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Unless my search-fu is weak, I don't believe we've had a thread like this in a while, so yeah.
Simply put, who is you favourite character from the Black library, and why? (This is in discussions so as to cover both fantasy and 40k titles)
Personally, although Ciaphas Cain and co. are always strong contenders, my vote goes to this fellow:

That fine fellow, ladies and gentlemen, is Lucoryphus of the Bleeding eyes. And as well as looking like a complete bad-arse he is a god amongst men.
Well, not quite, but he's damn close. For those of you not in the know Lucoryphus is a Raptor allied to the Night Lord's warband that features in AD-B's trilogy about said legion. Just because he's allied with them however, doesn't mean he has to like it. Lucoryphus is a very angry and brutal man ('man' being used in the loosest sense of the word), and admittedly he has little depth as a charcater (certainly not to the same extent others in that series do); but I don't think that's nessercarily the point.
Lucoryphus gives us a look into the Raptor cults of the Chaos Space Marines, and just how far it's possible to fall.He's an animal, completely and utterly, with a lack of restraint that disgusts even his brothers. Or at least, those who consider themselves his brothers, because Lucoryphus sure as hell doesn't return the feeling. He doesn't even regard himself as a Night Lord much anymore; he is a Raptor. To him, that is all that matters. In Lucoryphus' world the hunt and the kill is all that matters, and he and his pack certainly do a lot of that throughout the stories he features in. And, like the legion of his genesis, Lucoryphus does these things for no other reason than he can. He represents in many ways Chaos in its basest form; pure, animalistic destructive anger, with the cunning instict of a vulture. But he doesn't even like Chaos; he rages against what he unwillingly serves, just like he rages against every single other thing that lives and breathes, and that is what endears him to me as a character. He hates his brothers, he hates his Legion, he hates his Primarch, and most of all he hates you.
That's why Lucoryphus is my favourite BL character.

Probably any member of the First Claw, because they're all such well developed characters.

Loken Graviel

Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt of the Tanith First and Only, hands down for me.

Gregor Eisenhorn and any of the big names from Ravenor's band of operatives.

Brunner the Bounty Hunter (WHFB setting)

Patience Kys, Ranek the Wolf Priest, Hlaine "Mad" Larkin, Wes Maggs, most of the Wolfblade members, Arvin A. Larn and the others in 15 hours, and "Long Run" Loerenzo.

Personally I've never liked the Cain series, maybe I was just reading one which didn't do it justice, but not my favourite by far, but my favourite would have to be either Aquillon, Eristede Kell, Commander Wulfe and Justicar Alaric.


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Oh, and Malus Darkblade.

Abrum Gaunt he kicks so much tail pipe and looks cool doing it if he was any better hed be a mobile Land Raider pwning Khorne Bezerkers in their face!

I do love Ravenor as a character he is nuts and far removed from being human, also a little bit of a radical element which adds to his depth. Plus one of the best Series I have read.

I do have a soft spot for Eisenhorn. His fall from Puritian to radical is believable as is his desire to fight and undo his crimes, in the name of the Emperor and the Imperium. Plus Cherubael is amazing.

Leman Russ.
The Wolf King is all that he has ever been alluded to be and more.

Grey Seer Thanquol.

The reasons should be obvious for anyone who's read either the Gotrek and Felix novels or the newer Skaven novels.

I do love the Cain series, and Cain is a great character, but I feel like the trophy needs to go to a character with some more depth.

I'm going to go with Captain Vandred. If you don't know why, then buy Blood Reaver. Read it. Have you read it? Go ahead, I'll wait.

Are you done yet?

That's why.

Right now Saul Tarvitz. Most hated is Lucius.

Genevieve Sandrine du Pointe du Lac Dieudonné.

Zso Sahal from Lord of the Night.

Hlaine Larkin from the Gaunt's Ghost's series.

Veteran sergeant Sarik from Savage Scares. As a character he's not static and he's fairly developed, plus the book and scenarios suit him well.

Little lord Fauntleroy wrote:But he doesn't even like Chaos; he rages against what he unwillingly serves, just like he rages against every single other thing that lives and breathes, and that is what endears him to me as a character. He hates his brothers, he hates his Legion, he hates his Primarch, and most of all he hates you.
That's why Lucoryphus is my favourite BL character.

Bust mostly, he just raged.




Oh, and fav for me would have to be Chaplain Elysius from the Salamander series.

Rafen (with Arkio as a runner-up). It was reading their omnibus that got me into making a Blood Angels army. I love Rafen's conflict, his desire to believe in his brother versus his desire to protect his army, and how much he hates being forced to turn against his fellow Blood Angels to prevent blasphemy from spreading. I also feel very sorry for poor Arkio, who only ever wanted to serve the Blood Angels and make Sanguinius proud... and it led him to grief and pain.

Rafen fought to the end, caught on the horns of his conflicted loyalties, and did what he had to do, for the Emperor and Sanguinius. And that's why he's my favorite Black Library character.

Oh, yeah. Ciaphas Cain is cool, too

Uza as he tends to be the most concentrated in self glory, and battle, than the rest of first claw. (or the rest of the company, for that matter.)

I liked Scholar from 15 hours the most. He seemed to be the most balanced member of that rugged bunch from brouchroc. And his part in the short story about them was awesome the way he new the Ad/Mech codes.

Very cool.


But I really Cain. He is so self absorbed and yet foolishly heroic, the footnotes tho are what really make his character interesting because you see the world from his poitn of view and then you can see what others think of him from Inquisitor Amberleys view. I also find it refreshing to see a character who is the total opposite of the Space Marines and their mannerisms yet show that the guard are still an efficient fighting force. Most of the commissar characters I've seen and read about I don't tend to like all that much, however I think that is part of the point, your not suppose to like them. Anyway there is no other character who we can see from both sides like that in the BL than Ciaphas.

Wystan Frauka.

He's a chain-smoking, porn-reading psychic blank. As a blank, it might as well be that he has no soul, and nobody seems to like him at all. But he saves the damn day, and Ravenor's life. I love him.


I also like Sholto Unwerth and his very perambulatory methodology of word emission.

If I could be any character in the Warhammer 40K universe, as much as I would love to say Leman Russ, I would be Sholto Unwerth or Wystan Frauka in an instant, proudly.

Gotrek.

I love the slayers, and Gotrek is just awesome. I really enjoyed Skavenslayer and Daemonslayer.

Grey Seer Thanquol. I love that rat.

MeanGreenStompa wrote:Genevieve Sandrine du Pointe du Lac Dieudonné.

Bonus pretzel for using her full name.

Ibram Gaunt

They killed off my other favourites.

Nathaniel Garro and Saul Tarvitz for sure.

Gotta go with Malus Darkblade.

Agree with coolyo294. Talos or Xarl are really the two stand-out of them all, but they're all developed really well. I'd have to put Loken, Garro, Aximand and Argel Tal up there as well. Kind of proves that Space Marines can be some of the most compelling characters when handled by decent authors.