Darth Wiki / Summers Dawn

Summer’s Dawn is a Changeling 20th Anniversary Edition game, and a sequel to the Summer’s Cauldron campaign. It follows both the main cast from the last game as well as a new group of characters as they

This Work Contains Examples Of

• Affectionate Parody: Of the “kids on bikes” sub-genre that includes works such as Stranger Things and It
• All Love Is Unrequited: Phoenix still has feelings for Suzanna despite the fact that she’s been in a committed relationship for half a decade.
• Always Chaotic Evil: The Thallain. None of their members are portrayed as anything more than selfish, bloodthirsty little bastards with no greater goal other than doing whatever they want when they want.
• Ambiguously Gay: There are several hints that John Osborne may have had a sexual relationship of some sort with Birchmire.
• Ascended Extra: The town in Milhouse, which was mentioned in passing before and visited a few times by the players in the last campaign. Now it’s one of the two primary settings of the campaign
  • Vincent, Diana, Goldie, and Vincent Jr. were background characters that only had about three lines between the two, and are now regular members of the cast
  • Leslie was a just a particularly memorable minor villain in the last campaign, and is now one of the main characters in the Dawn plotline
• The Big Bad Shuffle: Titus Lux-Aestiva, The Blight, or Murray Teale. Whoever ends up being the real villain remains to be seen.
• Big Bad Wannabe: Anton Gray is absolutely convinced he’s the main villain, but he proves to be rather incompetent in anything other than pissing everyone off. When he finally starts to pose a threat, he gets immediately killed by the High Court
• Big Good: Phoenix Cassidy, the leader of the Dawn Court. While he has his flaws, he’s the most powerful good-aligned character in the campaign
• Can't Argue with Elves: The High Court is made up of Sidhe, who believe that because of their kith, they are natural leaders, and know better than everyone else
• Contrasting Sequel Antagonist: The Beast was an intimidating, dominating figure that only occasionally showed his true nature of a weak, pathetic man. The High King makes himself look like a foolish, bumbling old man, but is actually a dangerous manipulative tyrant.
• Darker and Edgier: While the first campaign could be dark at times, this one overall has a much gloomier atmosphere.
• Dysfunction Junction: The majority of new characters, particularly the main teenage cast of Dawn Court are not in the best headspace
  • This extends to the villains as well, with the High Court being an utter mess. The King is half senile, Lily is deeply insecure and lives vicariously through a teenage girl, Flim hates his life and gets blamed for anything that goes wrong, and Keith is just a psychopath
• The Empire: The High Court fulfills this role after the fall of the United Court
• Fan Disservice: Lily’s “sexy witch” costume that she wears during the Halloween party, and the sex scene between Granny and Birchmire
• Fisher King: During Bryce’s reign as king of the Sunset Court, the palace is falling apart, and everything is frozen over. Even though this is Grant’s fault rather than his, Bryce being unable to handle the situation highlights what a terrible leader he is
• Florence Nightingale Effect: Bailey ends up falling in love with Colin while treating his wounds.
• Happy Ending Override: The last campaign ended with the Beast dead and the United Court’s fall, but as we see when the campaign starts, this hasn’t fixed everything. Several of the Beast’s lackeys are still walking free, the two courts exist in a fragile state of peace, and even though the United Court lost, the battle cost hundreds of fey their lives and left many survivors with deep emotional and physical wounds
• Hate Sink: Most of the fey factions are portrayed with some amount of nuance, it being clear that there are good people on each side just want the best for the world. And then there’s the Thallain, a lawless group of horrible murderers with no redeeming qualities.
• Mirroring Factions: The Summer Court and Dawn Court. They both of different ideologies and goals, but apart from some individuals, neither group is evil and they aren’t enemies, even after the Dawn Court decides to cut contact with the Summer Court due to the King’s presence.
• Missing Child: Lacy Mclean, who’s disappearance sets off the plot
• Mistaken for Racist: Kel likes to jokingly accuse her friends of being racist for various reasons.
• Nerd Nanny: Suzanna with the almost entirely male business majors at her college.
• Posthumous Character: It’s hard to feel the Beast’s presence in the story despite his death over a year before the story began
• Previously on…: We are typically treated to a recap of the previous session at the beginning of each one from Stacy’s player
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Phoenix, despite having a short temper, is overall a fair ruler who looks out for his people.
• Red Herring: The skeleton in the woods. When it is first found, it is played as if Lacy’s body has been found, until Stacy realizes the bones belong to a man
• Running Gag
  • “Nobody likes Milhouse!!”
  • “You gotta pace yourself”
• Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: A platonic version with Stacy and Hikaru
• Sibling Rivalry: Lily and Harvey Birchire have been feuding for decades, stemming from her feeling as if he was her father’s favorite
• Spirit Advisor: Granny fulfills this role, reaching out to Suzanna and Mori through their dreams
• Status Quo Is God: Subverted. For better or worse, everything is completely different following the United Court’s downfall
• Symbiotic Possession: The Blight’s hosts aren’t fully controlled, it can’t force them to do anything they wouldn’t do, meaning all of it’s victims are still aligned with it
• Truth in Television: The “waiting 48 hours to treat someone as a missing person” protocol that the Milhouse police operate on is a real piece of dangerous misinformation that some members of law enforcement unfortunately buy into.
• Urban Fantasy: As typical of any campaign played within the World Of Darkness setting
• Your Princess Is in Another Castle!: Hikaru and Stacy finally find Lacy and bring her back, and then she’s taken away again by Ralph

YMMV

• Adorkable: Vincent Jr. beneath his shallow persona. He’s just a lonely nerd who loves caring for children and watching weird arthouse movies
• Alternate Character Interpretation
  • Does Lily actually care about Stacy’s brother, or is her concern just another lie to manipulate her into joining the High Court?
  • Does Kestrel care about Suzanna, or is he just putting up with her because he knows that she’ll go along with anything he says
• Anti-Climax Boss: The Cassie and Tate chimera, built up as a major obstacle to the players, only to get torn to shreds within three turns due to some very lucky rolls
• Base-Breaking Character: Kestrel, Kestrel, Kestrel. Nothing more needs to be said on the subject
• Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: Peter Pumpkinhead’s appearance
• Catharsis Factor: Hikaru killing Idi by shoving him in front of a train, especially since it’s the first time the players get to bring the Thallain down a peg after ten sessions of them being nearly untouchable.
• Complete Monster:
  • Keith Patel is a High Court noble who presents himself as a charming family man, but in reality, is a sadistic tyrant. He is an outspoken racist that doesn’t view commoners as people, using this as an excuse to abuse, torture and murder them as he pleases. Possibly worst of all, he has the memories of his commoner servants erased so that all they know is serving him. Out of all the nobles, he is by far the worst
  • The man behind Lacy’s disappearance, Julian R. Frost, a predator that targets on teenage girls, grooming them to take part in his violent BSDM fantasies, and brutally killing them if he feels like they’ll speak out against him. All while posing as an innocent high school teacher who is beloved and trusted in the community
  • The Patriach, or Murray Teale, is a 500 year old ogre that leads the Thallain. He is a violent thug who has spearheaded violence and hatred all throughout American history, even having led the Klu Klux Klan at some point. He runs the Thallain like a savage frat house, egging on his followers to do increasingly horrible things and tried to control the the Blight through brainwashing and physical abuse into serving him so he could use it’s power to annihilate anyone capable of standing up to them
• Ensemble Dark Horse: Among the new characters, Max and Grant are particularly well-received.
• Harsher in Hindsight
  • Florence’s death is made even worse by the fact by the reveal that it wasn’t just a random act of cruelty by Castlehead, it was ordered by Cheryl out of jealousy. This means that Florence was never gonna make it out even if Suzanna had arrived in time to help.
  • Harvey’s interactions with Suzanna are given a much more tragic context when we learn that the love of his life was a rabbit pooka. His dislike of Suzanna likely stems from the fact that he was being reminded of losing Alex whenever he saw her.
• Ho Yay: Suzanna and Amber’s friendship can be fairly homoerotic at times
• Moral Event Horizon
  • Lily ratting out Harvey to the High Court for his plans to escape with Alex, which gets the latter executed.
  • Anton crosses it when he has Colin viciously beaten for assisting with the Lacy investigation. Luckily he doesn’t last much longer afterwards
  • Between Alex’s beheading and Max’s torture, Keith had already crossed it long before he actually appeared in the game.
• Rescued from the Scrappy Heap: Vincent Jr. Formerly the most hated character in the game, but through his Pet The Dog moments and insight through his relationship with Stacy, he gets seem in a more positive light
• The Scrappy: Adrian is not well liked due to coming off as a whiny jerk or a creep in may of his scenes, as well as his similarities to Joshua.
• Too Cool to Live
  • Mrs. Pan, the Cool Old Lady of the Milhouse fey, and the only one who openly opposes the High Court and has the guts to stand up for them. Gets killed ten sessions in as part of Kestrel’s misguided schemes
• Ugly Cute: The brownies, which are described as looking like a mix of house elves and a sensory homunculus, which speak in a squeaky cockney accent and have an obsession with gathering trinkets to build their homes with
• The Woobie
  • Poor Amber, who had to endure endless abuse from Cheryl for the first 12 years of her life. She finally escaped to live with her aunt Florence, giving her a chance to move on, but Cheryl wouldn’t let her go. She ordered Castlehead to kill Florence out of envy, and forced herself back into Amber’s life. Even after Cheryl is thrown out of the court, Amber’s insecurities come back, and she has to live in fear of what her mom will do next.
  • Stacy. She had her childhood dream stolen away by her neglectful parents, being forced to care for her infant brother and do most of the work around the house. Even after she breaks free of them, she struggles with her identity as a Sidhe, and has to deal with Lily trying to control her by using her brother as a bargaining chip
  • Max. He’s one of the only purely good people in the campaign, and his past is utterly nightmarish. He was the personal servant of the sadistic Lord Keith Patel, who mentally broke him over time until he became an obedient slave. He only escaped because Keith lost him to Lily in a bet. He ended up being forced to gaslight himself into thinking he’s happy in order to survive, a habit that he still keeps

Funny

• Birchmire’s seething hatred of Judge Flim and his increasingly elaborate insults for him.
• Mori scolds Bryce for attempting to hand over the hold on glamour to the High Court. When they state it will cause hundreds of deaths, he only responds with “NUH UH!”
• Hikaru eats one of the locusts that hold Birchmire’s mind, and the memory it contains starts playing in her head. It’s a memory of Birchmire having sex with Granny
• Grumgrum, a bizarre fey drink described as having a buttery, honey-like flavor that is randomly introduced in the middle of the campaign as if it’s been a thing the whole time.
• When discussing the nature of Bryce’s followers, Leslie gives this glorious monologue: ”He’s a comforting lie, and people are desperate. It’s like when you meet that guy at the bar who you can tell is likely a registered sex offender by the way he talks alone, but you’re so horny that you don’t really dare, so you go to his place and he says he wants you to fart in his face, and yeah, that’s a little weird, but once again, you’re so horny that you don’t really care, so you’re going at it and you’re honestly kind of into it, but he makes you eat cans of beans so you keep farting, and you get sick and throw up all over him. You know?”

Tearjerker

• The death of long-running antagonist Red Tommy, even though it was what he wanted
• Kestrel scolding Suzanna and saying she was never anything more than a nuisance for him in order to make her stop following him in his plans

Awesome

• Mori quickly taking out a cold iron-wielding assassin sent by Tommy
• Mori finally taking down Bryce by poisoning his blade and challenging him to a duel, making it seem like he tried to assassinate them.

Heartwarming

• Suzanna embracing the Stitch King
• Stacy’s love for her brother and desire to protect him no matter the cost
• Hikaru’s devotion to finding Lacy, no matter how much of a hard, discouraging and unrewarding process it ends up being
• Stacy and Hikaru’s bond with Dusk, being some of the only people that understand and pay attention to him. It’s strong enough that they still sympathize with him and don’t want to hurt him even when he’s revealed to be the Blight

Nightmare Fuel

• Cheryl Reese. A violent, egotistical womanchild with the power to warp minds and control bodies. She’s very unpredictable, going from cheerful and motherly to angry and cruel at the drop of a hat, and unlike her daughter, she has no reservations with using her powers
• Mrs. Pan’s death by poison, especially since it comes out of nowhere
• The scene where Stacy searches Julian’s house. It’s a mess filled with BDSM gear and magazines, creepy necrophilia porn, and a fridge containing Rachel Stevenson’s severed hands in the basement.
• Julian’s favored method of killing his victims: tying them up and throwing them down an old well, leaving them to drown in a slurry of mud and rotting corpses.

Characters

Sunset Court

Leadership

Suzanna Green

”I need to help someone!”

A friendly and energetic Pooka Wildling that works as a twitch streamer

• Brainless Beauty: She is very pretty, enough to capture the affection of several different characters, but even after all her character development, she’s still not exactly the wisest of the Viceroys
• Character Development: By the end of the campaign, Suzanna has grown much stronger, and doesn’t allow herself to be taken advantage of by others anymore. This is on full display when she stands up to Anton, who would have definitely been able to intimidate her during the first campaign
• Evil Uncle: Her uncle is John Osborne, the local serial killer.
• Forgotten Fallen Friend: Subverted. The deaths of Stephen and especially Eredin still effect her
• Innocent Fanservice Girl: She’s completely obvious that anyone views her in a sexual context. This is part of the reason her twitch channel is so successful.
• Katanas Are Just Better: Her weapon of choice
• Took a Level in Cynic: Considering the sheer amount of horror she witnessed throughout the last four years, it’s understandable that’s she’s not the same wide-eyed optimist she was before.
• Undying Loyalty: To pretty much all her friends, and pretty much any cause they stand for. After everything that happened, she is still caring for Kestrel when we meet her again.
• Unusual Ears: A common feature of pooka is having the ears of the animal they’re based around, in her case, a rabbit

Mori Nelson

”DRAGON!!!”

The friendly neighborhood drug dealer with a heart of gold

• Anti-Hero: Mori is a good person, but they are certainly willing to get their hands dirty, having brutally murdered multiple people throughout their journey
• Arch-Enemy: Bloome. They still hold onto a seething hatred of him years after his death
• Assassin Outclassin': At the beginning of the campaign, they narrowly avoid an assassination attempt by an Ironblood agent, and end up killing them
• Fauns and Satyrs: They are part of the Satyr kith.
• Good Is Not Soft: Despite being a relatively good person, Mori is one of the most ruthless characters in the campaign especially when it comes to combat
• Green Thumb: Most of their magic is based around manipulating plants and fungi
• Intergenerational Friendship: With Rodrigo, a gangster that they deal drugs too
• Magic Mushroom: Some of the mushrooms they grow surpassing them completely
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: When Kestrel is arrested, she gives him a poisonous mushroom to use for a quick death if they try to torture him. He later uses it to kill Mrs. Pan
• Straight Man: They often play the more stable and level-headed role to the more eccentric Suzanna

Porcelina

”I’m just saying…the Winter’s Cauldron is still an option”

The former Queen of the Winter Court

• The Beautiful Elite: As a Sidhe, she is incredibly beautiful, and has instinct to rule. Only now, she’s not a Queen, but a representative of the people
• The Friend No One Likes: Due to her arrogant personality and shady actions, she’s not really popular within her court
• Nuke 'em: Her first response to any problem presented to her is typically “Why don’t we use the Winter’s Cauldron?”

Marcel Crumb

”Viceroy, Viceroy!”

The meek advisor to the Winter Court, eventually appointed to the position of viceroy

• Ascended Extra: Crumb made scattered appearances in Summer’s Cauldron, but this time he’s given a much more prominent role
• Bearer of Bad News: Unfortunately, he usually ends up being the one to tell the viceroys whenever something bad happens
• Beleaguered Assistant: To Porcelina, and later to the entire court. Even though the Viceroys treat him better, all of the conflict surrounding them ends up giving him a lot of work
• The Dog Bites Back: After Bryce usurps the throne, he gets locked in a dog crate and forced to do his taxes. When the players free him, he gets revenge by sabotaging Bryce’s taxes as to sic the IRS on him
• Expy: He’s almost the exact same character as Tick from The Magicians
• Honest Advisor: He’s essentially second-in-command to Suzanna and Mori, and is very straightforward and transparent with his intentions, while also helping them with their own goals
• Lovable Coward: Crumb doesn’t have much of a spine, usually hiding behind the other Viceroys when danger comes, but no one really holds it against him, as his job is behind the scenes
• Nice Guy: He’s a pretty pleasant and helpful dude to have around.
• Throw the Dog a Bone: After spending a campaign working tirelessly in the background to clean up everyone’s messing, his efforts are finally rewarded when he is made a Viceroy

Penny Connors

Mori’s girlfriend, who has become a famous indie musician

• The Caligula: Downplayed. She’s clearly a little insane and holds a powerful title that she probably shouldn’t. However, she’s not malicious with her power, in fact, she usually just lets the other Viceroys handle the more important matters
• CloudCuckoolander: Penny tends to be very ditzy and off in her own head. This is partially how she copes with her trauma
• The Heart: For the Viceroys. She’s not much of a leader, but she’s more or less the moral center of the Sunset Court, providing inspiration and always staying positive no matter the circumstances.
• Horrible Judge of Character: She has an unlucky streak of ending up around some of the most horrible people in the game
• Parental Substitute: She starts to see Cheryl as this, even after she’s revealed as Thallain
• The Pollyanna: She remains cheerful and happy despite her utterly miserable life leading up to this campaign

Bryce Watts

”I don’t like your attitude, MISSY!”

A Piskie geek, one of the rulers of the Milhouse fey

• Black-and-White Morality: He has a very simplistic and linear manor of thinking, assuming that everyone who agrees with him is good, and everyone who disagrees with him is bad.
• Evil Nerd: Being a geek is basically his whole personality, even when he’s absorbed in politics. Even after he becomes King of the Sunset Court, he plays his Nintendo Switch while he sits on his throne
• Hate Sink: Bryce is an arrogant contrarian who sucks up to the High Court, and is complicit in Stacy’s abuse. Even though he’s nowhere as bad as some of the other antagonists, he’s by far the most annoying character in the campaign.
• Manchild: Bryce is much more interested in Harry Potter, Marvel, and Disney than being a responsible adult
• Neck Snap: How Mori finally kills him
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: His aggression towards the other viceroys and support of the High Court is really just to stop another war from breaking out and killing civilians. Except he actually doesn’t want to fight them because he believes his Sidhe ancestry will get him a prominent title under their rule
• The Quisling: He sucks to High Court constantly, and condemns other people like the other Viceroys and Phoenix for not respecting their authority.
• The Usurper: He takes over the Sunset Court in Suzanna and Mori’s absence, turning it into a puppet state for the High Court
• Wrong Genre Savvy: His whole “peace and obedience” schtick would be much better suited for a children’s cartoon than the world of intrigue and backstabbing he operates in

Grant Smith

A troll bodyguard that remains deeply traumatized from the war

• Came Back Wrong: Bryce resurrects him as a mindless zombie to act as his bodyguard
• Cool Old Guy: He can be a bit antagonistic towards the other viceroys, but overall is one of the nicer Milhouse fey
• Hero Antagonist: He is frequently at odds with the players, but it’s more out of a desire to do what’s best for his people than any kind of malice.
• Manly Tears: Grant is not afraid to cry, in fact he does it quite frequently
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: He releases the Winter’s Cauldron as an attempt to stop the Sunset and High Courts from fighting. Instead, it kills several people including himself, turns the town into a frozen wasteland, and lets the High Court take over the Sunset Court.
• Shell-Shocked Veteran: The war has left deep scars within him, often manifesting in sudden emotional outbursts
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: His aggression towards the other viceroys and support of the High Court is really just to stop another war from breaking out and killing innocent civilians.

Mrs. Pan

An elderly piskie with a blunt personality

• Cool Old Lady: She’s a clever woman, and one of the only people willing to directly oppose the High Court
• Grumpy Old Lady: She’s older than Grant, and never seems to be in a good mood
• Gruesome Grandparent: Implied. While we never get any details, it’s telling that Maya, an otherwise empathic and good-hearted person was okay helping Kestrel murder her
• We Hardly Knew Ye: She doesn’t receive much focus before she gets killed off

Civilians

The Hoskins Family

Rowan

Franks’s carefree and flirtatious son

• Beware the Nice Ones He’s usually a chill and patient guy, but he has his limits. He notably gets very angry whenever someone insults Suzanna
• Fauns and Satyrs: He’s another member of the satyr kith
• Love Interest: For Suzanna
• The Slacker: At least when it comes to schoolwork, which he does next to none of. He’s one of the few main characters not to go to college
• Took a Level in Cheerfulness: Both Hoskins siblings have healed from most of their trauma in the time between campaigns, and are much happier overall
• TricksterBoyfriend: He often plays jokes on Suzanna and can be oddly cryptic towards her at times. It’s all in good fun though.
• Understanding Boyfriend: He’s very patient with Suzanna’s quirks, not that he’s without a few of his own

Dorina

Franks’s shy daughter

• Cute Witch: She’s very skilled in magic thanks to Granny’s teaching
• Most Fanfic Writers Are Girls: She is a prominent fanfiction author
• Shrinking Violet: Dorina is naturally a very shy person, even more so after the trauma she endured at Heathcliff’s hand.
• Took a Level in Cheerfulness: Both Hoskins siblings have healed from most of their trauma in the time between campaigns, and are much happier overall
• Winged Humanoid: She has swan wings, which she loved to use. She now has metal wings

Frank and Lori

The parents of the Hoskins kids

• Canine Companion: Jasper, the family dog
• Mama Bear: Taking after her mother, Lori does not take kindly to anyone messing with her kids
• Politically Incorrect Hero: Downplayed. Frank clearly has very dated views of gender roles, but is very tolerant otherwise
• Technologically Blind Elders: It took Frank 2 years to figure out how to select seasons on Netflix. Until then, he assumed there was only one season of the show he watched so he just played it on repeat

Enforcers

Ken Largo

A heroic and upbeat warrior of the court

• Boisterous Bruiser: He’s popular, handsome, charismatic, and a complete badass to boot.
• Mr. Fanservice: Just ask Suzanna. He’s a very attractive and muscular young man, and he has a habit of walking around with almost nothing on

Josie Mason

A combat expert working for the Court

• Offscreen Moment of Awesome: We never get to see any of the cool things she does, in fact, she can’t do them if anyone else is watching

Polliver “Polly” Trench

The former bodyguard of Kestrel, now in charge of security

• Jerkass: Even after his character arc in the last game, he remains a huge asshole, although now it’s mostly sarcasm rather than actual malice

Fortress

A troll warrior that used to serve under Eredin

• Put on a Bus: According to Grant, she is on vacation, which required him to trick her into thinking it was a mission

Colin Green

Suzanna’s kind-hearted younger brother

• The Cutie: Colin is a sweet, caring boy who just wants to help out his big sister
• Nice Guy: He’s one of the nicest people on the player’s side

Amber Reese

A baker employed by the Sunset Court

• Abusive Parents: Her mother, Cheryl is extremely emotionally abusive and controlling. Amber is trying to cut her out of her life, but she keeps crawling back
• Big Beautiful Woman: She is on the chubbier side, and described as very attractive
• Brainwashing for the Greater Good: A mild example. She uses mind control to place positive feelings and memories in her pastries
• Fake Memories: She can modify the short term memories of people around her.
• Willfully Weak: She is capable of complete Mind Control, but is terrified of her own power and insists on only using it for her sweets

Kestrel

The son of the Summer Court, and a close friend of Suzanna

• A Lighter Shade of Gray: He may be a reckless fool that’s willing to to murder an old lady to damage his enemy’s reputation, but there’s no denying he’s better than the High Court or Thallain
• Anti-Mentor: He never offers much help to Suzanna, and she usually ends up just having to care for him
• A Little Bit Beastly: Downplayed. His facial features are vaguely but recognizably birdlike
• Byronic Hero: Exaggerated. He clearly thinks of himself as a character like this, but in reality, he’s just a sad, lonely man that does much much more brooding than any kind of heroics
• Character Death: He dies after being shot with a poisoned arrow by Joshua during the fight against the Proto-Beast
• Took a Level in Badass: After an entire campaign of wallowing in self-pity and being The Load to the rest of the characters, he finally starts to return to his old self when it becomes apparent that the High Court is becoming a bigger threat
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: As he constantly states, all of his actions are for the greater good, supposedly.

Maya Pan

Mrs. Pan’s granddaughter who works alongside Kestrel

• A Lighter Shade of Gray: She is an extremist who’s willing to kill her own grandmother to get her point across, but there’s no denying She’s better than the High Court or Thallain
• Ms. Fanservice: She’s quite curvy and wears a very revealing outfit
• Sarcastic Devotee: She serves this role to Kestrel, much like Polly while they were on good terms.

Syd Blevins

A kinain LGBT activist that works with Bryce.

• The Dragon: To Bryce
• Jerkass: Almost every world out of her mouth is a passive-aggressive insult directed towards another woman
• Kick the Dog: She mocks Suzanna while preparing to torture Rowan despite knowing he doesn’t have the information they need, and threatens Mori by saying she’ll do the same to Penny
• Not-So-Harmless Villain: At first glance, she seems like she’s just an annoying, loudmouthed asshole. She’s really a highly dangerous warrior who’s mortal status allows her to handle cold iron weaponry
• Politically Incorrect Villain: Syd dislikes bisexuals, especially in straight-passing relationships going as far as to say they aren’t real members of the LGBT community
• Rasputinian Death: She gets mauled by a dragon, set on fire, and than finally has her throat cut open by Maya
• Smug Snake: Syd has a holier-than-thou demeanor, and is very confident that she is the smartest person in the room at all times

Dawn Court

Stacy Williams

”I’m not nice…I’m badass”

A Sidhe girl who just wants to be goth in peace

• Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: At the very least she wants to come across this way.
• Berserk Button: She’s goth, not emo!
• Bratty Teenage Daughter: Inverted. She is treated like this by her parents, talked about like she’s a pest that gets in the away and makes unreasonable demands. In reality, she just wants her machildren parents to actually take responsibility instead of making her hold the house together
• Cool Big Sis: Partially due to being the only one who actually cares for him, she is a great older sister to Severus
• Deadpan Snarker: Stacy often comes across as very aloof and sarcastic
• Goth: She’s a classic, stereotypical mall goth, even though her Sidhe origins tie her to much more regal and elegant style of living. This drives her crazy
• Deal with the Devil: She ends up accepting Lily’s deal to join the High Court in exchange for her removing her and Severus from their parents’ care.
• Fake Relationship: She starts one with Vince in order to both piss off Lily and make sure she doesn’t end up in an arranged marriage
• Hates Their Parent: Justified. She despises her mother and father for neglecting her and her brother to a dangerous extent
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Stacy has an abrasive and snarky personality, but we also see her softer side, particularly when she’s caring for her baby brother
• Light Feminine and Dark Feminine: She’s the dark feminine to Hikaru’s light feminine
• My Species Doth Protest Too Much: She resists the regal lifestyle of the Sidhe, not fitting with her goth aesthetic. It only gets worse as the campaign goes on, as the destructive feud with the Birchmires and the High Court starts to make her hate her kith

Hikaru Kaori

”We’re gonna find her”

An upbeat Pooka cheerleader

• Asian and Nerdy: Downplayed, she’s quite athletic, but she’s also a huge anime fangirl
• Arch-Enemy: She despises Lord Keith for his abuse of Max, with even the mention of her being enough piss her off. It doesn’t help that the first time they meet, he stands in the way of the investigation
• Berserk Button: Insulting Lacy. This especially comes out with Tate and Cassie making sick jokes out of her disappearance, or the police refusing to take the situation seriously
• Beware the Nice Ones: She’s usually one of the kindest people in the game, but when she gets angry, she will make sure she is heard
• Cat Girl: She’s a cat pooka, specifically a Maine Coon
• Kid Detective: Downplayed. We see that Hikaru is doing more to help find Lacy than the incompetent police force
• Light Feminine and Dark Feminine: She’s the light feminine to Stacy’s dark feminine
• The Mole: She poses as a member of the Sunset Court when she starts working for Don Queso
• Nice Girl: Hikaru is one of the kindest people in the game, and a deeply loyal friend.
• Pom-Pom Girl: Hikaru is a cheerful and positive person, and a well-liked member of the school’s cheer squad
• Resigned to the Call: She is not thrilled at working for Chan, but ends up agreeing in order to get his help finding Lacy
• Squee: Basically all of her and Suzanna’s interactions in a nutshell
• Through Her Stomach: Max cooks for her to show affection, and it becomes something the two bond over

Leadership

Phoenix Cassidy

The ambitious lord of the Dawn Court

• Ambiguously Evil: It’s no secret that he has large ambitions toward advancing fey society, and will go to extreme lengths to accomplish these goals, but exactly how he will go about doing this has yet to be seen
• Bald of Authority: Lampshaded. He mentions that he can’t be a black guy in charge without being bald.
• Big Good: The most powerful character aligned with the protagonists
• Reasonable Authority Figure: For the most part, he’s a kind, level-headed ruler, at least compared to his predecessor
• Took a Level in Badass: In campaign one, he was a meek boy that just kind of existed in the background. Now he’s a powerful, charismatic leader that inspires the respect and admiration of his people.

Harvey Birchmire

The second-in-command of the Dawn Court

• Big Good: Sort of. Despite being the strongest alley that the players have, he’s not always reliable, and usually has his own agenda. He’s even an antagonist during one of the early arcs
• Dean Bitterman: Birchmire is currently posing as the Dean of Creekwater University, and can be very harsh. Particularly towards Rowan, who he does not want on the campus.
• Face–Heel Turn: Subverted. Even though he’s on the side of the protagonists, Harvey still a dangerous man who’s capable of doing evil things. He was never actually redeemed, and doesn’t seem interested in doing so.
• Family-Values Villain: He has a very large family that he loves very much (other than Vincent Jr.). Of course this sympathy does not extend to most others
• Freudian Excuse: We finally get some context for his actions. His family was banished from the High Court following his crimes. In order to restore their reputation, Birchmire made an arrangement with the King to assist the rise of the Beast, but the deal was called off when Birchmire had a falling out with the Beast
• Heel–Face Revolving Door: Birchmire shifts from hero to villain at the drop of a hat, and it can be hard to tell when. For now, it seems he’s somewhere in the middle
• Karma Houdini: Birchmire was never properly punished for the atrocities he committed during the United Court era
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Birchmire has grown much more bitter since the last campaign
• The Worm That Walks: His body is filled with locusts that are also fragments of his brain

Derek Chan

The manager of the Don Queso

• Ambiguously Evil: He’s definitely a shady figure and an asshole, but it’s not clear if he’s actually evil or not. Turns out he is
• Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: His obsession with collecting and selling knowledge means he’s stabbing different groups in the back left and right
• Freudian Excuse: Early on, he mentions that his parents constantly pushed him to get the best grades and always be the best student in the class. This may partially explain his obsession with collecting knowledge
• Blue-and-Orange Morality: His only goal is to hoard as much knowledge as possible, even if it means betraying everyone by spying on the ones he supposedly works for and giving dirt on them to their enemies.
• Knowledge Broker: He acts as one to the Dawn Court, and as it turns out, basically everyone else.
• Mean Boss: He verbally abuses and withholds payment from Leslie and the rest of his employees
• Near-Villain Victory: He gathers secrets from all the factions, helps provoke them into war, and gets protection from the Thallain while he plans to escape to China. Ultimately he is poisoned by Hikaru and dies before his plans can come to fruition
• Pet the Dog: After Hikaru quits, he still gives her information that helps them put Frost behind bars
• The Spymaster: Derek runs at an elaborate network of spies across the courts, using Don Queso as a front

Subjects

The Birchmire Family

Myranda Birchmire

Harvey’s daughter and close ally.

• Cool Aunt: She’s a fun, loving aunt who deeply cares about her nieces and nephews
• Karma Houdini: Even more so than Birchmire. Despite being one of the only people who stuck with the Beast until the very end, the Sunset Court never really pursued punishing her. In addition, her father and the rest of her family welcomed her back after her brief imprisonment
• Ms. Fanservice: She’s a beautiful sidhe woman who usually wears pretty form-fitting dresses
• Serial Killer: She has a nasty habit of killing anyone who insults her family. Unfortunately, the things she considers enough of an insult to commit murder over are usually just minor slights.

Vincent and Diana Birchmire

The cold and distant parents of the Birchmire kids

• Abusive Parents: Although he means well, Vincent a terrible father, particularly to Vincent Jr. Diana is also fairly negligent and seems to act like her children don’t even exist.
• Ascended Extra: In Summer’s Cauldron, they were only mentioned briefly as background characters. Now, they’re given a more prominent role
• Cloudcuckoolander: Both of them, especially Diana are very spacy end eccentric, although in different ways. Diana lacks social skills and behaves in a childish manor, while Vincent uses bizarre phrases, and barely shows any emotion
• The Comically Serious: Regardless of what the situation is, he talks in the same emotionless, deadpan tone. Except of course when he’s reading the comics in the newspaper
• Happily Married: A strange case. Neither one of them actually love each other or have any interest in sex, they just married each other to escape their various bad situations. However, they consider each other their best friends and enjoy living together
• Heroic Sacrifice: Vincent Sr. dies shielding his son from the Proto-Beast’s claws.

Vincent Jr.

“Ahaughaugh…haughaughhaugh!!”

Birchmire’s loudmouthed grandson

• Character Development: As the campaign goes on, Vincent becomes noticeably less rude and perverted and instead embraces his better traits
• Fake Relationship: Agrees to do this with Stacy in order to get back at Lily
  • Romantic Fake–Real Turn: As predicted by literally everyone in and out of game, they eventually fall in love and become a real couple
• Freudian Excuse: His obnoxious

behavior has devolved as a coping mechanism to push people away after the constant abuse from Lily and his parent’s disapproval of him

• Hated by All: Due to his snotty attitude, most people grow to despise him, even his own family. The only ones who seem to tolerate him are his sister Goldie
• I Just Want to Be Loved: Ultimately, Vincent just wants someone to love him genuinely and allow him to let his guard down. He eventually finds this in Stacy.
• Pet the Dog: We finally see a softer side to Vincent Jr. when he takes care of Severus, and demonstrates a genuine passion for caring for children.
• Took a Level in Kindness: His care for Severus and bond with Stacy lead to him being a better person overall
• Upper-Class Twit: He’s a wealthy spoiled pervert with no charisma or tact.

Goldie Birchmire

Vincent’s screen-addicted little sister

• Ambiguous Disorder: She displays many traits consistent with autism or adhd.
• Token Good Teammate: Goldie is the only Birchmire that isn’t evil, morally grey, or even a jerk.
• Unknown Rival: She considers herself Suzanna’s rival in the streaming world, but she’s not very well known and Suzanna likely hasn’t even heard of her

Casper Birchmire

Harvey’s father, the patriarch of the family

• Greater-Scope Villain: Casper was the catalyst of the Birchmire family’s Generational Trauma which sets off a good portion of the story
• Hate Sink: He is a vile pervert who sexually abused his own family, and can be directly blamed for almost everything wrong with the Birchmire family.
• Karma Houdini Warranty: Casper spent his whole life brainwashing his children and putting them against each other, sexually abusing them as well, and committing various atrocities under the banner of the High Court. He almost gets away with everything until he is poisoned and tortured to death by Myranda.
• Pervert Dad: It is implied that he sexually abused at least his son and grandson.
• Posthumous Character: He’s been dead and buried since before the first campaign

Trent Langley

A cousin of the family that was part of the Beast’s empire

• Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work: She’s ultimately the one to kill Lily by poisoning her coffee
• Fat Bastard: Always has been and always will be.
• Master Poisoner: Making poison is still his primary hobby, even though with the war being over, it can’t really be used all that much
• Took a Level in Kindness: Downplayed. He’s still an evil little bastard, but he’s less of an outright Jerkass and his sadistic side is much less prominent

Dusk

The bandaged-covered enforcer of the Court. See the Blight for his true identity

• The Big Guy: He’s the primary muscle of the Dawn Court, although not in a literal sense.
• Manchild: His mannerisms seem childish and almost animalistic at times
• Mummy Wrap: How he both attacks and shows affection, which can be quite confusing
• Walking Spoiler: His true role in the story is much more than it seems

Leslie Hammond

A former agent of the Ironblood, now a mentor to younger fey

• Cool Big Sibling: They fill this role to the younger fey, looking out for them and serving as a guide through the social and political climate of the Dawn Court
• Dominatrix: Their tight leather outfit and lustful personality certainly give off this vibe
• Ethical Slut: Leslie is constantly horny and sex-obsessed, but still a good person that always looks out for others and wants to do the right thing
• Ms. Fanservice: They are a very attractive person with a flirty personality, sensual tone, and are very open about their sex life and kinks
• Power Dynamics Kink: Leslie is very open about the fact that they find their abusive boss hot
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: As a former member of the Ironblood, they still fully support committing acts of terrorism and mass murder to get their point across

Adrian Rice

A sluagh friend of Stacy’s

• All Love Is Unrequited: He has a very obvious crush on Stacy, but she does not seem to notice. She ultimately ends up rejecting him
• Character Death: He is beaten to death by Murray Teale at the country club
  • Back from the Dead: Since he was killed by a mortal instrument, Lily is able to resurrect him as a tree fey
• Emo Teen: His aesthetic is reminiscent of the stereotypical emo kids in the late 2000s
• Foil: There are many similarities drawn between him and Joshua, including their awkward personality and insensitivity towards the girls they like. However, unlike Joshua, he takes his rejection rather well
• The Eeyore: Adrian is a pessimist that feels insignificant and hopeless in the grand scheme of things. He fully expects to just die in a battle whenever a powerful fey triggers the next big conflict.
• Lovable Coward: He admits he only survived the war by running and hiding while everyone around him died, but given the circumstances, who can really blame him?

Bailey Lunsford

A young agent of Phoenix

• Character Tics: Even for a Selkie, Bailey loves the water, and is always in contact with it somehow, weather it be resting her hand under faucets, pouring water bottles over her heads, or jumping into anything large enough to do so
• Cloudcuckoolander: Her obsession with touching water and tendency to randomly space out give this impression of her.
• Florence Nightingale Effect: She ends up falling in love with Colin while caring for him after Anton’s attack on him.
• Mood-Swinger: She sometimes goes from cheerful to bursting into tears, usually brought about by her sudden depression episodes
• Ms. Fanservice: Justified. She’s almost always clad in a bikini due to her love of swimming and desire to constantly be in the water
• Plucky Comic Relief: Although she has some dramatic moments, Bailey mostly serves to lighten the mood during some time of the darker story arcs
• Tragic Keepsake: The oversized leather jacket she wears belonged to her deceased father. It’s also the source of her Selkie powers

Paula “Kel” Kelly

”Oh, it’s because I’m black, isn’t it!?”

A spokeswoman for the court

• Cool Big Sis: She acts this way towards Bailey and Hikaru. She ends up being a literal one to Stacy when her mom decides to foster her
• Everything Is Racist: Played for laughs. Kel often accuse others of being racist for tiny things as a joke.
• Extreme Omni-Goat: She has a habit of eating random objects when she gets stressed
• Fauns and Satyrs: Her features more are deer-like than most other satyrs, who are usually more reminiscent of goats
• The Gadfly: She likes to tease her friends and get rises out of them, but it’s all in good fun. Stacy is her favorite target
• Sassy Black Woman: Of the Deadpan Snarker variety.

High Court

High King Titus Lux Aestiva

”Things will be the way they’ve always been meant to be.”

The elderly king that has ruled over fey society since the Second World War

• Alas, Poor Villain: He’s an evil bastard who deserved to die, but him hearing the two-headed goat and trying to find it as he bleeds out is a pretty tragic end for him
• Appeal to Tradition: What truly drives the High King to villainy is his refusal to let anything change, instead insisting on shoving the old ways that are no longer relevant down everyone’s throat.
• Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work: He orders Anton’s death as a gesture of good will towards the Sunset Court
• Big Bad: He’s the most direct source of conflict of the campaign, and the greatest opponent of the Sunset Court
• The Chessmaster: Titus is a master of inciting conflict for his own gain, whether it be setting up the Beast’s regime to keep the Creekwater fey in place, or rigging the vote against himself to make the Sunset Court look corrupt.
• Entitled Bastard: He barges into the Sunset Court demanding they provide hospitality, deal with the many enemies he brings with him, and host his parties.
• Freudian Excuse: His obsessive desire to protect his people at any cost can be traced back to an incident where he cared a baby goat with a birth defect, being unable to save it’s life.
• Greater-Scope Villain: Birchmire reveals that he deliberately plotted the Beast’s rise to power as a fey to occupy the area’s fey, so that they don’t advance past the point he can maintain power over them
• The High King: He rules over all fey, worldwide. Even as his influence and reputation begins to waver, he still has the final say in any matter
• Karmic Death: He is ripped in half by the Proto-Beast, which he himself unleashed on Milhouse
• Smug Snake: The High King is quite pompous about his untouchable status
• Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Through the flashbacks of his youth, we see that he used to be a kind young farmhand with a love of animals

Judge Flim

Judge Charles “Flim” Carvelli

The newly appointed Judge, not well-liked or trusted among the towns population

• Blatant Lies: No one is buying his lie-riddled defense of the High Court’s (lack of) actions. He doesn’t seem to particularly care, because there’s nothing anyone can really do
• Boss's Unfavorite Employee: The High King seems to despise Flim, scolding him for every little mistake. One can only assume why.
• Disc-One Final Boss: He’s the primary antagonist representing the High Court for the first half of the campaign. However, it doesn’t last. Kestrel gets him thrown out of the court and he eventually undergoes a Heel-Face Turn
• The Dog Bites Back: During the vote, he breaks into the Sunset Court and tries to murder the King for making him his scapegoat
• Fat Bastard: Harvey explicitly calls him this when he finds out he’s taking his mansion
• Hidden Depths: Some of his lines along with his genuine empathy for the younger members of the High Court imply that like Stacy, Flim was probably forced into his role in the Court
• Nepotism: Flim is just a hedonistic thug with no qualifications as a legal official. He’s only a judge because his family had connections
• The Scapegoat: While Flim is still an utter bastard, it slowly becomes clear that the High King uses him as a mouthpiece for any bad news from the High Court that would otherwise make him look bad.

Lily Birchmire

”Poor little Harvey! Always leaving his messes for the rest of us to clean up!”

Harvey’s estranged sister

• Alas, Poor Villain: It’s hard not to feel a little bad for her, as she’s a pathetic old woman with a terrible home life who was never able to cope with the trauma inflicted on her
• Black Sheep: She does not get along well with the rest of her family, particularly Harvey, the two butt heads constantly
• Cool Old Lady: Subverted. She comes across this way at first, but it doesn’t take long for her true colors as a pathetic, bitter person to come out
• Frame-Up: Her hatred of Birchmire is enough that she sets him up to be framed for the Chrysalis deaths. This ends up leading to his arrest
• Gonk: She’s described as unattractive and strange-looking, as opposed to most other sidhe
• Kick the Dog: She sabotages Vincent and Stacy’s relationship out of hatred for him, which causes Vince to go on a downward spiral and nearly leave Milhouse for good
• Killed Offscreen: Following her breakdown at the Christmas party and her attempt to ruin Stacy’s relationship with Vince, Myranda orders Trent to kill her. He poisons her coffee, and she later dies offscreen.
• Maiden Aunt: Partly because her family didn’t bother to arrange one for her, Lily never married or had kids, but has close bonds with some of her nieces and nephews
• Misplaced Retribution: She blames Harvey for all her problems, since we was mean to her when they were younger, not High Court society for enforcing the social norms she suffered under, or her father who neglected her.
• Peaceful in Death: Despite being more unhinged and angry than ever in her last appearances, her death by poison is ultimately quiet and painless.
• Pet the Dog: She expresses remorse for her actions in her will, and leaves almost everything to Stacy, including Max. If she hadn’t done this, Max would have likely been sent right back to Keith
• The Svengali: Lily isn’t mentoring Stacy for her own gain, she’s doing it for hers. Stacy simply reminds her of herself when she was young, so she’s trying to live vicariously through her by shaping her into Lily’s ideal self
• Wangst: She has a habit of going on self-pitying, long-winded tangents about her childhood

Lord Keith Patel

”I OWN you!”

Max’s former master

• The Dreaded: Enemies and allies alike are terrified of him, even the High King.
• Fantastic Racism: Even more so than the rest of the High Court. He doesn’t even see non-Sidhe as people, talking to them like animals
• Fate Worse than Death: He breaks a fey promise to Hikaru in the heat of the moment, leading the Brownies dragging him off to Arcadia. It’s not clear exactly what happens to him, but it’s made clear that it’s not gonna be pleasant
• Faux Affably Evil: He’s a polite and well spoken man towards any other Sidhe, even if they are his enemies. When he interacts with other kiths however, he shows his true colors.
• Hate Sink: Keith is a smug, racist jerk who viciously abuses anyone he holds power over. He’s the only member of the High Court with no positive traits or Pet the Dog moments.
• Kick the Dog: He likes to randomly kill endangered kiwi birds and cook them into pies for no reason
• Master Swordsman: Keith is considered the best swordsman in the High Court
• Sadist: Harvey notes that he greatly enjoyed beheading Alex
• Unseen No More: Lord Keith is mentioned several times, and shown to be the route of much of Harvey and Max’s trauma, but doesn’t show up in person until later in the game

Servants

Max Rudolph

”Decisions? Those are for other people to make for me ”

The personal bodyguard of the Birchmire family

• Animal Stereotypes: Fitting with a golden retriever, Max is loyal, heroic, dim-witted, and loyal
• A Little Bit Beastly: He has a pair of dog ears, evidence of his Pooka kith
• Brainless Beauty: He’s not very smart, but makes up for it with his good looks and strength
• Character Development: Over the course of the campaign, stemming from his relationship with Hikaru, he slowly starts to recover for his trauma. He begins to realize that what Keith did to him was wrong, and that he can make his own choices and enjoy life just like everyone else
• Comically Missing the Point: He always finds some way to avoid realizing that Keith is a bad person.
• Extreme Doormat: Max’s first priority is always serving others, even if it puts him in danger
• Food Coma: He passes out in one after stuffing himself with a massive amount of holiday treats
• Love Interest: To Hikaru
• Number Two for Brains: He’s Lily’s second-in-command, but certainly not because of his wits.
• Stepford Smiler: He always acts cheerful and upbeat, this is mostly because he feels like he has to as a result of his traumatic experience serving Lord Keith

Celine

Stacy’s French bodyguard

• The Ditz: Celine may be incredible skilled, but she is not very smart and usually ends of unaware of the current situation
• Hummer Dinger: She drives a big, obnoxiously bright yellow Hummer. It ends up saving the players when she runs into the High King as he attacks them
• Killed Offscreen: We last see her leaving to fight the Proto-Beast, where she dies by Keith’s blade. Her corpse is later found by Suzanna.
• Master Swordswoman: Celine is well-known across the fey realm for her dueling skills
• Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: A slip up reveals that she’s not actually French, she’s a strange southern woman who pretends to be French as she thinks it makes her more intimidating
• Team Mom: She tries to be, but she clearly can’t keep up with all the teenage antics

Thallain

The Patriarch/Murray Teale

”Don’t you pretend you don’t have those deep dark thoughts you try not to think about…”

The patriarch of the Teale family, and the overall ruler of the Thallain

• Affably Evil: Unlike most of the Thallain, Murray is very calm and upbeat, apart from a few outbursts. He’s even willing to take insults in good spirit, while someone like Cheryl or Idi would react violently
• Big Bad: He eventually takes up this role alongside the High King.
• Fat Bastard: He’s described as a round, egg-like shape, and is one of the most sinister figures in the game.
• Greater-Scope Villain: As the leader of the Thallain, he has been an overarching source of conflict across both campaign
• Hypocrite: Murray claims that the Thallain allow fey to be free of any restrictions like they are naturally. However, this is blatantly ignoring the fact that most Thallain are white supremacists and Christian nationalists that respond with hatred to anyone different than them.
• Know When to Fold 'Em: After the fall of the High Court, Murray ultimately decides to give up his pursuit of Dusk and lay low for the time being
• Orcus on His Throne: He lets his subordinates do all the heavy lifting while he stays at the country club playing golf.
• Rasputinian Death: He gets poisoned, set on fire, castrated with a cold iron dagger, and beaten until his bones disintegrate
• The Starscream: He eventually stabs the High King in the back, attempting to steal the Blight for himself and rallying the Thallain against him.
• Too Dumb to Live: He really thought the Dawn Court would be satisfied with him just giving up for now, and not seek retribution for the damage he’s caused

Cheryl Reese

”Why don’t you like me?”

Amber’s mom, who acts loving and compassionate, but seems to be hiding something

• Bad Boss: She is responsible for the deaths of both Anton and Carmichael
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: In the first session, Cheryl seems like a cool and caring mom, but it doesn’t take long for facade to slip
• Evil Counterpart: She’s basically what Amber would be if she had bigger ambitions and used her powers to her full potential
• Fake Memories: She can modify the short term memories of people around her.
• Fate Worse than Death: Amber imprisons her in her own mind where she must suffer through horrific nightmares of the pain she inflicted onto others done upon herself
• Green-Eyed Monster: She envies her sister-in-law Florence who Amber sees as a true mother figure and ultimately decides to live with instead of her. This drives her to have her killed by Castlehead
• Hate Sink: Cheryl is a sadistic, abusive narcissist that tears the lives of others apart to make herself feel important. She’s such a terrible person that even when she posed as an ally to the players, the little glimpses of her true nature were enough to make them despise her already.

The Shadow King

The concept of evil itself personified into the most annoying creature ever

• Back for the Dead: He shows up ten sessions after his last appearance only to get killed off at the end
• Catchphrase: “Give me my Master Ball!”
• The Corrupter: While in the swamps, he convinces Ralph to give Lacy over the to Blight
• Gonk: He looks like a cross between a naked mole rat and Gollum
• Harmless Villain: Despite being the literal embodiment of evil, the Shadow King is a pathetic loser that poses absolutely no threat.
• Puppet King: He has little power or respect on his own, and during his reign over the Thallain, it’s Anton that does most of the work
• Satanic Archetype: Technically he is the fey version of Satan, supposedly “being born from the wound on Able’s head”. Despite this, he’s too weak to do much with this role
• What a Drag: Transformed into a cheetah, Hikaru drags him across the forest floor before killing him

Subjects

Anton Gray

Joshua’s ex-con older brother

• Asshole Victim: Considering that he had just maimed Colin in the same session and been a complete dick in all his prior appearances, it’s unlikely he’s getting any pity when the High Court has him killed
• Big Bad Wannabe: For as big as he talks, Anton never poses that much of a threat to the players, and dies fairly early in the campaign
• Avenging the Villain: Anton’s primary motivation is to get back at the Sunset Court for the deaths of the Thallain that died at their hands.
• Gender Bender: Suzanna temporarily turns him into a woman as punishment for constant harassment.
• He-Man Woman Hater: Anton’s toxic and unrealistic views on masculinity lead into a seething hatred of women in general
• No Celebrities Were Harmed: He is very blatantly supposed to be a fey version of Andrew Tate
• Psychic-Assisted Suicide: It is implied he was forced to bite off his tongue and bled out like Carmichael

Joshua Gray

A former United Court member and Suzanna’s stalker

• Boxed Crook: After being captured by the Sunset Court, he ends being forced to work as a double agent in order to avoid punishment
• Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: In the FIRST scene he appears in we see him once again betraying his court, this time by working with the Thallain
• Hero Killer: His poisoned arrow ends up killing Kestrel, although he doesn’t live long enough to see it happen
• Jerkass: Despite having a crush on Suzanna, he’s pretty nasty towards her, and even nastier towards her friends
• Ludicrous Gibs: He is left as a pile of meat after the Stitch King smashes him
• Spikes of Villainy: His fey mein is covered in thin, venomous spines

Glenn and Elaine Wells

Former associates of Bloome that now follow the Thallain

• Ambiguously Related: It is unclear if Elaine is Glenn’s wife or mother, as evidence is given for either or both possibilities
• Villain Decay: Glenn has gone from the enforcer of the most dangerous man in Creekwater to a low-ranking Thallain agent. Also in a literal sense

Roger Carmichael

A Thallain torturer and an old enemy of the Sunset Court

• Family-Values Villain: Carmichael has a wife and children that are completely unware of his horrific double life
• No Historical Figures Were Harmed: His obsession with torturing women, oblivious family, and incompetence make him a dead ringer for the BTK
• Psychic-Assisted Suicide: During his interrogation, he is commanded to bite off his tongue, causing him to bleed out
• Starter Villain: The central antagonist for the first few sessions of the Dawn plotline
• Stupid Evil: Carmichael is comically stupid, anyone with half a brain is able to run circles around him. This is illustrated when he ends up blurting out the Thallain’s plan when he gets stressed
• Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome: He gets killed off only a few sessions after his reappearance

Idi Akinde

A student from abroad that fell in with the Thallain

• Faux Affably Evil: At first, Idi seems like a polite, charismatic young man, even when he’s revealed as Thallain. However, he quickly shows himself to be just much of a Hate Sink as the rest of his faction.
• The Friend No One Likes: Idi is not well liked among the Thallain, if not because of their hatred of minorities, than because he’s just that much of a dick
• The Heavy: For a while, he’s the main antagonist in the Dawn Court plotline, as he’s tasked with making sure Lacy isn’t found.
• Ludicrous Gibs: Hikaru pushes him in front of a train, splattering his remains everywhere
• Scary Black Man: He’s a Nigerian native, and one of the most physically threatening members of the Thallain
• Smug Snake: Idi sees himself as the level-headed smart guy of the Thallain, and seems quite pleased with this. He’s really just as much of a psychotic brute as the rest of them.

J.P. Jablonski

A local sex offender who works as Cheryl’s henchman

• The Dragon: To Cheryl.
• Gonk: He has long, bony limbs and a strange, egg shaped head
• Would Hurt a Child: He tries to saw off Beth’s head without zero hesitation, and is implied to be a pedophile

Other Fey and Chimera

The Blight (major spoilers)

A strange fungal entity growing over the town of Milhouse. It’s main body has been passing itself off as Dusk

• The Corruption: It has the power to take over bodies and use them as puppets. It can also bestow fungal powers, although it makes them rapidly rot.
• Festering Fungus: It takes the form of a thick mold that grows all over the town
• Good All Along: Played with. The Blight is set up as the Greater-Scope Villain of the campaign, but in reality, Dusk isn’t really evil, just a terrified animal that’s being exploited manipulated by two dangerous men. That being said, he is clearly more than willing to harm others if he thinks it will help him survive
• The Power of Hate: The Blight is made up of negative energy, and feeds off of it.

Ralph Pinnick

A former Ironblood leader, now exiled deep in the Dreaming

• How the Mighty Have Fallen: Following his defeat in the last campaign, he now lives in a swamp with the Shadow King and eats toads to survive

Red Tommy

One of the survivors of the Ironblood.

• Do Not Go Gentle: Ultimately what his entire goal was. He didn’t end up having a plan to assassinate the King, he just wanted to go out as a thorn in the High Court’s side rather than wasting away alone
• Likable Villain: Most people get along very well with Tommy, even if he’s actively trying to kill them
• Mercy Kill: At his request, Suzanna kills him quickly so he doesn’t have to endure a slow and painful death at the hands of Flim and his men
• Starter Villain: His plan to assassinate the King serves as the main conflict for the first few sessions of the Sunset plotline. Sort of.

The Stitch King

The ruler of the nightmare chimera

• Heel–Face Turn: After Suzanna shows it the love it’s been seeking, it decides to help the Sunset Court
• Vengeful Abandoned Toy: It started off as a rabbit plushie that was abandoned. It’s bitterness and spite eventually transformed it into the monster it became.
• Things That Go "Bump" in the Night: The Stitch King is a bogeyman that feeds off the misery of children

Alex

Birchmire’s lover

• The Lost Lenore: The only person Harvey ever truly loved, and tragically lost.
• Off with His Head!: He was beheaded by Lord Keith once they were arrested
• Posthumous Character: He’s been dead for decades by the time the campaign begins, but his death still haunts Harvey

The Brownies

Colonies of true fae that often work for the kithain

• Collector of the Strange: They collect various human objects to use as decorations, furniture, and sometimes even houses.
• Gonk: They are described as a cross between house elves and a sensory homunculus, with big watery eyes and dressed in rags.
• House Fey: They are referred to as this, as they are tiny little creatures mostly used for domestic labor
• Lethal Joke Character: Although they are goofy, polite little guys that work for kithain, they are still true fae, and are capable of unleashing hell upon you in an instant if you don’t show them respect
• Servant Race: Subverted as a Take That! to J.K. Rowling’s house elves. The brownies may serve the kithain, but they very much have an agenda and free will, only working to earn the “trinkets” they are paid with.

Peter Pumpkinhead

A Halloween chimera from the Underground

• Chekhov's Gunman: He’s little more than a running gag for most of the game, but he eventually ends up playing an essential role in saving Max and defeating Keith
• Giant Space Flea from Nowhere: His appearance and the plotline that follows comes out of absolutely nowhere
• Pumpkin Person: He has a jack-o-lantern for a head on top of a body of roots

The Proto-Beast (spoilers)

An unfinished clone of John Osborne created by Anton and Carmichael, later being seized by the High Court

• Clone Degradation: It does not possess sentience like the original Osborne did, nearly just being a feral creature in his body. It also doesn’t have any skin

Mortals

Lacy Mclean

One of Hikaru’s friends who went missing at the end of the summer

• Nice Girl: From what we see of Lacy, she is very kind and cares a lot about her friends
• Small Role, Big Impact: Lacy is only around for about thirty minutes before vanishing, but her disappearance sets the story into motion.

The Culprit (spoilers)

Julian Frost

Lacy’s kidnapper and/or murderer.

• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He plays the role of a cool, passionate teacher who looks out for his students. In reality, he is a sadistic, murderous pedophile
• Ephebophile: His preference of victims is typically high school girls
• Knight of Cerebus: Julian is a much realer and more grounded villain than the others in the campaign, and as such, things take a darker turn on he never he’s around
• Hate Sink: Frost is a sadistic pedophile who takes advantage of vulnerable girls to fulfill his depraved fantasies. He may not pose much of a threat to the heroes, but his horrific and selfish actions make him one of their most loathsome enemies
• Murder by Inaction: In the flashback shown in Hikaru’s dream, we see him getting aroused watching a girl choke to death on her own vomit after drinking too much.
• Nightmare Fetishist: He is sexually aroused by watching woman suffer and die. He seems to particularly enjoy dismemberment
• Put on a Prison Bus: His fate after death of his chimera leads to him having a breakdown that culminates in him finally confessing to his crime
• Realism-Induced Horror: He is portrayed as being more terrifying than any of the other villains, partially because unlike them, people like Julian do exist in real life
• Serial Killer: Julian has murdered at least three girls before kidnapping Lacy
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: He might be utterly monstrous man, but there’s no way he could have known the domino effect his actions would set off

Parents and Family

Lisa and Marv Williams

Stacy’s neglectful parents

• Abusive Parents: Their selfishness, pettiness, irresponsibility towards their children (one of which being an infant) make them some of the worst parents in the campaign
• Laser-Guided Karma: They start to ramp up their abuse and neglect, threatening to send Stacy away to “wilderness therapy”. This finally provokes her to take the deal with Lily, which leads to the pair losing custody of their children.
• Manchild: Both of them are obsessed with geek culture, and care more about having fun than supporting their family

Saori and Hiroshi Kaori

Hikaru’s supportive parents

• Doting Parent: They shower their daughter with endless praise and support
• Immigrant Parents: They immigrated from Japan before Hikaru’s birth, and tend to play into some of the usual tropes.
• Parents as People: Although they can be nosy and overly paranoid, they’re still good people that genuinely care about their daughter

Darren Urie

Bailey’s stepfather

• Lack of Empathy: He doesn’t even try to sympathize with Bailey over the death of her father, instead wining about how she should be over it by now and forcing her to take down her pictures of him.
• Wicked Stepfather: Darren is emotionally abusive towards his stepdaughter, constantly yelling at her and trying to gaslight her about her depression

Laura Mclean

Lacy’s deeply religious mother

• Mama Bear: Laura is very devoted to finding her daughter, even if it means fighting with the Milhouse police
• Politically Incorrect Hero: She a devout Christian, and screams at Stacy for wearing a short skirt

Steve Mclean

Lacy’s estranged father, and the first major suspect in her disappearance.

• Ephebophile: He dates eighteen year old girls who he usually breaks up with within a year.
• Even Evil Has Standards: He is disgusted and enraged at the implication that he may have molested his daughter
• Lazy Bum: Steve doesn’t have a job, living off unemployment checks and the money he is given to care for Lacy
• Small Role, Big Impact: He’s only encountered in one session, but him losing Lacy’s college fund to his gambling addiction is what makes her turn to prostitution, which leads to Julian kidnapping her.
• Warm-Up Boss: His Guardian Chimera is the first boss the players face in combat

Michael and Aniya Kelly

Kel’s parents as well as Stacy’s foster family

• The Gadfly: Aniya shares the same sense of humor as her daughter
• Good Parents: They’re some of the best parents in Milhouse. They only further prove this point by acting as a loving foster family to any children.

Milhouse High Students

Beth Guerrero

The cheer squad captain

• Genre Blindness: As someone unaware of the fey side of things, the idea of Hikaru leading an investigation under the police’s nose and confronting a homicidal serial rapist is utterly insane to her.
• Hard-Drinking Party Girl: Beth loves to throw parties and gather with friends, and usually gets drunk right away. This often becomes a problem because she’s the only one who can drive
• It's All My Fault: Since her being unable to drive indirectly lead to Lacy’s disappearance, she blames herself for the entire thing.
• Muggle Best Friend: Serves this role with Hikaru along with Lacy.

Agnes “Nia” Hebert

The manager of the local Hot Topic

• Big Beautiful Woman: She’s quite curvy, and frequently gets hit on by people who visit the store

Tate Phelps and Cassie Andrews

A cruel teen couple

• The Bully: They constantly torment the students of the school, Lacy being their favorite target. This extends to the players, the first thing we see them do is tell Stacy to cut herself
• Disc-One Final Boss: During the beginning of the campaign, they are the main suspects for Lacy’s disappearance and get more aggressive as the players come closer to the truth. Ultimately, they just end up just being witnesses that Julian threatened into silence
• Human Traffickers: Tate ran a small scale sex trafficking ring using girls from his school including Lacy

School Staff

Principal Marvin Icehead

The corrupt, dim-witted principal

• Adults Are Useless: Despite being one of the least malicious authority figures in the campaign, Icehead’s utter stupidity and immaturity allow all sorts of evil to take place in his school
• Butt-Monkey: Something strange, terrible, and hilarious is always happening to him, usually involving some kind of crime (either committed by him or another)
• Putting the "Pal" in Principal: He buys his students food, seemingly never punishes anyone, and even hands out cigarettes. He even lets Rowan borrow his car! (Which he drives into the lake)

Dana Carter

The deeply religious science teacher

• Politically Motivated Teacher: It is clear that her only objective is to push Christianity on her students

Julian Frost

A mildly famous local author who teaches History

• Cool Teacher: His charisma, honestly, and relaxed attitude make him most people’s favorite teacher
• Walking Spoiler: He’s Lacy’s kidnapper

Other Mortals

Lyle Briggs

The corrupt police chief of Milhouse

• Bigot with a Badge: According to Kel, he mishandled the disappearance of her friend Rachel due to her race. She would later end up being killed, the investigation once again being rushed and mishandled
• Dirty Cop: Briggs has a reputation of being negligent and willing to take bribes.

Stanley Pope

A lazy and condescending police officer put in charge of Lacy’s case

• Asshole Victim: It’s implied that even before the Blight took over his body, he was still a shitty, negligent cop very much deserving of his death at Hikaru’s hands
• Plague Zombie: When the Blight fully consumes him, he turns into a zombie covered in fungi and spores
• Police Are Useless: Stanley is a terrible officer, never taking anything seriously and brushing off legitimate concerns so that he doesn’t end up with more work
• Killer Cop: He tries to kill Hikaru under the Blight’s influence

Joseph Cole

A strange man that stalked Lacy. The second main suspect

• Ambiguous Disorder:
• Mistaken for Pedophile: He comes off as a stalker and creep, but in reality he is was just trying to be Lacy’s friend, but lacked the social ability to do this in a healthy way

Scott Clark

A college dropout that dated Lacy

• Asshole Victim: He is described as a bum who spend his time driving around harassing underage girls.
• Posthumous Character: He was murdered shortly before the campaign began. By the time the players find him, there’s nothing but bones left