack on Kirito instantly sent her into a murderous rage of which Kuradeel doesn't make it out alive.
** In Episode 15 when Sugou / Oberon states his desire to see Kirito lose all hope from failing to reach the World Tree, Asuna threatens to gut him, wear his entails as a scarf, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and add his painful screams to her Spotify]] which completely unnerves Sugou despite Asuna having no way to harm him.
* WeWantOurJerkBack: Kirito's initial response to Asuna being nice towards him.
-->'''Asuna:''' Kirito? Hi! Come on in! How are you?\\
'''Kirito:''' Okay, stop that.\\
'''Asuna:''' I'm sorry?\\
'''Kirito:''' This thing you're doing where you seem genuinely happy to see me. I was half-expecting to find a suspiciously sound-proof warehouse on the outskirts of town with a shallow grave out back, but somehow this is more unsettling.
* {{Yandere}}: [[spoiler:She burned Lizbeth's shop down for "flirting" with Kirito, and she was her OnlyFriend at that point.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Klein / [=BallsDeep69=]]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ballsdeep69.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"My name is Klein!"'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' [=Jragoswinn=] (Episode 1-3), Anthony "[=Dizzasta=]" [=DiMascio=] (Episode 5-11)\\\

A player who has the unfortunate screen name of [[EmbarrassingNickname "BallsDeep69"]] and the even more unfortunate role of being [[JerkAss Kirito's]] "friend." He tries to help Kirito open up to others and become a better person, but usually fails.
----
* AdaptationalComicRelief: Inverted. Klein is one of the few characters played ''more'' seriously than he is in canon, aside from the [[EmbarrassingNickname joke about his name]].
* AdaptationNameChange: In the original, he was named Tsuboi Ryoutarou and his screen name was Klein. Here, Klein appears to be his real name.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: Klein's ChivalrousPervert side is mostly dropped in favor of being an OnlySaneMan and MoralityPet to Kirito.
* BrutalHonesty: Makes it clear at the end of Episode 1 that he thinks Kirito is "the most unbearable asshole [he]'s ever met". This affects the latter more than he would've ever imagined.
* ButtMonkey: He's introduced being kicked in the groin by a pig, and it all gets worse from there. Most of his screentime involves Kirito taunting him.
* CatchPhrase: ''"My name is Klein!"'' He says it so often his guild thinks it's how he says hello.
* TheConscience: Acts as this to Kirito, to an extent. He wasn't as efficient as [[TheLostLenore Sachi]], though.
* EmbarrassingNickname: In his defense, he claims that this was supposed to be a test character that he was just fooling around with before he would create his main.
* EnemyMine: {{Downplayed}} as they weren't exactly enemies then, but after being trapped in SAO, Klein offers [[NominalHero Kirito]] a place in his guild despite his abrasiveness, knowing they're stronger together. Kirito refuses.
* FireForgedFriends:
** Kirito is introduced taunting him for not being able to kill a pig with a rock. However, their adventures while being trapped in SAO eventually lead them to form a close bond.
** With Tiffany as well, though its only shown in Episode 11.
* TheHeart: Tends to be this when he shows up.
* HeroicBSOD: Has one in Episode 3 after Kirito crosses the DespairEventHorizon and has all his CharacterDevelopment stripped away.
* HeroOfAnotherStory: Don Fluffles's men refer to him as "the legendary warrior, [=BallsDeep69=]," while he and Tiffany evidently had quite an adventure fighting chimeras to get a new weapon. [[DiscussedTrope Kirito has trouble believing that they have a life outside of their interactions with him.]]
* InelegantBlubbering: Is reduced to this before Kirito's final duel with Heathcliff, when Kirito tells him he's always regretted not joining his guild and that it would have been fun.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: In episode 8, he cracks a joke about [[DudeNotFunny Kirito's friends dying again]]. He immediately apologizes when he realizes how dark it was.
* MoralityPet: You wouldn't believe it at first, but in Episode 11, Kirito admits it was Klein's influence that triggered his JerkassRealization.
* NiceGuy: Have to give the guy credit, he actually tries to be a supporting friend for Kirito. It's a lot harder than it sounds.
* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: In Episode 3, Klein and his guild manage to fend off a huge force of mobsters, but we only see them resting in the aftermath.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Klein. Justified because his character's name is rather embarrassing.
* OnlySaneMan: Among Kirito and Asuna, he's the one who tries to see reasoning the most and tries to be a bit of a MoralityChain for the former.
* ProneToTears: Unlike Kirito, he has no problem crying in public, and this trait of him becomes so prevalent that Kirito's final goodbye to him in Episode 11 after his InelegantBlubbering is ""“Bleh plah bleh” indeed, buddy. “Bleh plah bleh” indeed".
* StraightMan: Other than his nickname, he's the serious foil for Kirito's antics.
* SwappedRoles: He and Kirito have swapped places compared to their canon counterparts. Now Kirito is the comic relief, while Klein is the mature StraightMan.
* TearsOfJoy: He breaks down then he realizes his words to Kirito about the value of having friends actually had an impact. He becomes outright [[InelegantBlubbering incoherent]] when Kirito expresses regret over not joining his guild.
* ThrowTheDogABone:
** It takes two years, but Kirito finally calls him "Klein" again in Episode 8. This time, it sticks.
** In episode 11, Kirito calls him "a good friend" and thanks him for being TheConscience to him, on top of apologizing for not staying with him on day 1. This causes Klein to cry TearsOfJoy.
* TookALevelInBadass: He goes from [[AdaptationalWimp not even finishing off the boar in the beginning]] to defeating a group of mafia players with his own guild.
* VitriolicBestBuds: Nice as he may be to Kirito, he is completely aware of how much an asshole Kirito is from the moment they meet, and won't hesitate to point that out.
* WorthyOpponent: In the third episode, Don Fluffles's mafia considers him one for keeping them from killing Kirito.
* YankTheDogsChain: In Episode 3, Kirito finally calls him by his given name instead of his EmbarrassingNickname after Klein offers to HoldTheLine while Kirito goes to revive his guild. When the mission ends up being a ShaggyDogStory, Kirito crosses the DespairEventHorizon and, after vowing to NeverBeHurtAgain by erasing all his attachments, calls Klein "Balls" again, reducing the latter to tears.
* YouCalledMeXItMustBeSerious: In moments of emotional significance for Kirito, he calls Klein by his canon name rather than "Balls". The most notable example is during Kirito's heroic speech to Heathcliff before their FinalBattle, where he shows [[CharacterDevelopment just how far he's come as a character and a person]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tiffany]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tiffany_6.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Handin' the black man a murder weapon, a tale as old as time."'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' Jragoswinn (Episode 2), Alexander "Creator/{{Octopimp}}" Gross (Episode 5+)

->'''Kibaou:''' I don't know how to talk to you...\\
'''Tiffany:''' Good, then maybe you'll shut up and listen.\\\

A black player who operates under a girl's name for reasons unknown. He initially wanted to help his fellow players get out of the game, but upon [[SurroundedByIdiots realizing just how stupid they are]], he became a vendor selling overpriced and faulty weapons to the idiots. He has an uneasy relationship with Asuna due to her unintentional racism in her attempts to get along with him.
----
* AdaptationalJerkass: In the original, he was an UnclePennybags who used the profits from his store to help lower-level players. In this, he's a ConMan who takes advantage of the idiotic player base. He did start off trying to help people, but realized most of the people there were TooDumbToLive.
* AdaptationNameChange: His canon gamer name was Agil, which he never gets referred to as in this series.
* ConMan: Intentionally sells broken or otherwise useless equipment to other players in the game, something Laughing Coffin's ads {{lampshade|Hanging}}.
* CripplingOverspecialization: Laments this after seeing the Skull Reaper kill two players in one hit.
-->'''Tiffany:''' WHY DID I PUT ALL MY POINTS INTO BARTERING?
* EmbarrassingNickname: Defied in that he doesn't seem the least bit embarrassed about going by "Tiffany", which he himself says is a girl's name when Kibaou tries to cover for him. No specific reason has been given, so it's not known if it was because his original character model was playing up the {{GIRL}} trope, he logged into his wife's account, or if he just chose it because [[ItAmusedMe it amused him]]. He doesn't mind, but does like using it to confuse the hell out of others so that he can gain the floor to talk. In Episode 13, he's still referred to as "Tiff" by Kirito in real life, and doesn't seem bothered by it. Since he isn't seen interacting with anyone else IRL, it's not made clear if he's going by it now or if the nickname is only reserved to [[TheGadfly Kirito]].
* HonestJohnsDealership: His main income comes from tricking other players to be buy shoddy equipment at outrageously inflated prices.
* HeroOfAnotherStory: He had an off-screen adventure with Klein where they fought chimaeras and acquired a rare item. Kirito expresses disbelief at this, prompting them to scold him for not knowing they had lives outside of him.
* {{Hypocrite}}: He lambastes everyone for not reading the manual, but if ''he'' had read it, he'd have probably realized it's [[WhoWritesThisCrap full of bad advice]].
* IHaveManyNames: "Mountain Slayer." "Thunder Lion." "The Chocolate Axe." But you? You may call him... Tiffany.
-->'''Diabel:''' So, as Mr. Thunderchocolate was saying...
* NiceGuy: Cons excluded, (and really, it's the [[TooDumbToLive player's own fault for falling for it at this point]]) he's a decent guy. Kirito even notes that the only reason he goes off on him is because Tiffany is nice enough to bear it
* OnlySaneMan: Well, aside from being named Tiffany, he's one of the few that tries to maintain some semblance of order amongst the many noobs in the game.
* PetTheDog: He may be a con artist, but he had the decency to help Lizbeth escape from his shop when Asuna showed up. That and he's terrified of Asuna's wrath too. In Episode 13, he encourages Kirito to save Asuna even though he hates her.
* RealMenWearPink: He is not at all embarrassed to be known as "Tiffany." He even says that it is a girl's name up front when others try to cover for him.
* SurroundedByIdiots: In his first appearance, he's actually trying to help his fellow players, like his Canon counterpart. But he quickly becomes so fed up with their TooDumbToLive attitudes that he starts scamming them instead.
* VitriolicBestBuds: Is one of the ''only'' people that actually shows anything resembling a proper friendship with Kirito, jokingly calling him his "least favorite customer" since according to Kirito, he isn't "dumb enough to buy [Tiffany's] crap". Helps that Tiff agrees with Kirito that a lot of the other players are indeed idiots, and neither of them make any real attempt to pretend otherwise. Kirito even stops by his bar in early Season 2 and in the middle of a rant about his day, he angrily exclaims "I TREASURE OUR FRIENDSHIP!" with total sincerity.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Silica]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/silica.png]][[caption-width-right:350:''"Don't take this the wrong way Mr. Kirito, I'm grateful for your help, but you're like the worst person I've ever met."'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' Rachel Michelle\\\

A young newbie who develops a crush on Kirito after he saves her life. Once she [[DeadpanSnarker gets]] [[{{Jerkass}} to]] [[HeroicComedicSociopath really know]] [[AGodAmI him]], however, she just can't wait to be rid of him. She goes on a journey with Kirito to revive her pet dragon, Pina.
----
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: Unlike in canon, she and Kirito aren't in time to save Pina. Her canon self also lacked this version's HilariouslyAbusiveChildhood.
* AudienceSurrogate: Acts as one, regarding how [=MMOs=] and [=RPGs=] handle quests. As well as dealing with asshole party members.
* BadLiar: When probed, she frantically denies having overheard Kirito calling out Sachi's name in tears as he slept, only to ask him [[AskAStupidQuestion "who's Sachi?"]] two seconds later.
* BadassAdorable: You wouldn't think so at first, but Pina calls her ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim "Dovahkiin"]]'' near the beginning of the episode, and if TheStinger at the end is any indication, she certainly lives up to the title when [[UnstoppableRage she snaps]].
* BewareTheNiceOnes: She's usually a very sweet and positive young girl, but she has her limits: When it's revealed Pina had "expired" and was no longer revivable, she snaps and goes on a brutal rampage, with Kirito apparently being the main target of her rage. It gets worse when you remember Rosalia's minions had failed to deal any damage to Kirito with their swords, while Silica apparently managed to scar him by ''clawing him''.
* BreakTheCutie: Episode 4 was ''not'' kind to her.
* BrutalHonesty: Eventually admits to Kirito that he's "the worst person [she's] ever met."
* TheCutie: A naive, optimistic NiceGirl with a cutesy voice who's a FriendToAllLivingThings.
* DeathByAdaptation: Not ''her'', but her pet Pina. Unlike the canon series, she and Kirito fail to revive Pina in time.
* HeadPet: Pina is introduced sitting on her head.
* HonorBeforeReason: Leaving her guild behind after they suggested killing her pet for leather pants was certainly honorable, but, as she soon discovers, it's not the most pragmatic thing to do when you're a low level player in a death game. Sure enough, Pina ends up dead anyway, and she would've soon followed if not for Kirito.
* {{Hypocrite}}: She leaves Kirito after he snaps and kills Rosalia for pressing his BerserkButton, angry at him for his lack of remorse, only to go on a brutal rampage herself after Pina is dead, [[EveryoneHasStandards one that shocks even Kirito]], with the presence of blood during TheStinger implying someone was killed or maimed.
* HilariouslyAbusiveChildhood: Silica points to the day of her birth as when her life started going wrong.
-->'''Silica:''' Well, I guess it all started when I was born. My mom was a bit of a drinker, and nine monthes sober? That was just not in the cards...
* IndieGame: A FreezeFrameBonus in episode 12 on Kirito's Twitter feed shows her responding to a bad review of a game she made.
* LoveAtFirstSight: Her first impression of Kirito includes BishieSparkles and [[SomethingAboutARose roses]], leaving her starstruck. However, after going on a quest together and [[PsychopathicManchild getting to know him]], her feelings for him subside, so by the end of the episode she just wants to get away from him.
* MamaBear: Rosalia asking her to skin Pina so that she can have leather pants prompts her to abandon the guild after [[YouMonster calling her a monster]].
* MotorMouth: As Kirito soon learns, asking her "what's wrong?" after witnessing her cry is not the best idea, [[LiteralMinded as she will proceed to tell you everything bad that happened in her life since she was born.]]
* NiceGirl: While she has her limits [[MamaBear (especially concerning Pina's safety)]], she's still nothing but kind to Kirito, and rejects his friendship offer as politely as she can, even taking the time to thank him for helping her even if he didn't do it for her.
* PasteEater: She made a habit out of eating purple crayons when she was four, because the blue ones were too tart according to her.
* ThePollyanna: ZigZagged. Considering the circumstances, she's optimistic to a fault while on her misadventure with Kirito, and always gets back up after being knocked down. However, this all was because she's positive Pina will be saved for sure. [[DeadByAdaptation She wasn't]], and Silica was ''not'' happy about it.
-->'''Silica:''' [[TemptingFate: "I suppose it’ll all be worth it to have Pina back."]]
* ShoutOut: Pina calls her a [[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim "Dovahkiin"]] and she thought Pina [[VideoGame/{{Pokemon}} was going to evolve when the dragon starts glowing]].
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Unlike in canon, Silica is not happy with being used by Kirito as bait to draw Rosalia out. It probably doesn't help that this Kirito is a much bigger ass about it, feeling no shame at all and even proudly admits it.
* ShaggyDogStory: Pina's item expires [[ForWantOfANail just as Silica was reviving her]], rendering the latter's TraumaCongaLine completely fruitless.
* YouWouldntLikeMeWhenImAngry: She did ''not'' take the fact that, despite all the hell she and Kirito went through throughout Episode 4, [[spoiler:they were still too late to [[ShaggyDogStory revive Pina]]]]. TheStinger shows Kirito standing there [[HeroicBSOD utterly gobsmacked]] with claw marks across his face and ears still ringing from her scream of rage, sitting on his knees as smoke, fire, air-raid sirens, and chaos roars around him.
-->'''Kirito:''' ''[thinking]'' ...She took that well.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lizbeth]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/knuckle_3.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Sir, either tell me your order or I'll assume it's like a knuckle...sandwich with...like a sword...? In it...?"'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' Corrinne "[=Megami33=]" Sudberg\\\

A friend of Asuna's and a master blacksmith. Lizbeth hides away in her shop due to an incident in her past, but a misadventure with Kirito puts an end to that. After Kirito catches her passing off easily-breakable weapons as high-quality ones, he blackmails her into helping him find the rare mineral to craft the best sword she can make.
----
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: Here, she has a much more sad background than her canon counterpart. There's also the fact that [[spoiler:Asuna burned her shop down by the end of her debut episode, meaning her OnlyFriend at this point has turned on her]]. Although she later becomes friends with [[spoiler:Tiffany and Kirito]].
* AdaptationPersonalityChange: Abridged Lizbeth is an {{Hikikomori}} who prefers to stay in her shop. She also has to be {{blackmail}}ed into accompanying Kirito on the quest for the rare mineral, as opposed to her canon self who insisted on going against Kirito's better judgement.
* AutobotsRockOut: Kayaba tends to play appropriate music whenever possible. Shows how impressed he is with her smithing skills that he chooses the kind of pulse-pounding Hard Rock you get from the ''Guilty Gear'' soundtrack (along with it being appropriate in the backdrop of the final fight of ''Gurren Lagann'', which is shown as an in-universe Fighting Game, which she balances along with the rhythm game, and the game of ''Space Invaders'').
* BreakTheCutie: Twice, once when her entire guild was killed off, and the second time when Kirito cemented her legacy with literal dragon shit [[spoiler:(or so she thinks)]]. And then [[spoiler:Asuna burns down her shop]] by the end of the episode.
* BrickJoke:
** At the end of episode 7 [[{{Yandere}} Asuna]] burns her shop down for talking to Kirito, and in episode 9 she's carrying a box of things she managed to recover from her ruined shop, then [[TheDreaded Asuna]] shows up where she insists she wasn't talking to Kirito and promptly flees by jumping out the window.
** In episode 7, she talks about the Lizbeth Quality Guarantee right before Kirito casually breaks her best sword as a test. After blackmailing her into making him the best sword in the game, said sword shatters in the climactic battle against Kayaba in episode 11. [[FunWithSubtitles The subtitle reads]] "Lizbeth Quality Guarantee".
* CryLaughing: By the time [[{{Jerkass}} Kirito]] is done with her, she ends up doing this.
* DamselScrappy: InUniverse. Kirito is not amused at having to jump into a pit to rescue her.
-->'''Kirito:''' Damn it, Liz. You had ONE job!
* DeadpanSnarker: Just as snarky as her canon counterpart.
* {{Hikikomori}}: She rarely leaves her shop. It took Kirito blackmailing her and Asuna threatening her to get her to leave.
* HumiliationConga: Basically all of episode 7 was this for her.
* TheLoad: During their quest, Kirito treats her like an NPC due to her lack of proficiency in combat.
-->'''Kirito:''' I hate escort missions.
* MyGreatestFailure: The reason she became a shut-in was because she ran headlong into a trap that got her guild killed.
* NiceGirl: While a bit socially akward, Liz is a kind PluckyGirl who takes her HumiliationConga in stride.
* OnlyFriend: Asuna is her only friend... until after TheStinger of episode 7, where Asuna goes full on {{yandere}} and burns down her shop. This changes by episode 9, as she becomes VitriolicBestBuds with Kirito and Tiffany.
* SoleSurvivor: Her entire guild got killed off in a similar situation to the Black Cats. Her reaction to Kirito telling her she can't just run ahead, immediately flashing back to the picture of her former guild, suggests she feels immense guilt over what happened to them. His later sarcastic comment that she didn't manage to get them killed being a ground-breaking achievement just has her quietly note that it probably is.
* UltimateBlacksmith: She's so good at ''SAO''[='s=] blacksmithing mechanic that she [[BrokeTheRatingScale breaks the game's scoring system]] when forging Kirito's new sword, and Kayaba sets the sequence to "Big Blast Sonic".
* VitriolicBestBuds: After getting over her feelings for him, she and Kirito remain friends, while remaining fully aware how much of an asshole he is. She herself partakes in playful ribbing after his NoMoreHoldingBackSpeech goes public.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Lizbeth (understandably) breaks off ties with Asuna after the latter threatened to kill her and burned down her weapons shop. And her next appearance, while Lizbeth is playfully ribbing Kirito, she ends up running away in fear when she hears that Asuna is about to return.
* YankTheDogsChain: At the end of episode 7, it looks like Kirito might share a heartwarming moment with her... until he ruins it by revealing he's essentially made her and her blacksmithing into a dragon poop joke [[spoiler:though it turns out he only said that to mess with her and didn't actually go through with it]]. And then Asuna burns her shop down.
* YouNeedToGetLaid: In the opening on episode 7, Lizbeth starts asking invasive questions about Asuna's sex life due to her own lack of action and wanting to live vicariously through her.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Yui]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/abridged_yui.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"I know you only kept me around as a pawn for your mind games. Although, I do admit... I did enjoy being your pawn..."'']]
->'''Voiced By:''' Jane "redasatomato" Redd\\\

A mysterious girl who shows up during Kirito and Asuna's "honeymoon" and ends up being adopted by them as part of their game of matrimonial chicken. She reveals herself to be a psychologist AI created by Kayaba to tend to the players of the game, but was locked away for being incredibly unstable. She became curious with Kirito and Asuna's dysfunctional-yet-happy relationship and inserted herself to find out how such a thing is possible, eventually considering herself their actual daughter.\\\
She returns in Season 2, turning herself into a pixie FairyCompanion to help Kirito rescue Asuna from Sugou.
----
* AdaptationalIntelligence: At the time of her introduction she is far more smart than canon Yui, who went through LaserGuidedAmnesia and acted like a real child. This Yui engages in LittleProfessorDialog and is noted by Kirito and Asuna to be exceptionally intelligent. Of course by the time canon Yui gets her memories back she's pretty much in line with Abridged Yui too.
* AdaptationalJerkass: Like her parents, this Yui has her negative qualities amplified. While canon Yui was an [[ChildrenAreInnocent innocent]] NiceGirl, this Yui is a ManipulativeBitch pretending to be a helpless girl, as well as being a [[DeadpanSnarker snarky]] troll.
* AdaptationDistillation: Rather than her being a lost girl that Kirito and Asuna find in the forest and bring home with them. Asuna awakens to find Yui in her bed immediately.
* AndIMustScream: Both on the giving and receiving end.
** She tried to prank Kirito and Asuna by faking her death, but Kirito unknowingly trapped her by turning her into an item before she could reveal that she was indeed alive. She's shown to have been completely aware of everything else that occurred after that, but was eventually freed in [=ALfheim=].
** She inflicts this on [[spoiler: Leafa after she doesn't back off from trying to harm Kirito. It was so effective Leafa drops her schemes to go along with whatever Yui says.]]
* ArtificialIntelligence: As if Yui's [[SpockSpeak speech]] and [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior behavior]] weren't evidence enough, during her fight against the Grim Reaper the abridged series adds visual and auditory glitch effects to emphasize her reality-bending nature.
* AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther: While at first Kirito and Asuna only see her as a means to an end, both come to truly adore Yui after seeing how alike she is to them with [[DeadpanSnarker her sarcastic retort to Yulier]].
-->'''Kirito:''' Holy cow, Yui! That was amazing! I wish I had like [[MicDrop a tiny mic for you to drop!]]\\
'''Asuna:''' ''[[{{Squee}} Oh my god, that would be adorable!]]''
* BecomingTheMask: Contrast to her original character, Yui was just faking her LaserGuidedAmnesia to become intimately involved with the most dysfunctional couple she found [[WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove and reevaluate her definition of love.]] Then, this trope happened.
-->'''Yui:''' I am sorry I lied to you. I inserted myself into your lives merely to satisfy my own curiosity. At least, at first. It was... nice to be a part of your family. I... [[SuddenlyShouting I WISH I REALLY WAS YOUR DAUGHTER!]]
* BrattyHalfPint: This is her default attitude while on her pixie skin, and it's a jarring contrast to the more professional demeanor she displayed in season 1. Justified, as [[ExtremelyProtectiveChild she just wants to save her mommy]] and acts this way to keep Kirito and Leafa on their toes.
* CreepyChild: Her debut in TheStinger of Episode 9 plays this up, with a lot of screen distortion and static and a ghostly reverb to her voice. The reverb comes back in Episode 13 when she learns that Asuna is trapped in [=ALfheim=] Online.
* DeadpanSnarker: When Yulier calls [[IronicNickname Thinker]] one of the most brilliant men she's ever known, Yui retorts that it says more about Yulier than Thinker.
* TheDreaded: Becomes this to Leafa after she deletes her face when she tries to sabotage Kirito in their journey to the World Tree, this is also shown when the Silph gets nervous after the pixie gets angry [[spoiler:due to their "quest" to get an army ending up being a waste of time. By Episode 17, however, Leafa is no longer that afraid of her, even brushing off an ImpliedDeathThreat by stating she sounds like a "teeny-tiny prospector" when she's mad.]]
* DudeNotIronic: She points out to Yulier that Thinker falling into an obvious trap is not as ironic as the fact that his name is Thinker but he's "something of a dullard." This prompts Kirito to wish he'd given her [[MicDrop a tiny microphone to drop]] (which Asuna thinks would be adorable).
* EveryoneHasStandards: Despite her penchant for BlackComedy, she is not impressed when Leafa still suspects Kirito for having an ulterior motive to play [=ALO=] than him actually trying to save Asuna.
* ExtremelyProtectiveChild: Yui takes an instant disliking to Leafa as an "obstinate hussy", and repeatedly urges Kirito to ditch her so they can get back to rescuing Asuna. She also goes as far as to [[spoiler:temporarily [[TheBlank delete her face]]]] when she refuses to cooperate, and has made it her mission to "KILL GAME ADMIN BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY" to save her Mommy from him.
-->'''Yui:''' I WILL END YOU, THOT!
* FakingTheDead: Episode 13 reveals that her death was actually her attempt at a joke. She wasn't expecting Kirito and Asuna to use admin privileges to turn her into an item before she could reveal herself, however.
* TheGadfly: Has her moments, but shown clearly when she reveals she faked her deletion just to mess with Kirito and Asuna.
* GrewBeyondTheirProgramming: The Psychologist AI who was meant to manage the mental health of the players on Sword Art Online and console them, only to get turned off by Kayaba on Launch Day and was ForcedToWatch as so many players died to [[SurvivorGuilt have their friends mourn them]] or [[DrivenToSuicide had killed themselves from grief]]. Then when she managed to encounter the adventures of both Kirito and Asuna and their dysfunctional relationship managed to get her a means to glitch out to join them and pose as their adoptive daughter: taking full advantage of her [[NoSell [ IMMORTAL Object ]]] status to protect both of her parents and destroy the Floor 1 Boss until the system threatened to delete her; where [[PapaWolf Kirito]] manages to use his daughters' Administration status to turn Yui's AI code into an Item that he uploaded directly to his [=NerveGear=]. [[spoiler:Then when Kirito goes over to [=ALfheim=] Online [[note]]Which runs off of the same code as SAO[[/note]] to save Asuna, she was ported into the game and was able to port over most of Kirito's SAO Gear and granted herself Admin Status in ALO to mess around with ALO's code [[ParentsInDistress to help Daddy save her Mommy]].]]
* GoMadFromTheIsolation: Her much more amoral behaviour in [=ALfheim=] Online noticeably comes right after she spent several months trapped in an AndIMustScream situation.
* IKnowYourTrueName: Invokes this on Leafa, aka Suguha Kirigaya to convince her to help Kirito.
* LackOfEmpathy: TheReveal that she was lying about the system potentially deleting her for interfering with the game's code implies that she actually could've helped all the trapped SAO players but didn't for two years, and only infiltrated Kirito and Asuna's lives to amend her flawed data on relationships rather than provide them with any psychological support. While she later ended up genuinely loving the pair, it didn't stop her from emotionally scarring them ''as a joke'', with she later expressed no remorse for.
* LaserGuidedKarma: A heroic example. Her faked death caused Kirito to "save her" by turning her into an item, resulting in her being unable to speak to her parents for months, meaning that her pretending to be in serious trouble ''actually led to her being in serious trouble''.
* LittleMissBadass: Took out the Fatal Scythe without so much as a flinch. Also goes straight into "save my mother" mode when Kirito tells her Asuna's being held captive.
* LittleMissSnarker: And it is this trait of hers that ultimately endears her to Kirito and Asuna.
* LittleProfessorDialog: Aside from her tendency towards SpockSpeak, she sometimes breaks into this, employing words like "geopolitical" or "dullard" that most girls her age wouldn't. {{Justified|Trope}} since she's an AI.
-->'''Kirito:''' Yui? Where did you learn a word like that?\\
'''Yui:''' [[BadLiar Um... you know... books?]]\\
'''Asuna:''' Like what, the dictionary?\\
'''Yui:''' Yes! ''[{{beat}}]'' Is that weird?
* ManipulativeBitch: LikeMotherLikeDaughter.
** While Kirito and Asuna are using her as a pawn in their mind games, she in turn is using them as research subjects.
** Once her identity is revealed, she pulls the ultimate prank on them by acting like a tortured BrokenBird who just yearned for love, before proceeding to fake her death after having called both of them out on their manipulation. All out of paranoia that [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman they would view her differently for being an AI]], and as a way to "humanize herself".
** In Episode 16, she uses PuppyDogEyes to convince "her auntie Sugu" to help Kirito fight off the salamanders, only to revert back to making implied death threats at her once the plan to recruit the sylph and cat-sith armies turns out to be a waste of time (though, by that point, Suguha is no longer that afraid of her and simply brushes them off).
* MoralityChain: There is a very distinct change in Kirito and Asuna's attitude once they genuinely start feeling affection towards Yui, acting more like a real family and their behavior becoming more civil. It's especially [[spoiler:Yui's (fake) deletion]] that really humanizes Kirito and Asuna, where they immediately proceed to have a normal conversation and even the usual {{Sadist}} remarks being played up as a harmless joke.
* MySensorsIndicateYouWantToTapThat: To Leafa's embarrassment, Yui senses that Leafa and Recon's heart rates increased by 22% when they met each other in episode 15. Leafa tries to say that she's scared of Recon, but both Kirito and Yui start laughing at the suggestion, since Recon is a DoggedNiceGuy.
* OnlySaneMan: She's completely aware that Kirito and Asuna are using her against one another to try to get the other to back out of their relationship.
* OutsideContextProblem: Yui is slowly on the road to becoming this for Oberon in [=ALfheim=] Online, where due to being downloaded from Sword Art Online directly into Kirito's [=NerveGear=] she managed to port over most of her father's equipment that he had back in Sword Art Online[[note]]Since ALO runs off of the same code that SAO was originally built with[[/note]] to give him more of an advantage in the game, along with narrowing down the exact location of her mother Asuna who is trapped somewhere inside of the game[[note]][[FreezeFrameBonus Along with unknowingly revealing that her creator Kayaba Akihiko had escaped authorities and is hiding out somewhere in ALO]][[/note]].
* RoaringRampageOfRescue: After hearing that Asuna's consciousness was being held hostage by Oberon; the Game Admin for [=ALfheim=] Online, Yui runs through several calculations in order to help her Daddy to free her Mommy from Oberon.
-->'''[[AC:Warning: Area is under direct control of game admin\\
New Objective Added: Kill game admin by any means necessary]]'''
* SkewedPriorities: After she describes her time trapped in the gem to Kirito all while displaying a ThousandYardStare, she quickly reverts to a childish pout as she chides him for "ruining [her] joke", implying she's more upset about that than Kirito sealing her and leaving her isolated for a whole month.
* SophisticatedAsHell: Lapses into this in Episode 14, where she alternates between her usual LittleProfessorDialog and terms like "hussy" and "thot".
* SparedByTheAdaptation: While she lives in both versions, Yui's first death here was a prank she played on Kirito and Asuna. It backfired horribly when Kirito turned her into an item while thinking he was saving her from deletion.
* SpockSpeak: As an AI she speaks in a formal tone and avoids contractions... [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness usually.]]
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior:
** Yui giggles at Kirito going on a murderous rampage on some enemies. Though only Yulier is concerned by this.
--->'''Yui:''' Go for the eyes, Papa! That is their weakpoint!
** This shows in a FreezeFrameBonus in Episode 13, where some of the text in her eyes reads "KILL GAME MASTER BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY".
** She's aware of what Leafa is talking about when she mentions "sucking off" someone, and helpfully begins to provide an explanation before Kirito stops her.
* VirtualRealityWarper: A low-key example, but she is an AI with admin privileges for the engine [=ALfheim=] Online copied, ported over from Sword Art Online. And since [=ALO=] contains the same coding and reuses assets from [=SAO=]...
** [[spoiler:She abuses these privileges to thwart Leafa's attempted hate-fueled investigation of Kirito by [[TheBlank temporarily deleting her face]]. In [[DeepImmersionGaming games like SAO and ALO where the avatars are linked to the player's actual senses]], this means that she is effectively ''taking away the sight, smell and taste'' of any player of her own choosing. This is pretty much a death sentence unless they have a higher level of admin privileges to override her command or Yui herself gives it back.]]
** In Episode 16, [[spoiler:Yui manages to rewrite the coding on Kirito's Avatar to briefly transform him into the Gleam Eyes Floor Boss from SAO to kill the Salamander assassins sent after them outside of Kandy Kane Kapital]].
* WaxingLyrical: Engages in this when stating her reasons for latching onto Kirito and Asuna.
-->'''Yui:''' I wanted to know what love is. I wanted you to show me.\\
'''Asuna:''' ''[tearfully]'' Goddamn Music/{{Foreigner|Band}}!\\
'''Kirito:''' You mean the band, right?
* WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove: Even though Yui's an AI trained in psychiatry, she couldn't comprehend how "two of the most broken, sociopathic players" she had ever seen managed to form a working relationship, and decided to get closer to study Kirito and Asuna directly.
* WhatTheHellHero: Tears into Leafa after the negotiation attempt backfires spectacularly.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Heathcliff]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/heathcliff_3.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Truly, you are the voice of a generation."'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' Curtis "[[Creator/TeamFourStar Takahata101]]" Arnott\\\

The Commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath and de facto leader of the effort to clear ''Sword Art Online''. He's by far the most competent and sanest of the players in the game, tendency to make obscure references aside. Unfortunately, he finds himself increasingly exasperated by everyone continuously refusing to follow his guidance and getting themselves killed as a result.
----
* BadLiar: Nobody buys it when he hastily tries to explain [[spoiler:the 'Immortal Object' popup that shows up when Kirito stabs him]].
* BerserkButton: A SpotTheThread-inducing one: [[spoiler:He gets very defensive when people insult ''Sword Art Online'']].
* BigGood: The leader of a large guild and very proactive in clearing out ''SAO''. [[spoiler:Kayaba had to take on this role because of how [[TooDumbToLive idiotic]] the players were]].
* {{Expy}}: Shares traits from [[WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged Perfect Cell]], having an identical voice, a [[AffablyEvil gentlemanly manner]], and an [[SmugSuper inflated ego]]. He also has a similar relationship with Kirito that Cell has to Goku, being a WorthyOpponent and the only one who Kayaba feels understands him.
* GoodCannotComprehendEvil: Heathcliff believes in his core about the better nature of people, and keeps getting surprised when his standards aren't met.
** He's caught off guard by Fluffles defecting to the King of Ashes to torture and maim players when he could instead help everyone get to the real world.
** He eventually admits that [[spoiler:his forming his guild was a hasty Plan B when he realized that Kirito would not step up as the "savior of Aincrad" despite having more than enough power and experience to do so]].
* PopCulturalOsmosisFailure: He's exasperated when no one reacts when he makes a ''Film/DrStrangelove'' reference to try to defuse a tense situation.
* RankScalesWithAsskicking: He's the leader of the Knights of the Blood Oath, the strongest guild in the game, and he's also the strongest player in the game; during a duel with Kirito he was able to [[CurbStompBattle curbstomp]] Kirito before he even knows what's happening. [[spoiler:And that's even before taking his true identity as SAO's admin into account]].
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: One of very few. [[spoiler:Kayaba decided he had to be this, since the sheer stupidity of the players would never be able to beat the game without a strong unifying force]].
* RedBaron: His impregnable defense has earned him the distinguished title of "Cheating Haxxor Faggot." [[spoiler:Unbeknownst to everyone else, he is keeping himself alive with a cheat code]].
-->'''Sam:''' Distinguished?
* ShoutOut: Likes making references to classic movies (that usually no one else has seen). [[spoiler:The fact that he shares this habit with Kayaba makes Kirito suspicious of him]].
* SomethingOnlyTheyWouldSay: What ultimately gives him away is his fascination with pop culture references, just like Kayaba.
-->'''Heathcliff:''' Oh, so ''now'' you've seen ''Film/{{TRON}}!''\\
'''Kirito:''' Of course I've seen ''TRO''--wait, "now?"
* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler:He's actually the assumed identity of Kayaba Akahiko]].
* YoungerThanTheyLook: Looks to be middle-aged, but [[spoiler:he's really Kayaba, who seems to be in his mid-twenties]].
[[/folder]]

!!Introduced in Season 2
[[folder:Suguha Kirigaya / Leafa]]
!!Suguha Kirigaya / Leafa
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/suguha.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Hey, all I know is you leave the house for hours at a time and then come home crying. You know, like bitches do."'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' Lennon Drake\\\

-->''"[[SurpriseIncest Oh jesus fuck, I said my brother had a sweet patootie! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!]]"''

Kirito's [[AnnoyingYoungerSibling annoying little sister]] who [[BigSisterBully makes his life a living hell]]. In [=ALfheim=], she roleplays as Princess Leafa, a wannabe DamselInDistress who antagonizes nearly everyone around her. She is (barely) FriendsWithBenefits with Shinichi Nagata, who plays as Recon. When Kirito starts playing the game and finds her, she is initially attracted to him, then repulsed when discovering he is her brother, but is convinced by Yui to help out and try to work on their relationship.
----
* AccidentalTruth: To get Recon off her and Kirito's back to prevent him from finding out about Kirito's true identity, she tells him that Cazmer is up to something and asks him to investigate. Though when Nagata tells Suguha that she was in fact right and that Cazmer was up to something, he's GenreSavvy enough to realize from her reaction that this trope was in effect with some dejection.
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: As Episode 17 reveals, her home life with Kirito was decidedly less happy than it was in canon. [[spoiler:She took up kendo in order emulate her brother, only for Kirito to get bored and go into programming, leaving Suguha to deal with their sexist grandfather, who only cared about Kirito and forced Suguha through hell under the assumption it would get her to quit. Suguha got through the training, but the emotional scars left her hating Kirito, her own femininity, and the "dumb nerd shit" that took up all of her brother's time.]] Outside of her BigBrotherAttraction, the Suguha in canon dealt with comparatively much less emotional issues.
* AdaptationalIntelligence: [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]]. She figures out Kirito's identity faster than she did in the original series, because it wasn't particularly difficult in the first place. [[ForWantOfANail This version of Suguha simply remembered]] what her brother's preferred OnlineAlias was, and was able to put the pieces together in a few seconds. At the same time, she doesn't seem to know what an advanced AI is when she talks to Yui, resulting in Yui having to resort to baby talk.
* AdaptationalJerkass: Compare the canon NiceGirl with a side of BigBrotherAttraction to her abridged AxCrazy, [[BigBrotherBully bullying]] characterization.
* AdaptationRelationshipOverhaul:
** While her canon counterpart's relationship with her brother was strained due to him being an AloofBigBrother, they still loved and cared for each other greatly. In the abridged series, Kirito absolutely despises Suguha, while she only sees Kirito as her personal punching bag. The KissingCousins[=/=]BigBrotherAttraction angle is wholly absent; when Suguha figures out that Kirito is playing [=ALfheim=] and realizes that [[SurpriseIncest she said her brother had a "sweet patootie"]], Suguha instantly [[NoJustNoReaction reacts with revulsion]].
** Also applies to Recon. Whereas in canon, where the two are friends but Recon has an unrequited crush on Leafa that's in part due to her BigBrotherAttraction, Leafa here is in fact heavily {{Implied}} to have feelings for Recon, but is held back from reciprocating normally due to her unresolved issues with Kazuto and her own femininity, which compels her to pick on those she perceives as weaker than her to appear tough. Despite this, it should be noted that she once baked cupcakes for him, which canon Leafa is never hinted to have done, and the two have apparently had something resembling sex, which has ''definitely'' never happened in canon.
* AdoptedIntoRoyalty: Part of Princess Leafa's background is that she was taken off the streets and adopted into the sylph royal family.
* AllWomenAreLustful: In episode 16 when she imagines how she could get her own country the first thing that comes to her mind is how under her rule every guy, except the "fatties", would have to wear thongs.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: To the extent of being a [[InvertedTrope Little]] [[BigSisterBully Sister Bully]]. If Episode 12 is any indication, she spends her every interaction with Kirito putting him down and making him feel worthless.
* AristocratsAreEvil: Apparently Kirito isn't the first "peasant" to develop "a sudden yet powerful distrust of the monarchy" after interacting with her Princess Leafa persona.
* AttemptedRape: Subverted. Leafa's introduced surrounded by three men with a very clear intent to rape her. [[NotWhatItLooksLike They're actually roleplaying sexual predation, as the game's age rating wouldn't let them go into actual rape.]]
* AxCrazy: When it comes to kendo, she gets a little... intense.
-->'''Kirito:''' Oh, come on, Suguha! I just learned how to walk again!\\
'''Suguha:''' DON'T WORRY: YOU'LL STILL BE ABLE TO CRAWL, MAGGOT! [[EvilLaugh HAHAHAHA!]]\\
'''Kirito:''' NO! PLEASE! MERCY! I YIELD! I YIELD!\\
'''Suguha:''' DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR!
* BadBadActing: Her attempts at being in-character as Princess Leafa come across as over-the-top and very awkward. She puts on an over-the-top posh accent, and becomes a LargeHam. It's contrasted with Kirito (who straight-out refuses to roleplay in the game except for one time where he had no choice), and other players (who are much better roleplayers than Suguha/Leafa is).
* BadLiar:
** Once she figures out that Kirito is her brother Kazuto, she can barely hide her thinly-veiled contempt for him when they interact in [=ALfheim=]. As Kirito speaks about his sister, Leafa [[ButHeSoundsHandsome speaks about this "sister" in very flattering terms]], yet Kirito doesn't pick up on it.
** After the InternalReveal in Episode 17, she awkwardly says "No hablo nihongo!" Not only is this mixing up two languages, but she's trying to say that she doesn't speak Japanese, when she's been speaking in Japanese the entire time.
* BigBrotherBully: {{Inverted|Trope}}. Despite being a year younger than Kirito (and visibly shorter than him), she's ''extremely'' insulting towards him, makes several demeaning comments about his relationship with Asuna, and when it comes to [[AxCrazy kendo practice]]... let's just say that we suddenly have a pretty clear picture of where [[FreudianExcuse a lot of Kirito's issues came from]].
* BigBrotherWorship: [[spoiler: Turns out this used to be the case, to the point that when her and Kazuto's grandfather wanted to teach the latter kendo, Suguha join in to emulate her brother.]]
* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler: After several episodes of being apathetic to Kirito's pain, she willingly shows up at the dungeon to rescue and revive Kirito from the fairy droids' ZergRush, even taking a few shots in the process.]]
* BigStupidDoodooHead: A lot of her insults boil down to extremely childish name calling, in stark contrast to Kirito who tends to have more refined one-liners. She still easily manages to push Kirito off-balance with it though.
* TheBlank: [[spoiler:Temporarily gets her face deleted by Yui; this puts an end to any fuss she gives the AI.]]
* BookDumb: Episode 15 shows she doesn't share Kirito's brains. When talking to Yui, Suguha thinks Yui is a robot instead of an [=AI=] and mistaking the word "delegate" for "deli". It gets to the point that Yui loses any respect she had for Suguha from this one conversation alone.
* BrainBleach: She gets extremely disgusted when she realizes the person she's been flirting with in [=ALfheim=] is [[SurpriseIncest her own brother]]. She starts to cry from the very idea. When a nobleman suggested that Kirito seduced her in Episode 15, [[NoJustNoReaction Leafa starts to gag]].
* BrokenPedestal: [[spoiler: She used to worship her big brother and got to kendo to emulate him, but when he left to study coding instead she felt betrayed. She dedicated the rest of her life to putting him down and abusing him whenever she gets the chance to spar with him.]]
* ButHeSoundsHandsome: In Episode 16, Suguha (in her guise as Leafa) probes Kirito on his feelings towards his sister. Kirito says he thinks his sister is a JerkJock, and she implies he did something to wrong her, but not before complimenting herself quite a bit.
-->'''Suguha/Leafa:''' Wow! Sounds like this creative, young, ''beautiful'' woman is maybe lashing out...
* CallingMeALogarithm: Kirito declaring he doesn't have the inclination to work out her love life leads to Leafa indignantly refusing to be compared to some mountaineering lesbian.
* CharacterDevelopment: With some heavy coercing from Yui, Suguha begins to open herself up more to Kirito and understand his perspective on things rather than just incessantly bully him. [[spoiler:It culminates in her finally telling Kirito what he did that made her hate him so much.]]
* CharacterizationClickMoment: While her status as Kirito's abuser was clearly established in her first appearance, it's her second appearance, where she nearly chokes on a muffin [[TooDumbToLive and then tries to "dislodge it" with a second one]] where she establishes that she's [[DumbMuscle not too bright]].
-->'''[=Hayabusa449=]:''' Every time we question whether a line of dialogue is too dumb for Suguha, we always remind ourselves, [[TooDumbToLive "second muffin."]]
* ClosetGeek: She bullies Kazuto for liking computers and video games, yet is a regular player of ''[=ALfheim=] Online'', in which she role-plays as a beautiful Sylph princess and (wannabe) DamselInDistress. In Episode 15, she yells at Nagata for talking about her hobby in public, then imagines Kazuto finding out and mocking her for liking "girly shit".
* ClusterFBomb: When she realizes in Episode 14 that the Spriggan she was helping out the entire time was her brother, and that [[SurpriseIncest she was flirting with him]]. Bonus for being the first time in the episode the NarrativeProfanityFilter is off.
-->'''Suguha:''' Son of a horse dick-fucking shit weasel-fucking bitch whore ass! What is that fucking cock-sampler doing in my game?! Oh Jesus fuck! I said my brother had a sweet patootie! ''(screams and cries into her pillow)''
* CompetitionFreak: Like her brother Suguha is incredibly competitive, being jealous at how fast Kirito learned the flying mechanic and later offended when Kirito unintentionally suggests she's not good enough to help him.
* DeliberatelyDistressedDamsel: She tries to roleplay as a DamselInDistress in ''[=ALfheim=] Online'' when cornered by some Salamanders, and [[BadBadActing isn't very good at it]], to the point where "[=PantySmasher=]" breaks character to get her back on track.
* DisproportionateRetribution: Her go-to move when someone annoys her is to hit them with whatever's in her hands at the moment, which is why she's so deadly at kendo.
** She knocks Nagata to the ground with her shinai after he asks her out on a date, and because he idolizes her brother.
** After Kirito pours cold water on her back as a prank, she ''hits him with a rock''.
* DomesticAbuse: On top of being a [[BigSisterBully little sister bully]], Suguha has been shown to physically abuse Kirito, such as during kendo 'practice' where he tries to give up but she repeatedly hits him anyways.
* TheDreaded: When Kirito realizes she's probably awake and ready for kendo practice with him, he has to give himself a pep talk to be able to face her. Given [[CurbStompBattle what the practice is like]] and her [[{{Jerkass}} rather vicious and constant belittling of him]], it's not hard to see why.
* DumbMuscle: She's way stronger than Kazuto in the real world, but she's also dim enough to not realize an AI and a sentient robot are the same thing. Yui is not impressed.
* {{Egopolis}}: She begins to fantasize how she could start her own country named "Leafa Land" if the lands of the Sylphs are pillaged by the Salamanders, where every guy would have to wear a thong except the fat ones who wouldn't be allowed there to begin with.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Her first interactions with Kirito show her as being just as much of a smartass as her older brother, made worse by her being physically abusive.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood:
** In episode 15, Yui reveals Kirito isn't planning to trick Suguha with anything; he genuinely wants to save Asuna, and that's all. Suguha cannot believe that Kirito is playing [=ALfheim=] for a selfless reason, even denying Yui's insistence that the two of them bumping into each other was a coincidence; Suguha/Leafa chooses instead to believe that this is all a setup for some sort of prank on her by Kirito.
** Episode 16 has Kirito express his sincere disappointment, which gets through Suguha's armor for a moment. She tries to cheer him up, but fails miserably by spouting clichés that don't help him feel better. Even when she does, her voice shows that she's straining to think of anything nice to say.
** Subverted in episode 17. [[spoiler: It turns out her inability to understand Kirito is because she believed he didn't care about anyone as he never noticed how much she looked up to him, how she joined him in learning Kendo because of that, how upset she was when he got bored and left, and how their grandfather only wanted to teach him Kendo and put her through hell to get her to quit, which she perservered through in the vain hope he'd come back.]]
* ExplainExplainOhCrap: She provides the OhCrap. When Nagata initially tells her about the Salamanders attacking Sakuya's meeting with the Cait Sith, she's initially dismissive about it and even contemplates using the chance to make her own country to rule... until Nagata mentions how it was meant to be top-secret and that Sakuya is gonna want the head of whoever leaked it (i.e, Leafa when telling Cazmer to take a hike) on a pike.
* {{Foil}}:
** She's basically Kirito before all his CharacterDevelopment over Season One, only worse because she's able to act that way in real life, without the [[ForumSpeak G.I.F.T]].
** She's similar to Rosalia in that she's of the few people who can [[BreakThemByTalking verbally get through Kirito's skin]] via VirginShaming. Rosalia's casual attempted murder of Pina in Episode 4 also mirrors Leafa's killing of Squeaker In Episode 16. The main difference between the two is that Rosalia is a [[{{Sadist}} sadistic]] guild leader who gets off on breaking people before killing them, while Suguha's abuse of her brother is her toxic way of coping with the abuse [[GruesomeGrandparent her sexist grandfather]] inflicted on her when she was a kid.
* ForgetfulJones: She completely forgot about her own engagement party. And then there's the exchange when Kirito presses her to tell him about the World Tree:
-->'''Leafa:''' Oh right, you were asking me about that. Ah, sure, you got me out of that party, so I guess I owe you one.\\
'''Kirito:''' I also saved you from those enemy players.\\
'''Leafa:''' I mean ''yeah'', but [[WhatHaveYouDoneForMeLately what have you done ‎for me lately?]]\\
'''Kirito:''' I got you out of your engagment party!\\
'''Leafa:''' Oh ''that's'' right. Okay, yeah.
* FreudianExcuse: Episode 16 implies that Suguha's mocking of Kirito is her lashing out at him over some sort of incident in their past: while the details are unknown, Suguha-as-Leafa implies that it was the result of some kind of inaction, and later tells Yui that it "ruined my life". [[spoiler: Episode 17 reveals that it was because he dropped kendo in favor of games and programming and left her alone to deal with their [[GruesomeGrandparent sexist grandfather's]] attempts to get her to quit. And when she persevered in the fruitless hopes that he would come back, he never did, leading to her to hate her brother, her own femininity and "dumb nerd shit".]]
-->'''Leafa:''' Is it possible you did something to... hurt her, at some point?\\
'''Kirito:''' That's the thing! I didn't ''do'' anything!\\
'''Leafa:''' ''[with quiet bitterness]'' You ever think that maybe that was the problem?
* FriendsWithBenefits: It's all but stated that she's involved in an intimate relationship with Nagata, but she reacts violently to Nagata's offer to take her on an actual date.
* GreenEyedMonster: [[spoiler:She has an outburst at Kirito over feeling neglected and abandoned in favor of Asuna, inadvertently revealing her real-world identity.]]
* GruesomeGrandparent: [[spoiler: It is revealed in Episode 17 that her and Kazuto's grandfather was ''extremely'' hard on her when she was doing kendo practice as he [[StayInTheKitchen was on ever interested in Kazuto]]. The only reason she continued was in the hopes that Kazuto would come back, but he never did.]]
* HeIsNotMyBoyfriend: She reacts violently to Nagata's efforts to take her on an actual date, [[FriendsWithBenefits but is happy to "quest" with him in the supply closet.]] Her imagining Kirito mocking her also has imaginary Kirito suggest she does like Shinichi. Yui's psychological profile of Suguha suggests the same thing.
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Her go-to insult for Kazuto is to call him [[MasturbationMeansSexualFrustration a perverted loser who masturbates frequently]], despite him being (until meeting Asuna) a ChasteHero whose worst offense was [[ThanksForTheMammary accidental groping]].
* HowMuchDidYouHear: She overhears Kirito making an embarrassing retort to Sugou over Twitter and she doesn't let him live it down.
* InternalizedCategorism: She hates the idea of being seen as "girly" or being interested in girly things like ''[=ALfheim=] Online''. Yui's psych profile in Episode 15 implies that someone or something that happened in her childhood caused her to hate any traditionally feminine traits, resulting in Suguha being resentful of her brother and hiding her true feelings for Shinichi. [[spoiler:It's revealed in Episode 17 to be a product of her having to deal with her sexist grandfather, who put her through hell during kendo training to get her to quit.]]
* ItsAllAboutMe:
** Once she discovers that Kirito is playing ''[=ALfheim=] Online'', she immediately jumps to the conclusion that [[MotiveMisidentification he must only be doing it because he is plotting against her]]. Even when Yui spells out that this was all a coincidence, Suguha doesn't buy it.
** In a confrontation at the "fairport," Prince Cazmer reminds her that their marriage [[AltarDiplomacy will end a devastating Sylph civil war.]] Leafa counters that she still wants out of it because "I'm ''bored'' now."
* JerkJock: A competent practitioner of kendo who seems to enjoy tormenting her older brother. Kirito at least clearly sees her that way, directly refering to her collection of sport trophies and how he believes she uses it as an excuse to look down upon him. It's revealed in Episode 17 that she underwent TrainingFromHell during her kendo lessons, because [[spoiler:her sexist grandfather tried his able best to get Suguha to quit, since he wanted to train Kirito and not Suguha. She stuck with it anyways because she hoped that Kirito might see how hard she was working and they could reconcile]].
* {{Jerkass}}: Almost everything she says in the episode she's introduced in involves insulting Kirito and having NoSympathy for basically everything that's happened to him. She also doesn't go through with a marriage quest because she got bored, and she treats Recon like crap despite the fact that he does everything that Suguha asks him to do.
* JerkassRealization: [[spoiler: Seeing just how deeply Kazuto truly cared about his so-called fake online wife causes her to realize what a dick she had been to him, causing her to break down in tears the next time they meet in [=ALfheim=].]]
* KickTheDog: Could rival her brother when it comes to this. Made worse by the fact her cruelty extends past being an InternetJerk.
** Her treatment of Recon is filled with this; from casually leaving him to be tortured by Cazmer because she's too bored to roleplay and showing no remorse when he calls her out on it to knocking him to the ground for daring to ask her out on a date.
** She kills [[TheCutie Squeaker]], the salamanders' beloved pet bat, for stalking her and Kirito. Granted, she didn't know how beloved the bat was, but still counts as this since the poor critter was trying to escape when she blew him apart.
* LackOfEmpathy: Could border on TheSociopath if it weren't for her PetTheDog moments.
** Her reaction to parents preventing their children from playing a VR game due to the ''SAO'' disaster is to tell them to get over it. Bonus points for having her own brother be one of the ''SAO'' survivors.
** She's rather excited about participating in the [="#RaceWar"=] and antagonizing the spriggans and the cat-sith, and doesn't show any sympathy when Cazmer is banished/banned for trying to end it.
* TheLadette: Despite being a petite 15-year-old girl, she's rude, crude, loud, foul-mouthed, aggressive, and a huge bully towards Kirito.
* LooseLips: She says a little too much at the wrong moment during Episode 17.
** After visiting Asuna in the hospital, Suguha realizes that Kirito wasn't making it up, and says "I'm the worst" as a result. When she gets back in the game, Suguha (as Leafa) tries to get consoled by Kirito, saying he's "the worst brother ever" when he says he doesn't have time to listen to Leafa cry. However, [[FailedASpotCheck Kirito doesn't pick up on what she said]].
** Later in the same episode, she has an AnguishedOutburst that causes an InternalReveal. [[spoiler:Kirito dies in TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon, but Leafa saves his spirit and resurrects him with an item. As Kirito tries to go right back in, Leafa says "Gosh darn it, Kazuto! Why couldn't you ever fight for me this hard?!" which she immediately realizes [[SayingTooMuch gave up the ghost]]. Kirito finally figures out that Leafa is his sister, causing her to instantly log out from embarrassment.]]
* LustObject: As part of their roleplaying, with Leafa as a DamselInDistress and the Salamanders as sexual predators.
-->'''[=PantySmasher=]:''' Know this: the Salamanders ''cannot be stopped''. And we ''shall not rest'' until we [[PunctuatedForEmphasis have. Dat. Booty.]]
* MasterOfTheMixedMessage: Towards Shinichi/Recon. At the beginning of episode 15, she jabs him in the stomach with a kendo stick when he asks her out on a date, but tells him to meet her in the closet after practice because she has a "quest" for him, which was later stated to be a handjob. [[HeIsNotMyBoyfriend Suguha denies feeling any attractiveness towards Shinichi]], but Yui says that [[MySensorsIndicateYouWantToTapThat her heart rate increased around him]]. Suguha also imagines a conversation with Kirito where he mocks her because she likes girly things like fairies and ponies and Shinichi. The conclusion to be drawn from all of this is that Suguha does like Shinichi, but desperately denies it and/or tries to keep anyone from finding out due to [[InternalizedCategorism a fear of being seen as girly]].
* MisplacedRetribution: [[spoiler:This is at the core of her anger towards her brother - she blames him for leaving her at the mercy of their sexist grandfather and his [[SadistTeacher less than kind]] ways of teaching kendo.]]
* MoralMyopia: She accuses Kirito of not caring for her after he took in coding and video games instead of learning kendo with her, using his obsession with saving Asuna as an example of what he does when he's invested in someone. This is despite the fact that the stakes in both instances are vastly different: If Asuna isn't saved, she'll be MadeASlave by a rapist, so Kirito has every reason to be obsessed with rescuing her; while all Suguha had to do then was talk things out with his brother or find another way to learn kendo (which she apparently did anyway, if Episode 15 is any indication). This makes her accusations rather moot, supported by the fact that Kirito later tells her he had no idea she was that invested in the sport.
* MotiveMisidentification: Once she discovers that Kirito is participating in [=ALfheim=], her first theory is that he must be playing the game to find {{blackmail}} material on her. Even after Yui says that Kirito is being honest -- he's playing the game to save Asuna, and that's it -- Suguha doesn't buy it. Episode 16 has Kirito's obvious distress break through a little bit, but Suguha still believes he has an ulterior motive. It takes an InternalReveal for Suguha in Episode 17 by seeing Asuna's unconscious body in the hospital before Suguha finally realizes that Kirito isn't making it up.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone:
** A PlayedForLaughs version happens after she realizes that the Spriggan she had been playing with was her brother. She curses up a storm and then realizes she said her brother had a "sweet patootie".
** Downplayed, but more seriously done, when Kirito unknowingly admits to her (as Leafa) how badly she's hurt him, she's a little taken aback and upset. She immediately tries to claim she's lashing out for him being oblivious to her own troubles, but this is the first time she's ever shown ''attempting'' to connect with him.
** PlayedForDrama in Episode 17 when [[spoiler:she accompanies Kazuto to go visit Asuna in the hospital. Suguha wonders aloud why he even bothers before seeing him solemnly sitting by Asuna's side, causing Suguha to realize that Asuna is his real-life girlfriend. And Suguha has been bullying him over a ''very'' deep emotional wound simply because Suguha refused to believe that Kazuto wasn't just messing with her. This causes Suguha to realize that all of the things he spoke about were real, which makes her feel bad about herself]].
* NeverMyFault:
** Refuses to admit fault for spilling the beans on the peace talk to the salamanders, and later tells Sakuya that she was tortured by Cazmer into doing so.
--->'''Leafa:''' Not naming names, but ''someone'' leaked information about the peace treaty, so now the Salamander army is on their way to attack it!\\
'''Kirito:''' Didn't ''you'' do that?\\
'''Leafa:''' I said "not naming names!" Gosh, what part of this do you not understand?
** In episode 17, she fully blames Kirito for ruining her life after [[spoiler:she spent most of her childhood being put through TrainingFromHell by their grandfather, despite it being her decision to get into kendo in the first place, motivated by an attempt to emulate her brother. Kirito's reaction to being told this implies she never told him how hurt she felt by his departure.]]
* NoblewomansLaugh: Does a very hammy one in episode 14 when in-character as Princess Leafa.
* OohMeAccentsSlipping: She tends to fall out of character when she stumbles over her improvised dialogue.
-->'''Leafa:''' ''[ominously]'' They are a ''crafty'' bunch, ''plotting'' and ''scheming'' their... [[FailedAttemptAtDrama schemes and plots]].
* PetTheDog: She's got a few of these, mostly owning to her CharacterDevelopment.
** She has a soft spot towards both Recon and his player Shinichi, helping him through his panic attack and, while she punts him in the stomach for flirting with her, it's more because she's frustrated with him being LostInCharacter and confusing attraction towards Leafa with attraction towards her player (and then [[MasterOfTheMixedMessage she immediately tells him to meet her in the janitor's closet]] because [[HypocriticalHumor Leafa has a new quest for him]]).
** In Episode 16, after she and Kirito fail to get any armies on their side to help rescue Asuna, Leafa attempts to comfort him. Granted, she utterly [[EpicFail fails]] due to her comforting skills [[{{Metaphorgotten}} not exactly being in rare form]], but considering her [[BigBrotherBully usual attitude towards Kirito]], the fact that she even made an effort is pretty nice.
** In Episode 17, she willingly visits Asuna at the hospital with her brother while holding back any snarky comments. Kirito himself later acknowledges this when reminiscing about their relationship, claiming it reminded him of [[UsedToBeASweetKid when she was a kid]]. Later in the same episode, she gets genuinely worried that Kirito might end up hurting himself when he starts banging his head against the invisible wall to try and reach Asuna, and again when he attempts a "solo speedrun" through the World Tree. [[HonorBeforeReason When he vows to try it again]], she crumbles and desperately begs him not to go.
* PintSizedPowerhouse: Shorter than Kirito and able to kick his ass in real life.
* PlayTheGameSkipTheStory: {{Invoked| Trope}}. She outright admits that this is her approach to some of the deeper and more complicated parts of [=ALfheim=]:
-->'''Kirito:''' Why do these hicks have it out for you anyway?\\
'''Leafa:''' Well, you see... ''[nervous laugh]'' It's all ''very'' complicated. Lots of "shifting alliances" and "acenstral curses"...\\
'''Kirito:''' You have ''no'' idea, do you?\\
'''Leafa:''' ''Arrrgh!'' It's all so ''boring!'' I can only sit through so many trade route negotiations before I just go cross-eyed!
* PoorCommunicationKills: [[spoiler:By all indications, Suguha's outburst at Kirito in Episode 17 might have been the first time she ever bothered to tell her brother ''why'' she hates him. As they've lived in the same household their entire lives, she could have told him about what she was going through having to train in kendo under their sexist grandfather, but she chose to wait all that time for him to figure it out for himself and let her resentment towards his absence fester.]]
* TheRoleplayer: She's trying her hand at this in ''ALO'', but is better at being an overbearing princess than a fair damsel.
* RoyalBrat: She's ''Princess'' Leafa, and "pleased to make my acquaintance."
-->'''Kirito:''' Don't you mean "your?"\\
'''Leafa:''' [[ExactlyWhatIMeantToSay I know what I said.]] ...Well? ''Bow!''
* RunawayFiancee: When Kirito meets her, Leafa's five hours late to her own engagement party, and isn't too excited about her in-game betrothal to Prince Cazmer.
* ScreamingAtSquick: When she realizes that not only had she been engaging in some flirty roleplaying with her brother online, but also that she said he had a "sweet patootie."
* SelfFulfillingProphecy: She lives with the perception that Kirito will never have her best interests in mind [[spoiler:due to him ditching kendo for computer programming and leaving her alone to deal with their sexist instructor of a grandfather]]. This is a pretty easy view for her to reinforce, considering she constantly antagonizes her brother, ensuring that he will never believe she is worth being nice to.
* SharedFamilyQuirks: Beyond acting a lot like Kirito's gaming persona in real life, she [[SharePhrase shares]] ''[[LargeHam "For you see!"]]'' as the dramatic start to an infodump, considers throwing waves of expendable minions at a problem a valid battle strategy, and similarly [[BerserkButton gets pissed]] when someone implies she's not strong or experienced enough to do something. Tragically, she also immediately jumps to the conclusion that her sibling would only join the game to hurt the other.
* ShipTease: It's implied that Leafa and Recon do actually have a crush on each other but she's way too insecure to act on it because she believes she'll be bullied for enjoying fantasy games, something Recon embraces.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: In the ''Aincrad'' arc of the series, she only gets mentioned a few times, and has no real appearance at all. Yet it's her actions that ultimately shaped Kirito into who he becomes at the start of the series, and even him becoming a gamer to escape from the way she treated him. She only avoids being TheHeavy because she only directly affects Kirito, but she still plays a large role in shaping him into the man he started as.
* SouthernBelle: As Leafa, she adopts an accent to this effect.
* SurpriseIncest: She only finds out Kirito's identity just as she's about to log out in front of him, and is appropriately horrified since she was flirting with him. She unleashes a ClusterFBomb before realizing, much to her horror, that she said her brother had a "sweet patootie."
* TookALevelInKindness: It's incremental, but she softens a bit towards Kirito. At the end of Episode 16, Suguha-as-Leafa offers a legitimate (if clumsy) apology to him for wasting their time with the "army" angle.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: PlayedForDrama. Yui's psychological profile of Suguha suggests that Suguha is inherently scared and/or repulsed by her own femininity, and reacts violently to anyone who even remotely taps into this aspect. Episode 15 also implies that she believes that anyone (especially Kirito) who discovers this aspect of her will mock her for it. [[spoiler: Episode 17 reveals that this is due to mistreatment from her sexist grandfather.]]
-->'''Imaginary Kirito:''' ''[mockingly]'' Ha-ha, Suguha! You act like you're a ''bad bitch'', but you secretly like all this ''GIRLY SHIT!'' Like ''fairies'', and [[HeIsNotMyBoyfriend Nagata]], and ''PONIES''!\\
'''Suguha:''' ''[growls]'' Yeah, he ''would'' say that, that son of a bitch...
* TooDumbToLive: Almost literally. When choking on one muffin, her plan was to cram down a ''second'' muffin to dislodge the first one. She only survives because Kirito hands her a juice box; even then, she crams down the second muffin anyway, and starts choking again.
* TrainingFromHell: Had to endure this from her [[GruesomeGrandparent Gruesome Grandfather]] when she tried to learn Kendo, [[ParentalFavoritism as he was only interested in Kazuto]] and wanted her to quit. By the events of the show, she's now on the giving end of this whenever she spars with Kazuto, threatening to break his legs and beating him to a pulp when he surrenders.
* {{Troll}}: Pretty much everything she says has the intent of pissing Kirito off, and it works. However, when he brushes off her insults in Episode 13, she can't do much more than grumble.
* TroubledAbuser: She regularly beats up Kazuto in kendo and belittles him every opportunity she gets outside of it. Episode 17 reveals [[spoiler:her grandfather apparently did the same to her because he wanted Kazuto to succeed him in kendo [[StayInTheKitchen instead of a girl]]]].
* {{Tsundere}}: Towards Recon/Nagata. She's constantly calling him her "[[SexSlave fuck boy]]", but there are multiple hints that she genuinely likes him, from their [[FriendsWithBenefits more intimate relationship]]. She baked cupcakes for him one time, and [[MySensorsIndicateYouWantToTapThat Yui noticing]] ''[[MySensorsIndicateYouWantToTapThat both]]'' [[MySensorsIndicateYouWantToTapThat their heart rates increase when near each other]]. {{Deconstructed}} in that it's her issues with Kirito bleeding into her interactions with Recon, as noted by Yui in her psyche profile of Suguha.
* {{Ungrateful B|astard}}itch: Suguha doesn't give Kirito so much as a "thank you" for saving her from choking to death in episode 13, and promptly goes back to mocking him as soon as she can breathe. Comes up again as Leafa in Episode 14, where she draws her sword on Kirito after he saves her, something he calls her out on.
* UnreliableExpositor: She claims that the Salamanders shamelessly exploit the friendship values of their pets to be able to send them off on suicide missions, but multiple Salamander players are shown to be genuinely distraught over the death of Squeaker.
* VocalDissonance: Contrast her canon counterpart who sounds like a little girl, her abridged self sounds like a grown woman.
* WeHaveReserves: She declares her approach to problem-solving is to throw waves of her loyal subjects at something until either they take care of it or she can climb a pile of their corpses.
--> '''Leafa:''' Because ''that'' good sir, is how a princess ''do.''
* WeUsedToBeFriends: [[spoiler:It's revealed in Episode 17 that before the siblings fell out, the two were extremely close. But after Kazuto abandoned kendo and left Suguha to be trained by their sexist grandfather, she grew bitter towards him, and her resulting abuse towards Kazuto led to the feeling becoming mutual.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Shinichi Nagata / Recon]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/abridgednagata.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350: ''"So, where are you guys off to? Going on a que... ''(ahem)''\\
You guys going on a mission?''"]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Spencer "[=BuddyVA=]" Downs

A Sylph player who quests with Leafa in ''[=ALfheim=] Online'', and [[FriendsWithBenefits "quests"]] with Suguha in real life. He is usually the target of bullying by Leafa and Prince Cazmer, but tries to help out his princess nonetheless.
----
* AdaptationRelationshipOverhaul: The [[LovesMyAlterEgo ship tease between Leafa and Kirito in the original series]] was moved to Recon and Leafa instead in the Abridged version.
* BadBadActing: When confronted with Kirito, his "threat" to the Spriggan is so wooden you could make household furniture out of it.
* CrazyJealousGuy: Averted. Despite his feelings for Suguha/Leafa, he has no issue with her hanging out with Kirito at all. Episode 15 shows he's more annoyed at being ditched by her causing her storyline fiance to torture him and he trusts Kirito to a degree that confuses him.
* TheCutie: Is held in high regard by both [[{{Jerkass}} Kirito]] and [[AristocratsAreEvil Leafa]], while definitely being the type of person they would both relentlessly emotionally terrorize under normal circumstances.
* DoggedNiceGuy: He does whatever Suguha/Leafa tells him to because he's attracted to her. The attraction doesn't seem to be one-sided either; despite Suguha hitting him with the butt of her kendo stick when Shinichi asks her on an actual date in Episode 15, she also tells him to meet her in the janitor's closet for some implied sex. Suguha/Leafa also mentions that she "sucked him off one time", but insisted that it was for a quest. Finally, Yui notes that ''both'' of their heart rates [[MySensorsIndicateYouWanttoTapThat increased by 22% when near each other]]. Further complicating things is that Suguha is a MasterOfTheMixedMessage, abusing Shinichi/Recon one minute, then giving him sexual favors the next. As such, Shinichi/Recon is constantly nervous around Suguha, in part because he's attracted to her and in part because it's impossible to know where he stands with her.
* ExtremeDoormat: As beffiting for a princess' "Fuckboy", he stands by Leafa/Suguha despite how horribly she treats him.
* FriendsWithBenefits: Light on the "friends," and more emphasis on the "benefits."
-->'''Suguha:''' You and I are barely friends! ''Recon'' is Princess Leafa's ''fuckboy.'' Got it? Don't confuse the game with real life, you perv! [[HypocriticalHumor Now meet me in the supply closet after practice,]] I've got another ''quest'' for you.
* GagPenis: {{Implied}}. When Kirito and Yui are teasing Leafa about her apparent feelings for Recon and the latter points out their increase in heartrates when they interacted as evidence, she retorts that maybe she's scared of him because he has a "[[AccidentalInnuendo big knife]]", causing the two to crack up. It should be noted though that she doesn't deny their assumption upon realizing how ThatCameOutWrong, instead telling them to shut up before flying ahead with a LuminescentBlush.
* HeroWorshipper: Episode 15 shows that Shinichi would like to meet Kirito due to his fame as the Hero of Aincrad.
* NiceGuy: In the original series, Recon was extremely clingy with Leafa, but out of sincere, if immature love. Here, he's extremely nice, to the point where even [[{{Jerkass}} Kirito]] doesn't even try to mock or belittle him in any way. Despite the fact that his [=NerveGear=] was bought second-hand for $100 more than a new one, and that he had to clean the previous users brain out of it, he doesn't once criticize the sellers' heartlessness, but instead [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter chooses to assume it was due to grief.]] Additionally, upon [[AristocratsAreEvil Leafa]] describing a certain act she did with him, ostensibly in pursuit of a quest, Kirito goes so far as to call him "too precious for this world."
* ShipTease: It's suggested multiple times that he and Leafa are attracted to each other but Leafa refuses to act on her side of it because [[ClosetGeek she doesn't want to be outed for enjoying the fantasy genre]].
* SupernaturalFearInducer: On the receiving end of this due to a faulty [=NerveGear=], which occasionally "pulses the fear center of his brain" and sends him into shrieking fits where he hallucinates [[Manga/AssassinationClassroom tentacle monsters in classrooms]].
[[/folder]]

!Notable ''[=SAO=]'' Guilds

!!Titan's Hand
[[OverlyNarrowSuperlative One of the most feared orange guilds on the lower floors.]]

[[folder:Rosalia]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/abridged_rosalia.png]][[caption-width-right:350:"''And to top it all off you play the tough guy, this invincible warrior you can never hope to be in the real world. Getting stuck in this game was probably the best thing to ever happen to you.''"]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Alexandra "puccagarukiss" Curtis\\\

The leader of Titan's Hand and the antagonist of Episode 4. Stupider than she looks. She prides herself in her ability to manipulate and accurately psychologically diagnose others. Silica decides to quit her guild when she tries to convince her to hand over Pina, her pet dragon, to skin her for leather pants, and later gets into a confrontation with Kirito that ends badly for her.
----
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: A mild example; While she's still part of an orange guild, she doesn't go out of her way to express her LackOfEmpathy in this version, instead spending most of her screen time giving a surprisingly accurate TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Kirito. She's also not as much DirtyCoward in this version ([[RefugeInAudacity instead having the opposite problem]]) and [[FaceDeathWithDignity she takes her death at the hands of Kirito with complete acceptance]].
* AdaptationalDumbass: She was already an overconfident SmugSnake in the original anime for underestimating Kirito's abilities, but this version of Rosalia takes it to another degree by continuing to taunt [[AxCrazy an obviously deranged and bloodthirsty]] Kirito even after he's proven himself to be immune to her men's weaponery.
* AwesomeButImpractical: Her BreakThemByTalking strategy seems solid on paper, [[BreakTheHaughty and it sure takes its toll on Kirito]]. The problem is that the plan completely relies on her men being able to defeat the target after she's done poking at the armor. When Kirito turns out to be a bit too strong for them, the tables are turned rather quickly.
* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: Her EstablishingCharacterMoment consists of her wanting to skin Pina, a cute little pet dragon belonging to Silica, to use her skin to make leather pants.
* BigBadWannabe: She so desperately wants to be a respected player-killing guild like Laughing Coffin, but as Kirito puts it, she's little more than a [[SmugSnake psych-student on her first year]] who can only scare players who think ''slimes'' are terrifying.
* BreakThemByTalking: Her default tactic when dealing with players who are more skilled than her is to repeatedly poke at their self-esteem and reduce them to gibbering wrecks with her manipulation skills, before leaving them to be picked apart by her men.
* BullyingADragon: She orders her minions to attack Kirito even after one of said minions explains why Kirito might be a lot more dangerous than he looks. Then he proves it by being unfazed by their attacks, and she continues to taunt and antagonize him, provoking him to [[spoiler:slit her throat and kill her]].
* DeathByAdaptation: [[spoiler:Her canon counterpart just gets sent to prison with the rest of her guild. Her abridged self? [[TooDumbToLive Gets her neck cut open for pressing]] ''[[TooDumbToLive all three]]'' of Kirito's {{Berserk Button}}s]].
* DefiantToTheEnd: As she is killed by Kirito, she proceeds to make one final remark to spite him, which [[BreakThemByTalking evidentally really gets to him]]. See FacingTheBulletsOneLiner.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: Doesn't understand why Silica might be upset at the prospect of skinning and wearing her pet.
* EvilRedhead: She has blood-red head and she's the leader of a murderous guild.
* FacingTheBulletsOneLiner: [[spoiler:"Enjoy this while you can. It's the deepest you'll ever be in a woman."]]
* FailedAttemptAtDrama: Her villainous entrance gets ruined when Kirito notices her player name poking out at both sides of the tree she was hiding behind. Happens again when her entire TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Kirito gets cut short by him slicing her throat with little fanfare (although she ''does'' get the last laugh on that one).
* FauxAffablyEvil: She acts rather cordial with Silica and Kirito during their first encounter, all the while intentionally needling him and poking at his weak spots. [[{{Jerkass}} Kirito]] tries this with her during said meeting, but quickly gives it up.
-->'''Kirito:''' Rosalia! Oh my god! How ''are'' yo- oh wow, that’s enough of that. Jesus, how do you keep that act up all day?
* FunWithSubtitles: She's introduced in the subtitles as "Pet Skinner".
* HidingBehindYourBangs: The scheming version. Her hair covers her right eye.
* InterfaceSpoiler: InUniverse. Her attempt to ambush Kirito is foiled because he can see her nametag hovering over her head, poking around the sides of the tree she's behind.
* IShallTauntYou: She goads Kirito into helping Silica by insinuating he's underleveled. Kirito falls for it. Then when they have the Numa Flower, she tries it again to throw Kirito off his game. It... ends badly.
* {{Jerkass}}: On top of being a sadistic thief and attempted murderer, she also takes great delight in taunting Silica and Kirito, and is implied to have kept the former around just to bully her (and for her leather-skinned pet).
* JokeAndReceive: She attempts to insult Kirito by suggesting that Silica finally found a party member closer to her level, but as the end of Episode 4 shows, that's more true than Rosalia could have known.
* KickTheDog: She's introduced trying to convince Silica to hand Pina over so they can skin her and make dragon leather pants.
* ManipulativeBitch: She gets Kirito to accompany Silica on her quest for the Pneuma Flower by insulting his {{Pride}}, then ambushes the pair to steal the item for herself.
* MsFanservice: Her teammates were very much looking forward to seeing her in leather pants.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: As much as Kirito doesn't want to admit it, her "First year Psyche-School bullshit" was an accurate assessment of Kirito pre-CharacterDevelopment.
-->'''Rosalia:''' And to top it all off, you play the tough guy; this invincible warrior you could never hope to be in the real world. Getting stuck in this game was probably the best thing to ever happen to you.
* SmugSnake: She thought Kirito was all bark and no bite, when that definition only applied to her and her low-level guild.
* TooDumbTolive: It ''really'' wasn't a good idea to taunt an already unhinged Kirito by intentionally pressing all his {{Berserk Button}}s all at once. What's worse, [[RefugeInAudacity she continues insulting him]] even after he [[NoSell No-Sells]] all her guild's strikes.
* VillainHasAPoint: Her "first-year-psych-student bullshit" turns out to be quite the accurate character deconstruction for Kirito, and the latter can't help but remember it when reflecting on his HeelFaceTurn in the finale. She was eventually proven wrong about the "It’s the deepest you’ll ever be in a woman" part, though.
--> '''Kirito:''' [''as he finishes having sex with Asuna''] AH, SUCK IT ROSALIA!
* VirginShaming: Rosalia's dying words after Kirito stabs her is that "''that'' is the deepest you'll ever get inside a woman." This gets under Kirito's skin because he's unable to come up with a snappy comeback.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rosalia's Minions]]
The thugs working for Rosalia. They prove to be far more competent than their boss when they show hesitation in attacking Kirito.
----

* AllMenArePerverts: One of them is not subtle about his opinion on Rosalia's plan about crafting leather pants out of Pina's skin.
-->'''Minion:''' Come on, Silica! Leather paaants!
* ConservationOfCompetence: Rosalia's mooks start getting worried when they realize Kirito initially thought they were in [[MurderInc Laughing Coffin]], and still only brought himself and Silica. Rosalia dismisses their concerns, much to her detriment.
* MookHorrorShow: One of them [[TearsOfFear starts crying]] when Kirito reveals his character level and how utterly screwed they all are.
* MuggingTheMonster: To their credit, Rosalia pushed them into it.
* OnlySaneMan: One of them points out that Kirito thought they were the [[TheDreaded Laughing Coffin]] and still only brought himself and a girl for backup. He was right to be afraid.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: Kirito attributes his dual-wielding skill to when he saw one of Rosalia's mooks using such an ability.
[[/folder]]

!!Moonlit Black Cats/The Crew

[[folder:General]]
A guild that Kirito got roped into joining, consisting of Keita, Sachi, and three [=NPCs=] from quests Keita never finished. Unlike in the original series, here they are usually called "The Crew".
----
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: In the anime, they were all mid-level players who knew each other in real life and formed the guild in the game. In the parody, only Sachi and Keita are players while the others were [=NPCs=] that Keita abducted from the various quests and tutorials that he never finished.
* ArtificialStupidity: The AI party members... aren't exactly the greatest. Granted, all of them are from low level quests, one of them being the ''Tutorial'' NPC.
* ChekhovsGun: The fact that one of their NPC members is from the tutorial comes back in a big way [[spoiler:in Episode 11, where Kayaba reveals that stealing him was one of the primary reasons over 2000 players died within the first month as none of them could complete the tutorial, and was a catalyst for him posing as Heathcliff to try and get things back on the rails.]]
* GuestStarPartyMember: Gary, Charlie, and Derrick are this in-universe, quest [=NPCs=] who fight alongside you until you finish their quests. Keita realized he could simply prolong doing so and make them permanent party members.
* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: Keita is a cheater using glitches and exploits to fund the guild by using duplication glitches on rare items, Sachi has terrible internet connection and lags at all the wrong times, and the [=NPCs=] suck at pathfinding, fighting, obeying orders, and will randomly get stuck in walls.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Keita]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/saoa_keita.png]][[caption-width-right:350:''"And what if I put on this hat?"'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' Sam "SpriteStuff" Ryan\\\

The glitch-exploiting leader of the Crew, who controls Kirito with his Charisma +50 hat. He ropes Kirito into his guild because of his high level. He also kidnapped three [=NPCs=] from their quests to make them permanent members. He eventually gets the guild in debt to the mob after selling a rare item he was going to duplicate before it got patched, and sends them to find a replacement on the dangerous 27th floor.
----
* AdaptationalIntelligence: Abridged Keita is a lot more smarter, on top of being a manipulative glitch-exploiting hacker, he specifically recruits Kirito into his guild ''because'' of his level. While in canon, Keita never even knew about Kirito's true level.
* AdaptationalVillainy: He's a manipulative glitch-exploiting hacker whose selfishness in stealing several [=NPCs=] [[spoiler:resulted in the death of ''thousands'' of players]]. Also, instead of his guild deciding to explore a dungeon out of curiosity like in canon, he was the one who forced them to go to recover an item from a dangerous dungeon and pay off his debt while he opts to not join them.
* AmbiguousSituation: Here, the reasoning for [[DrivenToSuicide his suicide]] is not made clear: [[DespairEventHorizon Was he grief-stricken by his friends dying due to his own cowardice and carelessness?]] [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled Did he prefer to die rather than allow Fluffles' mafia to capture and torture him?]] [[TakeAThirdOption Or]] [[UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom did he find out about the disastrous consequences of his handling of [=NPCs=] and jumped out of remorse or to avoid facing scrutiny?]]
* AssholeVictim: Here it's a lot harder to feel sympathy for his death due to all the awful things he's done.
** AlasPoorVillain: On the other hand, Kirito's horrified reaction as he sees him commit suicide, and him crossing the DespairEventHorizon afterwards can make you feel a tad sorry for him.
* ButThouMust: When Kirito refuses his offer to join his crew, Keita uses his charisma hat to literally force his hand. Occurs again during the search for Sachi, and again during the quest for the lost mafia item.
* ChekhovsSkill: That Charisma-boosting hat of his? [[spoiler:It turns out to be the inspiration behind Sugou's plot to abuse the mechanics of the game to enact a worldwide MindControl plot.]]
* CompellingVoice: With the hat on, even the most asinine of suggestions becomes impossible to refute.
* DirtyCoward: He has his crew retrieve the in-game mafia's item for him, using his charisma hat to sit the mission out.
* DrivenToSuicide: Here, Keita already knew about Kirito's levels, but still jumps to his death. Not because [[spoiler:Sachi (and two of the three NPC members) died]], but because he'd rather not face an in-game mafia for failing to duplicate a rare item.
* FalseFriend: Constantly sucks up to Kirito during their interactions, and seems very tolerant of Sachi's lag. Despite this, he's a selfish DirtyCoward who gets his friends killed by making them do his dirty work.
* GeniusDitz: He's a complete noob, but he sure knows how to [[ManipulativeBastard "play"]].
* TheHedonist: Doesn't seem to be in a hurry to escape the death game, and uses his charisma-boosting hat to coerce other players into doing his chores instead of applying it in battle.
* HiddenDepths: Him [[SuddenlyShouting lashing out]] at the Tutorial NPC after the latter suggests [[InnocentlyInsensitive taking a break from "playing" the death game]] implies he's more stressed about being trapped in SAO than he lets on.
->'''Keita:''' I WOULD IF I COULD, "MOM"! BUT THAT'S NOT REALLY AN OPTION NOW, IS IT?
* InterplayOfSexAndViolence: He seems to be sexually attracted by Kirito's stats much like an average guy would be to a girl's assets.
-->'''Kirito:''' Hey Hey! My eyes are down here!
* {{Jerkass}}: He's a glitch-exploiting hacker who uses a Charisma-granting hat to force other players to do whatever he needs them to do, along with stealing various quest-essential [=NPCs=] by never completing their quests. This includes the Tutorial NPC, [[spoiler:which results in ''thousands of deaths'' because a lot of players couldn't complete the tutorial... though given the quality of the tutorial, it may not have made much of a difference]].
* KidWithTheLeash: Because of the huge Charisma score granted by his hat, Keita can control [[ShowyInvincibleHero Kirito]], and make him and Sachi do things he'd rather not do.
* LoopholeAbuse: Figured out that if he never completed a quest an NPC was involved in, they'd follow him indefinitely to serve as a fighter and pack mule.
* ManipulativeBastard: He's a manipulative, opportunistic con artist and expert cheater who takes advantage of any glitch he can find to survive the death game.
* ObliviouslyEvil: Keita didn't consider the possibility that the tutorial [=NPCs=] might actually be integral to the survival of thousands of players. [[TutorialFailure Though even he says it's "not a good tutorial".]]
* PetTheDog:
** While he doesn't sound all that worried, he asks Kirito to find Sachi after she runs away, saying he would do it himself if the [=NPCs=] weren't blocking his door. He's also very tolerant of her lag, despite it being a liability to the crew.
** He's also shown congratulating Charlie after he defeats an enemy shortly after Kirito joins the crew.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: He only appears in one episode but he is ([[spoiler:along with Kayaba's incredible sleep deprivation]]) the reason why everything went horribly wrong in Sword Art Online. [[spoiler: Because Keita took the Tutorial [=NPCs=], a majority of players were left unprepared for the game and it caused the deaths of thousands of other players. Since Keita owes a debt to the mafia, he caused Sachi's death and Kirito's survivor's guilt triggered his character arc. Finally, Keita's hat is the reason why Sugou wants to exploit the game mechanics so he can gain the ability to control people's minds in the real world. Then again, [[TutorialFailure considering how incompetent the tutorial NPC was]], he probably did them a favor.]]
* SnakeOilSalesman: He gives off this vibe while trying to convince Kirito to join his low level guild, behaving like he's reading from a script and never once listening to Kirito's complaints.
-->'''Keita:''' Now, I know what you're thinking. "Am I really worthy to join these awesome dudes?"\\
'''Kirito:''' I literally never thought that about anyone.\\
'''Keita:''' But let me assure you, we could certainly use someone with your... [[InterplayOfSexAndViolence assets]].
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler:Taking the Tutorial NPC for his guild kept other players from completing the game's tutorial, leading to the deaths of thousands. [[TutorialFailure Supposedly.]]]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sachi]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/857ff0e4_4718_4b54_b854_f914008debca.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Nicole "[=NikoruChan18=]" Templeton\\\

The only human member of the Crew aside from Keita (and later Kirito), and also the nicest person there. She lives out in the boonies and has a terrible internet connection, resulting in random lagging. She is actually able to get Kirito to open up a little and start being nicer. Unfortunately, her subsequent death leaves a mark on his psyche that never quite fades.
----
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: The original Sachi's reasoning for running away were her confidence issues and her fear of death. This incarnation of Sachi ran off because she suffered from a terrible lag that could spread to those who got close to her, which in her eyes made her a liability.
* AndIMustScream: Sachi has no control over her lag, which pops up at random times and can even affect her surroundings. The worst part is it completely freezes her body in place, making her an easy picking for the roaming monsters (in fact, that is how she ends up biting it).
* BladeOnAStick: Uses a two-handed spear in combat. [[ForegoneConclusion For all the good it does her]].
* CompositeCharacter: She fills the role of Suguha as the one who inspires Kirito to be nicer to others, such as what pushes Kirito to help Silica. This is justified given how much of a jerk Suguha is in this version.
* TheConscience: Briefly acts like this to Kirito in episode 3, stopping him short of mocking other people. She continues serving this role in death, as the vision of her dying is what triggers Kirito's ChronicHeroSyndrome.
* EtTuBrute: Has this reaction when Gary abandons her and the guild with all the teleport crystals, apparently not understanding this was due to ArtificialStupidity.
* ExtremeDoormat: Unlike with Kirito, Keita doesn't need his charisma hat to get Sachi to do whatever he wants. She acts this way with Kirito as well, but he doesn't take advantage of it.
* {{Foil}}: To [[ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend Asuna]]:
** Both are [[MoralityPet Morality Pets]] to Kirito who had a particular issue with SAO that negatively affected their survival in the game that caused them to be TheQuietOne in their first appearance. (Sachi experienced lag, while Asuna was HopelessWithTech and didn't know how to open the game menu). However, Asuna was an ActionGirl who didn't allow her problem to make her a liability and her proficiency in combat impressed even [[TheAce Kirito]], while Sachi was TheMillstone of her guild and got herself killed fairly early.
** Sachi was TheRunaway who wanted the best for her group, while Asuna is a stalking ClingyJealousGirl who repeteadly manipulates and threatens Kirito because she's become too emotionally dependent on him.
** Their dynamic with Kirito is also vastly different: Sachi was a quiet and reserved NiceGirl who was [[ExtremeDoormat far more tolerant]] with Kirito than he deserved ([[EveryoneHasStandards although she did call him an asshole at one point]]), while [[{{Tsundere}} Asuna]] often engaged in SnarkToSnarkCombat, or even downright threatened Kirito when he became too unbearable.
** Both their deaths (or DisneyDeath in Asuna's case) caused a HeroicBSOD in Kirito, but Sachi tried to use her LastWords to reassure Kirito as she was fading away, while Asuna spent her last breath teasing him for crying.
* ForgottenFallenFriend: Averted. Her death ''really'' messed up Kirito -- even more than it did in the actual show. Each subsequent episode has at least one mention of said event affecting his psyche in some way, shape, or form.
* GoOutWithASmile: Tragically, due to her hellish AndIMustScream life situation, she seems ''relieved'' when she gets killed.
* TheHeart: [[FalseFriend Keita]] seems to care about her at least a bit, and she soon becomes [[{{Jerkass}} Kirito]]'s MoralityPet as well.
* KillTheCutie: Despite Kirito's efforts, her fear of her lag getting her killed eventually became true.
* TheLoad: When her lag isn't getting people killed, she's implied to not be very proficient in combat.
* TheLostLenore: [[spoiler:To Kirito, obviously. Obvious enough that [[{{Yandere}} Asuna]] clearly did not take learning about her well.]]
* TheMillstone: She believes herself to be this, as her lag affects not only her, but her surroundings as well. In fact, her EstablishingCharacterMoment at the diner involves her lag getting four people killed in a fire. Tragically, the mistake that got Charlie, Derrick and herself killed was a completely human one that her lag had nothing to do with.
* MoralityChain: To Kirito. She's the one who convinces him to try and act nicer, and be more helpful. [[spoiler:Her death, and final words "Not[[note]]gets cut out due to lag[[/note]] your fault" becomes Kirito's [[TraumaButton PTSD trigger]] into helping others out despite his attempts not to do so.]]
* NiceGirl: While her lag has taken a toll on her mood, she's incredibly sweet and patient, to the point where even Kirito can't bring himself to mock her. Even as she's vanishing, she attempts to reassure Kirito with some final words of comfort (which fail horribly).
* [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Woman]]: While TheLoad at best and TheMillstone at worst, she's the only human of the team who isn't a {{Jerkass}}.
* PrecisionFStrike: When Kirito says there's no point to other people but to mock them:
-->'''Sachi:''' You know, I'm starting to see why people think you're an asshole.
* ProperlyParanoid: She's worried that her lag problem will get herself and everyone she loves killed. [[spoiler:It does indeed result in her death.]]
* TheQuietOne: She doesn't say much. {{Justified}}, as her lag affects her speech terribly. In fact, one of the few times she ''does'' speak causes Kirito's TraumaButton because of a lag-induced misunderstanding.
* TheRunaway: Tries to leave her guild early in Episode 3 because she thinks she's TheMillstone for them.
* SacrificialLion: Her death is instrumental in Kirito's CharacterDevelopment into a better person for the rest of the series.
* ShrinkingViolet: Her default attitude. [[PrecisionFStrike Even when she's calling Kirito an asshole]] to his face, she comes off as shy.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: [[spoiler:Sachi was only around for episode 3; but her impact on Kirito could be felt over the entire first season as the initial cause of Kirito's gradual progression to caring about other people. From attempting to help Silica revive Pina, to defending the remains of Corvatz's army from the Gleam Eyes. Everything started with her simply asking Kirito to not be an ass all the time.]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: The only girl of "the crew".
* SpeechImpediment: Her lag causes her to have a case of this that borders on PorkyPigPronunciation.
* TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth: Her kindness and tragic situation might've softened Kirito's heart, but the death game's Slaughternauts and Murder-Golems couldn't care less, and kill her the instant her lag kicks in again.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Her lag is not the source of all her screw-ups.
** Her decision to set Gary to auto-loot and giving him all the teleportation crystals ended up destroying her guild.
** Leaving Charlie all the healing potions meant when he died, they lost them as well.
** Her attempts at reassuring Kirito with some last words of encouragement end up having [[TraumaButton the opposite effect]] when they come out botched and mangled.
* WomenAreWiser: She's the token female of the group and also the only human who isn't a complete dick.
* YouDidEverythingYouCould: Tries to say this to Kirito as she's dying, but her lag causes it to come across as a DyingCurse.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Gary]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/8ed3b547_90a7_4486_99a3_a00c52ab46ab.jpeg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"We must save my family!"'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' Isaac "[=AtomicVoice=]" Lawson\\\

An NPC from one of ''Sword Art Online'''s quests, kidnapped by Keita to be a guild member. He ultimately causes the guild to die in a trap that he triggers (due to being set to auto-loot) and steals the teleport crystal that the group could have used to save themselves.
----
* AdaptationNameChange: From Ducker to Gary.
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: From a human player to an AI.
* AdaptationalVillainy: ZigZagged. The original character never [[DirtyCoward teleported away or left his guild to die]] at any point, and instead died in the same room as them. Mitigated somewhat by him being an [[ArtificialStupidity AI]] in this version, meaning he's ObliviouslyEvil at worst.
* ArtificialStupidity: Part of being an NPC. Because Sachi has set him to auto-loot, he does so slavishly with every chest he come across, even if said chest is an incredibly ObviousTrap.
* AscendedExtra: He ends up playing a far bigger role here than he did in canon. He's the actual cause of the Moonlit Black Cats dying since he teleported away with the crystals. He gets SparedByTheAdaptation meaning he survives for months longer. He also ends up being Kirito's BerserkButton and is mentioned many times later in the series.
* BerserkButton: To Kirito, especially after he abandons the rest of the guild in an ambush. Hearing his voice or someone mentioning his name will send Kirito into a RoaringRampageOfRevenge.
* BrickJoke: Kirito was ''really'' pissed at Gary for teleporting away with all their crystals and leaving Sachi to die. He shows up again in Episode 5 where Kirito proceeds to murder him in cold blood for abandoning them.
* BrokenRecord: "We must save my family!" Gets worse in Episode 5, as he repeatedly chokes the line out as many times as he can as he's being stabbed by Kirito.
* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: In the original anime, he gets hacked to death by the Slaughternauts and Murder-Golems. Here, he manages to escape this fate [[DirtyCoward by abandoning his guild to die]], only to get brutally murdered by [[SoleSurvivor Kirito]] two episodes later.
* DirtyCoward: Kirito considers him this, since he teleported away and left the rest of the Crew to die.
* KarmicDeath: After getting Sachi killed, Kirito's next encounter with Gary ends with Kirito repeatedly running Gary through with a sword, with Gary futilely choking out [[WelcomeToCorneria his only line]] as he dies.
* LethallyStupid: While in a dungeon, he triggers an obvious trap because Sachi set him to auto-loot, then teleports away with the party's entire supply of teleport crystals, leaving everyone trapped inside to die.
* NonPlayerCharacter: From a quest that Keita has no intention of turning in, just so Gary can follow them forever.
* ObliviouslyEvil: He's a quest AI programmed to want to "save his family", even if it entails abandoning Kirito, Sachi and the other [=NPCs=] to their deaths.
* PokemonSpeak: "[[WelcomeToCorneria We must save my family!]]" [[JustifiedTrope Justified]], as Keita never finished his quest, making him [[BrokenRecord unable to move on from that line]]. He's also heard chanting "To Kirito!" alongside the rest of the guild early in the episode.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: Survives longer than in canon, only to come across Kirito once more. [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge Kirito doesn't forgive him for indirectly causing Sachi's death.]]
* WelcomeToCorneria: [[RuleOfThree All together now:]] "We must save my family!"
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Charlie]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Stuart "[=LordMegatronG1=]" Hutson\\\

The tutorial NPC, who Keita kidnapped, leaving the rest of the playerbase unable to get the most basic instructions on how to play the game.
----
* AdaptationNameChange: From Tetsuo to Charlie.
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: From a human player to an AI.
* AmbiguousSituation: Did hijacking the tutorial really lead to thousands of deaths, or [[TutorialFailure given the quality of the advice]], it would have changed very little?
* AndKnowingIsHalfTheBattle: Routinely dispenses (questionable) nuggets of wisdom.
* AnnoyingVideoGameHelper: Invoked. [[AntiPoopSocking He reminds players how long they've been playing]] in a game ''they can't log out of.'' [[spoiler:Which turns out to be foreshadowing that the whole situation was a complete mistake.]]
* BackForTheFinale: A variation. His SpoofAesop speech appears again during the credits, serving as the closing quote of the Aincrad arc.
* BewareTheSillyOnes: He's definitely ''not'' a good tutorial, but he does manage to defeat a killer mantis early in the episode.
* EyesAlwaysShut
* ForgottenFallenFriend: Surprisingly {{Averted}}. Despite being an AI, his death motivates Kirito to vouch for the [=NPCs=] early in Episode 5, citing him and Derrick as "some of (his) best friends".
* NonPlayerCharacter: From the tutorial.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: His "recruitment" to the guild and subsequent death [[spoiler:deprived thousands of players of the tutorial, which Kayaba hints lead to the mass deaths in the first month]].
* SpoofAesop: [[invoked]]"Winners don't do drugs! Except steroids. In which case, use lots of drugs!"
* TutorialFailure: Putting aside the fact that the NPC meant to mentor new players instead got turned into one guy's personal pack mule, Charlie's tips on playing the game are things like "always remember, to jump... [[ShapedLikeItself jump!"]]
-->'''Keita:''' It's not a good tutorial.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Gets two lines before he gets offed with little fanfare.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Derrick]]

Another kidnapped quest companion NPC.
----
* AdaptationSpeciesChange: From human player to AI.
* AdaptationNameChange: From Sasamaru to Derrick.
* AstonishinglyAppropriateInterruption: His one line turns out to be a pretty good summation of the guild's mob problem.
* ForgottenFallenFriend: Surprisingly {{Averted}}. Despite being an AI, his death motivates Kirito to vouch for the [=NPCs=] early in Episode 5, citing him and Charlie as "some of (his) best friends".
* NonPlayerCharacter: From an unfinished quest involving bandits.
* RedShirt: Gets the least ammount of characterization of the [=NPCs=].
* WelcomeToCorneria: "The bandits are coming!"
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Like Charlie, he only gets two lines before he gets killed. Unlike with the former, however, Kirito doesn't even learn his name, as he gets killed just as Sachi is calling for him.
[[/folder]]

!!Golden Apple

[[folder:General]]
A guild that attempted to avoid some LootDrama by selling a valuable item instead of fighting over it, only for the guild leader to be murdered on the way to the market, leading the group to collapse into suspicion over who did the deed.
----
* BewareTheSillyOnes: Their antics and dysfunctional relationships are played for laughs, [[spoiler: but they end up beating Grimlock half to death and giving him a NeckSnap when he's exposed as his wife's real murderer]].
* MadeASlave: In exchange for his business advice, Laughing Coffin decides to spare Yolko, Schmitt, and Kains by giving them to Kirito as slaves. He's pretty happy about it, they aren't.
* MeaningfulName: Their guild name is an allusion to the AppleOfDiscord from Myth/ClassicalMythology that Eris, the goddess of strife, used to spark the Trojan War by causing a violent feud among the Olympians. It's an unfortunately appropriate name for a guild that self-deconstructed due to paranoia and resentment.
* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: Yolko overreacts to things and comes up with oddball ideas. Schmitt is a video game reviewer who justifiably fears for his life due to the possibility of angry fanboys killing him over his reviews as part of the death game. Grimlock [[spoiler:murdered his wife not even for the money, but simply because she didn't cook him dinner one night, leaving him leftovers while she was having a Raid strategy meeting with Yolko and the others]]. Only Kains and Griselda tried to lead the group with any sort of sensibility. It's no wonder the group just fell apart.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Yolko]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Rachel Michelle\\\

A witness to an alleged murder in a safe zone who draws Kirito and Asuna into the mystery that destroyed her guild.
----
* AchievementsInIgnorance: For as much as Kains lambastes for her general inability to keep their secret revenge plot... a secret, it's this very same very incompetence that ends up saving their lives. Had she not decided to involve Kirito and Asuna in their plans for whatever reason, not only would they, along with Schmitt, have gotten murdered by Laughing Coffin but [[spoiler:Grimlock would have gotten away with his crimes scot-free]].
* AdaptationalDumbass: This version of Yolko is portrayed as much more incompetent in her attempts at uncovering Griselda's murder, owning to her MissingStepsPlan.
* BewareTheSillyOnes: Despite being a bit of an airhead, she helps in the NoHoldsBarredBeatdown of Grimlock after he's revealed to be the murderer.
* CrocodileTears: When she's trying to sell Kains' faked death to Kirito and Asuna.
* EasilyForgiven: Schmitt forgives her and Kains pretty quickly, considering they've spent six months trying to scare a "confession" out of him, despite Schmitt being innocent.
* HiddenDepths: She's a bit scatterbrained, but even Kirito admits her BrokenBird façade was rather convincing.
* HopelessWithTech: Has a Callback to Asuna's issues with menus, as apparently she didn't think about deleting her friends list to keep her cover of being supposedly "dead".
* FakingTheDead: Does this in Episode 6 with the help of Kains, exploiting the free fall glitch by taking a swan dive out a window then teleporting away after the latter throws her a knife.
* MissingStepsPlan: Even she can't articulate why she got Kirito and Asuna involved in her and Kains' plan.
* MsFanservice: As in the anime, she wears tight pants and the camera focuses on her rear. It turns out that Kirito can't actually remember her name and just calls her "Yogapants."
* UndyingLoyalty: To Griselda, enough to spend six months investigating her murder alongside Kains, and trying to scare a confession out of their prime suspect.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kains]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Mackenzie "[=Hayabusa449=]" Murdock\\\

A former Golden Apple member trying to figure out who destroyed his guild, in a fairly roundabout manner.
----
* DeadpanSnarker: In regards to Yolko's MissingStepsPlan.
-->'''Kirito:''' Ah, well, that part was quite simple. You see, ''I'm not an idiot''.\\
'''Kains:''' Yep, that'd do it...\\
'''Yolko:''' Shut up, Kains! ''I'' thought it was clever...
* EasilyForgiven: Schmitt forgives him pretty quickly, considering he, alongside Yolko, had spent six months trying to force a "confession" out of him, despite Schmitt being innocent.
* FakingTheDead: As part of his plan to scare Schmitt, he exploits a glitch in the game that mistakes the game's teleport animation with the death animation when in free fall. In the following episode, he helps Yolko fake hers as well by throwing a knife at her.
* NotSoAboveItAll: He goes along with Yolko's ghost plan despite its numerous flaws. When Kirito breaks the plan down to prove how nonsensical it is, Kains initially tries to defend his actions before giving up.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Despite his snarky and sarcastic demeanor towards Yolko, especially in regards to her MissingStepsPlan, he genuinely wants to solve Griselda's murder. He even attempts to depart on good terms with Kirito, despite their rocky start. Furthermore, he's shown comforting Yolko when she cries.
* OnlySaneMan: Yolko's constant screw ups in the plan, and the fact that all their efforts turned out to be wrong in blaming Schmitt annoys him to no end. He does thank Kirito for his help in solving the case, as well as saving all of them. Kains even apologizes for not getting along with Kirito. Unfortunately, given the deal that was made with Laughing Coffin to spare them, and [[HeroicComedicSociopath Kirito]] being [[{{Troll}} Kirito]].....
-->'''Kirito:''' ''[with a tear in his eye]'' You guys were the best slaves a boy could have.\\
'''Kains:''' ''[angrily]'' Fuck it! I tried! You all saw it!
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: After Kirito trolls him yet again, he gives up trying to make up with him and leaves with the others to kill Grimlock.
* SuddenlyShouting: Despite his generally composed demeanor, he loses his temper on several occasions. Namely, when Yolko admits to involving Kirito and Asuna into their plan for no reason, he lets out a loud "WHY?!".
* TranquilFury:
** When Grimlock tries to appeal to his and Schmitt's masculinity to justfify his StayInTheKitchen motivated murder.
-->'''Kains:''' Don't talk to us, man.
** He does it again when he's taking Grimlock to his demise.
-->'''Grimlock:''' Where are you taking me?.\\
'''Kains:''' We're gonna get you the help you need, buddy. [[GoryDiscretionShot Behind this tree...]]
* UndyingLoyalty: To Griselda, enough to spend six months investigating her murder and fake his death to scare a confession out of the suspects.
* YouHaveGotToBeKiddingMe: Several times with Kirito, Yolko and Schmitt. Said almost word for word ''Twice'':
** Once when Kirito casually reveals Schmitt is innocent, after watching them verbally tear onto him.
** And again when Yolko admits [[HopelessWithTech to not deleting her friends list because she didn't know how to open the menu.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Schmitt]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AlejandroSaab

A game reviewer in the real world who owns the site "Piece of Schmitt Games", now a nervous wreck because he's terrified that some of his angry, hateful commenters will find him and make good on their creative death threats.
----
* AdaptationalJerkass: Despite his indirect involvement in Griselda's murder being AdaptedOut, this version of Schmitt makes up for it by being an AxCrazy NervousWreck who WouldHurtAChild.
* ApologisesALot: Comes with being a game reviewer.
--> '''Schmitt:''' Hey, people threatened to kill me for giving Pokémon V&R a 7 out of 10! At this point, I've learned to just assume the position...
* AxCrazy: When he thinks he's being accosted by two ghosts, he's quick to offer to scalp innocents and crucify orphans as an offering. Even after they reveal themselves to be Yolko and Kains in disguise, he offers to carry out the deed regardless. This trait of him makes Yolko and Klains suspect him as Griselda's murderer.
--> '''Schmitt:''' Oh...so, where are we on the whole orphan blood, thing? We talking heads or liters?.\\
'''Kains:''' Oh, for the love of, WE'RE NOT GHOSTS!\\
'''Schmitt:''' We faked our deaths.\\
'''Kains:''' Seriously Schmitt, how many people would you have killed if we'd asked you to?\\
'''Schmitt:''' Thaaat's not important.\\
'''Kains:''' I DISAGREE!
* ButtMonkey: His guildmates don't respect him at all, to the point of dropping all suspicion over Griselda's death upon remembering that he couldn't possibly have beaten her, or even caught her off guard. Later, Kirito specifies him as an example as to the potential that most of the SAO players have, something he doesn't take kindly to.
-->'''Kirito:''' Nobody's saying their potential doesn't top out at "assistant manager at Kinkos". I mean, just look at Schmitt.\\
'''Schmitt:''' ''[offscreen]'' WHY AM I ALWAYS THE EXAMPLE?!
* CausticCritic: If the fact that his site is called "Piece of Schmitt Games" is any indication, he primarily criticized games he found bad or mediocre. This earned him a lot of haters who would graphically threaten him, and being trapped in ''SAO'' has made him fear that one of those players might actually carry out their threats.
* CowardlyLion: He showed up to help out at the boss battle in Episode 11, despite being a completely nervous wreck.
* DirtyCoward: Willing to kill anyone (except his friends), to save his own skin, as he unintentionally reveals to Yolko and Klain when he thinks they're ghosts.
* TheDitz: On top of being a NervousWreck, he's famous for his low IQ, even among his own guild.
-->'''Kirito:''' [[ArmorPiercingQuestion Well then, you must think Schmitt was skilled enough to have killed Griselda one-on-one, or perhaps smart enough to catch her unawares?]]\\
'''Kains:''' ....''Oh my god, Schmitt's not the killer.''\\
'''Schmitt:''' [[ImStandingRightHere Aw, come on!]]
* DumbassHasAPoint: His speech about Sword Art Online being a terrible MMO is on point, much to Kayaba's anguish. Even Kirito agrees with him, despite being a huge fan of the game.
* HePannedItNowHeSucks: In-Universe: He received a lot of death threats for his negative reviews of various games, notably giving ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}} V&R'' a 7 out of 10, hence why he's so nervous now that his "fans" (like Johnny Black) can find him in a death game.
* HiddenDepths: Being a game reviewer, he's very good at pointing out poor design in video games, and gives a huge speech for why Sword Art Online is an ObviousBeta.
-->Well, how else would you describe a game where players can just kidnap NPCs, the crafting system is seizure inducing, and half the time our teleport crystals, one of our only lifelines, do nothing!
* NervousWreck: Justified, since being trapped in the game, he's been afraid that some of his more vocal anti-fans are going to cash in on their death threats.
* OhCrap: Has one, when a certain member of Laughing Coffin asks him if he recalls a commenter to one of his reviews by the name of "Johnny Black."
-->'''Schmitt:''' ''[in fear]'' "[[CallBack "Meat toboggan]]"....
* PayEvilUntoEvil: He snaps Grimlock's neck in revenge for Griselda's murder.
* ProperlyParanoid: He's a NervousWreck because he fears that, now that he's trapped in an MMO, one of his haters will actually carry out their threat to turn him into a "meat toboggan" because he criticized some games they liked. He and the guild proceed to get attacked by the leaders of [[MurderInc Laughing Coffin]], one of whom is the commenter who issued that threat and ''would'' have carried it out if Kirito hadn't saved them.
* RedHerring:"Despite his AxCrazy tendencies, it turns out he wasn't the one who killed Griselda after all; Grimlock was."
* UndyingLoyalty: Despite being a DirtyCoward, he's very loyal to his guild, considering them his best friends, and is heartbroken when they accuse him of being Griselda's killer.
* VaryingCompetencyAlibi: Kirito convinces Schmitt's teammates he's not the killer by pointing out that he sucks too much to pull that off.
* VideoReviewShow: ''Piece of Schmitt Games.'' Yeah...
* WouldHurtAChild: When he believes Griselda's ghost is coming to kill him off, he suggests sacrificing orphans as an offering in exchange for his life.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Grimlock]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Scott "Creator/KaiserNeko" Frerichs\\\

A member of the Golden Apple guild, married to another player, Griselda. He is the antagonist of Episodes 5 and 6 as the true killer of Griselda, who murdered her when she was too busy planning a raid with the others to make him dinner and asked him to eat leftovers instead.
----
* AdaptationalVillainy: While murdering your wife out of fear she'll become a BloodKnight and no longer resemble who you fell in love with didn't justify murder, it was a significantly less petty motivation than killing her for [[spoiler:not having the time to cook dinner one evening]].
* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:Is killed by Yolko, Schmitt, and Kains for having his own wife murdered. The fact that he put out a hit on them later doesn't help his case.]]
* DeathByAdaptation: [[spoiler:He is confirmed as an ''SAO'' survivor in the canon, but here he is killed by his former guild.]]
* EvilIsPetty: [[spoiler:The most galling aspect of his crime. He didn't gain anything from it except a dead wife and the hatred of his guild when they find out.]]
* {{Greed}}: Subverted. [[spoiler:Kirito initially suspected that Grimlock killed his wife to keep that rare item for himself, since married players share inventory space and no one would know he stole it. [[MotiveMisidentification However, his true motive is far]] [[EvilIsPetty pettier]]]].
* HateSink: The entirety of his screen time is devoted to showing off how much of a vile piece of shit he is.
* InsaneTrollLogic: [[spoiler:He claims he didn't kill his wife but "the thing that took her place." Keep in mind that this stems from the fact that she didn't cook dinner one day.]]
* StayInTheKitchen: His attitude towards his wife, [[spoiler:to the point of killing her when she failed to do so.]]
* VillainousBreakdown: ''Not'' brought upon by Kirito's well-founded ReasonYouSuckSpeech, but by Asuna telling him that [[FashionVictimVillain his hat makes him look like a hipster.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Griselda]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Caitlin "[=MOM0KI=]" Myers\\\

The former leader of the guild Golden Apple, whose ghost is purportedly seeking vengeance on her murderer.
----
* NoAccountingForTaste: Considering she was one of two [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Men]] in her guild, and she married Grimlock, [[spoiler:a man who ''murdered her'' because she didn't make dinner for him one night]], she's definitely got a case of this going on.
* [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Woman]]: Of EVERYONE in her guild (except maybe Kains), she's the one who's most composed. [[spoiler:Even after Kirito and Asuna fling a sword through her ghost, the most she does is just frown a bit, and sigh at how they're reacting.]]
* PosthumousCharacter: She's already dead by the time she's first mentioned, and Episodes 5 and 6 revolve around Kirito and Asuna investigating the circumstances of her death. [[spoiler:She [[RealAfterAll reappears in spirit form]] to thank them for solving the case, only for Kirito to throw his sword at her as he and Asuna run away screaming.]]
[[/folder]]

!!Laughing Coffin

[[folder:General]]
A deranged group of [[PlayerKilling PKers]]-for-[[MurderInc-hire]] feared throughout ''SAO'', though they're having trouble attracting clients due to a branding problem.
----
* AdaptationalWimp: They're depicted as a lot more incompetent, being easily manipulated by Kirito into letting targets go.
* CallingCard: The "Bible quoting serial killer" theme. But because of Jeffery's CloudCuckoolander tendencies, people don't seem to take them as seriously as they should because of it.
* TheDreaded: A gang of high level player killers who terrify pretty much anyone who isn't Kirito.
* {{Greed}}: Thanks to Kirito, this becomes their downfall when they [[TooDumbToLive reveal their location via an ad campaign]].
* InTheHood: All of the Laughing Coffin members wear cloaks.
* LaughablyEvil: While they're still [[NotSoHarmlessVillain genuinely dangerous and intimidating]], due to [[TheAbridgedSeries the series' nature]], their scenes are usually a riot to watch.
* MalevolentMaskedMen: Both Johnny Black and Red-Eyes [=XaXa=] have masks in addition to their hoods.
* TooDumbToLive: No seriously, they just told everyone where their guild of assassins was located. Even more foolishly, they came up with this idea ''themselves.''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jeffery/[=PoH=]]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Stuart "[=LordMegatronG1=]" Hutson\\\

Laughing Coffin's religiously fanatical leader and one of Aincrad's most dangerous assassins. He's better at some parts of his job than others. He hallucinates a vision of Jesus Christ who instructs him to kill people, leading him to create Laughing Coffin.
----
* AdaptationalEarlyAppearance: [=PoH=] didn't appear in canon until Episode 6, here he appears as an ordinary player in Episode 2.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: It's implied that this [=PoH=] only created Laughing Coffin due to being ''not quite right in the head'' rather than being straight up evil. He's also a lot more AffablyEvil towards Kirito.
* AdaptationNameChange: [=PoH=]'s canon real name is Vassago Casals rather than Jeffery.
* AffablyEvil: Outside his [=PoH=] persona, he's tolerant with Johnny Black's outburst, but he is comfortable using his normal voice with him. He's polite and cordial towards Kirito; and when Kirito gives some seemingly helpful advice, Jeffery does spare the lives of the sinners, offering them as slaves to Kirito.
* AsTheGoodBookSays: Likes to quote scripture as part of his persona. [[EpicFail Unfortunately]] he likes to pick verses completely randomly, regardless if the context actually fits, and apparently doesn't even know what is ''in'' the Bible in the first place, given his reaction to Johnny Black.
* AxCrazy: He doesn't think so, but his constant visions of a genocidal Jesus says otherwise. The fact that he ''obeys'' said vision's every command doesn't help matters.
* BadassBaritone: Whenever he's in his [=PoH=] persona, his voice is much deeper and menacing.
* CallForward: Evil Jesus inspires him in Episode 2 to create Laughing Coffin.
* CloudCuckoolander: As dangerous as he is, his cheerful "Jesus tells me what to do" dialogue makes him less scary to anyone who meets him in person.
* CompositeCharacter: The Abridged Series combines [=PoH=] with one of the random nameless clearers seen in Episode 2.
* EvilSoundsDeep: His deeper voice is rather gravelly, but inverted when using his normal voice, which has a higher pitch.
* {{Expy}}: To [[Film/TheDarkKnight Heath Ledger's Joker]], whom Jeffery sounds remarkably similar to when using his [=PoH=] voice, and it gets more apparent when he converses with "Detective Kirito" trying to gruff his voice like Batman.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: Was an ordinary player with an imaginary Jesus in Episode 2, but quickly formed the most feared player killing guild that even Kirito admits were really dangerous, and even looks far more imposing in episode 6 as [=PoH=].
* GoodScarsEvilScars: Gotten a scar on his face in Episode 6.
* HearingVoices: An imaginary Jesus is ordering him around, as seen in episode two.
* HolyHitman: Tries to be one, with mixed results.
* KnightTemplar: Every murder he does, is in the name of (a hallucination of) Jesus, referring to his victims as sinners.
* TheLeader: He founded Laughing Coffin, and calmly asserts his authority as guild leader over Johnny Black in regards to who's religious verse is better, and Johnny Black refers to him as "Boss" at first.
* RightForTheWrongReasons: For a little bit he was convinced that he was crazy, because one of the other players appeared to be a cat. He's very relieved to tell his giant homicidal hallucination of Jesus that the cat player was real, so he's not crazy.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:[=Red-Eyed XaXa=]]]

One of Laughing Coffin's highest ranking members.
----
* ExtremeDoormat: Unlike Johnny, he doesn't question Jeffrey's amateurish HolyHitman act, and leaves Schmitt alone with no fanfare once Kirito changes the others' mind.
* MasterSwordsman: Talented with a sword.
* TheQuietOne: Out of the three highest ranked members of Laughing Coffin, he doesn't speak at all.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: As befitting his username.
* SlasherSmile: One of the few expressions he has.
* TheVoiceless: Doesn't make a single sound.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Johnny Black]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Cole "[=Sonicring123Dubs=]" Petty\\\

Jeffrey's long-suffering lieutenant, and not at all a fan of ''Piece of Schmitt Games.''
----
* AxCrazy: He's the one who left the "meat toboggan" threat on Schmitt's channel, and sounded very eager to make good on it upon recognizing him.
* BladeEnthusiast : His poisoned daggers are his weapons of choice. He likes them enough that it's possible he may have been conned by Tiffany into spending half his col on a bullshit dagger that broke almost immediately.
* CloudcuckoolandersMinder: Of all the people to be this, it's the cloth sack over their head wearing player [[spoiler:who is most definitely not sane in any sense of the word in the original material]]. He's this to Jeffery.
* CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon: His [[DisproportionateRetribution response]] to one of Schmitt's less positive reviews was threatening to "chop off [his] limbs, rip out [his] intestines, and ride [him] like some sort of meat toboggan." He seemed pretty serious about it too once in the game.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Has no problems at all with paralyzing and murdering players, but even he doesn't approve of "that fuckstick Tiffany's" cons, if his ad campaign is anything to go by, right down to giving Tiffany devil horns and viciously flipping him off.
* TheFaceless: Wears a cloth sack over his face, and his hood obscures his eye-holes.
* FlippingTheBird: Display's one in his ad campaign towards Tiffany.
* {{Greed}}: Jeffery seems more interested in following the Lord, while Johnny seems far more eager to sell out for a big profit.
* HiddenDepths: He seems to be more knowledgeable about religion compared to Jeffery, having read the Bible, and gets irritated with Jefferey's mishandled quotes.
-->'''Johnny:''' Have... you actually ever ''read'' the Bible?
* MasterPoisoner: Just like in the original, he uses poisoned daggers to paralyze players.
* NumberTwo: To Jeffery, he has a fair bit of autonomy with the Laughing Coffin ad campaign, always trying promote their guild, and is relatively rational compared to Jeffery.
* YouHaveGotToBeKiddingMe: Doesn't verbally say it, but it is his usual reaction towards Jeffery's verses, and even Kirito's intrusion.
[[/folder]]

!!Aincrad Liberation Front

[[folder:General]]
One of the guilds trying to clear ''Sword Art Online'', and for the most part, failing at it.
----
* RedShirtArmy: The only thing they're good at is getting themselves killed.
* TooDumbToLive: In Kirito's own words, the ALF members in Episode 8 allowed Corvatz to lead them into a HopelessBossFight like lemmings throwing themselves off a cliff. And Thinker is an even bigger example.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kibaou]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Mackenzie "[=Hayabusa449=]" Murdock\\\

A loudmouth and conspiracy theorist who blames the beta testers for being trapped in ''SAO'', hijacks a strategy session early in the game, and causes more trouble later.
----
* BadLiar: Told Thinker that he was willing to negotiate their leadership issues, but only if the peace talk was held inside a dungeon with a creepy OptionalBoss lurking inside. The worst part? Thinker fell for it.
* FantasticRacism: He hates beta testers for not helping people (read: ''him'') clear the first floor, and blames them for getting everyone stuck in the game.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: His first and only onscreen appearance is in Episode 2 and is spent trash talking SAO's beta testers and blaming them for getting everyone trapped in the game. Then in a classic display of OffstageVillainy, he joins the ALF and stages a violent coup that throws the entire guild into chaos.
* InsaneTrollLogic: Claims he doesn't need evidence to blame beta testers for anything, he just can.
* {{Jerkass}}: Much like in canon, although it's mitigated by the fact that Abridged Kirito actually ''is'' an asshole.
* PetTheDog:
** Despite all the grief he caused Diabel, he yells out his name as he's killed, implying he cared about his leader to an extent.
** He also doesn't accuse Kirito of getting him killed like in canon, despite Kirito actually being responsible this time around.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:General Corvatz]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AlejandroSaab\\\

A self-proclaimed master strategist, who has never failed to defeat a floor boss. Or succeeded in defeating a floor boss. He likes to speak in a Spanish accent despite being from Nagano.
----
* AdaptationalDumbass: He was already pretty dumb in canon for attempting to take on a floor boss with a handful of players. But he's even dumber here for not only doing that but also refusing to run when he's severely outclassed.
* AlasPoorVillain: He wasn't really a villain; just a massive asshole, but his death causes Kirito to finally give in to his ChronicHeroSyndrome and save his men from a fatal end.
* BoisterousWeakling: He presents himself as a skilled, brave, noble and experienced leader and brilliant strategist, but in actuality he's an extremely boastful, arrogant and egotistical noob with poor leadership skills, as he shows during his first fight.
* DamnedByFaintPraise: He really is one of the greatest tactical minds the ALF has ever known. The bar is set that low.
* FakeNationality: InUniverse. He's from Nagano, but he tries to pass off as a Hispanic commander to boost his men's morale.
* GratuitousSpanish: He sounds Spanish, anyway, which surprises Asuna since she didn't know SAO has international servers. Another ALF member points out it ''doesn't''; Corvatz is from Nagano and found an ingame item that makes Spanish guitar music play every time he talks. [[TheRoleplayer He's just really committed to the bit.]]
* HollywoodTactics: In a CallBack to Episode 2, his strategy to defeat the Gleam Eyes is to "group up, and hit it 'til it dies!" It doesn't end well for him. It's quite possible that he's the exact same guy from the Illfang briefing who suggested it in the first place.
* {{Jerkass}}: He's a harsh leader to his men and a rude asshole to Kirito, Asuna and Klein, made worse by the fact that he's little more than a BoisterousWeakling.
* LeeroyJenkins: What he really is at heart. What else can you expect from a guy who's main strategy when fighting an EldritchAbomination is to "hit it 'till it dies."? He doesn't even stop when the strategy fails the first time.
* TheNeidermeyer: His men don't think too highly of him, to put it one way.
* PetTheDog: He really thought his Spanish guitar reverb item would increase his men's morale. [[TheNeidermeyer He was wrong]], but it's the thought that counts.
* TooDumbToLive: Really, it's a miracle this guy survived as long as he did (that is, around twenty seconds) against [[HopelessBossFight Gleam Eyes]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Yulier]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Alison "[=AliFluro=]" Jayce\\\

The very, ''very'' loyal lieutenant of the ALF's former leader. She asks Kirito and Asuna to help her rescue Thinker from Kibaou in Episode 10, only to embarrass herself.
----
* BirdsOfAFeather: She's this with Thinker, being arguably just as gullible as him.
* BerserkButton: Badmouthing Thinker. And not only does Yui press it, but she smashes it with a hammer.
* EveryoneCanSeeIt: Let's just say that her crush on Thinker is not well hidden, assuming she's actually trying to hide it in the first place.
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Believes [[TooDumbToLive Thinker]] to be the most intelligent man she's ever known. Worse, she thinks [[NominalHero Kirito and Asuna]] are fit to help her rescue him. The only time she's ever correct about someone is when she notes [[DysfunctionalFamily just how dysfunctional]] Kirito, Asuna and Yui are as a family.
* LoveMakesYouDumb: Her infatuation with Thinker leaves her a bit, shall we say, ''biased'' when it comes to evaluating his qualities.
* TheMillstone: While trying to save Thinker, she accidentally draws out the boss hidden in the dungeon with her running and screaming, which led to Yui having to "sacrifice herself" to defeat it.
* OnlySaneWoman: Compared to Kirito, Asuna and Yui; she's the only one who's worried at Yui's TroublingUnchildlikeBehaviour, and is visibly troubled by Kirito's rampage against a pack of monsters.
* UndyingLoyalty: To Thinker, for some reason.
* WouldHurtAChild: "You wanna take this outside, kid?! I'll throw down with an eight-year-old! I don't give a ''[[PrecisionFStrike fuck!]]''"
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Thinker]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Chris "Faulerro" Tout\\\

The ALF's deposed leader, who by the time we meet him has been reduced to crying while huddled in the fetal position at the bottom of a dangerous dungeon. Despite his moniker, he is not too bright.
----
* AdaptationalDumbass: Canon Thinker was attempting to apprehend a criminal player and got lured into a trap, while Abridged Thinker was stupid enough to attend a peace talk with his rival, in a ''dungeon'' without bringing any weapons or items. It also doesn't even occur to him to try and warn Kirito, Asuna, or even Yulier about the BonusBoss that has him trapped in the dungeon's safe room since he was told the dungeon has crappy wi-fi.
* BirdsOfAFeather: With Lieutenant Yulier. While it's unknown if he reciprocates her feelings, he's arguably just as stupid as she is.
* DumbIsGood: He's dumb as a rock, but he's also one of the politest characters in the series.
* FriendToAllChildren: He gets worried for Yui when she leaves cover to fight ''The Skull Reaper''.
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Seriously, how could he trust [[StupidEvil ''Kibaou'']] of all people?
* IronicName: As Yui points out, for a guy named Thinker he's [[{{Understatement}} "something of a dullard."]] He is fully willing to attend a "peace talk" in a dungeon while brining no weapons or items, and promptly falls into a blatantly obvious trap.
* IAmVeryBritish: Despite his low intelligence, he talks like an exaggeratedly well-spoken, well-educated Englishman.
-->'''Thinker:''' "Yulier? Oh, thank goodness you're here, Lieutenant! Uh, be a dear and take care of this gangly fellow for me, would you? He's been blocking my way out all day."
* NiceGuy: For what's worth, he seems like a polite guy all around, wanting to negotiate a peace talk with Kibau despite the latter being an insufferable {{Jerkass}}.
* TooDumbToLive: The reason Kirito and Asuna initially refused to help him: He's completely blind to other people's lies, no matter how stupid and implausible they are. Kibaou takes advantage of this to try and get him killed.
[[/folder]]

!!Knights of the Blood Oath

[[folder:General]]
The top guild in ''Sword Art Online'', of which Asuna and Kirito become members, and the leaders of the effort to clear the game.
----
* OnlySaneMan: While several of its top members have more than a few screws loose, they're shades more competent than most of the other players in the game and the ones putting in the most effort to free everybody trapped in it.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kuradeel]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Mackenzie "[=Hayabusa449=]" Murdock\\\

Asuna's bodyguard, who moonlights as a clingy stalker. He challenges Kirito to a duel and promptly makes a fool of himself. He is actually a fanboy of Laughing Coffin, seeking vengeance on Kirito for orchestrating their downfall.
----
* AbusiveParents: Suggested as he mutters to himself after recovering from a blow.
-->'''Kuradeel:''' Don't hit me mommy, you know it makes me hard...
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: It's not much, but this incarnation of him actually has a personal reason (petty as it may be) to want to kill [[{{Jerkass}} Kirito]] and [[TheFriendNobodyLikes Godfree]] beyond simply being deranged. He also doesn't pull an ISurrenderSuckers on Asuna like in the anime, though this was likely because [[VillainKiller she didn't let him]].
* AdaptationalSympathy: He's still an AssholeVictim of the highest order, but the implication that [[AbusiveParents his mother used to beat him]], as well as the fact that Kirito just won't stop mocking him for his InformedDeformity can add some sympathy to his death.
* AintTooProudToBeg: Like in canon, when Asuna beats him, he goes to his knees begging for mercy. [[spoiler:Unlike in canon, Asuna is far less merciful and kills him on the spot]].
* AxCrazy: The guy is [[spoiler:a fan of [[HeroKiller Laughing Coffin]]]], so... ''yeah.''
* BerserkButton: [[YeOldeButcheredeEnglishe Butchering the]] [[Creator/WilliamShakespeare Bard's]] prose, as [[spoiler:Godfree learns the hard way]].
-->'''Kuradeel:''' [[spoiler:''[whilst repeatedly stabbing Godfree]'' Wouldst thou shutteth the FUCK UP! I had to SIT and listen to you for MONTHS as you run Shakespeare through a wood chipper! Is that supposed to be endearing or something?!]]
* ButtMonkey: Asuna has little patience for him, and Kirito refuses to give him any respect.
* {{Fanboy}}: [[spoiler:He's revealed to be one of Laughing Coffin, as opposed to being an actual member like his canon counterpart. That doesn't make him any less dangerous, but it does give Kirito more ammunition to mock him with.]]
* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: Somewhat. In the original anime, Kirito kills him. Here, Asuna is the one who does him in. However, Asuna was actually the one who killed him in the original Web Novel.
* InformedDeformity: While he's certainly not winning any beauty pageants, he's not quite the {{Gonk}} Kirito makes him out to be.
* KarmicDeath: This time around, [[spoiler: its Asuna (his previous protegee and the victim of his stalking) who offs him. [[WordOfGod According to Something Witty Entertainment]], this was the main reason for the change]]
** He also gets executed [[AintTooProudToBeg while pleading for his life]] after being given a HopeSpot by his killer, similarly to the way he killed Godfree.
* LaughingMad / SlasherSmile: [[spoiler:Once he reveals his true colors.]]
* MuggingTheMonster: He challenges Kirito to a duel in Episode 8, unaware of the possibility that he ''might'' be in over his head.
* SmugSnake: He has a rather overinflated opinion of his own abilities and has a tendency to look down on people who can and will kick his ass.
* VillainousBreakdown: [[spoiler:He was already angry at Kirito for insulting his being a fanboy of Laughing Coffin, but when Asuna comes at him, he loses all semblance of his pride and begs her not to kill him.]]
* YoungerThanTheyLook: Would you have guessed just from looking at him that he's 26?
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Godfree]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Anthony "[=AntfishFTW=]" Sardinha\\\

A senior member of the Knights of the Blood Oath, who puts Kirito through some team-building exercises that are ultimately unsuccessful. He's also a role-player who speaks in YeOldeButcheredeEnglishe.
----
* AintTooProudToBeg: Once he realizes [[spoiler: Kuradeel`s betrayal isn't roleplay, he drops his act to nervously plead for his life. It doesn't save him.]]
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: He's only shown interacting with Kirito, Asuna and Kuradeel, and their opinion of him ranges from "I do not care for you" to "You'll die screaming".
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: [[spoiler: He thinks Kuradeel spiking his and Kirito's drinks with paralysis poison is just a prank, and doesn't understand that he's about to be killed for "running Shakespeare through a wood chipper".]]
* InnocentlyInsensitive: He attempts to defend Kuradeel by claiming that his old and haggard appearance is result of his age, only for Kuradeel to meekly state that he's [[YoungerThanTheyLook only 26]].
* KilledMidSentence: [[spoiler:Kuradeel, tired of his MotorMouth, offs him before he has a chance to finish his last speech.]]
* MauveShirt: Gets a little more characterization than [[RedShirt his canon counterpart]], but it doesn't save him.
* MotorMouth: Comes with being TheRoleplayer. Kirito gets sick of it five seconds after they get introduced.
* NiceGuy: While a bit socially awkward, all he really wants is for everyone in his guild to enjoy their time in SAO as much as they can, and he tries to persuade Kuradeel to make ammends with Kirito.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: Drops his [[TheRoleplayer roleplaying]] act when begging for his life. It doesn't help.
* TheRoleplayer: Speaks like a [[YeOldeButcheredeEnglishe Shakespearean actor]] who walked right off the stage? Check. Kirito and Kuradeel both find it annoying, and if Asuna's tone when she introduces him is anything to go on, [[TheFriendNobodyLikes so does everybody else.]] [[spoiler:He instantly drops it when he realizes Kuradeel is about to kill him for it. [[DoomedByCanon Not that it helps.]]]]
* TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth: This poor man genuinely thought everyone could just get along and have fun in the "death game". [[spoiler: He pays for his naivetée with his life.]]
* WeHardlyKnewYe: [[spoiler: Lasts only three scenes.]]
[[/folder]]

!Other ''[=SAO=]'' Players

[[folder:Kayaba Akihiko '''(Unmarked Spoilers)''']]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/akihiko_gm.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see Kayaba's non-cloaked form.]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kayaba_akihiko.png[[/labelnote]]]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Curtis "[[Creator/TeamFourStar Takahata101]]" Arnott

The main antagonist of [=SAO=] Abridged's Season 1. Posing as the leader of the Knights of the Blood Oath, Kayaba ends up trapping the entire playerbase in ''Sword Art Online'' and challenges them to reach the top of Castle Aincrad. He was originally a normal game developer who went insane due to sleep deprivation in order to make the game's strict deadline, and accidentally created a glitch that kills players when their characters die, with events snowballing out of control from there. After pretending he planned to trap the players in the game to save face, he realizes what he's done and decides to hold the players as hostages to extort the authorities into not arresting him while inserting himself as Heathcliff to prevent as many deaths as he can, only to find himself challenged by the lethally stupid players.
----
!!Tropes applying to Akihiko
* AccidentalMurder: Subverted. His master plan of "imprisoning players and killing them in real life if they die in the game" was actually a result of a glitch. Kayaba was just so sleep-deprived and overworked that he figured he'd just roll with it and claim it was all part of a grand scheme, only realizing how badly he screwed up once he caught up on his sleep. Kayaba tried to atone by putting himself in the game to save the remaining players but eventually grew to hate them and decided to leave them trapped in the game out of spite and resentment.
* AdaptationalKarma: His canon self essentially escaped justice by means of turning himself into a VirtualGhost. Here, he's not only alive but on the run as "the most wanted man on the face of the planet." It is revealed by Yui that he is currently hiding out somewhere in [=ALfheim=] Online due to searching for ALO Players that previously played SAO to narrow down exactly where Asuna was inside of the game.
* AdaptationalSympathy: A lot of what happened was [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy due to him going crazy staying up for three weeks straight programming and trying to make a deadline]]. The whole "you die in the game, you die for real" thing was due to a glitch, and him trapping everyone inside was because in his sleep-deprived mind, the best idea he had to cover up his previous blunder was to make it look like it was his master plan (a plan concocted while under sleep deprivation so severe that he thought the government was run by MoleMen), all the while using the players as hostages to try (and fail) to come up with a better idea that would let him fix everything while avoiding prosecution. When two thousand people died in the first month without even clearing the first floor, he formed the Knights of the Blood Oath to try and get people through the game. Ultimately PlayedWith though; he claims that he didn't want to hurt anyone, but Kirito and Asuna immediately rebuke this, pointing out that he just killed them as well as another man for mildly sassing him. He does point out that he "ain't exactly the picture of grace under fire", and [[AssholeVictim that the other guy was part of the mafia]][[note]]He was one of Don Fluffles' enforcers[[/note]]. He also refused to shut down the servers when he could have at any point but instead kept everyone trapped in the death game to try and kept lying to people to have them try and fulfill some arbitrary goal. Essentially, his motives are to cover his own ass and avoid taking responsibility for the mess he made, some sadly all-too-human traits, rather than ForTheEvulz.
* AffablyEvil:
** He traps all the players of his game within it at the risk of brain death, but is rather nice towards a player who received an advance copy of the game. Though this is downplayed compared to his original version, since he gets very snappy when players insult his game or his favorite films and even goes on a tirade against them for their incompetence.
** All things considered, he's geniunely friendly with Kirito and respects the hell out of him as a player, despite admitting the latter's {{Jerkass}} behaviour drives him nuts. They even briefly bond over their shared love of obscure movies. In fact, Kirito is the only SAO player who Kayaba doesn't immobilize during his TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to the other players, knowing he's smart enough to KnowWhenToFoldEm.
* ArtistDisillusionment: An InUniverse example; his time with ''[=SAO's=]'' players has made him ''loathe'' every single one of them due to their stupidity.
-->'''Kabaya:''' Alright now that I have your ears as well as your spines; allow me to indulge myself for a moment and tell you all what every content creator has always wanted to say to their audience: '''FUCK ALL Y'ALL!!'''
* TheAtoner: In this version, Kayaba was an already overworked game developer who was pressed for time. He tried to do things rationally but to no avail, causing him to lose sleep on completing his game for a Christmas release. In his sleep-deprived state, he accidentally created a lethal glitch that kills players when their avatars die. Rather than shut down the server, he acted as if this was all part of a grand plan. By the time he caught up with his sleep, he realized what he did and that he was at a point of no return. After 2000 players died before clearing the first floor, he entered the game with an immortal avatar so he can rally the other players together and do something to help and atone for his actions. That said, the fact that he didn't just shut down the servers, leading to more people dying, still showcases his selfish side, since he's holding everyone hostage until he can figure out a way to avoid prosecution for his blunders.
* AxCrazy: Beneath his MaskOfSanity, he himself admits he's "Not exactly the picture of "grace under fire"", exemplified by his EvilIsPetty tendencies. This all stems from his decision to spend three consecutive weeks working on the game non-stop after Bethesda refused him an extension.
* BadassBaritone: As Heathcliff, he uses a considerably deeper voice than he did when he was announcing the death game in Episode 1. When he's exposed, he returns to his first voice.
* BaddieFlattery: He's pleasantly surprised to find out that most of the players of ''SAO'' are actually attractive twenty somethings... [[AndZoidberg and one fatty]].
* BerserkButton:
** Talking back to him, implying he's responsible for the deaths in the game.
** Insulting ''Film/BackToTheFuture''.
--->'''Asuna:''' That's a movie thing? Doesn't sound like a good one...\\
'''Kayaba:''' '''YOU SHUT YOUR WHORE MOUTH, WOMAN!! I CAN END YOU WITH A THOUGHT!'''\\
'''Asuna:''' ''[disturbed]'' JESUS!\\
'''Kirito:''' ''[dumbfounded]'' Yeah... Word to the wise: Don't mess with [[Creator/RobertZemeckis Zemeckis]].
** [[EnragedByIdiocy Stupidity in general is enough to make his skin crawl]], as do player guilds who make a living out of killing other players over working together to survive, such as [[AxCrazy The King of Ashes]].
** While more subdued than other examples, Schmitt and the other players calling "hot mess" makes him ([[BigGood as Heathcliff]]) briefly break character and go on the defensive. This makes sense considering he had spent 500 uninterrupted hours of consciousness trying to patch all the glitches.
* BigBad: Of Season 1. Kayaba starts the plot by imprisoning thousands of people inside his virtual reality game. However, his reasons for doing so are not malicious, so much as they are, at their core, incredibly banal. The whole thing just turned into a SnowballLie that he more or less lost control over.
* BigGood: Invoked. He reveals that he originally expected Kirito to lead the other players and clear the game more efficiently, but he didn't expect the latter to become a solo player instead. Thus, Kayaba chose to be both the BigBad and the BigGood to put an end to his own mess.
* CantTakeCriticism: He gets real defensive when the flaws in SAO (such as being able to steal [=NPCs=] and the abysmal crafting system) get brought up, although it could be caused by a measure of guilt due to it being his ''incredibly'' sleep-deprived fuck up that created the player killing glitch in the first place.
* CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot: Asuna points out he could have covered his ass while still saving everyone by lying and claiming that the glitch and his evil speech was just the work of some hacker group pretending to be him, since there wasn't much else connecting him to it. Kayaba says that the big flaw in that plan is that he didn't think of it and now it's too late to implement.
* DespairEventHorizon: Went ''screaming'' over this about a month into the game when he caught up on his sleep and realized that trying to make it look like he was some scheming mastermind with an EvilPlan instead of a sleep-deprived mess who accidentally released a game so glitchy it was capable of killing its own players, in addition to other factors (like the tutorial NPC being hijacked), led to two thousand deaths in the first month before the first floor was even cleared. He became Heathcliff and formed the Knights of the Blood Oath to try and organize the players into actually finishing the game, [[SurroundedByIdiots but is continually frustrated by them ignoring all his strategies, leaping heedlessly into danger, getting killed,]] and the survivors blaming him [[NeverMyFault for their own stupidity]]. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking And the fact that nobody except Kirito gets his movie references]]. By the time he finally releases the players and turns off and wipes the servers, he's so exhausted and worn down by the whole ordeal that he just wants it to ''end'', though he also bitterly notes he is now the most wanted man on the planet and after Asuna mentions an [[StatingTheSimpleSolution easy solution that could have avoided most of the trouble]], he says he's gonna go [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone "scream at the uncaring void"]] for awhile before disappearing.
* DiggingYourselfDeeper: The real reason so many people died in SAO. Kayaba thought it would be better to be seen as competent and evil instead of an ordinary guy who made a big mistake and was too embarrassed to admit he'd been wrong once he got out of his sleep-deprived insanity. He then decided to keep the players as hostages to dissuade authorities from arresting him while he figured out a way out of his mess, but never did, costing more lives in the long run and getting himself into deeper trouble.
* DirtyCoward: It turns out that this is what Kayaba is at his core. While he never intended to put anyone in danger, he was willing to keep everyone trapped inside the game as hostages while he searched for a way to escape justice for the two thousand who died under his watch. He manipulates the code to make himself an "Immortal Object" while keeping everyone else at risk, and only agrees to a fair fight when he finally gets tired of Kirito's needling.
* DisproportionateRetribution: Kayaba murders a player when said player points out that for all his complaints about everyone blaming him for all their problems, he genuinely ''is'' responsible for many of their problems.
* DitzyGenius: Despite Kayaba's hair-brained scheme to pretend to set up a death game to save face over a bug that was more due to how sleep deprived he was, he is still a genius programmer. Sugou states that despite Sword Art Online's buggy code, his team was able to advance virtual reality simply by studying it. Sugou's entire plan is based on the fact that Kayaba's code has the potential for video game stats to affect a person's real life ability such as charisma allowing for real life Compelling Voice. And the fact that he could have made a genuinely good game if Bethesda didn't order him to finish the game before its deadline.
* EnragedByIdiocy: After dealing with the ''SAO'' players for so long, he has long since lost hope for them. His frustrations come from the fact that even with him genuinely attempting to help them survive the mess he made, [[TooDumbToLive they were so incompetent]] that many of his efforts were for naught. He lets all his grievances fly when Kirito exposes him.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: As Heathcliff, he spends most of his time in the game trying to stop insane players like [[CardCarryingVillain The King of Ashes]] and [[TheDogWasTheMastermind Fluffles]] from their apparent RapePillageAndBurn rampages, clearly unnerved by their actions.
* EvilCounterpart: To Kirito. Kirito sees humanity as made up primarily of [[HumansAreBastards despicable]] [[HumansAreMorons idiots]], but over the course of his adventures in ''[=SAO=]'' regains faith in humanity and is repeatedly impressed by the skill and empathy of those he cares about (i.e., Asuna, Klein, Tiffany, and Lisbeth). Kayaba, meanwhile, majorly suffered from GoodCannotComprehendEvil under his identity as Heathcliff, ultimately becoming something disturbingly close to a MisanthropeSupreme (outright shouting at one point how multiple players acting like {{Leeroy Jenkins}}es is "grounds to exterminate ''the species!"''). Both of them are also probably the only people who actually ''liked'' being trapped in ''SAO'' (Kirito because it gave him an escape from his miserable home life, and Kayaba because he still took pride in his programming). Both of them are also incredibly arrogant and terrified of facing the consequences of their actions. And when someone gets under their skin with something they can't retort, their response is to kill the offending party and say "You're dead".
* EvilIsPetty:
** KickTheSonOfABitch as it might've been, his murder of a guy for mildly sassing him proves he's not the OnlySaneMan he claims to be.
** After his motive it's revealed, him accepting Kirito's DuelToTheDeath comes off as this in retrospect, as he only accepted it because Kirito annoyed him.
* ExhaustionInducedIdiocy: His whole "plan" was the result of being up for three weeks straight without a wink of sleep trying to finish ''Sword Art Online''. The player death thing was a bug he never patched out as a result of not paying attention. Kayaba was so delusional in his sleep-deprived state -- he mentions that he believed that the government was run by MoleMen -- he was only concerned with the game getting a bad Metacritic score. As Kirito points out, Kayaba's sleep-deprived belief that the critics would be harsher on a game that accidentally killed a handful of people than one that intentionally murdered thousands was a rather misguided one. Kayaba, after having caught up on his sleep in the first month, agrees in hindsight.
* ExplainExplainOhCrap: When Asuna asks why he didn't just blame everything on an anonymous hacker group, he starts to explain why that wouldn't work, until his expression changes as he realizes that would have been a much better idea than what he came up with. He then decides he's going to go scream into the uncaring void for a bit.
* FatalFlaw:
** Arrogance (in a sense). While most of his villainy is due to sleep-deprivation making him act like an utter idiot, it's repeatedly shown that his pride is the true reason why ''SAO'' was kept going for so long, and if he had simply decided to own up to his fuck-ups or not stupidly double-down on his bad decisions, then none of the series' events would've had to happen.
** [[TooCleverByHalf Overthinking]] and poor stress management:
*** By Kayaba's own admission, he's not very good at handling a situation when he's under stress. He locked everyone in the game because he was under pressure from Bethesda to finish ''Sword Art Online'' for a Christmas release and was so stressed out and sleep-deprived that he overlooked a glitch that killed players in real life if their avatars die. Rather than shut down the servers or work on the code to remove the glitch, he just doubles down on it and tells everyone he did it on purpose.
*** Kayaba also killed a random knight for mildly sassing him despite telling Kirito and Asuna that he never wanted to kill anyone.
*** He created Heathcliff so he can anonymously save the players from his mistake but how this was going to help him wasn't made clear, Kayaba's heroism will just be attributed to Heathcliff while Kayaba remains the most wanted man in the world. Only Kirito knew who he was, and nobody was really going to forgive him for causing the deaths of over 2000 players.
*** As Asuna points out, it would have been easier for him if he just blamed a hacker group instead and claimed they stole his identity.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: He goes from a game developer to a mass murderer thanks to his death game. This trope is downplayed when it's revealed that he's still just a disgruntled and overworked developer and that he never intended for the death game to happen. Kirito even lampshades that Kayaba is just as clueless and fucked-up as the other players. However, he ultimately chooses to become a nightmare rather than a nobody in a misguided attempt to save face.
* AGodAmI: "It's time to face reality, son: I'm the god of this world."
* HanlonsRazor: His entire evil scheme was the result of a bunch of stupid mistakes and decisions made in his [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy sleep-deprived madness]], followed by him doubling down over and over again by the time he would have caught up with it. Kirito sums it up thusly:
-->"All this time I assumed he was some Machiavellian schemer, but in the end, he was just as big a fuck-up as the rest of us."
* HonorBeforeReason: He could have just fixed the glitch and shut down the servers but he instead put himself in the game so he can save everyone through the Heathcliff avatar.
* HopelessWithTech: He's not this all the time (He created most of the game's assets himself, after all), but it certainly shows up from time to time.
** He accidentally mutes himself while trying to disable the general chat in Episode 1.
** In Episode 11, a FreezeFrameBonus shows that he had to watch a Youtube tutorial to fix the glitch that caused everything.
* HopeCrusher: His appearance in Episode 1 has this effect on the players. As seen in the first sentence spoken after he disappears: "We're ''fucked!''"
* InTheHood: His first appearance is as a giant shrouded in a hooded robe with smoke coming out of where the face should be.
* IMeantToDoThat: His "master plan" was a result of sleep deprivation and a string of very bad and selfish decisions. ''Sword Art Online'' was ChristmasRushed for completion, and Kayaba spent three weeks without sleep trying to get it done on time. He overlooked a glitch that would kill the player if their avatar died, but was so tired that he just went along with it and clumsily proclaimed that it was all part of the plan. By the time Kayaba caught up on his sleep, he realised he lost control and was chin deep in trouble. Since no player had any actual military experience, over two thousand players died without clearing the first floor. In an effort to redeem himself, Kayaba decided to anonymously create an immortal avatar so he could at least try to fix the mess he made while also trying to buy time to come up with some means of covering his own ass so he can avoid getting arrested.
* ItSeemedLikeAGoodIdeaAtTheTime: How he sums up his actions.
-->'''Kirito:''' So, you thought critics would be harsher on a game that killed a few people on accident than one that ''killed thousands on purpose?''\\
'''Kayaba:''' That was my thinking process, yes.\\
'''Asuna:''' [[SuddenlyShouting WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!!]]
* IveComeTooFar: In a sleep-deprived state, Kayaba thought it was better to look like an evil mastermind than someone who had caused a few accidental deaths. After two thousand people died on the first month of trying to beat the game, he finally snapped out of it and tried to do something to help, though while also performing a stalling tactic by keeping everyone imprisoned so he could think of a way to avoid getting prosecuted.
* KickTheDog:
** Him trapping Yui and making her watch all the suffering. Though after learning his real motives, it's likely he just forgot she existed. The fact that she's later revealed to be a bit AxCrazy herself kind of makes this action understandable in retrospect.
** In his first appearance, after praising his subjects' beauty and congratulating them for subverting the BasementDweller stereotypes, he singles out a fat guy among the crowd and chastises him for "bringing down the curve".
** A more straightforward example is him making some crude insults at Kirito over having killed Asuna, and only half-heartedly apologizing to him afterwards.
* LackOfEmpathy: He prioritizes his game's critical reception over saving the lives of over 10000 people he unintentionally trapped in his own game. While it's implied this was all due to SanitySlippage, the fact that he could've stopped what was happening at any point during the Aincrad arc but chose not to speaks volumes of how little he cares for their safety. In Episode 11, it's implied this was due to losing faith in humanity after being forced to witness the sheer stupidity of all SAO players for two years.
* LaughablyEvil: Like most abridged series villains, his dialogue is humorous. He descends into BlackComedy when he's given a sillier, but more believable motivation to be a villain.
* MaskOfSanity: He puts on a front as [[OnlySaneMan the sanest guy]] in all of SAO, and his speech about being SurroundedByIdiots also makes some valid points. Underneath, however, lies a PsychopathicManchild who's [[CantTakeCriticism angry that people don't like his game]] despite forcing everyone to play it at gunpoint and who sadistically killed a player for pointing out his NeverMyFault demeanor (and actually tried to play it off as a PayEvilUntoEvil moment).
* MeaninglessVillainVictory: Pretending that players dying when their avatars die was some sort of master plan accomplishes nothing; if anything, it makes the final outcome worse than the one he initially expected.
* MercyMode: In-universe, he had to organize a guild because the players were TooDumbToLive and because the most competent player won't lead them himself.
* MyRulesAreNotYourRules: The way he talks about going to watch a movie before eventually getting around to fix the glitched-out boss room in Episode 11 suggests that Kayaba's not locked into the game like the other players and can log himself out at will. Which makes sense, given that there's no reason in this continuity why he would trap himself as well.
* NeverMyFault: After his true identity is revealed, he obstinately refuses to recognize that no matter how many problems his idiotic playerbase has heaped upon themselves, he's ''still'' the one really responsible for the whole debacle. In fact, when one of the players points this out, Kayaba responds by killing him. Additionally, the only reason ''SAO'' was kept running for so long was because he didn't want to own up to his death glitch. That all being said, he later averts when talking to Kirito and Asuna in private, admitting that he's responsible for ''SAO'' becoming an utter clusterfuck thanks in large part to his own arrogance and incompetence.
* OnlySaneMan: Tries to pass himself off as this after Kirito outs him, ranting about how stupidly the players act and how disgusted he is with them. However, it quickly becomes obvious that he's really, really ''really'' not the Only Sane Man in ''[=SAO=]''; he's just another fuck-up, probably the biggest fuck-up of them all.
* PopCulturalOsmosisFailure:
** Kayaba makes references to various movies and other video games, only to be frustrated by the ''SAO'' players' lack of knowledge of them. He even does it while under the guise of Heathcliff. Kirito uses this to determine his true identity.
** [[invoked]] Kirito exclaims "I reject your reality and substitute my own!" Kirito was [[AdaptationDisplacement actually referencing]] ''Series/{{Mythbusters}}'', but Kayaba immediately attributes it properly to ''Film/TheDungeonmaster'', a story about an athletic genius programmer who gets trapped in a fantasy world where the dangers are real and can only escape back to reality with the woman he loves by defeating all the villain's challenges, and then the villain himself. [[WholePlotReference Sound familiar, Kirito?]] Furthermore, Kayaba, who gets the source properly, is ''SAO''[='s=] Dungeon Master.
* PsychopathicManchild: How Kirito summarizes his character, that in the end, Kayaba's much like a bratty little kid lashing out at other children on a playground.
* RageBreakingPoint: The moment one player tries to attack him ''after'' seeing Kirito fail to even dent him, Kayaba drops his cordial tone, paralyzes everyone, and expresses his true displeasure at the stupidity he had to put up with for two years, dripping with rage. He is so incensed that he is prone to murdering anyone who tries talking back to him.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech:
** Voices his exasperation at [[LeeroyJenkins the many ways the players rack up their body count and refuse to cooperate or follow his guidance]].
** Receives one from Kirito in turn, that for all his criticism of the players, at least ''they'' had the bravery to show up to the boss fight without cheat codes on. And that Kayaba's essentially just throwing a giant childish temper tantrum and is refusing to take responsibility for his actions.
* ReedRichardsIsUseless: As lampshaded by Sugou in Season 2, Kayaba's incredibly advanced programming expertise and skill in virtual reality was ultimately wasted on developing a [=MMORPG=], when it could instead be potentially used to pioneer transhumanism (i.e., Sugou's EvilPlan to use ''[=ALfheim=] Online'' to give his real self a CompellingVoice).
* TheScapegoat: Deconstructed and PlayedForLaughs; As the one who kept everyone imprisoned in the game, everyone is completely justified in blaming him. However, Kayaba was driven into further insanity by both this and his guilt. The whole reason as to why this happened is that Kayaba was so sleep-deprived that he overlooked a glitch that killed people and he chose to double down on it than fix it. Racked with guilt after thousands of people died before even clearing the first floor, he entered the game with an immortal avatar so he could save everyone from his mistake. However, he soon learned how stupid players can be and he grew increasingly [[EnragedByIdiocy frustrated by the other players]] and he quickly became disillusioned with his own goal because the players blamed him for everything, even when it was their own fault in the first place by performing death or glory attacks despite being told that will die in real life if they do it.
-->'''Kayaba:''' Do you have any idea what's been like trying to lead you people?! You ignore all my strategies, you ADAMANTLY refuse to work together, and then you blame ME FOR ALL OF YOUR PROBLEMS!!!\\
'''Mobster:''' Well, to be fair, sir, you're responsible for at least a few of them.\\
'''Kayaba:''' Ah, yes. I see your point. Although, and- and hear me out here, counterpoint...\\
''[Kayaba opens his menu and kills the mobster as the latter screams in the distance]''\\
'''Kayaba:''' You're dead... HA!!! (sighs) I tried, you know? LORD knows I tried. But there's just no helping you people. It's like you crave death! But not just any death! Nooooo! YOU fuckers seem to have some sort of pool going to see who can end their existence in the dumbest, most avoidable way possible! And you just keep one-upping each other! Do you know how many of you have died screaming "Leeroy Jenkins"?! More than zero. Which, as far as I'm concerned, is grounds to exterminate the SPECIES!
* SimpleSolutionWontWork:
** When asked why he didn't ask for an extension so he could fix the game, he responds that he did, but the distributor already delayed twice and weren't willing to give him another.
** "Yeah, okay. See, Asuna, the problem with that... [[SubvertedTrope is that it's an EXCELLENT idea that I wish I had thought of two years ago."]]
* SkewedPriorities: Thanks to his sleep deprivation, he thought getting a bad score on Metacritic was worse than going down in history as a mass murderer.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: Unlike the original, where Kayaba's physical body dies following the end of the ''SAO'' death game ([[spoiler:VirtualGhost notwithstanding]]), in this treatment it seems that Kayaba instead went into hiding as "the most wanted man on the face of the Earth." As of the second season he's still playing video games, [[FreezeFrameBonus as seen by a post from a Twitter bot on Kirito's computer.]]
* SpeaksInShoutOuts: He loves quoting and referencing various movies, but also gets irritated when most people don't get it.
* SurroundedByIdiots: Kayaba tried to atone by creating the Heathcliff avatar so he can rally the players under his own guild and free them by guiding them through each floor but a majority of the players were insanely stupid, caused their own deaths, and blamed him for their own decisions (Then again, as the mobster pointed out, Kayaba ''is'' responsible for at least some of their issues).
--> '''Kayaba:''' I tried, you know? LORD knows I tried. But there's just no helping you people. It's like you crave death! But not just any death! Nooooo! YOU fuckers seem to have some sort of pool going to see who can end their existence in the dumbest, most avoidable way possible! And you just keep one-upping each other! Do you know how many of you have died screaming "Leeroy Jenkins"?! More than zero. Which, as far as I'm concerned, is grounds to exterminate the SPECIES!
* TigerByTheTail: By the time Kayaba had the presence of mind to start making smart choices again, it was already too late. In his sleep-deprived madness, he claimed responsibility for the death game which went on to kill two thousand people in just the first month. At that point, he was a mass-murderer and there was no chance of a good outcome no matter what he did. His actions from then on were essentially just to postpone having to suffer those consequences, while trying to stop things getting too much worse in the meantime.
* TragicVillain: If he had just been given a few extra days to sleep, none of this mess would have happened. Subverted when you realize he could have ended the game much earlier and prevented far more people from dying, but refused to in a desperate and ultimately futile attempt to cover his own ass. It's still tragic, but it's more about a man trapped by his own hubris and refusal to take responsibility for his mistakes rather than someone who became the villain for reasons outside their control.
* TrollingCreator:
** [[invoked]] Besides revealing all the players' true appearances despite having a character creation system in the game, Kayaba had also programmed music and sound effects to play specifically to humiliate a player even more. This includes a sad trombone, [[WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}} Goofy's]] "YAAAAAA-HA-HA-HA-HOOOOEEEEEEEY!" and circus music.
** He also created Yui to care about other players then locked her away and forced her to watch them all suffer. Seemingly for no other reason than to be a sadist. Of course, with the reveal of his true motivation, one has to wonder if he'd simply locked her away while still being able to see what was going on during his delusional breakdown and simply forgot about her.
* {{Unperson}}: He has unwittingly done to himself as he created the Heathcliff avatar to help everyone escape from the game. If Kayaba actually saved everyone, all his heroism would have just been attributed to Heathcliff and it was made clear in episode 11 that Kirito was the only player who knew who Kayaba was.
* VillainRespect:
** He genuinely respects Kirito for his skill in the game and the fact that he's the only guy that gets (most) of his movie references.
** He programmed the game to use appropriately-humiliating sound clips for {{Epic Fail}}s. That said, the fact that Lisbeth's smithing minigame is backed by ''Big Blast Sonic'' from ''Guilty Gear'', which is a game built around ''SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic'' suggests he respects her skill as a blacksmith.
* VillainousBreakdown: Completely loses his cool when upon acknowledging his deception, players ''[[TooDumbToLive still keep trying to attack him anyway]]''.
* VillainousBSOD: Upon realizing if he had just blamed the glitches and crazed evil monolog at the beginning on an anonymous hacker group, he could have avoided a lot of trouble to himself and being indirectly responsible for the deaths of well over two thousand people.
* VocalEvolution: When Kirito reveals his identity, his voice begin to sound higher and immature matching his personality. Specifically, when posing as Heathcliff, his voice is closer to that of [[WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged Perfect Cell]], but after being outed as Akihiko Kayaba, he reverts to how he sounded in the first episode (which is his actual voice).
* {{Workaholic}}: An exaggerated version considering he spent weeks without sleep in order to get the game out on time. This leads to glitches like real deaths and leads to his SanitySlippage.
* YankTheDogsChain: Downplayed. After two years of nobody getting his movie references, he's borderline ecstatic when Kirito makes what he ''thinks'' is a very contextually appropriate reference to ''Film/TheDungeonmaster'' during his HeroicSecondWind. He's incredibly disappointed to learn that he was actually referencing ''Series/{{Mythbusters}}'' and that he's never even heard of ''Dungeonmaster''.
* YouCouldHaveUsedYourPowersForGood: Kayaba feels this way about Kirito, wondering why someone as clever and talented who was capable of beating Dungeon Bosses on his own never bothered with forming his own Guild during the two years they were spent trapped inside of SAO.
-->With your Skill and Intellect, you should have been leading '''ARMIES''', clearing Floor-after-Floor with ease as ''"The Great Saviour of Aincrad".'''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Diabel]]
->'''Voiced by:''' [[Creator/HowardWang]]\\\

A player appearing in Episode 2 who tries to lead others in clearing ''SAO'', but loses the will to live in the process.
----
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: Unlike in canon, this take on Diabel is legitimately trying to help people, and tries to solo the final boss not to swipe the "last hit" item, but because he knows the rest of the raid isn't competent enough to handle it.
* BeleagueredBoss: The first in the series to experience the trope. He leads an army of players in attacking Illfang, the WarmupBoss, only for the squads to completely ignore his orders.
-->'''Diabel:''' Goddammit guys! Squad B! Quit attacking the boss and keep the Sentinels off us! ''Squad C and D! Stop attacking from the front, do you even know what "flank" means?!'' SQUAD F, FOR FUCK'S SAKE STOP PLAYING ''VideoGame/{{BEJEWELED}}!'' [[{{Angrish}} AARGH!!]]
* BrutalHonesty: While he's dying, he feels free to call the other players for the morons they are, and tells Kirito he wishes he had listened to his "always look out for number one" speech. Not even [[InternetJerk Kirito himself]] is exempt from this.
-->'''Kirito:''' In another life… in another time… I think we could have been friends.\\
'''Diabel:''' I... doubt it. *Dies*.
* CynicismCatalyst: By the end of the Floor 1 raid, he's bought into Kirito's worldview that other players are worthless morons.
* DrivenToSuicide: The experience of trying to lead his fellow players in a raid group leaves Diabel refusing a healing potion after getting mortally wounded.
* ExcellentJudgeOfCharacter: After the speech Kirito gave him, recognizes him not only as the OnlySaneMan of the SAO players, but also as a complete {{Jerkass}} with whom he wouldn't ever want to associate.
* GivingUpOnLogic: He ''tries'' to encourage his fellow players to come up with a better plan than [[AttackAttackAttack "group up and hit it 'til it dies"]] to beat the raid boss, but...
-->'''Random Player:''' I'd like to hear more about zis "Final Solution."\\
'''Diabel:''' ''[flatly]'' Fuck it, group up.
* ItsUpToYou: He seems to feel this way by the Illfang boss fight.
-->'''Diabel:''' Alright, men, this last part is going to take careful coordination... which is why I'm just going to do it myself!
* OnlySaneMan: The only member of the Floor One clearing team besides Kirito, Asuna and Tiffany with an ounce of common sense.
* TakeUpMySword: After he gets killed by Illfang, he asks Kirito to lead the other players for him. Kirito refuses.
* WhoWritesThisCrap: His reaction to the beta testers' "guidebook."
-->'''Diabel:''' Now, it goes on to say that when Illfang's health goes into the red, he's going to switch from his axe and buckler to something called a talwar. At that point we should initiate a strategy called [[ThoseWackyNazis "The Final Solution"]] ''and I'm just gonna stop reading!'' Jesus, who wrote this?!\\
'''Kirito:''' Heheheheheheh.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fluffles]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/40a75808_c842_45f0_bced_b76a64e4a03a.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Meow."'']]

A cat that somehow learned how to play ''[=SAO=]''. And somehow started the game's mafia. And somehow ended up on the [=KoB=]'s senior council, only to betray them and rule alongside the King of Ashes over the ruins of Floor 75.
----
* AndStarring: The cast credits for the Aincrad arc end "And Don Fluffles [[CharacterAsHimself [as] Himself]]".
* ArchEnemy: To [[TheHero Kirito]], [[ItMakesSenseInContext oddly enough.]] He was responsible for the death of Kirito's entire guild, (including [[ILetGwenStacyDie Sachi]]) And apparently they've had many an offscreen battle ([[UnreliableNarrator assuming Kirito isn't just trolling everyone]]).
* ArtShift: His scenes are always done in a different art style to the usual anime art, due to being original Flash animated footage for an original character.
* AscendedExtra: He was originally just a throwaway joke of a cat who learned how to play SAO, before becoming the [[BigBadEnsemble second biggest threat in Season 1 after Kayaba]].
* CanonForeigner: There's no mention of nonhuman players in the source material, much less cats.
* CatsAreMean: Well, one doesn't become a mafia don by being nice.
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Fluffles tends to turn traitor the moment someone more bloodthirsty comes into power.
* DarkIsEvil: Fluffles is a black cat, and most certainly is mean enough to be considered "evil".
* TheDon: The men under his command explicitly refer to him as this.
* TheDreaded: Keita would rather [[spoiler: kill himself than be in debt to him and his mob.]]
* EvilWearsBlack: Or in this case, evil has black fur.
* {{Expy}}: Seems to be filling the role of [=PoH=] as the leader of the main villainous players organization in SAO.
* FaceHeelTurn: When first introduced, he was trying to clear out floors and help the other players out of the game. Somewhere down the line, he became the feared don of Aincrad's mafia.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: Fluffles is a cat. A literal house cat. And yet he is able to go toe-to-toe with Kirito and ran the in-game Mafia, before eventually throwing in with The King of Ashes.
* FunnyAnimal: While presumably a regular cat in the real world, ''SAO'''s system renders him as a human with a cat's head, and he behaves like a serious crime lord rather than a beast (besides speaking only in meows).
* GreaterScopeVillain: He causes Kirito almost as much trouble as Kayaba in Season 1, but his status as a CanonForeigner means he’s little more than a background presence throughout the series.
* IntelligibleUnintelligible: Despite only communicating with meows, he can command his men, Kirito can probably understand him, and apparently so can The King of Ashes. Nobody holding the SanityBall can. Heathcliff wonders aloud if Kirito can understand cat or if he just messing with them.
* KarmaHoudini: He doesn't get his comeuppance as far as we see, at least in Aincrad. Jury's out on whether or not he shows up in [=ALfheim=].
* LethalJokeCharacter: Fluffles is a cat. A cat who is playing ''SAO''. He also happens to be one of the most dangerous players out there.
* TheMafia: He is the leader of the mob Keita indebted himself to.
* NoodleIncident: His offscreen encounters with Kirito.
-->'''Kirito:''' You know, I still have that knife you put in me... I've been meaning to give it back.
* NoOneCouldSurviveThat: One of his fights with Kirito ended with Fluffles going off a cliff. He survives with a contingency Kirito hadn't thought of. [[UnreliableNarrator Maybe.]]
* {{Sadist}}: If The King of Ashes isn't projecting, he apparently recommends boiling intruders in oil.
* ShoutOut: That isn't just any old cat's head photoshopped onto a human body, it's Amanojaku from ''[[Anime/GhostStories Ghost Stories]]''.
* TheUnintelligible: He's a cat, so he only communicates with meows and other cat noises.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sasha]]
->'''Voiced By:''' Creator/HaydenDaviau\\\

A woman who runs ''SAO''[='s=] orphanage, looking after the game's youngest players. At least until Kirito and Asuna show up and try to take it over in Episode 10.
----
* BewareTheNiceOnes: She's a very quiet and kind person, but even she can be pushed too far.
* ExtremeDoormat: Within minutes of meeting them, Sasha is reduced to serving tea while Kirito claims to be running her orphanage, and he even credits Asuna with making the beverage. Sasha meekly goes along with it, [[RageBreakingPoint until she goes ballistic]].
* InSeriesNickname: Gets nicknamed "Freckles" by Kirito since he never bothered to find out her real name.
* LargeHam: What she becomes during her rant...
-->'''Sasha:''' ''OHHH!'' SO I CAN TALK ''NOW?!'' IT'S OKAAAY FOR I, ''SASHA'' TO TALK?! YOU DIDN'T EVEN KNOW MY NAME WAS ''SASHA'', DID YOU? '''''[[FlippingTheTable DID YOU?!]]'''''
* NiceGirl: Much like in canon, she helps take care of the children who are trapped in the game.
* OnlySaneMan: She's easily the sanest person, constantly pointing out common sense that has slipped Kirito, Asuna, and Yulier.
* RageBreakingPoint: What finally pushes her too far is when, after taking over her life, Kirito calls her "Freckles."
[[/folder]]

[[folder:"The King of Ashes"]]
->'''Voiced By:''' Spencer "[=BuddyVA=]" Downs\\\

A player who, upon being disappointed by the CurbStompBattle of Heathcliff vs Kirito, led a riot which burned down Floor 75 and set himself up as the ruler of the tribal society that was established after him and his acolytes ran out of things to burn down. He strikes a friendship with Don Fluffles and the two of them rule Floor 75 as a dictator, forcing Heathcliff to send Kirito and Asuna on a couples retreat for fear of them ruining the peace talks.
----
* AxCrazy: Most of his dialogue is barely coherent violent screaming.
* BigBadWannabe: He wants to be the most feared threat, but Kirito is too busy dealing with bigger problems to give a crap about him.
* BloodKnight: His entire reason for rioting was being let down by an anticlimactic fight.
-->'''King:''' WE PAID FOR '''BLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!'''
* TheCameo: In Episode 12, the King of Ashes is seen leaving a [[FreezeFrameBonus threatening tweet on Kirito's twitter]], Kirito doesn't seem to care.
* CanonForeigner: There is no characters who went by "King of Ashes" in the canon series.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Subverted. Fluffles suggests doing [[ColdBloodedTorture something]] involving [[NoodleImplements boiling oil,]] which earns a surprised response but it turns out he loves it.
* EvilLaugh: Lets out an incredibly hammy one once he orders his men to bring out boiling oil to torture his prisoners.
* {{Expy}}: Seems to be the abridged stand-in for Kibaou given the trouble he caused for the Aincrad Liberation Front.
* HiddenDepths: Assuming it wasn't just an excuse to get Asuna in a thong, apparently he and some others were planning on putting together a charity calendar for cancer research. Also a fan of ''TabletopGame/{{Pictionary}}''.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Kirito snarks at the ominous nickname.
* NoIndoorVoice: He screams all his dialogue. Makes you wonder how peace talks were even possible with this guy. This extends to text as well, as everything except the hashtags is capslocked.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: After Kirito pisses him off, he breaks the truce with Heathcliff and has Kirito hunted down. He's still searching for him during Season 2, though his biggest action are just a few twitter threats.
* VillainTeamUp: He and Fluffles take over Floor 75 following Episode 10.
* TheVoice: He is only ever heard from afar.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Assorted SAO Players]]

''SAO''[='s=] playerbase, forced to fight for their lives in a game they can no longer log out of. Or as Kirito puts it, "a bunch of mouth-breathing neckbeards who think 'LMAO' is how French people laugh."
----
* AnswersToTheNameOfGod: With one player it's justified. Jesus (Hay-soos) is a common name in Spanish-speaking countries.
* BestialityIsDepraved: One of the players Kirito and Asuna flee from in Episode 11 [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial "totally doesn't bang fish"]].
* BigWhat: Or, rather, an exaggerated FlatWhat said by one player in particular in the start of the series when Kayaba traps everyone in the game. Hilariously, he's credited as "Al, from ''WesternAnimation/ReBoot''" in the closed captions. [[spoiler:He returns as part of Heathcliff/Kayaba's raid party in Episode 11...with the exact same word to say.]]
-->'''Al:''' WHAT?!
* DumbassHasAPoint:
** Many didn't read the manual, but given how uncreative and stupid so many of them are, they probably would have uncritically followed its [[WhoWritesThisCrap bad advice]].
** After his secret identity is revealed, Kayaba rants about how everyone blames him for all their problems when they ignore his strategies. One of them points out that he ''is'' responsible for many of their problems. [[DisproportionateRetribution Kayaba kills him in response.]]
-->'''Kayaba:''' That guy [[CallBack was in the mafia]], [[AssholeVictim that's, like, a freebie.]]
* LeeroyJenkins: Their preferred strategy, and has at least one player died screaming this exact phrase.
* RedshirtArmy: Many, many casualties stem from their LeeroyJenkins approach to things.
* RightForTheWrongReasons: Kayaba is upset that they keep blaming him for when things go wrong after they ignore his tactics and strategies, but unbeknownst to them, he is the one responsible for trapping them all in the game in the first place. After he gets outed, one of them points this out and [[DisproportionateRetribution Kayaba murders him,]] then tries to justify it retroactively by pointing out his [[KickTheSonOfABitch victim was in the mafia,]] but the fact that he could have freed everyone at any point but didn't because he was trying to cover his own ass makes his justification ring hollow.
* SurroundedByIdiots: The idiots in question.
* TooDumbToLive: Many barely understand strategy beyond "Group up and hit it until it dies".
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Bethesda and Argus '''(Unmarked Spoilers)''']]
The publisher and developer of ''Sword Art Online'', respectively. Creator/{{Bethesda}} contracted Argus to develop the game and allowed Argus to delay it twice, but were unwilling to extend the deadline any further, resulting in Kayaba Akihko having only three weeks to finish the game. This resulted in the game releasing in a disastrously broken state and being filled with bugs, including one that kills players.
----
* TheGhost: Bethesda is only briefly mentioned by Kayaba as the publisher of SAO.
* GreaterScopeVillain: Bethesda forcing Kayaba to finish the game in only three weeks despite needing far longer to polish led to the creation of the player-killing glitch and Kayaba becoming the BigBad who trapped everyone in the game to use them as hostages and escape consequences for the glitch.
* IncompetenceInc: The entire conflict of the first season happened because Bethesda wouldn't extend the deadline for Argus and demanded Argus push out the game now, resulting in it containing a plethora of glitches, including one that [[TheMostDangerousVideoGame kills players if they die in the game]]. Party because of this, Argus also implemented several bad design choices like clunky menus, bland dungeons, repetitive quests, a "seizure-inducing" crafting system, and more. So great was their incompetence that they ended up ''killing the virtual reality industry''.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: While Argus is known to have collapsed into bankruptcy as a result of the utter disaster that SAO became and the deaths it caused, no mention is given to Bethesda and what consequences they faced for rushing the game out.
[[/folder]]

!RECT Progress

[[folder:Nobuyuki Sugou / Oberon]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/smug_sugou.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"The thing is, it doesn't matter how sharp your tongue is... because this little lollipop... belongs to me now."'']]
->'''Voiced By:''' Scott "Creator/KaiserNeko" Frerichs\\\

The antagonist of Season 2 and Asuna's prospective husband, thanks to her father marrying them off. He is an employee in RECT Progress and the creator of ''[=ALfheim=] Online'', an MMO he developed mainly as an experiment in mind control. His goal is to master the mechanics of the Charisma skill and make himself able to bend others to his will in the real world, and he has decided to use this to turn Asuna into a submissive housewife.
----
* AccentUponTheWrongSyllable: He insists upon calling Asuna "Ti-TAN-ya" and mispronounces his own handle as "O-BEAR-on".
-->'''Asuna:''' It's pronounced "OH-beron!" Y'know? Like "moron?"
* AccidentalMisnaming: His boss mistakes his name for the brand name on a briefcase.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: An absurdly mild example, but he actually seems to look out for his employees, paying their psych bills, which are very high due to them having to deal with Asuna's rampages. This was not a detail present with his canon counterpart. Of course, the reason his employees are in need of psychiatric attention in the first place is because he can't stop antagonizing Asuna.
* BadSamaritan: He was the one who paid to keep the ''SAO'' servers running for two years, though it wasn't out of the kindness of his own heart - as in canon, he's keeping some ''SAO'' players' consciousnesses prisoner to use as test subjects.
* BenevolentBoss: Downplayed. Apparently pays for his team's psych bills, which are really high due to Asuna's constant rampages, but his constant leching on Asuna is why these rampages happen in the first place.
* BigBad: The main antagonist of Season 2. He's captured Asuna's mind in [=ALfheim=], and plans to use data from the game to influence his real-world self to be so charismatic that people will do whatever he says.
* BizarreTasteInFood: His planned wedding cake alternates between layers of chocolate, vanilla, and ''foie gras''. The combination causes the pastry chef he is ordering the cake from to break down in tears.
* BrattyFoodDemand: In addition to his BizarreTasteInFood mentioned above, he's making these demands the morning of the wedding.
* CardCarryingVillain: He obviously doesn't show this aspect of himself in public, but he relishes in his fetishes with the unconscious Asuna behind closed doors. It doesn't take long for him to spur Kirito into action through disgust.
* CaughtMonologuing: It's a recurring flaw with him. In Episode 14, after laying out his EvilPlan to Asuna and gloating about he's protected by his status as ''ALO''[='s=] system admin, by the time he's turned back from [[ContemplativeBoss looking into the distance]], Asuna's already out of her cage and massacring his guards. In episode 15, he does the same thing to Asuna's threats when she's acting like a ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend towards Kirito, and Asuna breaks out again, killing his guards even more violently.
-->'''Sugou:''' But if you really think you can overpower the ''System Admin'', then I dare say you're even dumber ''[turns back around]'' than I a-- [-Where did you go?-]\\
''[sirens blare]''\\
'''Guard:''' ''[offscreen]'' OH GOD! IT'S LOOSE!
* CompellingVoice: His goal. After he learned that the Nerve gear could analyze the player's real life abilities and translate it to video game stats, he wants to reverse it so the game stats will influence a person's real life abilities with focus on charisma to make people do whatever he wants.
* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: Kayaba was just some overworked schmuck who tried to pretend he was a brilliant mastermind after having accidentally killed thousands of people while scrambling to get the rest out of the mess he created. Sugou meanwhile, is a calm manipulator who puts up an image of a savior for the victims of SAO in order to use them as test subjects for his own ends and using the game to enhance his charisma, allowing him control over others as he sees fit.
* DidntThinkThisThrough: On the track of becoming this with his desires to unlock the master code from Sword Art Online that allows for the players to upgrade their real life stats using the game stats, a code that he had moved over into [=ALfheim=] Online. Unbeknownst to him, this also means that any SAO Veterans that transfer over to ALO also have most of their own Stats and Inventory from the previous game left intact for them to use... Stats that allow for Asuna to [[CardboardPrison constantly break out of her cell in an attempt to escape]] and [[MookHorrorShow torment and torture all of Oberon's guards]] within the World Tree. And an inventory that allows for Kirito to summon in his and Asuna's adoptive daughter [[UnknownRival Yui]]: the Psychologist AI from SAO [[RealityWarper that had been granted Admin privileges for both games]], and is fully-intent on [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge killing Oberon "By any means necessary" for holding her Mommy hostage]].
* DudeShesLikeInAComa: It doesn't seem to bother him that Asuna's unconscious; he still intends to marry her. Turns out it's because he's the one keeping Asuna trapped in his virtual world.
* EntitledToHaveYou: He feels that since he talked Shouzou into buying up the Argus servers during the Aincrad clusterfuck, the ''SAO'' survivors owe him their lives, so he's entitled to some "satisfaction" in the form of Asuna.
* EvilGloating: Much like in canon, Sugou simply cannot help himself, and gleefully rubs it in on what he's going to do with Asuna and how Kirito is powerless to stop him. His attempts with Asuna are [[CaughtMonologuing less successful]], to his guards' despair.
* FauxAffablyEvil: Quite polite and civil while rubbing in how powerless Kirito is to stop him and how he's going to break Asuna's mind. But when Asuna shows that [[DamselOutOfDistress she won't be contained so easily]], Sugou/Oberon is just as quick to start screaming that he's the king, and what he says goes.
* {{Foil}}: He's one to Kayaba, the BigBad of the previous arc.
** They're both terrible game developers who trapped players inside their respective MMOs against their wishes but, while Kayaba was a LethallyStupid manchild who managed to kill thousands of people completely by accident and reckless negligence, Sugou is a CardCarryingVillain and a SmugSnake who repeatedly fails at keeping his one conscious prisoner under control. Moreover, Kayaba is noted to be a BunnyEarsLawyer who, despite all his failings still created a technological marvel intended for people's enjoyment, while Sugou claims to be utilizing his technology to it's greatest potential in service to his own desires.
** Kayaba was a FriendlyEnemy to Kirito who respected him as a player and briefly bonded with him over their shared love for pop-culture movies. On the other hand, Sugou constantly belittles and insults the boy at every chance he gets, and Kirito has nothing but contempt for him in return.
** Kayaba intentionally made himself look like the BigBad in a sleep-deprived motivated attempt to save face after his mistake gets several players killed. Sugou, meanwhile, is notably FauxAffablyEvil to his co-workers, only saving his true self for Kirito and Asuna.
** Kirito's witty humor immediately gets through Kayaba's skin and motivates him to accept the duel that would eventually result in his defeat, while Sugou instantly shuts down every snarky comment Kazuto makes towards him, soon leaving him without comebacks. The fact that Kazuto met him IRL also emphasizes their power dynamic, which was is more clear compared to his somewhat equal standing with Kayaba. This showcases how out of his element the teenager was outside of SAO.
* FourEyesZeroSoul: He wears glasses in his civilian form, and is the ''[=ALfheim=]'' Arc villain.
* GreenEyedMonster: It's implied by his tone in his first conversation with Kirito that he resents the fact that the boy is known as the Hero of Aincrad, as opposed to himself, [[WantsAPrizeForBasicDecency who convinced his boss to buy up the servers to keep the prisoners alive for the sake of [=PR=] and tech resources]].
* HateSink: Just like his canon self, he is a [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain sexist]], repulsive sexual predator who wants to turn Asuna into a submissive SexSlave and experiments on victims of a traumatic DeadlyGame to give himself mind control powers. He also only shows token concern for the mental health of his employees while being perfectly fine with Asuna "[[ImAHumanitarian indulging her baser urges]]" with them and firing one for asking a simple (if dumb) question. While he has scenes of comedy, every scene he is in further drives home how disgusting and loathsome he is, and the jokes are at his expense.
* HopeCrusher: Episode 15 reveals the reason that he doesn't just ban Kirito's account right away is because Sugou wants to see Kirito succumb to despair when he fails to save Asuna.
* {{Hypocrite}}:
** He uses a profanity filter as the host of ''[=ALfheim=] Online'' to censor everyone, but that doesn't stop him from making crude sexual propositions at Asuna both in and out of the game.
** If Kyle's claims are of any indication, he has a list for misdemeanors such as sexual assault, which Shoji apparently got put on after being falsely reported for molesting Asuna. This is laughable considering he's probably violated every sexual harrassment law in the book.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty: His hint that Asuna should "put that tongue to better use" should tell you everything you need to know about his interests, and that's before you add in her audible shuddering. Keep in mind Asuna is still only 17.
* NoSympathy: He doesn't seem to care that Asuna is slaughtering his guards every time she tries to escape. When she does it in episodes 14 and 15, Oberon doesn't even raise his voice as [[GoryDiscretionShot Asuna violently kills his guards off-screen]].
* PervertedSniffing: He sniffs a lock of Asuna's hair when she's in her hospital bed. Kirito finds it disgusting.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Along with his perverted actions with the comatose Asuna, Sugou also demands that if Kirito is going to buy them a wedding present, to make sure it's a [[StayInTheKitchen sandwich press]]. There's also the bit he tries to force her to pick out the china pattern for their wedding.
* PsychopathicManchild: He rubs in just how much control he has over Asuna via mockingly voicing her to Kirito and bragging about how she's going to like him more.
* SmugSnake: When Kirito points out that his marriage to Asuna can't possibly be legal because she's still got her Nerve Gear on, Nobuyuki points out the ways he saved everyone from ''SAO'', though it's only to rub it in Kirito's face. He tries to act the same way towards Asuna herself, often engaging in EvilGloating over how much control he has of the situation both in the game and the real world, and how there is nothing she can do to stop him from marrying her. Asuna, however, fails to be very impressed by this and instead continues to make a fool of him and his security team by treating her cage as a CardboardPrison and responding to his broasting with graphic death threats, something which is shown to seriously get under Sugou's skin, despite his attempts to pretend otherwise.
* SmugSuper: A smug snake who happens to be a system administrator, meaning that he has access to all the admin perks that Kayaba had in SAO. Asuna makes graphic threats to his well-being in Episode 15, but she probably hasn't carried them out for this reason.
* UnknownRival: While Oberon is completely aware of Kirito's presence in [=ALfheim=] Online and his intent to free Asuna at any cost, he doesn't know that during Kirito's adventures in Sword Art Online he and Asuna managed to adopt SAO's Psychologist AI Yui as their daughter, or that Kirito managed to download Yui directly into his [=NerveGear=] helmet which he used to port her into ALO[[note]]since ALO works off of the same coding as SAO[[/note]] as a companion... a companion that has ''[[VirtualRealityWarper Admin Access]]'' to everything within ''ALO'' just like he does, and is actively helping her Daddy to save her Mommy, and has already added Oberon as one of her primary targets to kill "by any means necessary".
* VilerNewVillain: Kayaba was mainly PlayedForLaughs at first, and while his threat was taken seriously in the final battle, he is ultimately revealed to be an overworked developer who's villainy and larger body count stem largely from factors outside his control (at least initially, until he let his pride and cowardice get the better of him). Sugou is an outright sexual predator and mass torturer who, while the subject of a lot of jokes at his expense, is played noticeably more seriously as a threat.
* VillainousBreakdown: He has a minor one in episode 15. Asuna is a DamselOutOfDistress who is turning his tower into a CardboardPrison with her constant attempts to escape. Sugou manages to keep it together until [[CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon Asuna threatens Sugou's life in a horrific manner]], at which point he resorts to screaming at her that she's going to obey him, in spite of her attempts at rebellion. After Asuna escapes again, Sugou manages to recompose himself.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: He's the one who purchased the ''SAO'' servers that kept everyone alive for two years. As such, he figures the public will approve of his marriage to Asuna, or at least not interfere, since he's owed a "debt of gratitude".
* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: Discussed. Due to being the main admin of [=ALfheim=], Sugou admits he could easily ban Kirito's account from the game and instantly foil the attempts at rescuing Asuna. But Sugou prefers to break Kirito's spirit and crush his hopes by allowing him to continue his quest, completely unaware that the gates at the top are impregnable, thus [[HopeCrusher crushing Kirito's hopes]] at the eleventh hour.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Shouzou Yuuki]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yuuki_shouzou.png]][[caption-width-right:350:''"It's good of you to keep visiting her like this. Like a watchful guardian looking after a slumbering princess. Lying there like a perfect, beautiful little parasite, SUCKING THE MARROW FROM MY VERY BONES!"'']]
->'''Voiced by:''' Logan "[=BlazingAzureCrow=]" Laidlaw\\\

Asuna's father and the CEO of RECT Progress. He is a greedy, corrupt, and selfish man who marries the comatose Asuna off to one of his employees, Noboyuki Sugou, to avoid paying any more medical bills without having to kill her outright. He also loves Ferraris.
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* AbusiveParents: Much like how Suguha gives us an idea of where Kirito's issues came from, Shouzou shows us where Asuna's came from. He's actively contemptuous of Asuna (going so far as to call her a parasite and expressing a desire to cut off her life support so he wouldn't have to keep paying medical bills, while shortly later casually talking about buying a new Ferrari), and seemingly has zero issues marrying her off (while she's in a COMA, no less) to a man whose name ''he doesn't even know.''
-->'''Shouzou:''' It's good of you to keep visiting her like this. Like a watchful guardian looking after a slumbering princess. Lying there like a perfect, beautiful little ''[[MoodWhiplash parasite]]'', [[SuddenlyShouting SUCKING THE MARROW FROM MY VERY BONES!]]\\
'''Kirito:''' I'm not letting you pull the plug, sir!\\
'''Shouzou:''' Ah, sorry. Force of habit. You can relax. My lawyers have advised me that killing my daughter to get out of medical bills would cause more problems than it would probably solve.
* AdaptationalVillainy: Does not even appear to love Asuna, given that he's willing to [[AbusiveParents let his daughter die to avoid paying for medical bills and then marry her off so someone else who can pay for them]].
* BriefAccentImitation: Like father, like daughter apparently. Shouzou puts on a hilariously bad Italian accent when talking to his Italian contact, Enzo, probably explaining where Asuna's weird insistence on talking to Tiffany in rather broken JiveTurkey came from.
* ConspicuousConsumption: He off-handedly implies that he's bought several Ferraris.
* ContemptCrossfire: Neglectful parenting and self-centered personality aside, he doesn't care enough about his prospective son-in-law to learn his name, instead calling him by the name of the briefcase he brough the money in.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Apparently, he wanted to cut off life support from his own comatose daughter, solely because he found the medical bills too expensive. His lawyers had to talk him out of that idea. Instead he is happy to marry her off to an obvious lecherous creep twice her age, and provides that same creep resources for horrific mind control experimentation.
* HateSink: While not to the extent of Sugou, the single scene he is in establishes him as a [[AbusiveParents cruel, uncaring father]] to Asuna who greedily marries her off to an obvious creep so he can stop paying her medical bills without [[OffingTheOffspring killing her]], and seems to have no problem meeting Sugou use his company for inhumane medical experiments. He is also an UpperClassTwit who [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain speaks in an exaggerated Italian accent to his Ferrari guy]]. Basically all of Asuna's psychological issues are a result of his poor parenting, and unlike Suguha, who is responsible for Kirito's issues but is a complex character, Shouzou has no FreudianExcuse to speak of.
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: He calls [[CardCarryingVillain Sugou]] - a man who wants to own Asuna like a sex slave and is exploiting his corporate privileges to that end - a "nice gentleman".
* GreaterScopeVillain: Of the second season. He only physically appears once in the first episode while his employee Sugou is the main villain, but Shouzou is the CEO of the company who marries off the comatose Asuna to Sugou to get out of paying medical bills and is presumably supplying Sugou with the means to perform his mind control experiments with no care for anything but his profits.
* ItsAllAboutMe: His rationale for deciding to marry off Asuna to Nobuyuki. He no longer wants to foot the bill for keeping his comatose daughter on life support.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: He seems to be just as racist as [[PoliticallyIncorrectHero Asuna]], but he lacks [[InnocentBigot her]] [[ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend redeeming]] [[TookALevelInKindness qualities]].
* PragmaticVillainy:
** He didn't take his daughter off life support to save money, if only because he'd be charged with murder otherwise.
** He took Sugou's suggestion to buy and maintain the servers holding the ''SAO'' players, keeping them alive, but only for the sake of getting good publicity and keeping up with the technology.
* UpperClassTwit: It is made pretty clear that not only is he none-too-bright and has a rather limited attention span, but also that his money has allowed him to live a pretty sheltered lifestyle, leaving him blissfully unaware of how society at large actually functions. He treats setting up an arranged marriage for his daughter against payment and without her consent as if it is a perfectly normal and acceptable thing to do. He also mistakes the brand on Sugou's briefcase for his name and speaks in an exaggerated Italian accent to his Ferrari guy.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Shoji Yanai and Kyle]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kyle_and_shoji.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:'''Shoji:''' Kyle, Kyle, what do we do?! ''I can already feel my grip slipping!''\\
'''Kyle:''' Alright, alright! Everything's fine! I have a plan!]]

A pair of henchmen working under Sugou who help keep Asuna captive. Or they try to, at least, but frequently find themselves the victim of Asuna's vicious rampages. They appear as slugs in-game thanks to Shoji's bullying of the modeler, Trisha.
----
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: While still villains, they're far more sympathetic than their original incarnation.
** Shoji is a {{Downplayed}} example, as he's still a petty {{Jerkass}}, but he's not the [[NaughtyTentacles deranged sexual predator]] his original counterpart was.
** The other slug in SAO proper was also against his friend harrasing Asuna, [[PragmaticVillainy but only for pragmatic reasons]]. Here, [[EvenEvilHasStandards he's legit horrified]] and cuts ties with Shoji when he thinks he molested her.
* AssholeVictim: Shoji has a habit of asking for retribution from women. He works as one of Asuna's jailers and regularily steals the medicated yogurt belonging to his co-worker Trisha, who also happens to be ''[=ALfheim=]''[='s=] model designer. As a result, he is the subject of Asuna's more sadistic impulses and Trisha has made his character a giant slug.
* BadLiar: Shoji could learn a thing or two from [[ManipulativeBitch Asuna]] when it comes to covering his ass.
** In Episode 15, when Asuna asks Sugou if he's in that day:
--->'''Shoji:''' NO! Uh... I-I-I mean... ''([[LarynxDissonance falsetto voice]])'' Shoji's out sick today! ''(forced giggle)'' Uh...
** In Episode 17, he blames Trisha for him taking her yogurt, because "she doesn't label them", despite the fact that ''he never brings yogurt to work himself.'' Kyle is quick to point this out.
** The EmbarrassingCoverUp he comes up with to save his dog is as half-baked as can be, but Kyle [[NotSoAboveItAll believes it anyway]].
* BreakTheHaughty: Presumably the reason for Asuna targeting Shoji. It works, and by Episode 17, Shoji is a NervousWreck who's left in tears after she's done with him.
* BullyingADragon: As Shoji soon finds out, antagonizing and harrassing your avatar's modeler is a good way to get yourself screwed when you work inside an MMO.
* BumblingHenchmanDuo: They are a pair of goofy slugs who have humorous dialogue with each other and frequently fail to keep Asuna imprisoned, suffering darkly hilarious misfortunes as a result.
* CanonCharacterAllAlong: Shoji, in his debut, seems to be a voice-only original character created as one of Sugou's employees. Episode 17 reveals him to be one of the giant slugs who molests Asuna in canon (in here, he merely pretends to have done so to explain why he is letting her go, because he doesn't want to say that Asuna threatened his dog). To add more to it, his full name is listed in the credits as Shoji ''Yanai'', which, if not directly states, then at least strongly implies that he is the character of the same name from the source material's ''Alicization'' Arc.
* DirtyCoward: Despite coming across as the OnlySaneMan between him and Shoji, when they're confronted with a feral Asuna, Kyle's main plan is to bail to get Sugou for help, even if it means leaving his terrified colleague alone with the dangerous captive.
-->'''Shoji:''' Kyle, Kyle, what do we do?! ''I can already feel my grip slipping!''\\
'''Kyle:''' Alright, alright! Everything's fine! I have a plan!\\
'''Shoji:''' Okay, okay, l-lay it on me!\\
'''Kyle:''' I'm gonna go--\\
'''Shoji:''' ''I hate this plan!''\\
'''Kyle:''' No no, it's fine! I'm just gonna go get the boss! He'll know how to deal with--\\
'''Asuna:''' (''snarling and gnashing her teeth'')\\
'''Kyle:''' A-all of this...\\
'''Shoji:''' No, Kyle, no! ''Don't you dare! Don't you leave me with her!''\\
'''Kyle:''' You got this! (''logs out'')
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes:
** Shoji is a self-centered asshole who keeps stealing a disabled coworker's medical yogurt "by accident" because it tastes better than his. But when faced with the threat of violence against his dog Biscuit, he's willing to let Asuna go.
** Kyle, who doesn't seem to have a problem with helping keeping Asuna trapped inside [=ALfheim=], uninvites Shoji from his son's christening after Shoji (falsely) confesses to have been attempting to molest Asuna.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Despite being part of Sugou's group, Kyle is disgusted by Shoji stealing yogurt from one of their coworkers. He's also disgusted at his self-imposed FalseRapeAccusation, vowing to report his behaviour. The latter might fall into MoralMyopia though, considering [[DudeShesLikeInAComa who they work for]].
* EvilIsPetty: In addition to imprisoning Asuna and torturing numerous innocent people, Shoji messes with Trisha, a wheelchair-bound coworker with special dietary needs, usually by stealing her medicated yogurt. He also denies responsibility to an implausible degree.
* EyeScream: Shoji's eyes had apparently being pulled out (or eaten) by Asuna during their previous encounter, forcing his modeler to replace them with yellow ones. In episode 17, Asuna later threatens him by asking him what color does he want for the next pair.
* GoryDiscretionShot: In Episode 15, Asuna does this to Shoji after breaking out of her CardboardPrison yet again. In Episode 17, it's implied [[EyeScream she ate his eyes]].
* KarmicTransformation: Their avatars in ''[=ALfheim=]'' have been locked into the form of giant purple slug creatures, as Trisha's revenge on Shoji for stealing her medicated yogurt, making it their only way of interacting with the game. Kyle expresses his annoyance at having been subjected to this punishment too, [[GuiltByAssociationGag noticing that it seems to have been inflicted upon him simply for being on friendly terms with Shoji]], especially seeing how he expressively stated that he didn't want any part in Trisha and Shoji's beef.
* LarynxDissonance: Shoji briefly does a falsetto voice in Episode 15 to try to convince Asuna that he wasn't working that day. [[GoryDiscretionShot It doesn't work.]]
* LaserGuidedKarma: Shoji repeatedly [[BullyingTheDisabled antagonized his disabled coworker]] out of apparent prejudice, so it's only fair that his avatar gets turned into a massive purple slug with tentacles that are apparently very hard to utilize, effectively making him disabled as well.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: The slugs in SAO proper didn't have names.
* NervousWreck: Having been on the receiving end of several of Asuna's escape attempts/rampages, which appearently included not only her horrifically killing, but even ''eating'' parts of him (well, his avatar) several times, Shoji's nerves around her are frayed, to say the least, and it takes pretty much all of his willpower to simply not run screaming away from her. He also mentions that he has had to see a therapist in an attempt to cope with the traumas she has inflicted upon on him.
* NeverMyFault: Shoji refuses to take responsibility for stealing Trisha's yogurt, which got him and his friend's avatars [[KarmicTransformation turned into slugs as a result]].
-->'''Shoji:''' Well, she didn't ''label'' them, how am I supposed to know?\\
'''Kyle:''' Did you ''bring'' yogurt, Shoji?!\\
'''Shoji:''' I hardly see how that's relevant.
* TooDumbToLive: Shoji couldn't come up with anything better than [[EmbarrassingCoverUp "I was just molesting her"]] when asked why he is letting Asuna go (really because she threatened to eat his dog), which gets Kyle to report him for sexual assault.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Kyle instantly cuts ties with Shoji [[EvenEvilHasStandards after believing he molested Asuna]].
-->'''Kyle:''' I thought I knew you. Consider yourself uninvited to my son's christening.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Trisha]]
The model designer of ''[=ALfheim=]''. She turned Shoji and Kyle's in-game models into slugs because Shoji keeps picking on her and stealing her medicated yogurt.
----
* CanonForeigner: While there was most likely an avatar modeler for ALO in the original anime, there's no evidence of them being disabled. The name Trisha is also never said in SAO proper.
* TheDogBitesBack: She designs Shoji and Kyle's avatars as ugly giant slugs and locks them in said avatars as revenge for Shoji constantly stealing her dietary yogurt and making fun of her for being disabled.
* EvilCripple: {{Downplayed}}. She's stated to be bound to a wheelchair, and she's an avatar modeler in a game that traps former SAO players against their will to use as test subjects. However, she is never seen and seems to be a PunchClockVillain at most.
* TheGhost: She's only mentioned in episode 17 by Shoji and Kyle, the former complaining about her while the latter refuting that it was all his fault that they ended as slugs.
* MisplacedRetribution: Kyle had apparently made it clear that he wanted no part in his friend's beef with her. This didn't stop her from applying GuiltByAssociation and turning his avatar into a slug alongside Shoji's.
* LostFoodGrievance: Turned Shoji and Kyle into slugs because Shoji keeps stealing her yogurt and Kyle is Shoji's friend.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sean]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sean_63.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:I'm sorry Ma'am, I'm gonna need to transfer your call... please hold]]

The Technical support representative of ''[=ALfheim=]''. Asuna briefly and mistakenly calls him while trying to log herself out.
----
* AloofAlly: Despite working for a monstruous sexual offender who essentially lobotomizes players, he seems pretty casual when processing Asuna's request to free all their hostages. This gets him fired pretty quickly.´
* CanonForeigner: Since Asuna never fat-fingered her way into Tech Support in SAO proper, there was never any evidence of Sean existing.
* DisposableIntern: Sugou fires him upon asking if he can let the captives and Asuna out.
* LackOfEmpathy: If his casual demeanor when talking about freeing or retaining their test subjects is any indication. He also doesn't process Asuna's desperation when she asks him for help, and simply gets his co-workers to detain her.
* NothingPersonal: He only antagonizes Asuna due to his job being on the line, and apologies to her before forcing Shoji and Kyle to deal with her.
* {{Otaku}}: Implied by his anime catgirl profile.
* PunchClockVillain: He couldn't care less about what happens to the [=ALfheim=] test subjects: Log them out, keep them trapped... It's all just part of his job as a Tech support representative.
* TheSlacker: Not wanting to deal with Asuna escaping, or Sugou's wrath, he passes the responsibility of dealing with her to Shoji and Kyle.
* SoulCrushingDeskJob: Given how monotone his voice is when replying to Asuna, it seems that he isn't enjoying his job as the representative of tech support.
[[/folder]]

!''[=ALfheim=] Online''

!!Faction Leaders '''(Unmarked Spoilers)'''

[[folder:Queen Sakuya and King Eugene]]
!Brian and Becky

The two leaders of the most powerful factions in Alfheim, the Sylphs and Salamanders respectively, and the greatest enemies in the Race War. Kirito comes to a peace talk Sakuya is holding in Episode 16 in an attempt to gain her help in rescuing Asuna, only to get roped into fighting Eugene. It turns out they are Brian and Becky, bitter exes who hacked each other's accounts and roped the entire server into their fight.
----
* AdaptationalVillainy: With Cazmer's AdaptationalHeroism comes Sakuya and Eugune's instance of this trope. Both took their messy break-up out on their RP server, resulting in [[FantasticRacism the race war that's the cornerstone of their "lore"]], and [[MediationBackfire any attempts to try to deescalate the situation results in backlash for the mediator]], such as ThePurge of the Spriggans and Cazmer's banishment.
* AdaptationRelationshipOverhaul: There's no indication that Sakuya and Eugene had any personal connections in canon, while in the abridged series, they're bitter exes IRL.
* ANaziByAnyOtherName: Queen Sakuya is responsible for the mass "extermination" (read: banning) of the Spriggan race, which are treated in-game as SpaceJews. Yeah...
* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: Both of them (but especially Eugene) had a bizarre habit of vomiting on their neighbour's pet dog while inebriated.
* ClashingCousins: Eugene/Becky is blatantly racist towards the Cat-sith, and doesn't seem to care if her cousin Denise is leading them. The resentment is very much mutual on Denise's part.
* ControlFreak: Brian is accused of being this by Becky. His banishment of both the spriggans and Cazmer for [[WithUsOrAgainstUs trying to pick a middle ground in the conflict]] prove her right.
* DefeatEqualsExplosion: Eugene bizarrely explodes after Kirito stabs her to death with his two swords. She gets better thanks to Sakuya's magic. The randomness of the explosion is {{Lampshaded}} by a salamander.
--> '''Salamander:''' O-Okay, but, like... why'd he explode, though?
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes:
** Eugene loved the salamanders' pet bat Squeaker. She expressed her eagerness to attend his pup's baby shower, and was visibly distraught when she heard of his demise.
** She also says she's in a healthy relationship with Jonathan/[=PantySmasher=]. Then again, she might be an UnreliableNarrator considering how petty she's shown to be.
* EvilIsPetty: They both force their friends to pick a side in their proxy war, and are responsible for the spriggan race not wanting to play the game anymore.
* FantasticRacism: They take Cazmer's place as the main perpetrators of violence against both the spriggans and the cat sith, and crank it UpToEleven, as it's later revealed Sakuya "genocided" the spriggans after their leader tried to arrange a BreakUpMakeUpScenario between him and Becky.
* FauxHorrific: Sakuya banishes Cazmer from the game for [[SarcasmMode the horrific crime]] of trying to get him to make peace with Eugene. The exchange has to be seen to be believed.
--> '''Cazmer:''' I JUST WANTED PEACE BETWEEN THE RACES!\\
'''Sakuya:''' Your ''mad dreams'' end here, ''Travis''. You're banished!
* GenderFlip: PlayedWith. Eugene and Sakuya here are very blatantly a woman and man respectively each playing a character of the opposite sex, while in canon, their players are assumedly the same gender as their avatars. Turns out their respective players did originally belong to avatars of the same gender, but they hacked each others' accounts after a nasty breakup and stole the other's avatar, leaving it vague who's each other's canon equivalent is.
* GirlyGirlAndTomboy: Presented as an alpha male southerner who gloats about being a veteran and wears a red armour decorated with a fidget spinner, Eugene/Becky is the tomboy to her cousin Hime/Denise's GirlyGirl.
* HypocriticalHumor:
** Sakuya uses Eugene's incident of vomiting on their neighbour's dog as an example of why she's a bad girlfriend, only to go on the defensive when she reveals he had previously puked on it as well.
** Eugene is a StrawFeminist, yet she idolises Feudal Japan, a time period where women didn't have any rights.
* IAmAHumanitarian:
** Sakuya refers to the cat-sith as "a powerful and succulent ally", and Eugene outright states that she expects them to straight up eat each other.
** ZigZagged with Eugene. Kirito accuses her and the salamanders of eating the spriggans, and she doesn't deny it. The revelation that the spriggans were griefed out of the servers after a MediationBackfire somewhat mitigates this but it's still plausible that she assisted in the griefing by cannibalizing her fellow players.
* {{Jerkass}}: They both are equally repulsive and childish assholes who purposefully alienate their friends by creating a proxy war after a messy breakup.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Sakuya initially seems to be willing to talk things out with Eugene as he uses a spell to revive her after her CurbStompBattle with Kirito, only to reveal he did it [[NeverMyFault to get her to "admit" full blame for their fight, showing his unwillingness to compromise.]] Things only get worse when it's revealed he exterminated the spriggans after their leader suggested patching things up between them, and then again when he does it to Cazmier/Travis for the same reason.
* KnowNothingKnowItAll: Brian is a wannabe veteran who believes his job as a ''lifeguard'' is akin to working the Navy.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Eugene/Becky and Sakuya/Brian would rather keep fighting than sit down and talk, and aren't afraid to punish and cut ties with their concerned friends who don't want to take sides.
* LaserGuidedKarma: Eugene/Becky was said to have [[BadPeopleAbuseAnimals vomited on her neighbor's dog at least twice]], so it's tragically fitting that she loses her beloved virtual pet Squeaker later in the episode.
* LiteralMinded: Sakuya on one instance.
--> '''Sakuya:''' Oh ''no!'' The Undine have thrown in with the Spriggans?! I always knew there was something ''off'' about them! Breathe air ''or'' water, pick a side!\\
'''Leafa:''' Mom, please, read the room.\\
'''Sakuya:''' But we're outside, dear.
* PetTheDog:
** Eugene was looking forward to Squeaker's baby shower and was genuinely distraught upon hearing about his death.
** Sakuya once apologized to their neighbor on Eugene's behalf after she vomited on their dog. Somewhat undermined by the revelation that he had once puked on said dog himself.
* SlapSlapKiss: How their relationship apparently used to work, if their multiple [[NoodleIncident Noodle Incidents]] are of any indicaiton.
* StrawFeminist: When her boyfriend Jonathan tries to break up her petty fight with Sakuya, Eugene instantly assumes [[InsaneTrollLogic he's implying that she can't defeat him because she's a woman.]]
* ToiletSeatDivorce: The reasoning for their breakup and endless fighting afterwards is because Brian/Sakuya wanted to see the Lakers game while Becky/Eugene decided she would rather go to the opera:
--> '''Sakuya:''' Please. This is simply a non-aggression pact stating that Eugene knew exactly what he was doing when he bought those opera tickets, even though Sakuya had been talking about attending the Lakers game that night for ''actual months'', [[SuddenlyShouting BECAUSE EUGENE NEVER LISTENS UNLESS IT’S ABOUT HER THINGS]]!
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: As Eugene, Becky puts on a deliberately gruff and manly southern voice, and sticks to the role even when Brian is not around. Despite this, she behaves like a GenkiGirl when she's around [[SecondLove Jonathan]].
* WithUsOrAgainstUs: This seems to be their mentality, as [[MediationBackfire Ted and the spriggans]] soon learn.
* WithFriendsLikeThese: Poor Denise, Jonathan, Ted and especially Travis are forced to have their enjoyment of the game sapped [[WithUsOrAgainstUs and take sides in Eugene and Sakuya's race war]] just to spend a little time with them. Ted and Travis even got banned from the game after trying to take action against them.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:General [=PantySmasher=]]]
!Jonathan

A Salamander general who role-plays preying on Leafa. He is actually Becky's new boyfriend who works at a soup kitchen.
----
* AdaptationNameChange: From Kagemune to [=PantySmasher=].
* AdaptationalVillainy: The original Salamander leader (named Kagemune) was an AffablyEvil player who, while tasked to "kill" leafa, still gave her a fair chance at fighting. Here, [=PantySmasher=] is a deranged predatory general who intends to rape Leafa before killing her. {{Subverted}} later when this attitude was revealed to be a case of MeanCharacterNiceActor.
* BigNo: [=PantySmasher=] gives a particularly convincing one when his fellow salamander Keith is "killed".
* ChivalrousPervert: He and the other salamanders target [[LustObject Leafa]] constantly to role-play their rape scenes, but he's still patient enough to put the roleplay on pause for a while to help her flesh out her character better first.
* DeepSouth: He affects a "redneck" accent and behaves like a character from ''Film/{{Deliverance}}'', something Kirito picks up on. It later turns out to be the Salamander more-or-less official accent, with the players only dropping it when not roleplaying.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Played with. [=PantySmasher=]'s [[BigNo reaction]] to Keith's "death" implies he cared dearly for him.
* ExtremeDoormat: He seems to be always in a state of perpetual fear when talking to his girlfriend Becky, choosing his words carefully so as to not upset her.
* EvilBrit: Played with. [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty PantySmasher's]] player is a Brit going by accent, but he only goes into it when speaking OOC and is a MeanCharacterNiceActor.
* FantasticRacism: As [=PantySmasher=], he considers the spriggans to be "a garbage race". Thankfully, he doesn't seem to be LostInCharacter in this regard (unlike Sakuya and Eugene).
* FriendlyEnemy:
** With Leafa. In-game, she's [=PantySmasher=]'s main LustObject, but once the roleplay gets paused, they are rather cordial with each other.
** As Episode 16 reveals, with the other players as well. He even worked with Sylph prince Cazmer to arrange a BreakUpMakeUpScenario between Sakuya and Eugene.
* HeroAntagonist: In Episode 16, it's revealed he was hired by Cazmer to "kill" princess Leafa as part of the latter's plan to get Brian and Becky to reconcile so that everyone can enjoy [=ALfheim=] again.
* HiddenDepths: Despite working at a soup kitchen, he's a rather talented actor, on top of being very invested in his character's demeanor and motivation. He also briefly serves as an acting coach for Leafa, giving her some rather sound advice.
--> '''[=PantySmasher=]:''' Yeeees. You see? That’s exactly the kind of choice Leafa would make in this situation! You just have to ask yourself the right questions and the character basically writes itself!
* KnowWhenToFoldEm: He's quick to reprimand players who don't take their characters seriously, but he's smart enough to stay silent when his girlfriend Eugene/Becky breaks character to rant at her ex, knowing interveening would just piss her off more.
* MeanCharacterNiceActor: Johnathan works all day in a soup kitchen and, though frustrated with Leafa's shortcomings, still takes the time to coach her on her roleplaying, but spends his time in ''ALO'' as a "sexually-predatory general named [=PantySmasher=]."
* PetTheDog: While role-playing a rape scene with Leafa, he briefly breaks character to correct her on her BadBadActing. The revelation that he had been sent by Cazmer to "kill" her shows he really didn't have to bother, but did it anyway.
* TheRoleplayer: In ''ALO'', he role-plays as a sexually predatory general who is after a beautiful princess DamselInDistress. He also takes acting very seriously and takes time to coach said princess, Leafa, on how to properly behave as a damsel when she fumbles with her role.
* SecondLove: For Eugene/Becky, after her big fight with Sakuya/Brian.
* SeriousBusiness: Role-playing and character consistency is this for him, and he gets very frustrated with players who fumble or outright refuse to commit to their characters.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: After Kirito "kills" his salamander CoDragons (and throws him off his rhythm with his refusal to role-play), he gives up on him and Leafa and flies away.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Prince Cazmer]]
!Travis

The prince of the Sylphs who is engaged to Princess Leafa. He behaves as an arrogant, temperamental noble who turns out to be scheming against his queen. He is actually a real-life friend of Brian and Becky who wants them to stop polluting the role-play with their bitter post-breakup fighting.
----
* AdaptationalHeroism: Prince Cazmer, in canon, is an underhanded spy for the Salamanders. Here, he's a real-life friend of Brian (Queen Sakuya's CrossPlayer) who is seriously upset with how his breakup with Becky (Eugene's player) has caused the roleplaying scene to devolve into a vaguely racist one-upsmanship game that chased all the Spriggan players out because of their anger at their Lord, Kirito Prime (aka Ted), trying to deescalate things, and his scheme was trying to force them to talk about their issues.
* AdaptationNameChange: From Sigurd to Cazmer.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: Aside from the AdaptationalHeroism, Cazmer also proves to be a bit more personable. His earlier rude encounter with Kirito and Leafa, which mirrors his canon self's one, was largely the result of roleplaying and to avoid potentially exposing his plot to get Eugene and Sakuya talking, and when exposed he apologises to Kirito for his previous behaviour before getting banished. Also, whereas his canon self was a horrible FantasticRacist, here he has a feeling of kinship with the now-persecuted Spriggans due to his friendship with their leader, Ted.
* AlasPoorVillain: Despite being on the receiving end of most of his harsher actions, [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone Kirito can't bring himself to look at him in the eye]] as he goes on his MotiveRant and shows himself to be a WellIntentionedExtremist at worst. Thus, it's not chathartic at all when he gets banished by Sakuya.
-->'''Kirito:''' I don't feel good about anything that just happened.
* BreakupMakeupScenario: Tries to orchestrate one between Brian and Becky, but his plan is exposed by Recon [[NiceJobBreakingItHero and ruined by Kirito and Leafa.]]
* HeroAntagonist: He's behind the salamanders' attack that hinders the protagonists' progress, and is presented in an antagonistic light during his introductory scenes. In Episode 16, however, it's revealed he was actually just trying to make peace between the races to make [=ALfheim=] fun again for everyone.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: As Prince Cazmer, Travis is something of a ControlFreak, as he is very insistent that his in-game engagement with Leafa follows through. He's also abrasive and has a terrible temper, [[BadBoss especially against his minions.]] However, this is all his persona. In reality, Travis is deeply upset about how Brian and Becky have turned the roleplay community toxic and desperately wants them to bury the hatchet, and believes his sabotage of the Sylphs' war will cease hostilities.
* KickTheDog: Yes, he had to maintain the ruse, but did he really have to use [[GroinAttack the vice]] against [[TheCutie Recon]] for not being able to convince Leafa to attend her wedding?
* LaserGuidedKarma: In a tragic sense, it's oddly fitting that his plan gets exposed by [[ButtMonkey Recon]], arguably the minion he abused the most while trying to maintain his ruse.
* MeanCharacterNiceActor: Prince Cazmer acts as a physically abusive BadBoss, but his player, Travis, while a bit manipulative, is honestly worried about Sakuya/Brian and his scheme is to make the RP less toxic. He even [[PetTheDog attempts to apologize to Kirito for the in-character treatment]] seconds before he's banned.
* MyGreatestFailure: Before getting banished, he tearfully apologizes to Kirito for being rude to him, knowing how much FantasticRacism him and the other spriggans must be suffering at the hands of his other friends.
-->I only regret that I didn’t stand with my Spriggan brothers when they needed me most! You! Last of the Kiritos! I'm so sorry for the way I treated you! I had to maintain the ruse! It was the only way! I just wanted peace between the races!
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: When Cazmer/Travis later attempts to mediate the fighting between Brian and Becky, he's banished from his race while being treated as the bad guy.
* ShootTheShaggyDog: He ended up meeting the same fate as his friend Ted, banned from playing ALO ever again by Brian.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: He's very manipulative, willing to "kill" Recon in-game for interfering with his plans, and is very committed to maintaining his BadBoss persona, but he genuinely has everyone's best interests at heart, and believes the game will be fun to play again for everyone once his schemes pay off.
-->Well, Trav, you finally did it. All your wheeling and dealing has finally paid off. Sure, I wish it hadn't come to such drastic measures, but they'll come to see the necessity of it in time.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan]]
!Denise

The leader of the Nyan Nyan Tribe. She is Becky's cousin who takes on many "fangirl Japanese" mannerisms.
----
* AdaptationRelationshipOverhaul: Canonwise, Sakuya and Alicia Rue both had ambiguous feelings for [[CluelessChickMagnet Kirito]][[labelnote:*]]The ambiguity comes from the fact that the source material makes it ambiguous whether they ''legitimately'' have feelings for him or were just trying to get a powerful player into their alliance, whereas the games and other official media depict them as being part of his UnwantedHarem with their feelings being legitimate.[[/labelnote]] and have a heavily implied relationship with ''each other''.[[labelnote:*]]Reki Kawahara hinted via a tweet that they are more than just friends, and their appearances in the "War of the Underworld" mini arc has them in a PseudoRomanticFriendship.[[/labelnote]] Here, Sakuya and Hime lack any romantic inclinations for either Kirito ''nor'' each other, with Sakuya instead being bitter exes with ''Eugene''. Not helping matters is that the IRL players for the latter two, Brian and Becky, used to own the ''others'' accounts before the breakup, in which they then hacked into and ''stole'' their exes, with Sakuya/Brian mentioning Hime/Denise is Eugene/Becky's ''cousin''.
* AdaptationNameChange: Alicia Rue is referred to here as [[OverlyLongName Princess Hime Kuronekodesuchan of the Nyan-Nyan Tribe]]. Her IRL name meanwhile is Denise.
* ClashingCousins: She doesn't have a high opinion of her cousin Becky, and admonishes Brian for sleeping with her.
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: Both Sakuya and Leafa threaten to [[IAmAHumanitarian eat her]] at different points, and it's implied being a cat-sith makes her an InUniverse AcceptableTarget in her friends' eyes. On Kirito's part, he instantly drops his roleplaying when she pulls a TheyCallMeMISTERTibbs on him, and ignores her afterwards.
* GirlyGirlAndTomboy: Presented as an overly cutesy cat girl who frequently uses cat puns and wears a one-piece armour, she's the GirlyGirl to her cousin Eugene/Becky's tomboy.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: When Kirito gets angry at Sakuya/Brian refusing to grant him an army to rescue Asuna, she tells him to chill out because "it's just a game", not knowing Kirito had spent two years living in a "death game" which ironically ended up meaning more to him than the real world.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: She's an active participant in Eugene and Sakuya's "race war", and shows NoSympathy when [[HeroAntagonist Cazmer]] gets banished from the game for trying to make peace. Other than this, she just seems to be trying to enjoy ''[=ALfheim=]'' as much as she can, and is far nicer to Kirito than [[{{Jerkass}} Sakuya]].
* OccidentalOtaku: Denise loves to pepper her speech with GratuitousJapanese, even in her name, regardless of incorrect pronunciation or grammar, and will only answer to "Princess Hime-Senpai".
* OverlyLongName: Her "surname" is Kuronekodesuchan, a long string of GratuitousJapanese.
* TheyCallMeMISTERTibbs: She insists on being called "Princess Hime-Senpai".
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kirito Prime]]
!Ted

The leader of the Spriggans, a now-gone race of Kirito roleplayers, who was banished for attempting to stop the fighting between Brian and Becky.
----
* AmbiguouslyJewish: His MediationBackfire caused his race, the spriggans, to be treated as SpaceJews by his former peers and [[FantasticRacism chased out of the servers]]. With that said, it's unknown if Ted himself is jewish.
* AmbiguousSituation: It's left unclear if he used Kirito's name to role-play as him (as the spriggan skin does resemble the teenager in a way), or if he was trying to take credit as the hero of Aincrad by stealing his name.
* DramaticIrony: The only chance of achieving peace between the races ended up being unintentionally foiled by his personal idol and true hero of Aincrad Kirito.
* TheGhost: He's only brought up in Episode 16, but never seen as he's long been chased out of the servers by Brian and Becky.
* HeroWorshipper: A possible reason for his chosen name. Definitely applies to some of his fellow Spriggans, though.
* MediationBackfire: His attempt at getting Brian and Becky to talk things out ended up getting his race "exterminated" by the former.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Kirito Prime/Ted, the leader of the Spriggans, simply wanted Eugene and Sakuya to work things out between them to end the race war they instigated so the role-playing could be less toxic and the game could be fun again. Sakuya and Eugene's response is to persecute the Spriggans and make racism against them a trend to drive them out of the game.
* OnlySaneMan: Out of the entire ALO player base, he and the spriggans are the only ones (aside from some of the players in the capital) who refused to participate (and even tried to prevent) the race war. Even [[WellIntentionedExtremist Cazmer]] had to get his hands dirty to try to make peace.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: After being griefed by his former friends for far too long, he quit playing ALO altogether, shortly before the real Kirito arrived at the game.
* ShadowArchetype: After his banishment, Prince Cazmer would end up following in his footsteps [[WellIntentionedExtremist taking a much more extremist approach]], only to end up meeting the same fate as him when his plans got foiled by Ted's idol and fellow spriggan [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Kirito]].
* SpaceJews: After his banishment, this is the Sylphs' default treatment of any spriggan straggler.
[[/folder]]

!!Others

[[folder:The Math Tree]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/saoa_math_tree.png]]
->'''Voiced By:''' Ken Tynan

An NPC, in the form of a creepy-looking tree, that challenges players to answer [[BlatantLies deviously perplexing]] math problems.
----
* BigNo: When Kirito answers his equation correctly, he lets off one of these before bursting into flames.
* CanonForeigner: As the original ALO wasn't meant to be an educational game, there was no "Math Tree" to be seen.
* DefeatEqualsExplosion: Blows up when Kirito solves his "mystical equation".
* FauxHorrific: Add two plus two -- if you dare...
* {{Foreshadowing}}: The tree's penalty for not doing its math equation implies some kind of torture, which is a more mundane form of brainwashing compared to being mauled by "psychic super bears" in the Halls of History, let alone Sugou's actual plot.
* {{Gonk}}: Has sunken yellow eyes, and dark gray teeth the size of car hubcaps. Its animation also clashes with the rest of the show's aesthetic, although (A) this is partly due to Something Witty's limited time and resources for original animation, and (B) it's completely intentional, in the name of comedy.
* KilledOffscreen: After his BigNo, we only hear the explosion and a faint glow from off-screen, followed by a "10 EXP" message popping up above KIRITO’s head.
* LargeHam: ''"Gather 'round, children, and test your NUMERICAL MIGHT! against my mystical equaaationnss..."''
* ThisCannotBe: He ''really'' thought [[FauxHorrific his equation]] would "stupefy the mind" and "perplex the soul", so he's rather shocked when Kirito solves it so casually.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Is [[DefeatEqualsExplosion destroyed offscreen]] when Kirito gets tired of listening to it and yells "Oh my gosh -- ''FOUR!''"
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Assorted ALO Players]]
The players of ''[=ALfheim=] Online'', who have taken what is ostensibly a children's game and made it their own.
----
* TheBeastmaster: Salamanders have made their virtual pets extremely powerful due to their strong emotional connection to them. Even Eugene/Becky mourns when she hears that a bat named Squeaker was killed.
* FantasticRacism: With the nature of the [[TheRoleplayer roleplaying]] culture surrounding the game and the fact that the characters can be nine different races, not to mention the campaign that kickstarted the game's popularity being titled "Race War", it was really only a natural result. Even when out-of-character, the Salamanders look down on Leefa for being a Sylph and call Kirito a "filthy Spriggan." The Sylphs aren't much better, so that Recon offers to kill Kirito for Leafa, while some other players capture a [[CatFolk Cait Sith]] and treat him like a pet.
* GratuitousJapanese: The Cait Sith all speak with Japanese phrases such as "desu" and "sugoi" mixed in to their sentences. Their leader is "Princess Hime Kuroneko Desu-Chan of the Nyan-Nyan Tribe," which is half [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment redundant]] and half Japanese cat puns.
* HeroWorshipper: It turns out that all the Spriggan players were an alliance of Kirito fans, who based their name and appearence on him. It works as an explanation for both why Kirito both had difficulty in finding a variation of his alias that wasn't taken, and why Kirito hasn't been able to find any other Spriggan Players due to the fact that the Spriggan's leader had tried to mediate peace on the server between Eugene and Beckys' breakup in order to bring fun back to [=ALfheim=] Online again: [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere resulting in the Spriggans being constantly griefed to the point where they just quit the game altogether.]] Not helping matters is that when Kirito actually arrived into the game, [[YourCostumeNeedsWork he is constantly mistaken to be one of his own fanboys rather than the genuine article]].
* ImAHumanitarian: Episode 16 implies that the other players have been eating the Cait Sith.
* {{Improv}}: One Salamander mentions a prophecy that no one else has heard of, and spins a tale of destined kings, assassination and remorse. The other player logs out to eat pizza rolls and says they should stop seeing each other.
* LostInCharacter: A frequent problem for the excess of roleplayers in the community, going from merely acting FantasticRacism to actually living it, and Dylan the Salamander freaking out his friend when he gets lost in imagining the "Prophecy" role he was talking about.
* PeripheryDemographic: InUniverse. While ''[=ALfheim=] Online'' seems marketed to children ([[MisaimedMarketing "aerial combat supremacy" notwithstanding]]), most players are older gamers taking advantage of its underpopulated server as a stage for roleplaying, or were attracted to the VRMMO's flight mechanics.
* ThePurge: Every Spriggan player ended up getting griefed into quitting the server, merely because their leader, Kirito Prime (aka Ted), [[NeutralityBacklash refused to pick a side in the very toxic break-up between Sakuya/Brian and Eugene/Becky]] and instead [[MediationBackfire attempted to initiate peace talks]] in an attempt [[NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished to keep the personal drama surrounding the whole mess from tearing the server apart]].
* TheRoleplayer: According to Leafa, a catalyst behind the game suddenly becoming so big was a roleplaying group finding the game and realizing the wide variety of races in the game made it perfect for a campaign they came up with. As a result, the entire culture of the game ended up revolving around roleplaying, and people can get very, ''very'' intense about it.
* SeriousBusiness: Leafa admits that she tries to stay in-character for as long as possible while online, just because of how seriously most people take it.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: The founders of the RP server (the leaders and/or second-in-commands of the races) used to be real-life friends... however, because of a bad break-up between two of them, they dragged the entire server into it, [[WithUsOrAgainstUs forcing everyone to pick a side of their relationship]]. When Ted/Kirito Prime tried to deescalate things, [[MediationBackfire he and the Spriggans were griefed into leaving the server]], and things just got worse.
[[/folder]]

[[/folder]]

[[index]]
* [[Characters/SwordArtOnlineAbridgedLeafa Suguha Kirigaya / Leafa]]
[[/index]]

[[folder:Shinichi Nagata / Recon]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/abridgednagata.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350: ''"So, where are you guys off to? Going on a que... ''(ahem)''\\
You guys going on a mission?''"]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Spencer "[=BuddyVA=]" Downs

A Sylph player who quests with Leafa in ''[=ALfheim=] Online'', and [[FriendsWithBenefits "quests"]] with Suguha in real life. He is usually the target of bullying by Leafa and Prince Cazmer, but tries to help out his princess nonetheless.

* AdaptationRelationshipOverhaul: The [[LovesMyAlterEgo ship tease between Leafa and Kirito in the original series]] was moved to Recon and Leafa instead in the Abridged version.
* BadBadActing: When confronted with Kirito, his "threat" to the Spriggan is so wooden you could make household furniture out of it.
* CrazyJealousGuy: Averted. Despite his feelings for Suguha/Leafa, he has no issue with her hanging out with Kirito at all. Episode 15 shows he's more annoyed at being ditched by her causing her storyline fiance to torture him and he trusts Kirito to a degree that confuses him.
* TheCutie: Is held in high regard by both [[{{Jerkass}} Kirito]] and [[AristocratsAreEvil Leafa]], while definitely being the type of person they would both relentlessly emotionally terrorize under normal circumstances.
* DoggedNiceGuy: He does whatever Suguha/Leafa tells him to because he's attracted to her. The attraction doesn't seem to be one-sided either; despite Suguha hitting him with the butt of her kendo stick when Shinichi asks her on an actual date in Episode 15, she also tells him to meet her in the janitor's closet for some implied sex. Suguha/Leafa also mentions that she "sucked him off one time", but insisted that it was for a quest. Finally, Yui notes that ''both'' of their heart rates [[MySensorsIndicateYouWanttoTapThat increased by 22% when near each other]]. Further complicating things is that Suguha is a MasterOfTheMixedMessage, abusing Shinichi/Recon one minute, then giving him sexual favors the next. As such, Shinichi/Recon is constantly nervous around Suguha, in part because he's attracted to her and in part because it's impossible to know where he stands with her.
* ExtremeDoormat: As beffiting for a princess' "Fuckboy", he stands by Leafa/Suguha despite how horribly she treats him.
* FriendsWithBenefits: Light on the "friends," and more emphasis on the "benefits."
-->'''Suguha:''' You and I are barely friends! ''Recon'' is Princess Leafa's ''fuckboy.'' Got it? Don't confuse the game with real life, you perv! [[HypocriticalHumor Now meet me in the supply closet after practice,]] I've got another ''quest'' for you.
* GagPenis: {{Implied}}. When Kirito and Yui are teasing Leafa about her apparent feelings for Recon and the latter points out their increase in heartrates when they interacted as evidence, she retorts that maybe she's scared of him because he has a "[[AccidentalInnuendo big knife]]", causing the two to crack up. It should be noted though that she doesn't deny their assumption upon realizing how ThatCameOutWrong, instead telling them to shut up before flying ahead with a LuminescentBlush.
* HeroWorshipper: Episode 15 shows that Shinichi would like to meet Kirito due to his fame as the Hero of Aincrad.
* NiceGuy: In the original series, Recon was extremely clingy with Leafa, but out of sincere, if immature love. Here, he's extremely nice, to the point where even [[{{Jerkass}} Kirito]] doesn't even try to mock or belittle him in any way. Despite the fact that his [=NerveGear=] was bought second-hand for $100 more than a new one, and that he had to clean the previous users brain out of it, he doesn't once criticize the sellers' heartlessness, but instead [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter chooses to assume it was due to grief.]] Additionally, upon [[AristocratsAreEvil Leafa]] describing a certain act she did with him, ostensibly in pursuit of a quest, Kirito goes so far as to call him "too precious for this world."
* ShipTease: It's suggested multiple times that he and Leafa are attracted to each other but Leafa refuses to act on her side of it because [[ClosetGeek she doesn't want to be outed for enjoying the fantasy genre]].
* SupernaturalFearInducer: On the receiving end of this due to a faulty [=NerveGear=], which occasionally "pulses the fear center of his brain" and sends him into shrieking fits where he hallucinates [[Manga/AssassinationClassroom tentacle monsters in classrooms]].

!Notable ''[=SAO=]'' Guilds

!!Titan's Hand
[[OverlyNarrowSuperlative One of the most feared orange guilds on the lower floors.]]

[[folder:Rosalia]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/abridged_rosalia.png]][[caption-width-right:350:"''And to top it all off you play the tough guy, this invincible warrior you can never hope to be in the real world. Getting stuck in this game was probably the best thing to ever happen to you.''"]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Alexandra "puccagarukiss" Curtis\\\

The leader of Titan's Hand and the antagonist of Episode 4. Stupider than she looks. She prides herself in her ability to manipulate and accurately psychologically diagnose others. Silica decides to quit her guild when she tries to convince her to hand over Pina, her pet dragon, to skin her for leather pants, and later gets into a confrontation with Kirito that ends badly for her.

* AdaptationalDumbass: She was already an overconfident SmugSnake in the original anime for underestimating Kirito's abilities, but this version of Rosalia takes it to another degree for continuing to taunt [[AxCrazy an obviously deranged and bloodthirsty]] Kirito even after he's proven himself to be immune to her men's weaponery.

* FailedAttemmptAtDrama: Her villainous entrance gets ruined when Kirito notices her player name poking out at both sides of the tree she was hiding behind. Happens again when her entire TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Kirito gets cut short by him slicing her throat with little fanfare (although she ''does'' get the last laugh on that one).

* HidingBehingYourBangs: The scheming version. Her hair covers her right eye.

{{Jerkass}}: On top of being a sadistic thief and attempted murderer, she also takes great delight in taunting Silica and Kirito, and is implied to have kept the former around just to bully her (and for her leather-skinned pet).

* AdaptationalStupidity: She was already an overconfident SmugSnake in the original anime for underestimating Kirito's abilities, but this version of Rosalia takes it to another degree for continuing to taunt [[AxCrazy an obviously deranged and bloodthirsty]] Kirito even after he's proven himself to be immune to her men's weaponery.

* AdaptationalNiceGuy: A mild example; While she's still part of an orange guild, she doesn't go out of her way to express her LackOfEmpathy in this version, instead spending most of her screen time giving a surprisingly accurate TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Kirito.

* AdaptationalVillainy: ZigZagged. The original character never [[DirtyCoward teleported away and abandon his guild to their death]] at any point, and died in the same room as them. Mitigated somewhat by him being an AI in this version, meaning he's ObliviouslyEvil at worst.

* LethallyStupid: He triggers an obvious trap because Sachi set him to auto-loot, then teleports away with the party's supply of teleport crystals he's holding to leave the rest of the party to die.

* LethallyStupid: He triggers an obvious trap because Sachi set him to auto-loot, then teleports away with party's supply of teleport crystals he's holding to leave the rest of the party to die.