StarCraft II/Characters
No units here, just the main characters of the game. (Playable or not)
For the unit-specific tropes, check the unit page.
For the characters introduced in Starcraft I, go to the respective character sheet.
Introduced in StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
Terrans
Tychus Findlay
Voiced by: Neil Kaplan.
An old war friend of Jim Raynor, when he and Raynor came onto the wrong side of the law he was captured and sentenced to life in prison while Raynor escaped. In StarCraft II he's released and joins up with Raynor to collect some alien artifacts at the behest of the Moebius Foundation.
- Aerith and Bob: Above the Hyperion: Matt, Jim...and Tychus, a Gaelic name.
- Armchair Military: Considers the Non-Entity General to be one.
"Okay, Armchair General"
- Badass
- Badass Baritone: All he has to do is to start talking for you to immediately feel that this is a dangerous, dangerous man.
- Badass Boast: In the Odin:
"It's time to kick ass and Chew Bubblegum."
- The Big Guy: Hell, he was big before he got the huge power suit.
- BFG: A minigun similar to that one of Team Fortress 2's Heavy.
- Blatant Lies: In a rather clever way: his initial story about why he's out of prison is a ridiculous tale of him singlehandedly fighting his way out of the most fortified spot in the sector. When Raynor calls him on this, Findlay admits he was sprung by Moebius. Raynor assumes Findlay lied because he was embarrassed at having to be let out, and therefore doesn't question the second story, which is also a lie: Findlay was really sprung by Mengsk. Of course, for whatever reason, Raynor is able to hook up with Moebius - which is entirely unrelated to Mengsk at all except for the fact that it is run by Mengsk's son.
- Blood Knight: The Odin. This is the only mission thus far where he really gets fired up, because he finally gets to take the field. When controllable on foot, he's considerably less jolly. He probably misses his titan of destruction.
- Boisterous Bruiser: Tychus is all over this.
- Boxed Crook: Subverted as he is imprisoned in a marine suit, and he would be freed if he kills Kerrigan.
- Butt Monkey: Is on the receiving end of a lot of punishment, and surprisingly functions as a source of comic relief in-between being a badass.
- Clingy Costume: Tychus' marine power armor is welded onto him so he can't take it off. It's also revealed that it's hooked into his life-support system (the suit itself is life support; so 'life support system' might just mean his vitals). It can be remotely triggered to shut down all of his organs.
- Comedic Sociopath: He works with Jim Raynor. He doesn't care about Raynor's freedom values, though. Notably, for someone so emotionless about Raynor's Raiders, he sure loves that Odin with a fiery passion. Perhaps because, as a weapon of destruction, the Odin is one of Tychus' personal favorites and thus he features in the Rebellion Missions solely because he can have fun with the Odin while also following the instructions of Raynor's Raiders.
- The Corrupter: Raynor was once a normal, upstanding citizen and military man, until Confederate corruption made him disillusioned with them, at which point he went off with Tychus and became a criminal.
- Cursed with Awesome: Trapped inside seven-foot-tall Power Armor that lets him rip tables out of the floor and carry a minigun.
- Blessed with Suck: Although it keeps him from fulfilling certain non-hygienic bodily functions.
- Dark and Troubled Past: All that's known about his early life is that he was born on Mar Sara and ran away from home when he was twelve. The next time he appears, he's a sergeant in the military and is already corrupt and self-serving.
- Drowning My Sorrows: Near the end of the game, when he's uncertain if he can go through with his mission. Both got better. But he then got worse.
- Evil All Along: Not until the very end though.
- Foot Focus: For some reason, we get a big closeup of his bare feet in the beginning trailer.
- Gatling Good: His Weapon of Choice while on foot. He's also seen operating a dual-gatling defense turret in the main menu background while on Char.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: Who knows how he got his, since he looks like he was mauled by a cougar.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Though he's pretty gruff he really isn't a bad guy. In the ending, it's strongly shown that he didn't want to shoot Kerrigan, but he had to, or else Mengsk would shut down his suit and kill him.
- Leeroy Jenkins: When commandeering the Odin, Tychus has the communicator stuck on transmit, so he can't hear your orders and will run heedlessly into enemy bases without you to tell him no. Fortunately the Odin is pretty beefy, so he's not going to get himself killed as long as you back him up, and he breaks in-between bases so you can repair his unit and get an escort ready to help him out at the next one.
"Well if you ain't going to tell me not to have a little fun... I'm going to have a little fun hehe. Here I go!"
- And, of course, it's entirely possible that he jams the transmitter on purpose.
- Man Child: At least when it comes to being on the battlefield and he acts like a little kid with a new toy with the Odin.
- Mighty Glacier: While commanding the Odin. Big. Slow. Get out of the way or die a quick and painful death.
- The Mole: The only reason he was released was on the condition that he infiltrate Raynor's unit until he got close enough to Kerrigan to kill her.
- Non-Entity General:
- Not in This For Your Revolution: He makes this patently clear to Raynor on several occasions. While he claims that he's only after the money, his actual goal is to kill Kerrigan at Mengsk's behest, thereby securing his freedom.
- One-Man Army: When piloting the Odin Tychus is without question the most powerful unit in the entire campaign, boasting more HP than entire buildings and killing most enemy units in one or two shots. He easily puts all of the hero units in the original game to shame.
- Remember the New Guy?: Possibly justified since he's been in the slammer since before Starcraft 1; he's never even seen a live Zerg until he fought back a horde of them in the third mission.
- Poisonous Friend: Tychus manages to be equal parts amusing and incredibly threatening at all times, due to his deliciously low drawl. He's best buds with Jim Raynor, but the two of them have grown quite different. Jim's looking out for the little people, while Tychus is mostly just interested in guns and money and grumbles whenever Raynor goes off to save "dirt-farmer" colonists. (That being said, later in the game he admits that fighting the good fight feels great...)
- Power Armor: One he can't get out of, and which can kill him if he disobeys his employer.
- Plucky Comic Relief: Tychus may not be plucky, but he's definitely the main source of comic relief in the game. Just look at his one-liners:
"It followed me home... can I keep it?" (He's talking about an impossibly Humongous Mecha with bigger guns than a tank)
"Luckily I brought me some liquid refreshment." *cracks a beer*
"Make room for the Big Dawg!"
(While on Char) "Boys, I hate to interrupt, but the natives are getting restless!"
- Rated "M" for Manly: Even without the Powered Armor he's huge and muscular, smokes enormous cigars, drinks hard, fights hard, carries a minigun, pilots a gigantic war machine that qualifies as a One-Man Army... Face it: You want to be this guy.
- Smoking Is Cool: To the point where his on-foot model sports a flare-like cigar.
- Suicide by Cop: May or may not apply to his final actions. If he really wanted to go through with it, letting his laserpointer hover over Kerrigan's face for half a minute while Raynor was watching wasn't exactly the brightest idea.
- 24-Hour Armor: Though it would hopefully have self-cleaning capabilities...
- What Does This Button Do?: How he figures out the commands for the Odin. First time he invokes the trope he activates the bombardment cannons; the second time, he launches a nuke. Both times, he gleefully rejoices in the carnage he causes.
"Now how did I miss this button with a skull on it?"
Matt Horner
"We can't be everywhere at once, sir. The important thing is that we set an example and gave them hope. Every time we help folks in need, it's another step on the road to a better future."
Voiced by: Brian Bloom
The Hyperion's captain and Raynor's second in command. Horner has strong moral principles. He has a desire to make the universe a better place and thus is opposed to the murder and torture of innocents. He is not only a fair combatant but is also an excellent ship pilot and a decent starship tactician.
- Accidental Marriage: He didn't know the prize for winning the poker game. A portrait of his lovely wife. Needless to say, he made little to no effort to stay in touch with her. This didn't stop her of using the alias "Mira Horner".
(Before the mission "Cutthroat")
Mira Han: Oh and, um, say hello to Matthew for me; ask him why he never calls.
Matt Horner: (does the "I'm not here!" gesture)
(After said mission)
Matt Horner: If Mira calls, I'm- I'm just busy.
- Canon Immigrant
- The Captain
- Captain Smooth and Sergeant Rough: Inverted; Raynor's a Cowboy, Matt's a boy scout. Okay, Matt technically is a captain, but he's also the subordinate of Raynor.
- Character Development: Happened offscreen. When he is introduced in Queen of Blades, the Hyperion's captain is young, idealistic and a little naive. He matures in the next couple of years, and by Wings of Liberty the naivite has been polished away in favour of maturity, but (defying Raynor's prediction) the idealism remains intact.
- The Heart: Most of the time when Raynor isn't.
- The Lancer: to Raynor
- Mission Control
- Naughty by Night: Mild example: When he's in the cantina talking to Raynor, he's much more informal, and even drops the s-bomb once. When he's on the bridge, he's as straight-laced as can be.
- Only Sane Man: One of the few in Raynor's crew who isn't obsessed with revenge or with ulterior motives in mind.
- Putting on the Reich: The usual implications of evil with this trope are inverted with him, whose clothing design was clearly taken from fascist dress uniforms. He's idealistic and fights in a revolution for freedom.
- Possibly played straight in that he may have kept it from his confederate days.
- Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism: He fights for freedom instead of simply killing Mengsk or hoarding wealth, which puts him at odds with Gabriel Tosh and Tychus Findlay, respectively.
- The Revolution Will Not Be Villified: He does his damnedest to make sure that this is true.
- Time to Step Up Commander: Matt gives this to Raynor a couple of times when Raynor's feeling down.
- We Help the Helpless: Practically his mission statement in the quest for "a better tomorrow".
Gabriel Tosh
"You guys did good. Now me and my spectres will finish the job. We'll kill Mengsk...and burn his Dominion to the ground."
Voiced by: Dave Fennoy.
A mysterious man encountered by Raynor when he gave him a job for mining minerals in a dangerous place, brother. He turned out to be one of the subjects of Dominion's Spectre project. He is seemingly capable of reading minds like Kerrigan did. He has an extreme hatred for the Dominion, especially Arcturus Mengsk.
- Canon Immigrant: He's from the same storyline as Nova Terra is, and he was another character recovered from the cancelled StarCraft: Ghost game.
- Deadpan Snarker: Not every mission's epilogue on the Hyperion necessarily involves Tosh giving out good advice. In fact, some dialogue speeches are where Tosh snarks Raynor about specific items such as engaging in piracy when he dislikes it, teasing Raynor about smelling a protoss onboard the Hyperion, and the snark that perhaps Hanson is not all sweet like Raynor and others think.
- Everyone Went to School Together: Tosh was actually in the same squad as Nova during their days in the Ghost Academy. Oddly enough, he used to support her back then during mission training, and kissed Nova once. However, any chance of a relationship was made naught by the rules of the Ghost Academy, which would also neurally re-socialize (i.e. mind-wipe) its students on a regular basis. The final break probably came around the time when Tosh became a Spectre and Nova received a full re-socialization that had virtually eliminated her original personality.
- He Who Fights Monsters: The singular known reason why Matt Horner is uncomfortable with him.
- Ho Yay: Who else has Raynor befriended who was a Ghost, defied the main Big Bad, and given Raynor not only sage advice during and after missions, but also been Raynor's best friend as far as he was concerned?
- Hollywood Voodoo: In his backstory, his grandmother initially believed his psionic abilities to be Voodoo. In the game, he'll even whip out a voodoo doll on Raynor if he decides to screw Tosh over. For some reason it works on Tychus instead. Also explained in the game that most Spectres grow eccentric after their training and may carry trinkets and totems because they believe in their enhancing powers even if they may know nothing about Voodoo.
- Knife Nut: Ironically, this is also how he was killed in the non-canon mission "Ghost Of A Chance".
- In the cinematic after the mission "Breakout," Tosh throws his knife carelessly at a table, perhaps to avoid hurting Matt Horner for politically disagreeing with him ideologically. However, Raynor understands Tosh and gives him his knife back.
- Knight in Sour Armor: You know the Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism? Tosh may be a trustworthy, nice individual who doesn't mind helping Raynor fight the good fight, but when it comes to society and the Dominion, he lands hard on the cynicism side.
- Monochromatic Eyes
- Only Sane Man: He's almost the only member of the Hyperion who can see that Tychus is a mole working for the Dominion. Although knowing that was probably more due to him being psychic.
- The Power of Rock: Averted, he has his own psychedelic rock band (Tosh and the Screamers) but he doesn't uses music as a weapon.
- Psychic Powers
- Psycho Serum: Terrazine, according to Nova. She may or may not be lying.
- According to Hanson (if she still is with you after the mission "Breakout") Nova WAS lying.
- Roaring Rampage of Revenge: See "He Who Fights Monsters"
- Scary Black Man: Witch Doctor-like creepiness and Jamaican accent included.
- Notwithstanding, Tosh really isn't all that scary to Raynor, let alone a good majority of the cast. Only Swann and Tychus mention Tosh being anywhere remotely close to scary.
- Super Soldier: Being a Spectre, who are experimental versions of the Ghosts.
- Supporting Leader: You only control Tosh in the mission "Breakout". You have Raynor and Horner rooting for you the entire time, and you fight against Mengsk, Nova, and the Dominion, who as far as the Wings of Liberty campaign are concerned one of many Big Bads.
- Verbal Tic: Gabriel Tosh always ends his speeches with "brother", brother.
- You Bastard: Side against him during the last leg of his mission arc and he scolds you for betraying him when he's been straight with you so far. Despite the hilarity of Tychus being voodoo doll'd at the end of that mission, it results in him no longer being available to offer mystic comments on every mission you accomplish afterwards, which can make you feel like a heel to see that balcony empty.
- The news report after his second mission heavily implies the Spectres were behind terror-bombings against civilian targets. However, the UNN is known for exaggerating stories and biasing them pro-Dominion, and blames Raynor often for chaos the Dominion helped cause, so how reliable the accounts are is up for debate.
- You can also realize how much of a jerk you (and thanks to your decisions, Raynor) are when you compare the two scenarios. Side with Tosh, and you break out New Folsom prison, Matt celebrating it as a liberation of all the scientists, thinkers, journalists, etc, who were nice people who just happened to disagree with Mengsk. Side with Nova, and you listen to Raynor call him a "scumbag" before Nova puts a knife in his head. Keeping in mind that this "scumbag" generously paid you to collect resources for him, provided recon and men to help you do it, and offered advice on your other missions.
Valerian Mengsk
"Everyone wonders if I will be as good an emperor as my father. But I want something more. To prove that I will be a better emperor. And a better man."
Voiced by: Josh Keaton.
Son of Arcturus Mengsk and heir apparent of the dominion. He is interested in archeology, especially the relics of the Xel'naga. It turns out he owns and runs the Moebius Foundation when Raynor's planned meeting with the company's ships turned up meeting up with the Bucephalus, the Dominion's flagship.
- Adventurer Archaeologist: As revealed in the Dark Templar novels, he desperately wishes he were one (instead of, you know, being revoltingly rich). Also, please note that in Starcraft, "archaeologist" doesn't mean "bookish scholar of ancient civilizations that occasionally ventures out to do some field work" but rather "Indiana Jones-style explorer that gets to travel to unexplored planets to study millenia-old relics left by the Xel'naga, and occasionally fights Zerg and Protoss".
- Authority Equals Asskicking: He tries to prove it at least.
- Badass Bookworm: Also a skilled swordsman and martial artist. Doesn't get out much, though.
- Bishonen
- Calling the Old Man Out: It's easily his Crowning Moment of Awesome, since he had no real reason of telling this to Arcturus except to rub it in his face. The kid just wanted to gloat.
"Father, I am about to accomplish that which you could not. Today I will defeat the Queen of Blades and secure peace throughout the Dominion. By this act the people will finally know that I am a worthy successor to you."
- Canon Immigrant: Before StarCraft II, he debuted in the Dark Templar novels.
- Enemy Mine: With Raynor, though he did manipulate him for a great deal through Tychus. However he was not aware of his father's plans with Tychus.
- Hair of Gold: Arthas IN SPACE! Minus the necromatic evilness.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He certainly appears to be a better man then his dad so far, but the Mengsk gene still carries confidence to the point of arrogance. See also Smug Snake.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: Wants to prove himself as this, which he does by defeating Kerrigan alongside Raynor.
- Smug Snake: He's rather confident that his ultimate plan cannot fail, which is saying something since his plan is to invade Char and de-infest Kerrigan using alien technology that no one is even sure will work. When Raynor notes his utter confidence, Valerian replies he's got too much at stake on the plan to see it fail at that point.
- Sunk Cost Fallacy: "I've invested far too much in this endeavor to see it fail." He doesn't even have the excuse of having the Zerg on the run.
- Warrior Prince: Tries to be one, anyway.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Subverted. Though flashbacks in The Dark Templar Saga show he was this as a kid, Arcturus was an Abusive Parent and Valerian grew out of it once he realized that. Now his goal is to be his own man rather than just Mengsk Jr., and is more interested in proving to the people that he's not his father and can be a better ruler than him.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: He might be an aversion but comes off as one to Jake because his assistant (who was a mole for his father) altered his orders without him being aware of it.
General Horace Warfield
"You missed your calling, Raynor. You would have made an excellent flag officer."
Voiced by: Gary Anthony Williams.
Mengsk's replacement for the deceased Edmund Duke, General Warfield is a very different kind of military leader than his predecessor. Smooth-talking and well-mannered, Warfield makes very few appearances in Wings of Liberty, mostly acting as Supporting Leader for Mengsk or an offscreen antagonist. Warfield does make an appearance at the end of the story, however.
- A Father to His Men: Not spelled out exactly, but pretty heavily implied, given his warm demeanor and tendency to fight on the front beside his men.
- Arm Cannon: Near the end of the game, he has his poisoned arm amputated and replaced with an arm cannon that transforms into a hand.
- Authority Equals Asskicking: He eats rocks and spits out gravel.
- Badass
- Badass Grandpa: Like Duke, he's probably in his fifties at least but he, like Fenix, "throws down with the best of them." And if you want a REAL explanation, all you need to know is that he punched a hydralisk to death and lived to tell about it.
- Four-Star Badass: Though oddly enough, he only has three stars on his uniform (which from our point of view, would give him the rank of lieutenant general at the most).
- Black Comedy: Near the end of the game, he loses the use of one of his arms. Cut to this conversation:
Raynor: "Good to see you on your feet, General."
Warfield: "Yeah, well, we'll see how long that lasts."
- Cool Old Guy: He's one of the more popular new characters out of the game, and for a good reason: He bayoneted a zergling, kills a hydralisk by PUNCHING IT IN THE GODDAMN FACE, and is so tough he shrugs off a enough poison to kill an ultralisk, and gets a shiny new arm cannon out of the deal.
- Cyborg: During the assault on Char, he loses his arm to zerg venom and gets it replaced with an Arm Cannon.
- Informed Ability: Warfield is allegedly a hyper-competent general, but his one opportunity to demonstrate this prowess goes terribly, terribly wrong.
- Meaningful Name: Warfield.
- One-Scene Wonder: He only gets a single cutscene where he does anything of note. What does he do? He guns down a bunch of zerg, runs out of ammo, whips out a bayonet on his rifle to impale a zergling through the throat, gets a half-dozen hydralisk spines through the right arm, then uses his left arm to punch it in the head and knock it aside. Hard to say if he killed it or just knocked it out, but either way damn! Oh, and those hydralisk spines only keep him down for a single mission, then he comes back with an Arm Cannon.
- Punch Clock Villain: One of a few interpretations of his character. He certainly does come off this way in the campaign, showing sincere admiration for Raynor and putting his own life on the line during the assault on Char. But then, he did lead Project Shadow Blade, which created the spectres.
- Remember the New Guy??: According to his backstory, he's been one of Mengsk's top officers ever since he began his rebellion against the Confederacy, which would mean Warfield was out there somewhere kicking ass for the entirety of the original game and Brood War.
- Retired Badass: He was retired prior to the game, Mengsk brought him back into service at the beginning of Wings of Liberty.
- The Southpaw
- What the Hell, Hero?: Gives one to Kerrigan in the Heart of the Swarm Trailer.
November Annabella "Nova" Terra
"Failure is never an option."
Voiced by: Grey DeLisle
A human female Ghost and assassin for the Terran Dominion. Also the would-be star of Starcraft: Ghost, a game stuck in Development Hell, although she was properly introduced in the Wings of Liberty campaign for Starcraft II. Nova's adventures have become something of their own sublicense within the franchise, with her backstory and training covered in a manga series and a novel, with a second on the way.
- Action Girl
- Awesome McCoolname: November Anabella Terra? Seriously?
- Broken Bird: Suffice it to say, her time spent as a telepathic slave for a mob-boss was so traumatic that the mandatory mind wipe was considered an incentive for becoming a Ghost.
- The Cameo: A shrine dedicated to her can be seen in "World of Warcraft", as well as a cloaked Blood Elf female.
- Canon Immigrant: From the game stuck in permanent Development Hell, Starcraft: Ghost.
- Depending on the Artist: Though Nova has pale blond hair in her official high-res Ghost render, in-game images had her with brighter yellow hair, and in the graphic novels her hair is orange.
- Enemy Mine: Approaches Raynor with the offer of taking out Tosh's Spectres, after which she gives him the schematics to make Ghosts of his own. Jim notes the risk she takes by doing so. If Raynor sides with Tosh instead Dr. Hanson claims that spectres are no more prone to insanity than normal people, this may or may be correct. Siding with Nova however reveals a note of jealousy with Ariel. However the game makes it clear that the only reason Raynor has to trust a Dominion assassin is because Tosh is a potentially more dangerous choice. Some of the news reports in the game suggest that the Spectres have been running a terrorist campaign against the Dominion, and leaving a lot of dead civilians in their wake. But overall, the choice between Nova and Tosh is definitely one of the weaker ones, at least from a storytelling perspective.
- Hair of Gold: Definitely no heart of gold, though.
- Knife Nut: It's a Ghost thing, apparently. A closer look at the cutscene shows that Nova actually swiped Tosh's balisong, complete with voodoo decal. Although she certainly handles it with familiarity.
- The Ojou: Before a terrorist attack killed her parents, anyways.
- Psychic Powers: Second only in power to Sarah Kerrigan herself, although she surpasses Kerrigan's powers when Sarah was in her Ghost self. She's able to do stuff like disable enemy weapons with her mind or kill an entire city block with her telekinesis. Of course, Kerrigan's now a planetary-level consciousness since her infestation, and she's basically in a league of her own.
- Punch Clock Villain: In "Ghost of a Chance," she informs Raynor that she will see him "soon". Being an assassin...
- Go to the Hyperion Armory after completing 'Ghost of a Chance'. Wait for a few minutes... Nova is stowing away on the Hyperion.
- Super Soldier
- Tyke Bomb
Doctor Ariel Hanson
"You're a good man, James Raynor."
Voiced by: Ali Hillis
A selfless and altruistic scientist who was rescued by Raynor's Raiders after the planet Agria was overrun by the Zerg. She decides to help out his cause after learning that the Terran Dominion had pulled out of Agria, declaring the Agrian colonists expendable. Hanson tries to steer Raynor towards doing the right thing, being described as the angel on Jim's shoulders, as opposed to Tychus, who is the devil.
- Alternate Character Interpretation: In-Universe example. Tosh keeps referring to Ariel as a "Honeypot" and implies that there's more to her than meets the eye. In the aftermath of the non-canon mission "Haven's Fall" mission he's proven right. He outright says that all of the infested colonists were a time bomb waiting to happen and says Hanson was a honey trap from the start.
- And Then John Was a Zombie: If you choose to help the protoss on Haven, she becomes infested. Given Horner's comments during the mission it's implied she did it to herself.
- Body Horror: Her infested form. Yikes.
- But Now I Must Go: If the player decides to side with her, then she settles in Haven after the fight, and invites Raynor to stay. Raynor declines, because he has to "finish the job", and says that "guys like me don't get second chances". The worst part is that, unless the player skips the missions post-Meinhoff, (thus losing the chance to use the Vikings in further missions) it doesn't matter if the player decides to side with or against her, she doesn't stick around.
- The Chick
- Dude Magnet: Almost the entire Hyperion crew is in agreement that Ariel Hanson is quite the looker.
- Dull Surprise
- The Heart
- Hot Scientist
- Mad Scientist: The choice between Hanson and Selendis guarantees this trope if you notice the reactions both take to your choice. Selendis is rather calm and understanding regardless of the choice Raynor makes (Selendis challenges Raynor to "friendly combat" if Hanson is the choice made, and is rather sympathetic to Raynor's challenge of saving the colonists even if he has to kill some). Hanson, on the other hand, flips her lid if you choose Selendis, which says a lot about her rational thinking if you know what happens after "Haven's Fall". It's also implied that, in the "Haven's Fall" choice, she infests herself at Haven in a desperate attempt to save the colonists.
- Large Ham: Her complaints during "The Evacuation" cause this trope to happen, as well as the entire basis for her character before and after "Haven's Fall".
During "The Evacuation"
Ariel: The Dominion DIDN'T GIVE A DAMN about the colony!
Ariel: Oh my god, the SLAUGHTER. I can't bear to watch...
Ariel: People I've known SINCE I WAS A LITTLE GIRL. All killed because of- Mission failure soundbit
After the Evacuation, both before and after siding with Selendis
Ariel: I KNOW I can save my people, Jim.
Ariel: I THOUGHT you were a BETTER MAN than this!
After finishing "Haven's Fall"
Ariel: Why don't you kill me, like YOU KILLED MY CHILDREN?
Ariel: Go ahead... FINISH IT.
- Meganekko: Envisioned by Blizzard as a "doctor lady with glasses who looks really cute".
- Motherly Scientist
- Not That Kind of Doctor: She has a doctorate in bioengineering, though apparently she also gives out
thorough examinations and sick notes. - Omnidisciplinary Scientist: She's a chemist and biologist and archaeologist and who knows what else.
Egon Stetmann
"Zerg are so fascinating. I wish we knew more about their physiology."
Voiced by: Scott Menville.
A geeky young scientist dedicated to Raynor's Raiders. He spends most of his time in the Hyperion's research laboratory, requesting Protoss and Zerg samples to further his research for Raynor.
- Adaptational Badass: StarCraft 2's character profile for him on the Battle.Net website depicts Stettman in a more "bad ass" light, going as far as explaining his ideologies and his reasoning for joining Raynor's Raiders, which the StarCraft 2 campaign in-game fails to do.
- Combat Medic
- For Science!: Averted, he quit a Dominion science project and was almost executed by criminals because of his morals. His logs on the Protoss and Zerg samples also highlight this. In an early log for the Protoss artifact, he states that if it becomes a threat to the ship he'll destroy it. He refuses to apply Zerg regeneration to a biological use for humans, calling that horrifying; and recognizes that he will have to destroy the Zerg sample eventually, but he wants to wait until he has learned all he can from it.
- Genius Ditz: With huge emphasis on the "Ditz" part.
- Hollywood Nerd: Most soldiers wear bandoleers of ammo strapped to them. Egon straps cans of energy drink to his body.
- The Medic
- Must Have Caffeine
- Omnidisciplinary Scientist: He appears to be an expert in xenobiology, metallurgy, and weapons development, and probably half a dozen other fields, in addition to being a combat medic in the commando mission. (Although the protoss crystal he's tinkering with in the lab is supposedly helping him.)
- The Smart Guy
- There Will Be Toilet Paper: He has a very telling piece of bloody toilet paper on his cheek.
Rory Swann
"Jimmy, you need stuff fixed, I'm your guy. This crawlin' around in caves... that guy I ain't."
Voiced by: Fred Tatasciore
The Hyperion's chief engineer, spend most of his time in the ships armory, and is responsible for the upgrading the Raiders weapons. Formerly a miner, he lost his arm in a revolt against the Combine, and was saved by Raynor's Raiders, where he joined them later on.
- American Accents: Noo Yawk... for no particular reason.
- Arm Cannon: He has a mechanical hand that can transform into a rocket launcher much similar to the Marauders'. It's also apparently capable of doubling as a wrench, which makes sense since he's a super-mechanic.
- Artificial Limbs
- Big Applesauce
- Catch Phrase:
"I got something new for you cowboy"
- The Engineer
- I Call It Vera: He calls his deployable turret Flaming Betty. Its rank is listed as "Swann's BFF."
- Omnidisciplinary Scientist: He has a deep knowledge of weapons and vehicles of all types, and is able to redesign the Odin to make it field-buildable despite knowing nothing about it.
- Shipper on Deck: For Raynor and Nova. Granted, the entire basis of his dialogue regarding this is entirely for humor and referring to a certain other Ghost who Nova reminds him of.
- The Smart Guy: A much rougher example than usual, making him come off as a very sophisticated auto mechanic.
Kate Lockwell and Donny Vermillion
"What is wrong with that woman? Tell her not to interrupt my interviews!"—Donny, regarding Kate.
Voiced by: Rachael MacFarlane (Kate) and Blair Bess. (Donny)
Two reporters working for the UNN. Kate tries to be impartial, but often gets blocked by her coworker Donny Vermillion. After Vermillion looses his mind, Kate gets promoted to chief anchor.
- Blatant Lies: Very often, due to being controlled by Terran Dominion, often in a very unconvincing manner. During one broadcast, a Dominion Marine even shows up to shut it down.
Kate Lockwell: "In fact, Donny, survivors have credited Raynor's Raiders--"
Donny Vermillion: "I'll have to cut you off there, Kate! We've got a breaking story. Uh...uhm...g-go to commercial. Yes. Commercial."
Donny Vermillion:"I assume casualties were high as a result of Raynor's terrorist actions."
Kate Lockwell: "Actually the only civilian deaths appear to be collateral damage from overzealous Dominion security forc--"
Donny Vermillion:"Thanks, Kate. You heard it here first! Jim Raynor: Killing women and children on Mar Sara."
- Break the Haughty: Donny Vermillion experiences when confronted with undeniable proof that the government that he worships caused his brother's death.
- Canon Immigrant: Kate Lockwell appeared in the comics before she did in-game.
- Catch Phrase:
Donny: You heard it here first!.
- Double Standard: Donny answers the question posed by some viewers that ask what's wrong with Raynor rebelling against the Dominion when it was founded after Arcturus rebelled and overthrew the Confederacy. His response? "Yes, but Emperor Mengsk didn't do it during an alien invasion!" This completely ignores the fact that while Mengsk may not have begun his rebellion during an alien invasion, the arrival of the Zerg and Protoss did nothing to dissuade him from stopping. And, in more ways than one, he twisted it to his advantage.
- Hot Scoop: Kate. In fact, the Crown Prince has a crush on her.
- Kent Brockman News: UNN Live with Donny Vermillion. Raynor shoots at the screen with a broadcast in the first cinematic on Mar Sara, and got a note from the bartender mentioning that the screen would be put on his tab!. That's why there's a "don't shoot the screen" warning sign attached to the big TV screen in the Hyperion cantina.
- Newsreel: The UNN, which has been around since StarCraft. Used by the Confederacy, then by the Dominion as a propaganda machine.
- Only Sane Woman: Kate
- Show Within a Show: The UNN newscasts.
- Those Two Guys
Mira Horner (née Han)
Voiced by: Katherine Soucie.
A mercenary who leads the Mira's Mercs, and who sports an eastern-european accent. She and the Mercs help the Raiders during a mission... by having them to pay an amount of minerals before another empolyee of her does.
- Arranged Marriage: That surname? Matt Horner won a poker game, and the prize was her. Needless to say, he doesn't stay in touch with her.
- Green Eyes: Though we only see one of them.
- Goggles Do Nothing
- Mercenaries
- Mismatched Eyes: Her right eye has evidently been replaced by a cybernetic implant, so it has an overlarge pupil, red iris and black sclera.
- You Gotta Have Pink Hair.
Protoss
Praetor Karass
Voiced by: Guerin Barry.
A Protoss High Templar. He encountered Zeratul in Ulaan, and fought the Zerg masses.
- Glowing Eyes of Doom: Like all Protoss, he's a non-evil example
- Heroic Sacrifice: In the first Protoss mission.
- One-Scene Wonder: He appears in exactly one mission, for about five minutes, and is never mentioned again. But in those five minutes he helps save the universe.
Urun
Voiced by: Jonathan Cook.
Urun is the leader of the Auriga Tribe and a member of the Protoss Hierarchy.
In the game, he's seen as part of the Overmind's vision, taking part in the final stand on Shakuras against a hybrid-controlled Swarm. He rallied the remnants of the Great Fleet and had a small ground force gathered as well. Alongside the remnants of his species, he did battle, however, for all their valor, it was to no avail, and Urun fell alongside his people, declaring that there were "too many of them".
- Cool Hat: his face is completely obscured by the visor. Considering that this is pretty much everything his profile model consists of (besides the back of the cockpit and the starry backdrop that is) people would joke about Urun himself being just a cool talking helmet floating in space.
- Cool Starship: he's piloting one.
- Senseless Sacrifice: During "In Utter Darkness".
Mohandar
Voiced by: Armin Shimerman
Mohandar is an elderly leader of the Dark Templar caste, and a member of the Hierarchy.
In the game, Mohandar was killed in the Overmind's vision of the protoss' final stand against the Dark Voice. He went into battle leading the remaining void rays. As his ship was destroyed, Mohandar declared he was returning to the Void.
- Cool Starship: as with Urun, he too appears piloting one of these.
- Senseless Sacrifice: During "In Utter Darkness".
Selendis
"The only cure to Zerg infestation is purification by fire! You know this to be true, James Raynor!"
Voiced by: Cree Summer
The current Protoss Executor, originally having been a student of Artanis's before his ascension to Hierarch. She possesses a strong sense of duty and honor as a Khalai Protoss. Although she feels threatened by the Dark Templars and the Terrans, she is more than willing to put aside their differences to bring the battle to the Zerg. Selendis oversaw Ulrezaj's defeat over Shakuras and slew the infested Terran Ethan Stewart.
- Authority Equals Asskicking: Sure, we only see her participate in one battle, but Selendis is miles ahead of the only other Protoss female seen in the series.
- Cool Starship
- Heroic Sacrifice: In the Overmind's vision, "In Utter Darkness". She pilots a Carrier.
- Lady of War: Selendis pilots a carrier in battle, being the only major named female Protoss character so far to participate in battle.
- Previous Player Character Cameo: She may be the protoss commander from Brood War. With some aspects of her personality revealed, some of the plot issues of Brood War are cleared up—as well as underlining why she was still the protagonist.
- At the very least, she is confirmed to have been the executor during the Dark Vengeance mini campaign.
- Proud Warrior Race Gal: She seems excited to get to fight with a hero like Raynor and wishes him luck when she loses.
"If you choose to resist us, we shall meet in glorious combat."
- The Smurfette Principle: To date, she's only the second female Protoss we've seen, the first being the Dark Templar's Matriarch. There's three if you include the female flying the Mothership.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist
- Wild Mass Guessing: It is possible that she was the unnamed Executor in Episode IV, seeing as how she worked under Artanis.
- Worthy Opponent: If you choose to fight her in the canonical last mission of Dr. Hanson's branch in the campaign, she says it would be an honor to fight you, and shows no malice if you drive her off (and indeed hopes you are right).
Tal'darim Executor
"We will follow you to the ends of the universe, James Raynor! A thousand deaths cannot atone for your wanton sacrilege"
Voiced by: Gary Anthony Williams
The leader of the Tal'darim, a fanatical splinter group of Protoss that guard the Xel'naga artifacts and other hotspots of protoss/xel'naga influence. Acts as the Protoss antagonist of the campaign.
- All There in the Manual: He's never named in-game, but files for the beta named him "Lhassir". In the completed version he may be "Nyon", the name given to the achievement profile that rewards a portrait that looks just like him.
- Authority Equals Asskicking
- Badass Boast: Before he brings in his Mothership:
Make peace with your Gods, defilers! You will now answer for your crimes!
- Boss Banter: The guy never shuts up on any of the missions you encounter his men on.
- Cool Starship: In "Maw of the Void" commands a beefed-up Mothership.
- Dangerously Genre Savvy: Don't let the pseudo-religious babbling fool you, this guy knows what he's doing. Take "Welcome to the Jungle" for example, he goes after your SCVs when they try to harvest terrazine, uses his probes to seal altars you haven't been to yet, and brings an escort to protect them. He also mentions in "Supernova" that he was expecting Raynor to show up looking for the next artifact.
- Get Back Here Boss: When he finally takes the field in "Maw of the Void" he fights you for a bit, then teleports away when he starts to take too much damage.
- Scary Dogmatic Aliens: He and the other Tal'darim are Knight Templar versions of regular Protoss.
- Senseless Sacrifice: He and his men "gladly march towards death to [ensure] your doom". At least "Maw of the Void" shows he isn't too wimpy to be unwilling to do this himself.
- The Usual Adversaries: Whenever Raynor meets the Tal'darim executor, the Executor makes a number of over the top threats (like the page quote) at Raynor. Raynor mostly reacts with mild to medium annoyance.
Other
The Dark Voice / The Fallen One
"Foolish, prideful children."
Voiced by: Ric Wasserman
An ancient and mysterious entity.
Associated Tropes:
- A God Am I: Of course, it might actually be a God. In the Galaxy Map Editor he's actually given the name Amon.
- All Your Base Are Belong to Us
- Badass Boast: Pretty much all of its dialogue is this or a "The Reason You Suck" Speech..
- Big Bad: Quite possibily of the entire series. It's said that the Dark Voice was the one who subverted the Overmind to cause the Zerg to become a Horde of Alien Locusts bent on consuming everything in the first place. He also says "As I was your beginning, so shall I be your end." This all implies he's a renegade Xel'Naga, though it has yet to be totally confirmed.
- Eldritch Abomination
- Glowing Eyes of Doom
- Hannibal Lecture: He does almost all the time in 'In Utter Darkness' mission.
- Kill'Em All: From what Zeratul has seen, this is the result if the Voice comes to power. And apparently it's done this before.
- Omnicidal Maniac: Apparently, his plan is to bring eternal darkness to the whole Universe, remaking it in his name.
- Outside Context Villain: We know literally diddly squat about this guy, and his influence is so well hidden that only the Overmind's vision of the future revealed it.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: The Dark Voice portrait sports these, and not much else.
- Shrouded in Myth: There's a line in the prophecy about him.
- The End Of The Galaxy As We Know It:
- The Man Behind the Man: To both the Overmind and Samir Duran. It's also very heavily implied that Mengsk and Ulrazej are on his payroll as well.
- Ultimate Evil
- Villain Ball: His boasts in 'In Utter Darkness' warn you when he will begin sending his Hybrids and Nydus Worms, allowing you to prepare your forces accordingly.
- Voice of the Legion
- You Are Too Late: He reveals to the Protoss that he could have been stopped by Kerrigan, but by that point, she was already dead. Fortunately, the Overmind was listening from the past.
- You Fool!: To the Protoss. See the quote above.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Apparently this is his plan for everyone.
Maar
"Your life is FORFEIT... surrender to DESPAIR!"
Voiced by: ???
Maar is a Protoss/Zerg hybrid that appeared in the Protoss wolrd of Zhakul. Zeratul had to fight agaisnt him.
- Came Back Strong: Repeatedly. Every time you defeat him, he charges himself up with more protoss energy from the elders and comes back physically larger, with more hit points and a stronger attack. The longer it takes to finish the mission the harder it gets.
- Large Ham: PROBABLY the HAMMIEST CHARACTER of the FRANCHISE!
- Hybrid Monster
- Mind Control: Pulls this on an entire Protoss base.
- Mini Boss
- Psychic Powers
Introduced in StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm
Zerg
Izsha
Kerrigan's primary advisor in the Zerg Campaign.
- The Lancer/The Dragon: To Kerrigan.
- Evil Feels Good: Strongly admires Kerrigan from her time as the Queen of Blades.
- Social Darwinist
- Token Good Teammate: Word of God describes her as more sympathetic than Abathur, her concept "was to strike a balance between human and monster."
- Was Once a Man: Formerly Amanda Haley, a psychic Terran who became infested.
Abathur
The Genetic Library of the Swarm.
- Catch Phrase: "I will show you the future of the Swarm!"
- The Smart Guy
- Token Evil Teammate: Word of God describes him having an evil and diabolical nature.
Na'Fash
One of Kerrigan's former lieutenants who decided that Kerrigan was no longer worthy of leading the Swarm following her defeat on Char.
- The Starscream: Sort of subverted since she's following Kerrigan's own policy of "the strong rule".
- The Unfought: Gets killed by the Protoss before Kerrigan can kill her.
Introduced in StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void
- Back to StarCraft II