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List of Gaunt's Ghosts Characters

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This page contains spoilers for: Gaunt's Ghosts (Novel Series)

Characters that appear in the Gaunt's Ghosts Novel Series by Dan Abnett.

Contents

Tanith First and Only ("Gaunt's Ghosts")

Senior Command

Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt

  • Commanding officer of the Tanith First and Only. Not native to Tanith, former Commissar Gaunt was given his unusual dual rank and command of the Tanith Regiments by Warmaster Slaydo on his deathbed. Saved the Tanith 1st from the destruction of their homeworld and has led them into battle ever since, except for a period of almost two years when he was operating undercover on the Chaos-held world of Gereon. Eventually extracted from Gereon, he was not immediately allowed to resume command of the Ghosts and operated as a regular commissar for a short time, before the death of Colonel Lucien Wilder allowed him to step back in. He was captured by the Blood Pact during intense fighting in Hinzerhaus on Jago and assumed dead, but he was eventually rescued by Scout-Sergeant Mkoll and Untill partisan Eszrah ap Niht. During his time as a captive he was tortured extensively, and afterwards required augmetics to replace his eyes. During a regimental sabbatical on Balhaut Gaunt helped protect a high-level enemy defector from an Archenemy kill-team, and later led a secret mission to Salvation's Reach to utilise intel the defector provided. Due to the vagaries of the Warp, Gaunt and the Tanith returned from the mission ten years after they had left, even though only weeks had passed on board their ship. Having been posthumously decorated for his service, Gaunt was promoted to Lord Militant General upon his arrival at Urdesh and aided Warmaster Macaroth in defeating Archenemy Magister Anakwanar Sek.
  • Gaunt commanded 1st Platoon in the Tanith 1st's original structure. After returning to regimental command post-Gereon, he took command of the recreated A Company and led it until his promotion to Lord Militant General elevated him above the regiment's normal command structure.

Colonel Colm Corbec

  • Original 2nd-in-command of the Tanith First-and-Only. A beloved figure, Corbec led 2nd Platoon for several years before being killed in action on the Shrineworld of Herodor by the traitor Lijah Cuu. 765.M41 - 773.M41 (KIA).

Colonel Lucien Wilder

  • Originally commander of the Belladon 81st regiment, Wilder became commander of the 81st-1st Recon, the new regiment formed by combining the Belladon 81st and Tanith 1st, after Gaunt was declared MIA on Gereon. Sacrificed himself leading a last stand on Ancreon Sextus so that the majority of the regiment could escape, after which leadership reverted back to Gaunt.

Major Elim Rawne

  • Senior Tanith officer and effective 2nd-in-command of the regiment since the death of Colonel Corbec. Harbours an infamous hatred for Gaunt for leaving Tanith to die and attempted to kill him on Blackshard, but has since become a capable and reliable, if not likeable, officer. He later joined Gaunt on the mission to Gereon, during which the two overcame their animosity. Rawne has commanded the entire Tanith regiment on two occasions: on Jago when Gaunt was believed killed in action, and on Urdesh when Gaunt was stuck at High Command during a major enemy offensive.
  • In the original structure of the Tanith 1st, Rawne commanded 3rd Platoon. Post-Gereon, he was given command of B Company.

Major Gol Kolea

  • A scratch-company veteran and war hero, Kolea started off as a sergeant leading Ten Platoon until he suffered brain damage from a head wound on Phantine. He spent time as a mentally handicapped grunt trooper before being miraculously healed by Saint Sabbat, but afterwards allowed Tona Criid to retain command of Ten Platoon. Too good a soldier to remain a simple trooper, he was promoted straight to major upon the Tanith 1st's merging with the Belladon 81st, becoming the senior Verghastite officer in the 81st/1st Recon. He retained rank after Gaunt's resumption of command, leading C Company on Gereon and Jago and at Salvation's Reach. He was detained by the Inquisition on Urdesh in relation to an incident with a daemonic hostile on Aigor 911, but was cleared of suspicion after direct intervention from the Beati. Horribly, both of Kolea's 'children', Yoncy and Dalin, turned out to be highly sophisticated woe machines planted within the regiment years ago on Verghast by Heritor Asphodel, and Kolea was obliterated by a daemon-machine horror that he had believed was his son.

Major Braden Baskevyl

  • Senior Belladon officer and second-in-command of the regiment during Colonel Wilder's tenure, originally commanding B Company. Remained one of the most senior officers after Gaunt's resumption of command, now leading D Company. Close friends with Gol Kolea.

Major Yve Petrushkevskaya

  • Commander of the Verghastite companies which reinforced the regiment on Menazoid Sigma prior to the mission to Salvation's Reach. A veteran of the Siege of Vervunhive, she was badly wounded in a drill accident during the Salvation's Reach mission but led the majority of the regiment during operations on Urdesh. Goes by 'Major Pasha' to simplify communication during combat.

Commissar Viktor Hark

  • Disciplinary officer attached to the regiment to support Gaunt's dual role and, initially, to oversee his fall from grace on Hagia. Remained with the regiment after Gaunt's reversal of fortune and overcame his initial lack of popularity through dedicated and courageous service. Lost his left arm to loxatl flechette fire on Herodor, granted an augmetic replacement.

Junior Commissar Nahum Ludd

  • Trainee commissar attached to the regiment under Hark's tutelage.

Commissar Luna Fazekiel

  • Commissar who joined the regiment as part of the new influx prior to Salvation's Reach. She is highly intelligent, and extremely organised due to her obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Commissar Vaynom Blenner

  • Gaunt's oldest friend who has known him since their time together in the Schola Progenium on Ignatius Cardinal. Saved Gaunt's life on Pyrites during his investigation into Lord Militant General Hechtor Dravere's plan to usurp warmaster Macaroth, and served with a ceremonial regiment for several years before joining the Tanith First on Balhaut. Friendly and charming but also selfish and cowardly, he has been known to lie about his combat experience and tries to avoid getting too close to the action. His fear of combat led Medic Dorden to prescribe him useless 'anti-anxiety' pills for their placebo effect, but he quickly became dependent on them and fell under the influence of Captain Meryn, who supplied him with actual illicit medication in return for corrupt favours. Blenner executed Captain Jakub Wilder on Urdesh in order to cover up a failed plan to extort Merity Chass which Meryn had blackmailed him into joining, but guilt over his actions eventually drove him to resolve to do better in future.

Chief Medic Tolin Dorden

  • Most senior medic to escape the Fall of Tanith. A dedicated pacifist, he has fired a weapon in anger only once, to save Gaunt's life. The only Ghost to have a family member in the regiment until his son Mikal's death on Verghast. Dorden served with distinction for many years, though his pacifism often conflicted with Gaunt's ruthlessness, most notably when Dorden put himself between Gaunt's pistol and trooper Costin, who had caused the deaths of multiple squadmates through drunken incompetence. This ultimately proved to be a mistake, as Costin only temporarily reformed and fell back into drinking and criminal activity. Dorden was diagnosed with terminal leukemia on Balhaut and killed in action at Salvation's Reach, choosing to die in the field rather than in bed.

Chief Scout Sergeant Oan Mkoll

  • Leader of the Tanith's elite scout unit and valued advisor to Gaunt despite technically only ranking as a squad leader. Displays incredible stealth and commando skills, having taken out a Chaos Dreadnought and assassinated Blood Pact warlord Sagittar Slaith.

Company and Squad Leaders

Captain Tona Criid

  • A former ganger from Vervunhive, Tona Criid joined the Ghosts and served in Rawne's 3rd Platoon along with her lover Caffran before becoming the regiment's first female sergeant. During the Siege of Vervunhive she adopted two young children, Dalin and Yoncy, whose mother had been killed, and she and Caffran became their adoptive parents. Unbeknownst to all but a few, Dalin and Yoncy were actually the children of Gol Kolea, who resolved to reveal himself but was robbed of his memory and personality by a head-wound on Phantine. Criid subsequently took command of Kolea's platoon, a position he allowed her to keep after his miraculous healing by the Beati, and she later took part in the deep-cover mission to Gereon. After returning from Gereon she was given command of P Company, but lost her lover Caffran when the regiment returned to Gereon as part of the relief force. Criid helped Gaunt protect the Archenemy defector Mabbon etogaur from a Blood Pact kill-team on Balhaut, and Gaunt later promoted Criid to captain and gave her command of A Company.

Captain Flyn Meryn

  • A longtime Corporal who was once respected as a decent soldier, Meryn received the brevet rank of Sergeant while leading part of Operation Larisel on Phantine. During the operation he ruthlessly killed civilians who stumbled across his team in order to maintain their cover, and after receiving permanent promotion to Sergeant of Fourteen Platoon began modelling himself on Major Rawne, becoming arrogant and callous. Despite this, or perhaps due to Colonel Wilder's unfamiliarity with the Tanith 1st, Meryn was promoted to Captain in the 81st-1st and took command of E Company. He has since taken Rawne's place as ringleader of the regiment's underground, providing Commissar Blenner with illicit pills in order to blackmail him and planning an attempt to extort money from Gaunt's son Felyx, murdering Eszrah ap Niht in cold blood in order to cover his tracks when the plan went wrong.

Captain Ferdy Kolosim

  • A Belladon captain from the 81st recon, Kolosim was the leader of the Belladon scouts and was considered one of their best, but like all Belladon had to rapidly revise his standards after encountering the Tanith, especially once Bonin and Mkoll returned from Gereon. Considered one of the best Belladon officers, he led F Company once Gaunt resumed regiment command.

Captain Ban Daur

  • The highest ranking member of the Vervun Primary to join the Ghosts, Daur was originally the only captain and the senior Verghastite officer in the regiment. Because of his people skills he was often given liaison and support responsibilities, and he was often frustrated not to be allowed onto the front lines. He became less prominent after the creation of the 81st-1st, which resulted in a number of new officers being promoted to captain and Gol Kolea being elevated past him to the rank of major, but he continued to be an exemplary officer, making G Company the most tightly drilled and efficient in the regiment.

Captain Lunny Obel

  • A reliable, veteran Tanith officer, Obel was sergeant of Eleven Platoon before being promoted to captain of J Company.

Captain Dohon Domor

  • An original Tanith, Domor began as a sweeper specialist, a role he continued to excel in even after losing his eyes on Menazoid Epsilon. Nicknamed 'Shoggy' for his new resemblance to a bug-eyed Tanith amphibian, he was promoted to Sergeant of Twelve Platoon which served as Saint Sabbat's personal honour guard during the battle of Herodor. Promoted to Captain in the new 81st-1st regiment, he took command of K Company and single-handedly averted a major friendly-fire incident on Ancreon Sextus. He was badly wounded in the battle of Hinzerhaus on Jago and spent most of that campaign in the infirmary.

Captain Arcuda

  • A thin faced Verghastite, Arcuda took over Indrimmo's platoon after Phantine. Saw his first action as a sergeant on Aexe Cardinal, was promoted to company leader in the new 81st-1st Recon and lead N Company once Gaunt resumed regiment command.

Captain Ornella Zhukova

  • A beautiful Verghastite Vervun Primary and scratch-company veteran, Zhukova was second-in-command of the new influx reinforcements that joined the Tanith prior to Salvation's Reach. Though a capable company leader, Scout-Sergeant Mkoll recognised her potential as a scout whilst fighting alongside her to repel V'heduak boarders from the Highness Ser Armaduke and later inducted her into the scout company on Urdesh.

Captain Nico Spetnin

  • A Verghastite captain from the new influx, Spetnin took command of T Company after Zhukova joined the scout cadre.

Captain Jakub Wilder

  • The younger brother of Lucien Wilder, Jakub joined the Tanith regiment with a company of Belladon reinforcements prior to the Salvation's Reach mission. Angered by the regiment's dismissive attitude towards V Company, which doubles as a colours band, and by the apparent erasure of his older brother's legacy, Wilder fell out with Gaunt almost immediately and began associating with Captain Meryn and his fellow malcontents Didi Gendler and Costin. Wilder helped Meryn gain leverage over Commissar Blenner and joined Gendler in trying to extort Felyx Chass, but the plan went badly wrong when Eszrah ap Niht intervened to protect Chass, and Meryn forced Blenner to execute Wilder in order to cover his tracks.

Sergeant Ceglan Varl

  • A Tanith trooper promoted from the ranks to command of Nine Platoon, Varl is roguish, charismatic and well-liked. Wounded in the shoulder on Fortis Binary, he was then fitted with his signature augmetic replacement. A practiced shyster, he can often be found running games of chance in order to trick men from other regiments out of their money. He participated in both Operation Larisel and the mission to Gereon, becoming the most senior squad commander in Rawne's B Company after their return. His squad later petitioned for and won the right to guard the Archenemy defector Mabbon Etogaur during the mission to Salvation's Reach, naming themselves the 'Suicide Kings'. Varl and Mabbon developed a rapport during their time as prisoner and guard, and Varl was unhappy when the regiment finally handed Mabbon over to the Inquisition.

Sergeant Dermon Caffran

  • Originally the youngest trooper in the regiment, Caffran showed leadership talent during the siege of Oskray Hive on Sapiencia and was eventually promoted to sergeant. He met Tona Criid during the Siege of Vervunhive and the two fell in love, even adopting two war-orphans as their pseudo-children. While on Phantine Caffran was implicated in the rape and murder of a civilian woman and almost executed, but Gaunt and Hark managed to get him off. Unfortunately, he was killed during the liberation of Gereon when a scared civilian child shot him in the chest, dying before he could see his adoptive son Dalin be inducted into the regiment as a trooper.

Sergeant Agun Soric

  • A former foundry boss from Verghast, Soric become a scratch-company leader during the Siege of Vervunhive and then one of the most respected Ghosts. Though not the highest ranking Verghastite in the regiment, he was held in great esteem by the Verghastite Ghosts and commanded the mostly Verghastite 5th Platoon. Mortally wounded on Phantine, he managed to pull through, and the brush with death activated his latent psyker powers. He eventually turned himself in on Herodor, and despite providing crucial warnings that helped the Imperial forces save the Beati, was taken away by the black ships. Tortured and mutilated beyond recognition, he was deployed in a train of battlefield psykers on Jago and sent the Ghosts cryptic warnings in an attempt to help them. Upon seeing his condition, Commissar Hark mercy-killed him.

Sergeant Raglon

  • Once one of the 1st's vox operators, Raglon was given brevet command of 2nd platoon while Corbec was wounded on Phantine and later given permanent command of Seventeen Platoon after Sergeant Adare was killed in the same campaign. Took heavy losses in his first action as sergeant on Aexe Cardinal thanks to the drunken carelessness of Trooper Costin, but overcame this difficult start and became a model squad leader. Later promoted to captain, he was badly wounded in a drill accident at Salvation's Reach.

Sergeant Cluggan

  • One of the regiment's original squad leaders, Cluggan was a popular older man who turned impending defeat into victory on Voltemand when his squad were able to blow open the defences of Voltis City. Unfortunately he soon after became the victim of inter-regimental enmity when General Noches Sturm of the Volpone Bluebloods ordered the Ketzok Serpents to fire on the returning Tanith, killing two hundred troopers including Cluggan.

Sergeant Dorain Hasker

  • Hasker was one of the earlier squad leaders in whose platoon Tolin Dorden's son Mikal served. They suffered heavy casualties including Hasker on Menazoid Epsilon when Chaos energy fields erupted from stone monoliths around the battlefield, but he achieved posthumous revenge when the fields set off the explosives he was preparing to use on the monoliths, causing a chain-reaction explosion that destroyed the entire front of the cliff the Chaos cultists were using as a stronghold.

Sergeant Blane

  • One of the early Tanith sergeants from the original regiment Founding, Gaunt tasked Blane with watching the Tanith's rear during the Menazoid Epsilon campaign, when he suspected that Lord Militant Hechtor Dravere's henchmen would make their bid for the information Gaunt had in his possession. Sure enough the Jantine Patricians, a veteran Guard regiment with equipment far superior to the lightly armed Tanith, assaulted the Ghosts from behind. Blane and Seven Platoon sold their lives dearly, dying to a man holding up the Patricians and causing casualties many times their own number.

Sergeant Lerod

  • An officer of the Tanith Magna militia before signing up for the Guard, Lerod was a die-hard adherent of the Imperial Creed and had the aquila symbol tattooed on the side of his head. He took command of Seven Platoon after Menazoid Epsilon but became convinced his life was charmed after narrowly escaping enemy fire on Monthax and ended up the only casualty of the final battle in that theatre when a deflecting las-round struck his head.

Sergeant Baffels

  • A bearded man in his early forties with a barrel chest and a blue tattoo claw that lined his cheek, Baffels received a field promotion after the death of Sergeant Fols during the siege of Vervunhive. Never able to fully settle in to his new role and anxious to live up to Gaunt's expectations, he took a foolhardy risk trying to prove himself against an enemy Baneblade on Hagia and was cut down by one of the tank's pintle-mounts.

Sergeant Lhurn Adare

  • One of the original Tanith, Adare, along with Varl, Bragg, Corbec, Larkin and a few others were considered to be the backbone of the Tanith Regiment. His tactical smarts and likable attitude got him his sergeant's bars, upon which he quite famously got roaring drunk. Picked as one of the squad leaders for the Larisel operation, Adare was killed in action. His platoon went on to be headed by Raglon.

Troopers

Master Sniper Hlaine Larkin

  • Hlaine 'Mad' Larkin is the best sniper in the Tanith regiment but suffers from anxiety and migraines and occasionally experiences delusions. On Bucephalon he suffered a panic attack and fled the battlefield, but after hallucinating an encounter with an angel was able to recover and make a killing shot on Nokad the Blighted. Rather superstitious, he believes that the scope of his long-las shows him the truth, though this may be somewhat accurate as he was able to see through Farseer Eon Kull's mental illusions while looking through the scope on Monthax. A good friend of heavy-weapons trooper Bragg, Larkin's dislike of Lijah Cuu deepened into enmity when the latter admitted to murdering him. Cuu tried to kill Larkin twice on Aexe Cardinal, and while Larkin eventually killed Cuu on Herodor, he was not in time to save Colonel Corbec from the murderer's shots. He later joined the deep-cover mission to Gereon, during which he developed a specialised battlefield technique along with flame-trooper Brostin whereby Brostin would toss his flamer's fuel tanks towards the enemy and Larkin would shoot them as they fell to earth, creating a devastating firestorm.

Sniper Nessa Bourah

  • One of Kolea's original scratch company, Nessa fought against the Zoicans at Vervunhive. Permanently deafened by shelling, she has gone beyond her impairment to become an excellent sniper in the Tanith First. Wounded by a gut-shot on Hagia, she accompanied Colonel Corbec on the expedition to the Shrinehold, and later survived Operation Larisel on Phantine, making the first shot on Sagittar Slaith. She is regarded as the prettiest woman in the regiment, not because of a feminine body but because of her beautiful face. For reasons not explained in the books, she is referred to primarily by her first name, unlike the other female soldiers in the regiment - for example, Jessi Banda, Tona Criid and Sehra Muril are normally referred to "Banda", "Criid" and "Muril" respectively.

Sniper Jessi Banda

  • Jessi Banda is a female Verghastite who joined the regiment after fighting in a scratch-company during the Siege of Vervunhive. An excellent shot, she initially missed out on a place in the regiment's sniper section as marksmanship specialists from the Vervun Primary were given priority but quickly took the place of one who was killed on Hagia. A sassy, irreverent woman, she infuriated Major Rawne with her attitude even as he came to grudgingly admire her, and the two became romantically involved after spending time convalescing together when they were both injured on Aexe Cardinal. However, when Rawne left for a deep-cover mission to Gereon Banda switched her affections to Captain Meryn, and after Rawne returned to the regiment she amused herself by stirring up Meryn's jealousies. Their relationship seems to have ended at some point, but despite this both Banda and Meryn joined Rawne's crew in an attempt to rob an illegal gambling parlour on Balhaut, Banda posing as a newly-hired stewardess inside the club. Banda was later killed by a woe machine on Urdesh while Meryn was too paralysed with fear to save her.

Sniper Sehra Muril

  • A Verghastite, Muril like most other female Ghosts was an excellent sniper. Colonel Corbec claimed that he chose her for his platoon because of her resemblance to a girl from his past and her "deliciously dirty laugh", but in reality Corbec believed she was the best shot in the regiment behind Larkin. Despite this Muril aspired to join the elite scout squad, and when she and Heqta Jajjo joined Mkvenner on patrol in the Montorq Forest on Aexe Cardinal the mission doubled as a test of their skills. Muril initially bristled at Mkvenner's perceived favouritism towards Jajjo, until Larkin helped her realise that Mkvenner was only spending more time with Jajjo because he needed extra help and she didn't, something Mkvenner later confirmed. Muril was the only person Larkin confided to that Lijah Cuu had murdered Bragg, and while she helped persuade him that murdering Cuu wasn't the answer this turned out to be a mistake, as Cuu murdered her when she intervened to prevent him killing Larkin.

Sniper Rilke

  • A Tanith, Rilke was one of the top three snipers in the regiment along with Larkin and Merrt, and second best between Merrt's wounding on Monthax and the arrival of the Verghastites. Unlike other Tanith snipers Rilke favoured a needle-las. He was killed during Operation Larisel on Phantine when Larisel 4's drop-ship was destroyed.

Sniper Rhen Merrt

  • Trooper Rhen Merrt was one of the original Tanith snipers until he sustained a terrible injury on Monthax, taking a las-shot to the jaw. The ugly augmetic replacement he received ruined his accuracy and he was dropped from the sniper group, an event which turned him bitter and badly damaged his self-esteem. Desperate to improve his lot, he became addicted to gambling at illicit bars, reaching such a low point that several of his friends banded together to keep an eye on him. Eventually Merrt got into more trouble than he could handle, forcing Commissar Hark to step and save him when he was about to murdered by thugs from the regimental entourage. As a punishment for his disreputable behaviour, Merrt was assigned to an RIP detail (Retraining, Indoctrination and Punishment) and there met Dalin Criid, the adoptive son of Tona Criid and Dermon Caffran who was going through training. Deployed as part of a nightmarish full-frontal assault against an enemy-held city on Gereon, Merrt and Dalin fought side by side and pulled through, both rejoining the Ghosts at the end of the battle. During the battle for Hinzerhaus on Jago, Merrt struggled with an unreliable lasgun he suspected had been reclaimed from the enemy. On the mission to Salvation's Reach, Larkin decided to help Merrt regain his marksmanship skills and their efforts drew the attention of Sar Af, who deduced that Merrt's augmetic jaw was clenching every time he fired a shot, ruining his aim. Sar Af's solution was to inject muscle relaxant into Merrt's face, a solution which he adopted for the mission, regaining his skills and place among the snipers. Tragically, Merrt was mortally wounded by enemy fire whilst retreating from the station and stayed behind with Medic Dorden, who was also dying. When a squad of Sons of Sek came upon them, Merrt fired an inaccurate shot which nevertheless still hit a pile of explosives, taking himself and Dorden out in a blaze of glory.

Scout Trooper Mkvenner

  • A serious, inscrutable and highly skilled scout who serves as Mkoll's de-facto second-in-command. Raised amongst the secretive Nalsheen warriors on Tanith, Mkvenner was trained in unarmed and melee combat from an early age, but he abandoned the order before completing his training in order to join the Tanith militia and serve the Emperor. Consequently, he was the only person initiated into Nalsheen traditions who escaped Tanith's destruction. Severely wounded in a last stand at an old manor house in the Montorq Forest on Aexe Cardinal, Mkvenner returned to active duty too soon and came near to death from internal bleeding on Herodor. Agun Soric's psyker powers warned him of Mkvenner's injuries, causing the sergeant to order Mkvenner to seek medical help, but he was ultimately saved by Gol Kolea who took him to the Beati's sacred pool, where Mkvenner was healed in an official miracle. Mkvenner was selected for the EZ level mission to Gereon, where he proved invaluable in making contact with the Nihtgane partisans. While on the planet, Mkvenner trained the partisans into an elite commando force that spearheaded the Imperial resistance, remaining with them when the rest of the team left the planet. When the Ghosts returned to Gereon they found cairn with a grave marker bearing Mkvenner's name, but a figure implied to be Mkvenner was later spotted, leaving the question of his death unresolved.

Scout Trooper Simen Urvin Macharius "Lucky" Bonin

  • Domor's scout trooper until the creation of 81st-1st, 'Mach' Bonin is reckoned to be luckiest man in the regiment. He survived a deadly fever and the fire that burned down his house as a child, and lived in a tent through two hard winters on Tanith while his family rebuilt his home. In one of the Ghosts' early battles a las-round missed his head by a millimetre, and he survived falling from Heritor Asphodel's enormous mobile command fortress, the Spike, on Verghast. He survived a jump from a crashing drop-ship onto the dome of Cirenholm on Phantine, and later came through Operation Larisel alive despite being captured by the Blood Pact. Chosen for the EZ level mission to Gereon, he survived nearly two years on the Chaos-held world and emerged with even more elite skills than before, personally killing a Stalker on Ancreon Sextus with only his Tanith warknife. On Jago a las round actually struck the back of his head and he was presumed dead, but due to his luck, he once again survived. On Urdesh, Bonin was caught in the palace undercroft when the hidden woe machine activated its reality-altering powers and went on a rampage, and he endured a hellish ordeal protecting a group of civilians from the regimental entourage along with two other troopers before being rescued by Gaunt.

Scout Trooper Caober

  • Gaunt's personal platoon scout up until the events on Herodor, Caober is reckoned to be one of the best scouts in the regiment, taking over as unofficial scout leader in the absence of Mkoll, Mkvenner and Bonin.

Scout Trooper Leyr

  • Rawne's scout in the initial structure of the Tanith 1st, Leyr was as tough and hard edged as most of Rawne's platoon. A thin, middle aged man, he served in the Tanith Militia before the fall, was part of Caffran's squad in the 81st-1st and Rawne's criminal gang during the regimental sabbatical on Balhaut. He was killed during the woe machine attack on Urdesh, set alight by Neskon's flamer when the dead man's hand clenched on the trigger.

Scout Trooper Heqta Jajjo

  • Born in Imjahive on Verghast before moving to Vervunhive as a child, Jajjo is the only Verghastite scout in the Tanith 1st and one of the few characters described as dark-skinned. He always follows rules and regulations to the letter and objects when others don't, so while he is generally liked he does have a reputation as a 'stuff-shirt'.

Scout Trooper Baen

  • Once Varl's scout in the old regimental structure, Baen is cheerful, yet hard edged like most of the scouts.

Scout Trooper Doyl

  • One of the 1st's most renowned scouts, Doyl was Soric's friend and scout up until "The Guns of Tanith". He was picked for Operation Larisel and placed in Adare's squad. When the squad was attacked and subsequently split up, Doyl was forced to 'go active' and died when he encountered loxatl mercenaries, who shredded him with flechette fire.

Scout Trooper Hwlan

  • Ten Platoon's scout in the old regimental structure, Hwlan served first Kolea then Criid. A superb navigator like all Tanith scouts, he lead the Ghosts through war-ravaged terrain to the Santrebar watermill on Aexe Cardinal. He was shot in the leg on Ancreon Sextus and would have died if Mkoll hadn't carried him to safety.

Scout Trooper Preed

  • On older Tanith trooper, Preed was a gamekeper on Tanith but didn't consider his skills worthy of the scout squad until Gaunt encouraged him to join. He served in the scout squad until Salvation's Reach, when his minesweeper team accidentally set off a trap and were instantly vaporised.

Scout Trooper Wes Maggs

  • Trooper Maggs was among the influx of Belladon troops who joined with the Ghosts to create the 81-1st. Considered an excellent scout, he was forced to revise his opinion once among the Tanith, especially after Mkoll and Bonin returned from Gereon. However, he is a quick learner and picked up new skills from Mkoll, earning the scout leader's respect. When Maggs was thrown through a Warp portal on Ancreon Sextus Mkoll dived in after him, ultimately rescuing Maggs and himself from the freezing planet on the other side that was swarming with Chaos forces. One of a group of troopers who looked out for the Tanith soldier Merrt, Maggs later had recurring visions of an old woman with a disfigured face on Jago, but this was revealed to be a clumsy psychic warning from Agun Soric, who was haunting Maggs with the memory of an unpleasant portrait he had seen. Later on Balhaut Maggs would come face-to-face with a Chaos witch who closely resembled the spectre that had haunted him, but he was able to end her predations by mowing her down with las-fire.

Trooper Brin Milo

Trooper Bragg

Trooper Murtan Feygor

Trooper Lijah Cuu

  • Lijah Cuu was a Vervunhiver ganger who joined the Ghosts after the Siege of Vervunhive. A heavily tattooed psychopath with a scar down the centre of his face, Cuu was a talented tattoo artist with superb stealth and marksmanship skills, but his vicious sadism and anti-social behavior made him unpopular with most of the Ghosts, especially Larkin whom he particularly disturbed. During the battle for Cirenholm on Phantine he looted shops despite the coins being defaced, and in the aftermath he raped and murdered a young civilian mother and widow, Onti Flyte. Caffran was implicated in the crime and almost executed for it, but he was let off when Bragg reported Cuu's looting after learning that a defaced coin had been found at the crime scene. Though Cuu escaped conviction for the rape and murder due to insufficient evidence, he was flogged for looting and held a murderous grudge thereafter, hacking the beloved Bragg to shreds in a psychotic rage during the final phase of the assault on Ouranberg. He then turned his malevolent attentions on Larkin, whom he knew suspected the truth, attempting to murder him twice on Aexe Cardinal and killing Sehra Muril after Larkin confided his suspicions to her. He attempted to murder Tona Criid on Herodor for no other reason than she was incapacitated and alone, but was prevented by Gol Kolea. Later during the siege of Civitas Beati Cuu became possessed by enemy psykers, who exploited his evil nature to turn him into a Chaos pawn. Whilst under their influence he tried to assassinate Saint Sabbat, mowing down Colonel Corbec during the failed attempt before being fatally headshot by Larkin.

Trooper Dalin Criid

Trooper Derin

  • A Tanith trooper who was injured on Hagia and accompanied Corbec and Dorden on their holy quest to the Shrine in the Hagian mountains, though he did so more out of dedication to duty than any kind of holy inspiration.

Trooper Niceg Vamberfeld

  • A former clerk from Vervunhive, Vamberfeld was not psychologically stable for warfare and was injured in the fighting on Hagia. Due to this, he was unable to join most of the regiment to save the physical remains of Saint Sabbat from the planet before the arrival of massive Chaos army. He was nevertheless convinced to join Corbec and the rest of the wounded to follow. On the way, though he became increasingly more unstable, he found a piece of Sabbat's old herd staff, used by her when she had still been a herder before becoming a Saint. Eventually, using this half of the staff, he sacrificed himself to start up the ancient machines in Saint Sabbat's tomb that would scatter the entire Chaos army, saving the lives of all Ghosts as well as many others. It is noted that Vamberfeld suffered nine wounds before he died, a reference to the Nine Holy Wounds suffered by the Saint Sabbat

Trooper Loglas

    • A Tanith, Loglas was in Obel's platoon along with Larkin and Bragg. During the trench warfare of Aexe Cardinal, Cuu cornered Larkin and attempted to kill him. Loglas was passing by, and approached Cuu with balled up fists when the Shadik Republic launched a bombardment. A shell hit their dugout and decapitated Loglas. Unfortunately for Larkin, Loglas was the last Tanith Trooper to hear Cuu's death threat, and as such, Cuu went on to kill Sehra Muril and Colm Corbec.

Flame-Trooper Aongus Brostin

Flame-Trooper Jed Lubba

Flame-Trooper Neskon

Trooper Lesp

  • The most senior of Chief Medic Dorden's assistants, Lesp is a tall thin man from Tanith Longshore with cold blue eyes and a prominent Adam's Apple. Back on Tanith he and his famiy were sea fishermen who plied the currents beyond the Archipelago, and his skill with needles, threads and knives led Dorden to put those skills to use as a medical orderly. Lesp also moonlights as a tattoo artist, providing sanitary inkings for many of the Ghosts.

Trooper Mikal Dorden

  • A vox-officer in Sergeant Hasker's platoon, Mikal Dorden was the son of Chief Medic Tolin Dorden and the two of them were the only Ghosts to have family in the regiment. Mikal was killed in action at the Veveyr Gate in Vervunhive, and Tolin took his death very hard. Mikal later appeared to his father in visions on Hagia, inspiring him to join Corbec's mission to the Shrinehold.

Trooper Drayl

  • Drayl was a handsome, popular soldier whose songs and good humour kept his platoon in decent spirits. His superiors also knew that Drayl's roguish exploits were a matter of regimental legend. He suffered a terrible fate on Fortis Binary when he was injured by flying a shard from a Chaos icon Colonel Corbec had shot and transformed into a daemon, killing several of his comrades before being slain.[1]

Allied Personnel

Major Kleopas

Major Kleopas was the commander of the 8th Pardus Armoured detachment which accompanied the Ghosts to the Shrinehold on Hagia; he commanded the armoured assault at Bhavnager with consummate skill, breaking the back of the opposing armour units and allowing the Ghosts to force their way into the city. He was killed at the battle for the Shrinehold when his tank was hit by an incendiary shell. His officers Captain Sirus and Lieutenant Pauk were also killed in the same action, leaving only Captains LeGuin and Woll in positions of authority within the detachment. Their regiment is featured in Double Eagle, the spinoff book to Gaunt's Ghosts.

Lord General Bulledin

Bulledin was in overall command of the Monthax theatre, and Gaunt held him in high regard despite the fact that the Lord General ordered the Inquisition to interrogate Brin Milo, Gaunt's adjudant as a suspected psyker.

Major/Colonel Gilbear

Main article: Gilbear

Major Gilbear was General Noches Sturm's aide in Ghostmaker and commanded the Tenth Brigade, the elite of the Royal Volpone 50th storm troopers which was assigned to Inquisitor Lilith in the Monthax campaign. When he met the detachment of Ghosts under Gaunt and Corbec, he got into a fight with Corbec, but they later called a truce. Gilbear led one prong of the assault on the Eldar temple on Monthax, but was nearly shot by one of the Eldar soldiers there when he insulted their leader. His leadership on Monthax earned him a promotion to Colonel, and he held this rank during the events of Necropolis, where he participated in both the assault on the treacherous Salvador Sondar, where he executed him for treachery, and in the assault on enemy warlord Heritor Asphodel's command vehicle, The Spike. After the desertion, treason and death of Noches Sturm, it is assumed that Gilbear retained command of the Royal Volpone 50th, as his colleague Colonel Corday was killed at Vervunhive.

Colonel Zyhte

Colonel Zyhte was the field commander for the Urdeshi 7th Storm-Trooper in the book "The Guns of Tanith" And the capture of the city Cirenholm on Phantine. He is depicted as an ill-tempered man when we are first introduced to him by General Barthol Van Voytz. When he appears in the book after the landings at the 1st dome he is seen as a hot-head, with truly a small amount of patience. He also show no respect to his soldiers under his command and also non to the higher ranks. He seemed to have taken a dislike to Gaunt and his Tanith. When informed by Gaunt of void shields being present in the domes of Cirenholm he initiates a verbal attack on the Ghosts mainly about the relatively young age of the Tanith regiment to his own and the fact his regiment has an honour pennant outside the gates of the Emperor's Palace, which the Ghost being a relatively new founding don't.

Non-Imperial Guard

Inquisitor Lilith Abfequarn

Main article: Lilith Abfequarn

Lilith is an Ordo Hereticus inquisitor in Ghostmaker who was appointed by Lord Militant General Bulledin to investigate and purge psykers from Imperial forces on Monthax. She met Gaunt when she was searching his quarters aboard an orbital command station, and interrogated Brin Milo as a suspected psyker after he had unerringly won a gambling game on the troop decks. However, Milo was cleared and the inquisitor did not encounter the Ghosts again until during the Monthax liberation, where she was investigating a psychic storm that was massacring both sides of the conflict. In the middle of the storm, she found an Eldar temple, which she had been seeking since her mother was killed in an Eldar raid many years previously. When the Eldar Farseer who had conjured the storm died, Lilith used her own powers to transport the remaining eldar back through their Webway and close the warp gate behind them.

Ayatani Zweil

Ayatani Zweil was a wandering priest who joined the Ghosts on Hagia in the events of Honour Guard, when the Ghosts were making their way up to secure the remains of Saint Sabbat. He was found in an abandoned town, Mukret, which had been razed by the Chaos forces. He proceeded to follow the Ghosts up to the temple, where his views on the Imperial religion conflicted with the resident priests.

He has remained with the unit ever since, and has been the moral conscience of Gaunt on more than one occasion. He preaches to the troops before each battle reminding them of how the Emperor is with each one. He even accompanied the Ghosts when they landed on Gereon, and tried to help remove the taint from its lands.

Whilst the Tanith were on Herodor, Zweil suffered a non-fatal stroke when the first incarnation (prior to Sanian) of Saint Sabbat was killed.

Zweil's behavior and unusual habit of changing the subject several times in a conversation make him seem a little distant, if not entirely mad. This has led Ezrah ap Niht to believe that the only reason the Tanith 1st keeps him is for the entertainment of watching an old fool pottering about.

Eszrah ap Niht

Eszrah ap Niht is a son of a Chief of the swamp dwelling Partisans, rebels who live in the Untill swamplands of Gereon. He was given to Gaunt by his father, after the Ghosts saved their village from attack by Chaos Marines during the events of Traitor General. He is commonly referred to as 'Ezra Night', by the Ghosts, a nickname coined (as many of the nicknames in the regiment were) by Larkin. He has taken the duty of protecting Gaunt very seriously and never leaves Gaunt's side. He is armed with his reynbow, a primitive weapon akin to a crossbow which uses magnets to propel quarrels tipped with a highly dangerous venom extracted from swamp moths. Before battle he smears himself with blue woad. Ezra received a gift in the form of Sergeant Varl's prized pair of sun-shades to help him cope with the unaccustomed brightness outside of his native swamps and he has never removed them since. He is an expert at stealth, surpassing even Mkoll, who has an uncanny ability to spot him. His unusual appearance often unnerves people seeing him for the first time.

His loyalty to the task of protecting Gaunt goes so far that when Gaunt is assumed dead in Only in Death he takes the power sword of Heironymo Sondar from Gaunt's office and sets out to the Blood Pact camp to exact a bludtoll. A bludtoll (blood toll) is part of the Nihtgane culture, and consists of killing as many of the foe as possible before the exacter's death. It must be done with the deceased's weapon. As he sets off with the sword in secret, the Ghosts think of it as looting off a dead man. Mkoll follows Eszrah to get the sword back for the regiment, but instead assists Eszrah in avenging Gaunt's "death."

Notable foes and forces of Chaos

Lord General Lugo

Main article: Lugo

General Lugo was the commander-in-chief of the Hagian campaign, where his incompetent command decisions led to the loss of the holy Citadel of the Doctrinopolis and almost the loss of the entire shrineworld. After failing to pin the blame for this disaster on Gaunt, he was demoted to obscurity among the general staff before rising once again when he discovered the reincarnated Saint Sabbat. However, he fled during the assault on Herodor and his status since is unknown.

The Nine

Once it had become clear that Saint Sabbat was reborn on Herodor then the Chaos forces quickly hurled an all out attack at the planet in the hope of killing or capturing the Saint. Along with the Chaos army came a different force, a group of assassins known as 'The Nine' by the psyker Agun Soric (see above): A marksman; three psykers; three lizards; a phantom; a death machine.

Alias True identity Information Fate
"The marksman" Saul, master sniper of the Blood Pact Was able to hear the Guard transmissions. Caused panic by killing a high-ranking Herodian PDF officer, Colonel Vibreson ("Drumroll"). Smallest body count of the Nine. Almost completed his mission: Was killed at the last second by sniper Nessa Bourah.
"Three psykers" Pater Sin and two child psykers, as well as Lijah Cuu after being imprinted His mission was not to kill the Saint directly, but instead imprint and dominate someone close to her, who would then finish the job. Caused many Guard soldiers to kill each other. Sin killed by Colm Corbec, in revenge for his capture on Hagia in Honour Guard. Children killed by MkVenner. Lijah Cuu (the one who was imprinted) killed by Hlaine Larkin
"Three lizards" Three members of a lizard-race of Loxatl Killed many Guard soldiers, including Ghost sergeant Mkendrick and his entire squad. Wounded and nearly killed Commissar Victor Hark. Killed by Commissar Viktor Hark, Elim Rawne, Jessi Banda, and Gol Kolea.
"The phantom" Skarwael, a Dark Eldar Mandrake Killed numerous Guard soldiers in extremely gory ways. Hunted down and killed by Scout-sergeant Mkoll
"The death machine" Karess, a Chaos Dreadnought with a storm bolter and plasma cannon Advanced through the sewers, thus avoiding most of the war. Reached the Saint through the balneary pool. Managed a high body count, including Regiment Civitas Beati commander Marshal Timon Biagi and Colonel Kaldenbach of Lord General Lugo's life company, despite missing almost the entire conflict. Boiled to death in the balneary pool, by the Ghost's flamers. The holes sliced by Gaunt's sword allowed the scalding hot water into his armored hull.

Sources