Andreas Maler

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

Andreas Maler is an illuminator from the city of Nuremberg, working on his masterpiece in the town of Tassing.

• Amateur Sleuth: He's an artist who becomes a murder investigator—twice—because he's certain the initial suspect is innocent.
• Artsy Beret: He's an artist who wears a red beret during Act I which can be stolen by Anna Albanyn. In Act II he replaces it with an even fancier leather-trimmed red cap, showing how he's become more financially successful with his art during the Time Skip.
• Badass Bookworm: Downplayed with the Rapscallion background, where Andreas is a well-educated artist that can handle himself in a fight. Averted with the actual Bookworm background, where Lenhardt Müller even remarks that you look scrawny and sallow.
• Beard of Sorrow: Grows one in Act II, to reflect his discontentment with life and his grief for the death of his son.
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Can be played as an Eccentric Artist, but even without deliberately playing it up, Andreas's vivid lucid dreams and the fact that his inner thoughts are all portrayed by famous theological, literary and historical characters means he's not entirely normal. Despite this, he is still a smart, artistically talented man who is capable of solving the murders in Tassing.
• Byronic Hero: Not really in Act I, but definitely in Act II. In Act I, Andreas is a Renaissance Man and Bunny-Ears Lawyer who has great passion and talent while also suffering from odd and vivid lucid dreams, and feels comfortable discussing theological and philosophical debates with others. However, his decisions when attempting to solve the Baron's murder and the pressure of it left him with bitter feelings about Tassing, to the point that he pretty much cuts off all contact with his friends from there. During the Time Skip he gets married, but he quickly becomes unhappy and often looks for reasons to avoid going home as a result of his son's death from the plague, while also losing any passion for his work or anything that once made him happy. When he finally returns to Tassing after seven years, he's grown a Beard of Sorrow to reflect his more bitter and lonely outlook, all the passion he once had for life faded and prone to being more cynical and depressed about his life. He's also more introspective and prone to self-loathing, especially when being reminded of his previous visit to Tassing and Caspar's future career as an artist. In Act III, Caspar's death and the Abbey being destroyed has left him with even more guilt and self-loathing, reducing him into being a lonely hermit who has become consumed with finding the Thread-Puller and suffers from vivid hallucinations.
• Card Sharp: With the Rapscallion background, Andreas can cheat at Lansquenet by slipping a winning card to the bottom of the deck while dealing.
• Cunning Linguist: In addition to his native German, he has knowledge of various local languages of other countries he's traveled to, and can also be fluent in Latin if he studied it in university. Depending on your choices, Andreas can be fluent in German and Latin, and have working knowledge of five other languages.
• Eccentric Mentor: To Caspar in Act II.
• Friend to All Children: Very good with kids in basically all his possible incarnations. One dialogue choice can reveal that it's due to having two older brothers, who have a lot of children he's had to play uncle to.
• Good with Numbers: If you pick the Logician background. Among other things, he can determine the location of the secret entrance to the library purely based on the distance between the library and the crypt and, during a card game, he can calculate his odds of winning on the fly based on the cards that have been dealt.
• Go Mad from the Isolation: By Act III, 18 years of living alone in the ruins of the Abbey has knocked a few of his screws loose. He's visibly more timid, struggles to speak with Claus and Magdelene, and experiences vivid hallucinations of those who died in Act I and II. He gets better once he manages to overcome his trauma.
• The Hedonist: The Hedonist background, naturally, whose special options include flirting with nuns and indulging in food and drink.
• His Own Worst Enemy: Continually busies himself in Act II to avoid going home and confronting his grief and depression, which results in his near-death. Afterwards, he becomes so mired in those same feelings that he completely isolates himself for almost two decades, when it's clear the people of Tassing would be happy to help him.
• Important Haircut: When he reappears in Act III, after spending 18 years of self-imposed isolation depressed and full of guilt, his hair and beard have grown long and unkempt. Months later, during the ending, both have been trimmed and cleaned up considerably, representing his return to society and a happier life.
• Insufferable Genius: Choosing the Law background and selecting the relevant dialogue options in most conversations can make him come off this way. Andreas will be quite knowledgeable about legal technicalities, but that doesn't mean anyone else wants to hear about them.
• Lantern Jaw of Justice: Can be played as a very nice person, and has an impressive jawline.
• Legally Dead: Act II ends with the legal documents of Andreas's death, denying a refund due to force majeur to those who paid him for commissions that wouldn't be fulfilled after he is trapped in the burning Abbey.
• Non-Action Guy: Andreas is ultimately an artist and a scholar, not a trained soldier or fighter. Downplayed with the Rapscallion background, which gives him some skill in a fight, but not enough to be too terribly effective in truly dire situations. It mostly serves as a means for Andreas to effectively intimidate others or have an understanding of more criminal elements.
• No Historical Figures Were Harmed: Based off of Albrecht Dürer, a 16th Century artist from the Holy Roman Empire whose journals are a historically important primary source. Andreas even reference the artist himself during his conversation with Lorenz.
• No One Could Survive That!: In the end of Act II he runs into the Abbey to save as many books as he can from the burning building. The last shot is of a painting◊ of the Abbey on fire and a single figure trapped in the flames. The end of Act III reveals that he survived the fire; if he was kind to Caspar throughout Act II, then Caspar rescued Andreas from the fire, only to die himself in an attempt to help his master save more books.
• Outliving One's Offspring: In Act II, it's revealed that the main reason he's so reluctant to return to Nuremberg is because he's been deeply affected by the death of his son August, who succumbed to the plague at a young age.
• Plagued by Nightmares: By Act II he is constantly tormented in his sleep by his dead son August, who simply gazes at him silently regardless of what Andreas tries to say to him.
• Renaissance Man: A very literal example — no matter what other traits you pick for Andreas, he is always a skilled illustrator, as well as knowing three languages and a working knowledge of three scholarly fields ranging from law, to theology, to medicine and astronomy.
• Smart People Know Latin: Knows some Latin, but it's absolutely played to the hilt with the Latinist education, which not only gives you a fluent grasp of Latin but allows you to bust out famous Latin quotes.
• Too Upset to Create: Spends Act II in this mindset, partly thanks to dealing with greedy and self-absorbed clients but mainly due to the death of his son August, despite other characters trying to encourage him out of it.

Magdalene Druckeryn

^{Act III}

The daughter of Claus Drucker, and the player character in Act III of the game.

• Adventurer Archaeologist: Research for her mural leads to her to explore ruins in search of lost artifacts.
• Bookworm: Thanks to being a printer's daughter, she's an avid reader regardless of which traits you pick for her. Her main field of interest is determined by which book Andreas buys for her in Act II, and another trait determines what other kinds of books she likes reading.
• Brutal Honesty: With the Barbs background, some of her take downs are true but extremely harsh. More generally, she can take the approach that the mural must not hide the truth of Tassing, and makes panels that upset the townsfolk and Father Thomas for going against convention or remembering traumatic events.
• Chekhov's Gunman: In the second act she is a minor and seemingly inconsequential character, however she later becomes a co protagonist with Andreas.
• Cunning Linguist: If you select the Polyglot trait, she can speak German and Italian and can read a little of almost every other European language (and is good enough at reading Latin to understand the Latin inscriptions in the old salt mine, though the Historia Tassiae is too complex for her to translate). Otherwise, she is only fluent in her native German and has some knowledge of Latin and Italian.
• Deadpan Snarker: Her often biting sarcasm is frequently lost on people.
• The Gadfly: Picking Barbs as a background makes her become this, and she demonstrates it with an utterly merciless roast of the three boys who are mocking her.
• Gadgeteer Genius: Downplayed, but the tinkerer background allows her to make a pulley system to descend into the mine shaft safely.
• Jack of All Trades: Much like Andreas, she has a broad skillset that can include mechanical knowledge, finance, current theological trends and multiple languages.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: A good number of her dialogue options are rather blunt, and she can be especially jerkish if she has the Barbs background, but she also cares a great deal about her father Claus (particularly after he's mysteriously attacked and confined to his bed) and shows a kinder side towards her friends and neighbors.
• Lying to Protect Your Feelings: Conversely to Brutal Honesty, Magdalene can be played as covering up uncomfortable truths with happier or more conventional scenes in the mural.
• Plucky Girl: As a woman in a male dominated field during the 16th century, she has the cards stacked against her, but this doesn't dissuade her in the least from finishing the mural. This can be played straight or subverted based on the dialogue choices.
• Point of Divergence: The book Andreas picks out to buy as a gift for her as child will determine her main interests and field of knowledge as an adult.
• Shown Their Work: An in-universe example. Magdalene can go to great lengths to compose a mural that shows the actual history of Tassing, ignoring Father Thomas' and the townsfolk's wishes that she show the agreed upon history and avoid sensitive topics. She can include the Swiss village that originated Tassing, the pre-roman clay fragments, the truth about the patron saints being Roman gods, and the night of the Abbey's fire where the town and village revolted and were murdered.
• Starving Artist: As a townsperson, Magdalene is better off than the villagers in the outskirts, but she does struggle to make ends meet with her father ill, and having to both run his printing business and take on the task of painting the town hall mural.
• Strong Family Resemblance: While she inherited her father's blond hair, she otherwise looks a lot like her mother Marie.
• The Tease: Picking the Flirt background gives her a tendency to playfully tease and flirt with people.
• Walking Spoiler: It's hard to talk about Magdalene without spoiling that she becomes the main protagonist in Act III.

Father Gernot of Munich

The priest in charge of the abbey. Gernot is cold and heavily taxes the peasants of Tassing.

• Fatal Flaw: Two — Greed and Pride. Greed in that he refuses to cut back on his own expenses as the abbey's income falls, including the lavish meals he has the kitchen staff make for him, and goes through increasing lengths to extort the townsfolk to make up for the shortfall. Pride in that he often sees himself as the feudal lord of Tassing more than a monk, and as a result, he pushes the commoners to the breaking point and ultimately contributes to the uprising that ultimately forces the monks out of the abbey.
• Feudal Overlord: As a Prince-Abbot of both Kiersau Abbey and Tassing, Gernot used his authority to heavily tax the town and restrict their privileges for his own benefit.
• He Knows Too Much: Is implied to be attempted on him when Baron Lorenz had another copy of Historia Tassiae to offer to Gernot. Father Thomas wanted to kill Gernot in the same way he did to Father Matthias if the book ever got into his hands. But since he couldn't kill Gernot, and he had other plans in trying to keep the truth about Tassing's "saints" a secret, he ordered for the Baron to be killed and the book to be destroyed, unaware that Martin would break into the Baron's guest room and steal the book along with his rings.
• Jerkass Has a Point: Him being quick to throw Brother Piero under the bus is understandable — the Archdeacon is going to want blood for the death of Baron Rothvogel, and at the time, Brother Piero really is the best and only suspect.
  • Father Gernot keeping Tassing on a tight leash and going through increasing lengths to generate revenue for the abbey is justified in-story: the abbey's expenses continue to climb as its Roman-era walls and foundations decay; the scriptorium — one of their main sources of income — is lost by Act II; and the populist sentiments spread by the Twelve Articles lead directly to a fire that ravages the library which they had been reduced to selling off to keep afloat.
• It Will Never Catch On:
  • He rebukes Baron Lorenz's suggestion on the validity of Martin Luther's Theses, which didn't help that the Baron just interrupted their dinner. This didn't bode well as Mathieu—one of the monks at the Abbey and an Archdeacon of Sion—complained about being surrounded by Lutherans and Huegenots in his city.
  • Also the entire Act II was partly his own fault as he failed to create contingency plans in case of scriptorium closure due to the proliferation of the printing press.
• Tyrant Takes the Helm: Many see him as a stark change—especially in regards to his imposition of heavy taxes and restrictions upon Tassing's populace—from the more gentle Father Matthias.
• Villainous Glutton: A downplayed example. In chapter 2, most of the people in Tassing Andreas can eat with have only simple food to offer, in many cases worse than what they ate in chapter 1 because of the taxes and restrictions from the Abbey. When the Abbot invites Andreas to a meal to try and get him to side with him over the town, the table is set with delicious, rare and sophisticated food more fit for a noble. One of the brothers who works in the kitchen even notes as early as chapter 1 that Gernot was asking for more lavish meals. All this while the abbey is going through hard times financially, the abbot was unwilling to tighten his own belt and instead raised taxes on the town.

Prior Ferenc of Pécs

The abbey's prior, who is in charge of the scribes of the Scriptorum.

• Ain't Too Proud to Beg: Begs for God's mercy if Andreas accuses him of the murder.
• Cruel and Unusual Death: If he's charged for murder in Act I, his death will be the most gruesome: Since he's hysterical, he keeps moving and trying to run away, so the executioner will miss the first two times he uses his sword, cutting off only half of his neck, it will require three strikes from the executioner's sword to finally behead him, making a bloody mess. Stark difference with "Lucky" who dies from a single hit of the sword.
• Irony: Ferenc, whom Lorenz Rothvogel threatened to turn in to the Inquisition, later becomes an inquisitor himself. And he can allow Vácslav and Ursula to recant their heretical beliefs, thus sparing them from the pyre.
• Jerkass: Runs the scriptorium like a sweat shop, constantly pushing Andreas and the monks to work harder even to the detriment of their health, and lashing out at the slightest delay or mistake.
• Nun Too Holy: Callous behaviors towards the monks aside, he also dabbles in dark magic, including necromancy.
• Took a Level in Kindness: If he lives to Act II, he apologizes to Andreas for his callous behavior, explaining that the stress of trying to keep up the abbey's finances in the wake of increasingly unreasonable demands and deadlines was what pushed him to be so cruel. He spends the rest of the game treating the monks and Andreas well, and he remarks that stepping down as prior and closing the scriptorium was one of the best things that ever happened to him.
  • In Act III, it's noted that he's become an inquisitor, albeit one who is noted for being kinder than normal for the profession. If he's alive, Ursula Gertneryn (if encouraged to learn the old ways) and Vácslav (If encouraged in his heresy) avoid being burned and are instead shown repenting under his guidance.

Brother Piero of Verona

An elderly scribe who is both a friend of mentor to Andreas. He is accused of murder and Andreas must prove his innocence.

• Feeling Their Age: He's a talented artist, but his advanced age has made him considerably slower at his work. The Baron is disappointed with his lack of progress on the manuscript the latter commissioned from him and openly lambasts him for it, which is one reason why he's accused of the Baron's murder.
• Nice Guy: He's very friendly and encouraging towards Andreas, and he doesn't even get mad when Baron Rothvogel, Brother Guy and Prior Ferenc all dogpile on him for being slow with his manuscript. This is part of the reason why Andreas is convinced he didn't murder the Baron.
• Mentor Archetype: Served as both a friend and mentor to Andreas during his time in Kiersau Abbey.
• Token Wholesome: He is the only monk who doesn't have any vices, hidden scandals, or a checkered past.

Brother Mathieu of Neuchâtel

^{Act III}

A brother of the Abbey who is responsible for the care of the Shrine.

• Blackmail: Potentially both to and from Andreas In Act I if he gets caught in the library.
• Blue Blood: Implied Trope. Unlike many lower class characters who have surnames based on professions, he has the surname of Faucigny-Saux—which fits with naming conventions common among European nobility and was able to use it in his title as an Archdeacon.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's very strict and uptight, especially when it comes to the abbey's finances, but Andreas can convince Mathieu to pay him his commission early if he mentions that the Gertners are struggling to pay their taxes and Clara specifically asked for help. He also cares a lot about Brother Rüdeger, whom he's secretly in a romantic relationship with, and cites the latter's kind and gentle nature as one reason why.
• Meaningful Name: He is in charge of the sacristy and all money management for the abbey. Saint Matthew was a tax collector and the patron Saint of bankers, accountants and bookkeepers. And of course, Mathieu is the French form of the name Matthew.
• Opaque Nerd Glasses: He wears large round glasses that completely obscure his eyes, and he can be considered something of a nerd considering his extensive knowledge of Tassing's saints and being in charge of managing the abbey's finances.
• Rank Up: He can become the Prior of the Abbey in Act II and the Archdeacon in Act III.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Despite being a stickler for the abbey's rules, he's still willing to provide help or let the issue slide if provided with good reasons (such as telling him about the Gertner family's financial burdens when asking for early payment on commissions).
• Secretly Gay Activity: Andreas may find him making love to Brother Rüdeger in Act I inside the library of the Abbey.

Brother Rüdeger of Bad Tölz

Brother Rüdeger is the cantor of the Kiersau Abbey.

• Beautiful Singing Voice: He's the cantor of Kiersau Abbey and is an excellent singer; the singing that plays when you travel through the Abbey's main building in Act I is actually coming from him. In Act II, Andreas can convince him to sing for the other monks hiding in the library to soothe them, and as he sings, the scene depicts everyone sitting on clouds in the sky, indicating that his voice is just that heavenly.
• Gentle Giant: He's one of the tallest of the monks at Kiersau Abbey, and he's a gentle, kind-hearted man who loves to sing. Brother Mathieu, who is Rüdeger's secret lover, even cites the latter's gentle nature as one reason why he cares for him.
• It Will Never Catch On: If Andreas visited England and discussed it with Brother Rüdeger, he would praise Henry VIII and hope for his continual support of the Catholic Church in Act II, which was set 9 years before he broke off to form his own Church of England.
• Left the Background Music On: The somber song that plays in church, at first seemingly consistent with the original soundtrack, is actually coming from him.
• Rank Up: He would be seen working with Brother Matthieu when he became the Archdeacon in Act III.
• Secretly Gay Activity: Andreas may find him in a tryst with Brother Matthieu in Act I.

Brother Guy of Dijon

Brother Guy is one of the senior monks of Tassing's abbey, and part of the abbey's scriptorium.

• French Jerk: He comes from Burgundy (part of France), and he is the least friendly monk. He even comments that Andreas should have let Piero take the fall of the Baron's murder because Piero got only few years left to live, though he apologizes for his remark soon after.
  Andreas [with Rapscallion background]: And you got no year left.
• Hidden Depths: In Act II, he is well-informed about the plight of Jewish people to the point of showing relief for refugees who ended up in Poland (where many Jews were welcomed that few were admitted into nobility) and England (at least for Christian-converted Jewish refugees from Iberian peninsula due to its antisemitic laws only allowing said demographics into their lands) and sorrow for those who were expelled from Spain (where both it and Portugal expelled or converted Jewish people in their kingdoms) and even his own home country of France (where the king also made an edict on expelling its Jewish populace along with refugees fleeing from Iberian peninsula), when Andreas is asked about countries he traveled after he became a Master Artist. It's possible to learn that this is because Guy is actually of Jewish descent himself, but his family was forced to convert to Christianity so they wouldn't be expelled from their homeland. This also explains why Guy became a monk at a young age, complaining that he never got to go back to Burgundy again.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Ziggaged. His embezzlement scheme is revealed to be done to donate money to help Jewish families, but he failed to consider lending a hand to the peasants of Tassing who are impoverished by the abbot's heavy taxes, especially when his embezzlement ended up allowing the abbot to levy more taxes to compensate the loss of funds.
• Nun Too Holy:
  • In addition to his caustic behavior, Guy is also embezzling from the abbey in Act II even if said the money was to support expelled Jews across the Holy Roman Empire.
  • Furthermore, he also read the heretical book about Christian Mysticism, which Andreas can gain a new trait by keeping it, in Act I and dabbles in Necromancy in Act II.
• Pet the Dog: In spite of his arrogant nature, he showed sympathy for Jews—especially those that have been pushed out by anti-semitic policies even skimming off funds from the monastery to support the displaced Jewish families.
• Poke the Poodle: If he was interrogated about his role on Otto's death, his method of dealing with him was performing a (sham) magic ritual to leave him brain dead.
• Professional Butt-Kisser: Sucks up to Prior Ferenc when he lashes out at Brother Piero for being too slow to draw. He is all too happy to work in the scriptorium for attention despite believing it is obsolete.
• Suddenly Ethnicity: It's possible to learn that the reason Brother Guy cares so much about the treatment of Jews across Europe, and why he's embezzling money to aid persecuted Jews in the Holy Roman Empire, is because he himself is descended from a Jewish family that was forced to convert in order to continue living in France.

Brother Aedoc of St. Ives

An elderly Cornish scribe who often bickers with Guy.

• Grumpy Old Man: Whether it's having to deal with Brother Guy, being yelled at by Prior Ferenc or the general stress of working in the scriptorium, he has no end of things to complain about, and does so freely. This changes in Act II — he's lost his eyesight and use of his hands, but he's happy he gets to rest. Not having to deal with Ferenc or Guy every day might also have something to do with it, he notes.
• Hidden Depths: While he's generally a Grumpy Old Man who complains a lot, he also enjoys word puzzles, showing that he's not entirely humorless. He and Andreas have a running game where he says something in an anagram and Andreas has to decode it.
• Secret-Keeper: Examining a book in the library with the handwriting of the notes the unknown letter-writer has been leaving, then asking him about it, will lead him to warn you away from looking into it any further. His wording is cryptic, but implies he knows what Father Thomas has been doing.

Brother Florian of Poznań

Brother Florian was a monk of Polish origin, who served as a mercenary before turning to clergy at Tassing.

• Badass Bookworm: By Act II, he studied newly printed medical books that his dialogue font would change to printing press speech (like Claus and other printers). Even Andreas can bring up his mercenary past to invoke this trope during the conversation with him.
• Closest Thing We Got: His knowledge on medicine came from his mercenary background, where he saw various wounds and illnesses among the troops. This knowledge would be honed by his access to medical books from either the abbey or outside purchases.
• Expy: Florian is the Renaissance Polish version of Cadfael, both of whom were former soldiers who retired to monkhood and used their extensive medical knowledge to conduct forensics.
• Eyepatch of Power: He is seen wearing an eye patch, which would probably be an injury from his military service in Poland.
• Retired Badass: He served as a mercenary in Poland; as a result, he was able to assess wounds on Baron Lorenz along with various unsavory aspects (such as syphilis symptoms that he likely knew from soldiers visiting brothels).
• Shell-Shocked Veteran: He will share his firsthand account of the misery of war in a somber tone if Andreas brings up the subject (more so if it is presented in a romanticized tone).

Brother Wojslav Ruzicka of Plzeň

^{Act III}

Brother Wojslav is a Bohemian monk who served as the cellarer for Kiersau Abbey.

• Big Fun: His portly figure complements his jovial attitude.
• Happily Married: He's married to Matilda in Act III if she wasn’t executed in Act I, and they live happily as ordinary townsfolk.
• Nun Too Holy: He has secret romantic affairs with Sister Matilda, who later becomes his wife in Act III as a result.
• Supreme Chef: He's known to make lavish meals for higher-ranking monks as a cook for the abbey. He even helps prepare a Christmas feast for Tassing inside the tavern after he left the Abbey in Act III.

Brother Sebhat of Sadai

Brother Sebhat is an Ethiopian who was stationed in Rome, but currently in the village of Tassing.

• Friend to All Children: Sebhat is open to sharing stories from his Ethiopian bible with the children of Tassing if Andreas accepts his invitation to eat with Grett's family.
• Non-Standard Character Design: Being Ethiopian, he's the only character who's drawn in the style of Ethiopian iconography, in contrast to the rest of the largely European cast whose designs are drawn from late medieval and Renaissance art.
• Token Minority: He is the only black African character in a cast of white Europeans (along with being one of the few non-Catholic characters, due to being part of the Ethiopian Orthodox church), which is emphasized by his character's art being drawn in Ethiopian Icon art.

Brother Volkbert of Mittenwald

A novice in Act 1 who does various menial jobs around the abbey. He becomes a monk by Act 2.

• Kindhearted Simpleton: Volkbert is clearly not the brightest of the monks at Kiersau, and some of the other monks and nuns ridicule him for it. If the player is feeling cruel, they can easily manipulate him into digging up a grave without the Abbot's permission.

Mother Cecilia of Augsburg

Abbess of Kiersau.

• Benevolent Boss: In contrast to Gernot, Mother Cecilia had good standing among the sisters due to her concerns for their welfare even sending Matilda to Hermitage for recovery after she was brutally beaten by the Baron and tried to get the nuns away from him whenever he visits the Abbey. Furthermore, she will plead Andreas not to press charges on Matilda.

Sister Illuminata of Perugia

^{Act III}

The librarian of Kiersau.

• Blue Blood: Her well-educated background and demeanor is the result of her coming from a noble family, and she choose the life of nunnery on her own will, despite her own complain of how her gender preventing other possibility for herself.
• Bookworm: Her most prominent trait is how well-read she is, and how much she cares about books.
• It Can't Be Helped: Her attitude toward broader societal issues. She recognises the systemic misogyny that gave her no choice in becoming a nun, but takes her work seriously and does not resent it as some others do; she disapproves of fantasies where the established social order is upended; and despite her love of books she upholds the Church's book burning policies.
• Rank Up: In Act II, she succeeds Mother Cecilia as abbess of Kiersau.

Sister Matilda of Kempten

^{Act III}

A nun at Kiersau.

• Dark and Troubled Past: Lorenz physically assaulted her and left her for dead after she refused his advances. She was put in a hermitage for recovery.
• Defiant to the End: If found guilty of the murder in act 1, her death scene shows her go from denial, then commending her soul to the Lord— and when the executioner starts strangling her, she alone of the four attempts to fight back, striking his stomach a few times to no effect.
• Good Is Not Nice: In Act 1, out of all the sisters she's the only one with the stomach to kill a clutch of baby rabbits in their garden. While horrible to modern sensibilities, they'd have threatened the sister's garden in a time the abbey was in bad financial straits.
• Happily Married: If she was not executed in Act I, she and Wojslav are married in Act III, having left the Benedictine order and now living as ordinary townsfolk.
• Nun Too Holy: She's secretly intimate with Brother Wojslav, which Smokey reveals if you talk to him in Act I. Their love becomes the main reason for her to leave the Abbey after Act II.

Sister Gertrude of Hof

The herbalist at Kiersau.

• Big Fun: She's the fattest character and usually has a very cheerful demeanor.
• Healing Herb: Her area of expertise; she runs the convent garden which grows these, and Andreas can discover that she comes from a family of apothecaries.

Sister Sophie of Birgitz

A nun at Kiersau.

• Big Fun: Like Sister Gertrude, Sister Sophie is one of the fattest characters in the game and very kind.

Sister Zdena of Tábor

Assistant librarian of Kiersau. She is unhappy being a nun.

• Foil: To Sister Illuminata. Both come from noble families. Yet unlike Illuminata, Zdena's family forced her to become a nun because they couldn't afford the dowry to her suitor, and her becoming a nun was the most economical way to settle her life with a purpose. This is also the reason for her rebellious spirit and lack of respect for the rules of living in a Benedictine abbey.
• Law of Inverse Fertility: If Andreas sleeps with her, she becomes pregnant and has to get Sister Gertrude to help her terminate the pregnancy. She notes that if her pregnancy had continued it would have led her to become defrocked and her family to disown her.
• Nun Too Holy: Frequently flirts with men, including Andreas, and chafes at the responsibilities of being a nun.
• Optional Sexual Encounter: The only person Andreas can choose to be intimate with.
• Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: The reason why she isn't reprimanded very harshly for her rebellious attitude is because her family is a major donor to the abbey.
• Sensual Slavs: She is Bohemian and very flirty.

Father Thomas Sprecher

^{Act III}

The priest of Tassing's church.

• Affably Evil: Is polite, approachable and seems to genuinely care about his parishioners' souls. He's also not above murdering them if he thinks it'll protect the faith of his flock. Both Andreas and Madgalene can have a friendly relationship with him before he's revealed to be the Thread Puller.
• All for Nothing: He views his past actions as such once Magdalene and Andreas confront him in the climax of Act III, as they had managed to uncover the truth of Tassing's origins despite his best efforts, rendering all the murders he had committed or instigated as pointless. His last act is to collapse the temple with him inside in a final, desperate bid to bury the evidence.
• All Hail the Great God Mickey!: The reason behind his murder schemes was that Saint Moritz and Saint Satia were actually Mars and Diana, and both of their relics were misinterpreted by early Christian settlers as saints. Had this been found out, it would cause disillusion among the Tassing townsfolk along with the shrine's patronage.
• Dark and Troubled Past: Father Thomas and Sister Amalie are survivors of a violent mob that was whipped up by a local who had read the Maleus Maleficarum and burned Sister Amalie's convent with all the other sisters inside. It has colored his views such that he very personally understand the dangers of a mob, and believes that some censorship is necessary to preserve the peace given not everyone can handle the ideas in books.
• Good Shepherd: He is committed, above everything else, to the salvation and well-being of every single one of Tassing's townsfolk and peasants. In Act II, he reveals that one of his reasons to not help the peasants is how he feels guilty for not preventing a Witch Hunt which burned Sister Amelie's convent and fears what a mad mob could do. He is willing to lie, manipulate and murder to that end. Thomas is in fact the Thread-Puller, using the knowledge of the townsfolk gained through their confessions to goad them into murdering those he believes might reveal the true secret history of the town — namely, that the legends of the saints who are the town's central claim to fame are actually Christianized versions of Roman gods, specifically Mars and Diana.
• Horrible Judge of Character: Lampshaded by Magdalene. After orchestrating the death of Baron Rothvogel to keep the Historia Tassiae from being gifted to Gernot, he comments that his fear that Gernot would be like Matthias and want to reveal the truth of Saint Moritz and Saint Satia was misplaced. Gernot was far more focused on protecting the abbey to value risking the losing the revenue from pilgrims, making it All for Nothing. Similarly, in Act 2 he didn't think the town and peasants were all that angry with Gernot and the abbey over the taxes and restrictions (despite the people going sick and hungry). He didn't expect orchestrating the death of Otto would worsen the town's unrest against the abbey, or that Peter was so seethingly angry. Otto's death spurred on said unrest into open rebellion. This is especially ironic since one of his justifications for his actions is fear of what an angry mob would do.
• Ironic Name: Named after Saint Thomas the Apostle, the disciple of Christ who doubted that Jesus had resurrected and asked for evidence that he was alive. Father Thomas instead wants to hide the evidence about the truth about the saints of Tassing.
• Moral Guardian: A generally kind version. He teaches the entire town how to read between Acts 1 and 2, and though he doesn't like Claus printing "The 12 Articles" he doesn't forbid it. When talking with Magdalene he reveals he doesn't believe all truths need to be revealed, and believes in preserving untrue stories or lying if it helps preserve the faith of others. Later it's shown to be a front. He murdered the prior Abbot rather than let him reveal the truth of Tassing, Saint Moritz and Saint Satia, then orchestrated the deaths of Rothvogel and later Otto for the same reason.
• Sinister Minister: Initially seems to avert this trope, but is eventually revealed to be manipulating the townsfolk into murder.
• The Unfought: He doesn't resist Magdalene or Andreas once they confront him in the climax of Act III. He points out that even if he were physically capable of overpowering them both, he's lost the will to continue murdering others to keep the origin of Tassing a secret.
• Walking Spoiler: It's hard to discuss his character without bringing up the revelation that he is the Thread-Puller.

Sister Amalie of Völklingen

^{Act III}

A nun kept in solitude within Tassing's Church due to being a mystic anchoress. She suffers from physical aliments due to a spinal disorder.

• Dark and Troubled Past: She was the only survivor of an abbey that was burned down by the mob who were influenced by books on witchcraft. As she was a scribe, she ran away with a book and bolt of cloth before living in seclusion in the cell.
• Disability Superpower: She has a deformity in her spine that causes her pain, but it also allows her to contort her body and squeeze through small spaces, which lets her leave her cell and deliver the notes that instigate the murders in Tassing.
• Foreshadowing: The game color codes certain characters to make it easy to tell what family they are, Sister Amalie wears mostly white, but with a notable bit of purple under her robes. She is the only character to have purple in their wardrobe at all, and in Act 3's ending we see her in mostly purple robes when she's revealed as the person who wrote the purple notes.
• The Hermit: As an anchoress, she willingly lives in seclusion in a cell attached to Tassing's church. By the end of the game, she finally ventures into the outside world after the church is destroyed.
• Hidden Depths: Despite being a nun, she's rather open to "different" interpretations and theology, when Andreas keeps the heretical book about mysticism from the library and embraces its teachings. This foreshadows her previous role as a scribe at an abbey before it was burned down by paranoid peasants.
• Never Learned to Read: As she is illiterate, she has to get someone—especially Father Thomas—who needs to write down her vision. Subverted as she was a former scribe, and was the one who wrote down notes with an elaborate font for Father Thomas.
• Tragic Keepsake: Act II has a scene which shows the inside of her cell, and a tome and a bolt of purple cloth can be seen. Both of these were taken as she fled from her previous nunnery as it was burnt down by an angry mob influenced by witch hysteria.
• Unwitting Pawn: It turns out she was the one who wrote and delivered the mysterious notes that instigated the murders in Tassing, but she thought the notes referred to her visions and had no idea they were meant for nefarious purposes. In the climax of Act III, when Andreas and Magdalene tell her that she'd been an accomplice of the mastermind the whole time, she's horrified that her actions led to murder and faints from shock.
• Walking Spoiler: She's initially a non-important figure who secludes herself and provides divine visions, but it turns out that she was an unwitting accomplice to Father Thomas in provoking the murders.

Claus Drucker

^{Act III}

The town printer and a friend of Andreas.

• Determinator: Absolutely determined to properly detail Tassing's history in the Rathaus mural, despite the difficulty of piecing together the town's history and the council's misgivings. It's this that causes the Thread Puller to assault him.
• Dying Declaration of Love: Pretty much the last thing he's able to do is tell Magdalene how much he loves her.
• Family Man: A loving husband and father in Act I. Refuses to join the revolt in Act II because of the risk to his daughter, his last remaining family member.
• Jack of All Trades: Is an able businessman and artist, knows the mechanics behind his printing press and has read nearly every book he has printed.
• Took a Level in Cynic: He is Andreas's best friend in Act I, and tells him he looks forward to his letters when the artist takes he leave. Andreas never actually writes, and when he comes back in Act II he finds Klaus was deeply hurt by this, particularly as he lost his wife and son in the meantime, and finds it difficult to like or trust him anymore.

• Death by Childbirth: Not directly. Marie passed away shortly after giving birth to Magdalene, though it is due to the plague rather than the childbirth itself, which also claimed the life of her son, Bertholdt.
• Ruling Couple: In terms of family business, she is in charge of making the block and type for the print shop while Claus deals with the rest.

• Death of a Child: Despite his energic behavior and outgoing personality, Bert is one of the two children in Tassing that died between Act I and Act II
• Posthumous Sibling: Bert died shortly before Magdalene is born, and Madgalene's only impression of him and their mother is the family portrait hanged in the room.
• Strong Family Resemblance: Like Magda, Bert shares the common trait of mole on the cheek, although on the different side.

Ulrich Alban

^{Act II}

One half of the town's bakery.

• Chubby Mama, Skinny Papa: Ulrich is a thin and somber man whilst Grett is plump and pleasant.
• Nice Guy: Ulrich is one of the most generous and morally upright men in Tassing. In Act II he is extending lines of credit to the peasants to keep them fed to his own fiscal detriment.
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Ulrich is the only townsperson who stands with the peasants when they rise in revolt against Lenhardt. His reward is to get accidentally blown away by Lenhardt as he tries to defend himself.

Grett Albanyn

^{Act III}

The other half of the town's bakery.

• Chubby Mama, Skinny Papa: Grett had a portly and joyful personality in contrast to Ulrich's dour and slender physique.
• Dating What Mommy Hates: Downplayed. She was not happy with his daughter Anna's marriage to Paul Müller in Act III initially as Lenhardt shot her husband (albeit in accident), but warmed up to them once Paul proved himself to be a kinder person unlike his father. In addition, she also help take care of her grandchildren as well.
• Happily Married: She and Ulrich get along, which she is still traumatized over his death at the end of Act II left her as a widow.

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

Daughter of Ulrich and Grett Alban.

• Chekhov's Gun: Since she had a habit of stealing things as a child, in Act II she can confess to Father Thomas that she stole a note that was written in purple ink, a color that she was fascinated by due to her illiteracy; she was, of course, unaware that it was one of the manipulative notes that Father Thomas, himself the Thread-Puller, had written to arrange Otto's murder.
• Happily Married: By Act III, she's married to Paul and has two children with him, Andreas and Ulrike. Grett mentions that she initially wasn't pleased about the marriage given how Paul's father Lenhardt killed her husband, but she warmed up to Paul after seeing how much kinder he was than his father.
• Sticky Fingers: As a child, she has a habit of stealing anything that takes her fancy, including Andreas' hat during one scene in Act I. In Act III, she lampshades this and mentions that it was her way of acting out when she was young, as she's long since grown out of this habit.

Baltasar "Baltas" Isenkopf

^{Act III}

An inventor who settles in Tassing after getting stranded there.

• Ambiguously Gay: He has an aversion to marriage for reasons he won't specify and ultimately ends up sharing his home with a man named Gnaziu. In keeping with the 16th century setting, nothing is openly stated, but his situation can easily be seen through this lens.
• Bungling Inventor: He's not stupid or lacking in engineering know-how, but his actual ideas seem to be universally dreadful, something he's all too aware of.
  • This gets subverted to an extent in Act III, where he created a successful business from his engineering endeavors that he was commissioned to design a clock tower for Tassing's Rathaus.
• Hidden Depths: By Act III he's become a talented brewer and entrepreneur who obtained financial support for his inventions.
• It Will Never Catch On: Generally at the receiving end of such comments about his concepts, even one that would be adopted centuries later (mechanical plow as one of many examples).
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: The bookish, disheveled inventor's assistant is the colorful, exuberantly Italian Gnaziu.

Lenhardt Müller

Tassing's miller and a friend of Father Gernot.

• Affably Evil: He's outwardly friendly to Andreas, specially in Act II when Andreas' social standing has improved and even actively tries to befriend him, while at the same time proudly explaining what a horrible person he is.
• Beauty Is Bad: Is very good looking, aided by the fine life he has lived on the back of the local peasantry. Undoubtedly helped in his seduction of Hana and many of the other wives around Tassing.
• Chekhov's Gun: His wheellock musket, hanging above the dinner table in his house. Specifically, his lack of marksmanship. He first shows it off while hunting with Andreas and almost kills him by accident. While fending off the lynch mob, Lenhardt tries to use it to kill Peter but misses and kills Ulrich instead. Being a single shot weapon that takes a while to reload he doesn't get the chance for a follow-up.
• Domestic Abuse: Is very emotionally abusive. Even in front of guests he undercuts his wife and son every time they speak.
• Even Evil Has Standards: As cruel as he is, Lenhardt still despises lynch mobs and wants Otto's murderer to be handed over to the authorities for the chance at a fair trial. He will defend whoever Andreas accuses of the murder on principle, even if it's Martin Bauer, whom Lenhardt especially hates and tried to encourage Andreas to go after.
• Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: He proudly proclaims his hate and disdain for people of lower standing than him, comparing them to animals. Even if Andreas tries to point out how disgusting his views are, Lenhart will just wave off his protests and continue to detail why peasants deserve nothing but pain and suffering in their lives and cannot grasp why Andreas doesn't immediately agree with his views.
• Fantasy-Forbidding Father: He vocally disapproves of his son Paul's interest in art, and wants him to be a miller like himself.
• Foreign Culture Fetish: Lenhardt—a Bavarian—has a penchant for Dutch Culture with his house's windows and windmill being based on Dutch design.
• Hate Sink: One of the few characters with essentially no redeeming qualities.
• Hypocrite:
  • He sees himself as high above the other townsfolk, specially the farmers. And his position has allowed him to extort them and propel himself to a higher social and economic status than the rest of the town, who he sees as ignorant and stupid... While at the same time he is still just as ignorant and stupid as he claims the peasants to be, since he's too stupid to see how his backwards views are antagonizing Andreas against him and exposes his own lack of knowledge about the Low Countries he supposedly idolizes since he's never been outside of his tiny town.
  • He compares the townsfolk to mindless animals and believes they deserve to be treated as such… while simultaneously having no problem comparing himself to a wolf.
• Man of Wealth and Taste: One of the wealthiest men in the entire town, with the dress sense to match, and he is also incredibly morally bankrupt.
• The Mountains of Illinois: If Andreas spent his Wanderjahr in Low Countries (modern-day Netherlands and Belgium), Lenhardt will comment about "Hills of Leie" that Andreas can either sarcastically accept it or correct him that Leie is a flat river plain.
• Moral Myopia: Has no problem having as many extramarital affairs as he wants, but believes any man who sleeps with his wife deserves death.
• Sadist: While on the hunting trip, Andreas comments that he seems to take pleasure in hurting things that seem smaller or weaker than him. Lenhardt is all too happy to agree with him.
• Self-Made Man: Claims to be this, but Andreas can point out how his wealth comes from his father, who built the town's original mill.
• Serial Homewrecker: Has slept with most of the wives of both the peasants and townfolk, and in many cases, did so as part of extorting them by offering lower grain prices.
• Shadow Archetype: Lenhardt shares a similar cultural position to Andreas, being a well-off son whose social position exceeds most of Tassing’s other citizens. However, while Andreas shows off his care for the peasants, Lenhardt views them solely as rubes to be exploited. Their view of the nobility is also entirely different: Andreas sees the nobility as flawed and spoiled, while Lenhardt consistently tries to suck up to anyone with a greater social position than himself (including Andreas).
• Smug Snake: Almost always has a smirk on his face and constantly belittles the peasantry, as well as his wife, son, mistress, and everyone who disagrees with him.

Else Mülleryn

^{Act III}

Lenhardt's wife.

• Doting Grandparent: Her children and grandchildren are her biggest purpose in life. If Andreas did not encourage her independence in Act I or II, during the ending she will remark that they are her ONLY purpose.
• Impoverished Patrician: Her maiden name is Caveizel, who were influential Romansh (Gallo-Romans from Switzerland) family in Tassing until it was reduced to her as the only surviving direct descendant.
• Proper Lady: Although always a kind and well-rounded person, it's only after Lenhardt dies and she has to take charge of the mill that she's able to express it more publically. In Act III, she's spending time with the local peasant women, enacting fair grain prices, and allowing her children to do as they wish creatively.
• Shrinking Violet: What she is in Act I and II, as a result of the Domestic Abuse she suffers at the hands of Lenhardt.

Paul Müller

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

Son of Lenhardt and Else

• Happily Married: He became a loving husband to Anna and had two children—Ulrike and Andreas
• Like Father, Unlike Son: Paul was shown to be interested in art, which his father—Lenhardt—despised to the point of discouraging his son from pursuing it. In further contrast to his father, Paul negotiated favorable milling fees for the farmers and provided funds for rebuilding the town's livelihood in Act III.

Endris Schmidt

^{Act III}

The town blacksmith.

• Babies Ever After: If you did convince him to proposition Resi, in the ending splash you will see that they started a *very* large family together.
• Grew a Spine: There's this girl in the nearby market town, but he's too shy... who would want to come live in a remote mountain village with an ageing blacksmith anyway? If Andreas encourages him to go for it, he succeeds in wooing Resi and lives happily ever after.
• Satellite Character: Although present throughout the game regardless of what happens, Endris stays separate entirely from events.
• The Stoic: To a fault. He's poor at communicating his true feelings, and prefers to keep himself to himself.
• Was It Really Worth It?: Should Andreas convince Endris that marriage is a waste of time in Act 2, Endris decides to focus all of his efforts on mastering his craft instead. By Act 3, Endris has become a deeply lonely and regretful aging man with no marriage prospects. The family tree mural at the very end of the game tells us that he did eventually become a skilled enough smith to forge a personal sword for the lord of Tassing... but he presents it with no enthusiasm.

Doctor Werner Stolz

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

The town doctor.

• The Alcoholic: He starts hitting the bottle so hard by Act III that he can be found passed out outside Endris's. This can be averted in Act II if Andreas talks him up to his Italian doctor friends and tells him he's a good man afterwards, which helps Werner come to peace with his role as a small town doctor.
• Born in the Wrong Century: He is a proponent of Pliny's Natural History as a credible source of medical knowledge...in a time when it was being widely being debunked and replaced by more credible literature.
• I Coulda Been a Contender!: By Act III he's deeply disillusioned with life in Tassing and convinced he could have been more than a small town doctor. Though, depending on how Andreas treats him, this can be averted and he can be convinced to embrace his relatively modest small town life.
• Dr. Jerk: An arrogant, drunken asshole who hates everyone in town, and also happens to be its only qualified physician.
• Meaningful Name: "Stolz" is German for "proud". Werner's belief that he is too learned a doctor to be stuck practicing medicine in a small town like Tassing causes him to openly resent -and in turn be resented by- most of the town's inhabitants.
• Spot the Thread: If Andreas doesn't embarrass him in front of the visiting doctors in Act II, then he will share a secret about Martin Bauer. Werner once treated Martin for a bad injury he suffered as a child, and the treatment left a permanent scar. That scar is no longer there after Martin's return, hinting that Martin is not who he claims to be.
• Took a Level in Kindness: If Andreas is kind to him in Act II, then he will soften significantly in time for Act III, avoiding becoming a drunkard and accepting his position in Tassing with much more grace. He is kinder to Magdalene as a result.
  • Similarly, he is willing to sponsor Brigita's son Krafft in university to become a doctor. Should Magdalene manage to convince him to take up the offer.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: Particularly and vocally doesn't like Baltas. But for some reason they always seem to be around one another, sharing meals, and always sit at the same table at the inn. This is not the case if Andreas is kind to him in Act 2 and he doesn't become a drunkard. Their friendship becomes far more uncomplicated.

Otto Zimmermann

^{Act II}

The town lumberjack and a friend of Andreas.

• He Knows Too Much: The Thread-Puller targeted Otto for discovering evidence that the statue of St. Moritz is actually a statue of Mars. "Martin" and Brother Guy's motives for killing Otto was that he discovered the former's identity theft and the latter's embezzlement.
• Never Learned to Read: Many of the other townspeople have at least a basic level of literacy, but Otto never found the time. This becomes a plot point: Otto found the head of the statue of Mars, but being unable to read the name written on it continued to assume it was Saint Moritz and that his discovery of it was a sign God favored his cause. The Thread-Puller orchestrates his death before he can show the statue head to anyone who can read.
• Rebellious Spirit: Exhibits this early on, when he openly talks about his disdain for how the abbey treats the villagers. Andreas can even earn his respect by asking him to dig up a grave in the abbey without Father Gernot's permission.
• Rebel Leader: Becomes the main voice of discontent against Father Gernot and Kiersau Abbey in Act II.

Linhart Steinauer

Husband of Agnes Steinaueryn, father of Brigita Baueryn, and Tassing's stonemason.

• Book Dumb: One evidence against his involvement in the Baron's death is his inability to decipher the note left by the Thread-Puller, at least according to his account.
• Face Death with Dignity: In contrast to Ferenc, he simply accepted his fate in calm manner when he was executed.
• Ignored Expert: As Lucky is a stonemason, he keeps talking to Father Thomas about the instability of the Church's foundation but either rejected or insisted on making surface-level repairs. This relates to the fact that Father Thomas does not want Lucky to discover the secret underneath the Church.
• Made of Iron: His nickname, "Lucky", came from a stone falling on top of him and brushing it off thanks to his immense strength. He is also strong enough to carry heavy rocks and smash a fish to death on a rock with his bare hands.
• Papa Wolf: He deeply cares for his daughter Brigita. He also has a motive against Lorenz because his fling with his eldest daughter, Beates, led to her dying from an attempt to terminate her pregnancy after she was abandoned.

Johanna Bergeryn and Nikolas Berger

^{Act III}

A married couple and co-proprietors of Tassing's inn.

• A Deadly Affair: Hanna is cheating with Lenhardt and they egg on each other's dislike of Otto, whose death they both have vested interests in. It's plausible that this led to her actually killing him.
• Henpecked Husband: Niko is this to the extreme.

• Loners Are Freaks: People in Tassing don't like him due to him being constantly absent for Sunday Masses, and they mock him for his "blind faith", even though Smokey has a good reason to be away, as he needs to keep an eye on his kiln.
• Nosy Neighbor: The fact that he spent most of his time alone makes him interested in sharing gossip with anyone who wants to listen, and most of his talk contains salicious details that are indecent to be heard by many. This does make him the best source of information during Andreas' investigation.
• Ungrateful Townsfolk: Even though most of the townfolk rely on him to produce the charcoal needed for their home, he doesn'tget the appreciation he deserves. As the result, he is the few who stayed neutral when Otto is planning his uprising.

Father Elias Schneider

• Last Episode, New Character: Shows up next to Sister Amalie in the final chapter. Magdalene even lampshades this while in her conversation despite having never met him until only a short while ago.

Peter Gertner

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

The oldest man in Tassing and father of Peter Gertner.

• Born in the Wrong Century: He held on to elements of Alpine Paganism—especially Perchta and pre-Roman practices—which puts him at odds with the pious villagers and the clergy during the Renaissance era.
• Fiery Redhead: In Act I his graying hair is still quite red, and he's very opinionated and cantankerous.
• Good Old Ways: Unfortunately, his ways happened to be Alpine pagan culture that didn't help with the abbey and Tassing's more pious citizens.
• Grumpy Old Man: Is constantly complaining about the abbey, his neighbors, his family, Andreas, and, significantly, the younger generation's disrespect for the Good Old Ways of Tassing's past.
• Incurable Cough of Death: His nickname comes from how he is constantly coughing. Amazingly, if you helped the Gertners pay the taxes, he lives through all 25 years the game covers and seems no more ill than he was at the start.
• Ironic Nickname: Despite his cough, the guy might be the healthiest person in the village. Old to begin with, he sees out the entire 25 years of the game's length, outliving many, many younger people in the process (and that is if you helped the Gertners pay the taxes).
• Long-Lived: Even before the start of Act I, he is one of the oldest men in town, visibly wizened, nowhere near as strapping as other older men like Lucky or "Old" Otto Zimmermann, though not quite as white-haired as the elderly brothers Aedoc and Piero at the abbey. If you helped the Gertners in Act I, then by Act III, he's positively ancient and has outlived them all, as well as his son.
• Scatterbrained Senior: His family occasionally mentions he's not as sharp as he once was. He's frequently distracted, irritable, and noticeably hard of hearing. He's still holding it together 25 years later in Act III.
• Videogame Cruelty Punishment: If Andreas failed or refused to help Gertner with tax payments, Ill Peter would have perished after Act I that would negatively affect the quest for the "Pagan Tassing" mural.

Peter Gertner

^{Act II}

Head of the Gertner farm, husband of Clara, father of Big Jorg, Eva, and Ursula.

• Berserk Button: He became furious when Lenhardt called out his temper and his late wife Christine, whom he had an affair before her death.
• Despair Event Horizon: He crosses it at the end of Act II: Otto's dead, Ulrich's dead, he just killed Lenhardt and whoever Andreas designated as Otto's murderer, soldiers are marching on the town and everyone's telling him that things are going to get back to how they used to be, something that he doesn't want. So he sets fire to the abbey, probably as a last ditch effort to have something change.
• Fiery Redhead: Inherited both his hot temper and his red hair from his father.
• Madness Mantra: In despair he repeats his belief that nothing will change and everything will go back to the way it was, leading him to starting the fire that burns down the Abbey in the end of Act II.
• Pride: Clara has to go behind his back to ask Andreas for early rent, knowing he wouldn't accept the financial help.
• Rabble Rouser: Whips the villagers of Tassing into a frenzy after Otto's murder.
• Spanner in the Works: His anger and rash actions lead to a peasant revolt against the abbey which ends up being brutally put down by the duke's soldiers — one of the exact outcomes the Thread-Puller was trying to avoid by arranging Otto's death.

Clara Gertneryn

^{Act III}

Second wife of Peter, mother of Ursula, stepmother of Big Jorg and Eva. She rents the upper floor of her house to Andreas.

• Empty Nest: While she's not lonely, since the entire family still lives in one house due to medieval living conditions, with the death of Peter in Act 2, and her children growing up, she starts feeling unneeded by Act 3.
• Second Love: She married Peter after his previous wife, Christine, passed away.

Jorg Gertner

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

Son of Peter and his late first wife, Christine.

• Fiery Redhead: Inverted; despite having red hair like his father and grandfather, he's considerably calmer and more laid-back than both of them.
• Gentle Giant: One of the largest members of the cast, and far more level-headed and friendly than his father and grandfather.
• Happily Married: He's married to Veronica in Act II and has twins—Apollo and Artemis—in Act III.
• Large and in Charge: Jorg is the biggest person in Tassing and winds up as the spokesperson of the town council.
• Promoted to Parent: Downplayed, but Eva's profile mentions that she was raised by both Peter and Jorg, and he even helped his mother when she was still alive. His experience with Eva was apparently a godsend for Clara when Ursula was an infant.
• Strong Family Resemblance: His son, Apollo, looked like him—even starting to match him in strength in Act III—except for a beard.

Eva Gertneryn

Daughter of Peter and his late first wife, Christine.

• Chocolate Baby: Her blonde hair in contrast to red-hair common in Gertner's families caused rumor that she might have been result of Lenhardt Müller's affair with her mother.
• Happily Married: To Otto in Act II and also to Black Til in Act III.

Ursula Gertneryn

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

The daughter of Peter and Clara.

• The Baby of the Bunch: She is the youngest of Gertner family, which emphasized more in Act I and II as she is shown as a toddler and a prepubescent child compared to her grown-up siblings respectively.
• Cheerful Child: A playful and friendly toddler in Act I.
• Burn the Witch!: The Rathaus in the epilogue depicts a family tree. if Ursula was encouraged to learn Tassing's pagan history, and if Ferenc was executed, she is shown burning on a pyre.
• Incurable Cough of Death: Averted. She has a bad cough in Act II, which given the general mortality rate of poor peasants in the 16th century comes across as a death sentence. But she gets to Act III just fine.
• Happily Married: In Act III, she and Fabian are married and have a child, Walpurga.
• I Got Bigger: Ursula is a major point of the game in relation to this trope, even developer's previews showing her appearances across all 3 Acts.
• Older Nephew, Younger Uncle: Downplayed Trope in Act III as she is at least 18 years older than her adult-age nephews and nieces (Apollo, Artemis, and Ötz).
• Practically Different Generations: She was a toddler while her elder half-siblings are at adult age, which the age gap is more evident in Act III when she would resemble an eldest sibling to her nieces and nephews visually.
• Took a Level in Cynic: In Act III, she becomes more bitter and caustic as a result of her miserable life along with losing her father during the revolt in Act II.

Johannes Bauer

Husband of Hedwig "Heddy" Baueryn, brother of Frantz and father of Hans and Veronica.

• A Family Affair: Is sleeping with Kat, his dead brother's wife, at the Old Salt Mine in Act II.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Is delighted if Ottilia loses her land, as he gets to share with his brother. When Martin takes over from Frantz and suggests parceling some of it out instead, Johan tells Andreas he has suspicions about his nephew, knowing full well Andreas' investigations could get Martin killed.
• Pants-Pulling Prank: Lost two teeth after pulling one of these on Lucky.

Veronica Baueryn

^{Act III}

Daughter of Johannes "Johan" Bauer and Hedwig "Heddy" Baueryn, and sister to Johannes "Hans" Bauer.

• Happily Married: She and Big Jorg got married in Act II and have grown-up twins in Act III. Partially subverted in that she isn't in love with him, but they have nevertheless had good lives together.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: The red to Brigita's blue, despite their color schemes.
• Secretly Gay Activity: Her relationship with Brigita seems to be deeper than being best friends, especially when they spend time swimming together at midnight from conversations in Act II. However, it was a bit of an open secret in Tassing that they spent an "inordinate" amount of time with each other, and Big Jorg never seems to mind.
• Shameless Fanservice Girl: Isn't bothered by Andreas seeing her and Brigita Skinny Dipping, as long as he doesn't hit on them.
• Spirited Young Lady: Speaks her mind about injustices and wants to carve her own path in life, though she stays within contemporary expectations of female domesticity.

Hans Bauer

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

• Annoying Younger Sibling: Always goes along with whatever his father says, much to Veronica's chagrin.
• Adoptive Name Change: Sepp Hübner's son, Simon, takes Hans' surname when adopted by him.
• The Ditz: Doesn't show much independent thought in the first two acts, but is amiable and hardworking. By Act III he is aware that he has this reputation.

Martin Bauer

^{Act II}

^{Act III}

Son of Frantz Bauer, Martin Bauer is considered a burden and a delinquent by most of Tassing, including his own family.

• Absurdly Youthful Father: He and his wife Brigita were in their teens when they wed, and have a child.
• Based on a True Story: Essentially Martin Guerre, the subject of a real 16th century impersonation case.
• Hidden Depths: If Andreas treated him nicely earlier, he will greet him nicely during Act I. During Act II, you can actually talk with him, and he will express regret for his earlier behavior. Subverted in the latter case; the real Martin Bauer is dead, and his friend/partner in crime, Jobst Farber, took his place.
• The Highwayman: During the timeskip between Act I and II, he was one of these until he made the mistake of targeting a bank carriage with heavy security.
• Lower-Class Lout: Acts very rude towards everyone in town, intentionally tries to get out of helping his family, and even ends up stealing gold, jewels and a rare book from Baron Rothvogel. He appears to have grown out of this behavior in Act II, until it is revealed that this isn't actually Martin, with his partner Jobst having stolen his identity after the real Martin was killed in a botched robbery six years prior.
• Spanner in the Works: Early in the morning of Baron Lorenz's murder, he stole a copy of Historia Tassiae along with his rings, unaware that Father Thomas wanted the book to be destroyed in his attempt to keep the truth about Tassing's "saints" a secret. But then the book fell out of Martin's hands and into a hidden place in the meadow, until his wife Brigita discovered it and kept it hidden in her home for 25 years.

Brigita Baueryn

^{Act III}

Daughter of "Lucky" Steinauer and Agnes Steinaueryn, she is married to Martin Bauer.

• Absurdly Youthful Mother: She was in her teens when she became pregnant with Wolff.
• Ambiguously Bi: In contrast to Veronica, who is Happily Married to Big Jorg but never shows any signs of actual romantic attraction to him, Brigita seems to be genuinely attracted to Martin while also enjoying "swimming" with Veronica.
• Dating What Daddy Hates: The Steinauers have nothing good to say about Martin.
• Secretly Gay Activity: She and Veronica were known to swim together around the evening in Act I and later midnight in Act II with implications of their time together being more deeper than being friends. However, Martin in Act II allows her to "spend time" with her it is an open secret among Tassing residents.
• Secret-Keeper: She knew Martin's true identity.

Karl Pfeiffer

^{Act III}

• Outliving One's Offspring: In Act II, his son died trying to save him from a Landkeschet. The guilt still haunts him in Act III, which is 18 years later.

Tilman "Old Til" Kreutzer

• Bookworm: Despite being a peasant, he's very well-read and shows a lot of interest in learning about the Ancient Romans who used to live in the area; he mentions that he's read half the books in the abbey's library. In Act II, he laments the closure of the library, and that he wanted to buy some of their books but they were too expensive for him.
• Defiant to the End: He is among the peasants during the rebellion of Act II, and is one of the notable characters who died in the end of Act II.

• The Alcoholic: He always has a cup of beer with him, and even gets drunk while he is on duty guarding the crypt of the Abbey.
• Out of Focus: He only makes a couple of appearances throughout the game, and we don't even know if he had a family until Act III. The main story point for him is that he shares the same Christian as Andreas's father Josef.
  Sepp:"You call your father by his Christian name?"

Ottilia Kemperyn

The widow of Ranning Kemper, who lives in a dilapidated cottage next to the Bauer family farm.

• Born in the Wrong Century: Her pagan practices and belief in Perchta would have been acceptable if it weren't for the fact that she lived in heavily Christian Renaissance Bavaria.
• Dark and Troubled Past: Her husband was brutally beaten by Lorenz to the point of dying from mortal wounds, but his connections to judicial circle meant that he could get away with such crimes.
• Defiant to the End: If you point her as the perpetrator in Act I, she will be brought in screaming and accusing the townsfolk of being happy that they're finally being rid of her since most of them hate her anyway.
• Fling a Light into the Future: If she survived Act I, Ursula—at least when encouraged to learn Tassing’s Pagan past—would retain her teachings even after she passed away by Act III.
• Get It Over With: If she is exposed as the perpetrator in Act I, she tells the executioner, Richart Schaff, to kill her word for word.
• Good Old Ways: Like Ill-Peter, she held Pagan beliefs dating back even before the Romans and often clashed with Kiersau Abbey as a result.
• The Scapegoat: Of all the suspects, Ottilia has the least means to kill the Baron, as she struggles with physical tasks and has no excuse to be at the abbey without raising suspicion. However, she is disliked by most of the townsfolk, holds no position of responsibility, and is already near the end of her life, making her convenient to point the finger at. If she is executed, her "ghost" accuses Andreas of making her one of these.

Twin children of Big Jorg and Veronica.

• Aerith and Bob: Their names stand out as belonging to Greek gods rather than being traditional German names or being named after Biblical figures. Father Thomas blames the names for their unruly habits and their reputation as pranksters.
• Like Father, Like Son: Apollo inherited his father's Stout Strength, which he even made a record on the village's lifting contest.
• Theme Twin Naming: They're named after the ancient Greek gods Apollo and Artemis, who are also twins themselves. Other characters mention that being named after pagan gods rather than being given Biblical names or traditional German names may be why they misbehave so much.
• Trickster Twins: They're twins who enjoy goofing off and playing pranks on everyone else in Tassing.

• The Slacker: He drifts through his day in the town without doing much farm work.
• Goal in Life: Magdalene can help him to find a purpose in their conversation. He can possibly became a doctor (like his grandmother Agnes), a stonemason (like his grandfather Lucky), or a thief (ironically like his father, both of them).

• Everyone Can See It: Everyone knows Ötz loves Madgalene, and he is the best marriage option for her. Madgalene consent is the last piece of the puzzle.
• Insistent Terminology: Despite Madgalene's objections, Ötz always calls her Mags. During the Christmas event, he switched between calling the correct and incorrect nickname for Madgalene, as he was drunk.
• Like Father, Like Son: Ötz is just as obtuse as his father when it comes to love. While Eva and Otto get to be together, it is entirely possible for Ötz to miss his chance with Magdalene.

• Childhood Friend: Implied to be this with Magdalene, and wrote to each other on a monthly basis, as fast as the horse can carry mails.

• Kissing Cousins: Jutta's possible marriage options are with her first and second cousins, Apollo and Krafft. played straight with Apollo, subverted with Krafft's actual parentage

Tilman "Black Til" Kreutzer

• Age-Gap Romance: He is Eva's second husband. Given that Eva is not very young even in Act I, and that they are likely married after Ötz comes of age. There is definitely a significant age gap between the two, with Black Til being the younger one.
• Identical Grandson: He shares the striking similar feature with his grandfather, as well as name. Making his nickname "Black Til".

Son of Hanna and Niko.

Son of Helena and Karl.

• Extremely Protective Child: Threw himself in front of the Landsknecht about to kill his dad.
• Teen Rebellion: In Act II, he is not comfortable with his father's disciplinary words and compliments.

Daughter of Helena and Karl.

• Rebellious Spirit: She is perhaps the only character who will not follow your advice when passing a persuasion test.
• Taking the Veil: One of her possible endings is becoming a nun of Poor Clares.

• Meaningful Name: She is named after Anna's late father, Ulrich.
• Sibling Yin-Yang: She is the outgoing one to her more introvert brother.

^Ending

• Meaningful Name: He is named after Andreas Maler himself, who had been a great influence on Paul's pursuit of art.
• Sibling Yin-Yang: He's quieter and more introverted compared to his sister Ulrike.
• Strong Family Resemblance: His self-portrait as a young adult look like his grandfather Lenhardt. But thankfully, he took after Paul's temper.
• Taking Up the Mantle: He becomes the town painter and completes the mural started by Magdalene by drawing the genealogy tree of Tassing's townsfolk. It is also heavily implied that Andreas Maler is his art mentor.

Fabian Rauch

^{Act III}

• Ascended Extra: He is a bland character in background during Act II, and we have no idea about his family. In Act III, he married Ursula Gertner and has a child.
• One Head Taller: Fabian is very tall for a young teenager. In fact, his height is the only thing that make him stood out in his character note, figuratively and literally.

• Out of Focus: She only show up as an infant in Act III, and did not appear in the Ending mural at all. A possible explanation is that she succumbed to the 16th century child mortality.

• Locked Away in a Monastery: She is sent to the convent by her father to fulfill the promise he made when she was born. Needless to say, it is not a voluntary decision for her.

Baron Lorenz Rothvogel

Lorenz is a baron, who provided a large part of Abbey's income due to being a regular patron on their scriptorium.

• Affably Evil: No matter what dialogue choices you pick, he's at least initially nice to Andreas and seems to see him as a kindred spirit. You can either push against this or choose to lean into it and try to curry more of his favor. However, after he's killed, you find out about lots of horrible things he did, including cruelly beating and sexually assaulting anyone he felt like.
• Aristocrats Are Evil: Baron Rothvogel was a powerful man of noble blood, and he used his privilege to abuse the people of Tassing with impunity. Reactions to his proclivities and demise often serve as a lens into the peasants' dim view of the aristocracy in general.
• Asshole Victim: He's ultimately revealed to have been a serial adulterer and rapist, and had a history of committing violent acts against anyone who angered him. Andreas can get a sizable list of suspects for his murder in a matter of days simply because so many people despised him. Even his wife, though in mourning for him, emphasizes that she loved him as her wifely duties dictated and has few kind things to say about him as a person.
• Blackmail: Was blackmailing Prior Ferenc with exposure to the Inquisition if he didn't try an occult ritual to cure him of an STD.
• Blue Blood: A baron in Holy Roman Empire, who is also a friend to Prince Bishop.
• The Casanova: Is very infamous around Tassing and Kiersau Abbey for being a womanizer. This takes a very dark turn when you find out that he attempted to rape, and subsequently beat, Sister Matilda when she rejected his advances. In another instance, this led to the death of Lucky's first daughter, who died from an attempt to terminate her own pregnancy as a result of their tryst.
• He Knows Too Much: Since he had the book about Tassing's history, he would most likely know that Saint Moritz and Saint Satia were Christianized versions of Mars and Diana by the inhabitants who were ignorant of the Roman ruins. As he was enamored with Martin Luther's ninety-five theses, he would most likely reveal the truth to spite the abbey. Hence why one of the possible suspects was manipulated to kill him.
• Hypocrite: Was blackmailing Prior Ferenc with revealing his occult studies to the inquisition— unless he used the same knowledge in a ritual to try and cure him of an STD.
• Odd Friendship: Andreas can bond with him over their mutual love for art and books, as well as Occult. Even if Andreas chooses to politely decline to debate in theology with him over supper in respect to Father Gernot's wishes (with the Orator background), the Baron can still respect Andreas and provide him with an ornate pin through Michlaus, provided that Andreas makes favorable choices that are positive enough to pass the persuasion check.
• Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: His ties with the Prince-Bishop likely allow him to remain obnoxious in the abbey, even attempting to discuss Martin Luther's Theses during the dinner at an abbey. His death causes panic among the abbey as the Prince-Bishop would come there to seek out justice.
• Wicked Cultured: He's a very cruel man with several intellectual interests.
• Would Hit a Girl: Beat Sister Matilda so mercilessly that she had to be sent to a hermitage for her own safety.

Archdeacon Jacob Estler of Freising

^{Act III}

The archdeacon of Freising. He is sent to adjudicate in the matter of Lorenz's death.

• Irony: Despite being a powerful Archdeacon with judicial power and a stern personality, he converted to Lutheranism and enjoyed his new life in Act III.
• Judge, Jury, and Executioner: Certainly the judge and jury part. He weighs up the testimony he gets from Andreas and issues a death sentence based on it to someone.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: He's about as fair as it's possible to be in his situation. Somebody has to die for the crime of killing someone as rich and influential as the baron, and he can only act on the evidence he's shown. He responds cordially to the letter Magdalene sends him in Act III.
• Scary Shiny Glasses: Has this going on in the court he calls.

Vácslav

^{Act III}

Roma tinker and friend of Smokey.

• The Heretic: Specifically, a Gnostic, the kind of heretic who would be burned at the stake by Catholics and Protestants.
• Magical Romani: He's very interested in the occult and magic.
• Roguish Romani: Not a thief himself but does want you to steal occult and heretical books from the abbey library.

^{Act II and later}

• Ambiguous Situation: We never actually know her fate and her situation throughout the game. Even her appearance is only in Andreas's dream, and it is his impression of the portrait sent by his brother.
• Arranged Marriage: Regardless of Andrea's feeling, marrying Sabine is not only expected for Andreas, but also a requirement for Andreas to become a master on his own. Even if Andreas loved her, it did not outlive the life of their only son, August.
• Ironic Echo: For all the strained relationship between Lorenz and his wife, Andreas unintentionally walked the same path in his married life, although for a different reason.
• False Widow: Due to Andreas never show up after Act II, the law dedicates her as widow and inherit Andreas's properties as his spouse. Even when Andreas show his face in the end, he never returns to Nuremberg to clarify his situation.

• Dead Person Conversation: One-sided, Andreas's words to August always fall on deaf ears in his dream, as the boy never responds. Which makes the only time when August replies to Andreas during his final trip through his mental maze near the end of Act III all the more tragic, as it represents Andreas finally coming to terms with August's death, almost 20 years after the plague.
• Death of a Child: August was only four years old when the plague took his life. It is enough to crush Andreas's heart completely, even in his prime years.
• Irony: Maler's family are known for their plentiful offspring, as shown with Andreas's brothers and their children. Yet August is the only child fathered by Andreas, and he did not survive to adulthood.

Caspar Ziegler of Salzburg

Andreas's apprentice during Act II, a young boy from Salzburg.

• Anger Born of Worry: When he stays out late for the festival Andreas can react this way.
• Broken Pedestal: If Andreas treated him harshly and told pessimistic expectations as an artist, Caspar would show a sense of disillusionment to Andreas before leaving.
• Heroic Sacrifice: Saves Andreas from the abbey fire and perishes there instead.
• Kid Sidekick: He follows Andreas around for almost the entirety of Act II, assisting Andreas with his various quests.
• Like a Son to Me: Andreas can say this about him.
• Only in It for the Money: Played with. Andreas can ask Caspar to leave him at the end of Act II. If Andreas lost his money gambling then the check is more likely to succeed.
• Replacement Goldfish: If Andreas treats him like a son, it can be easily interpreted as him treating him as a replacement for August, the son he lost to the plague during the Time Skip.
• Undying Loyalty: To Andreas, if treated with kindness and respect. He will return to save Andreas, and try to save his books, but never comes out again.

Benjamin Sommerfeld and Rachel Sommerfeld

Jewish printers from Prague.

• All Jews Are Ashkenazi: Zig-Zagged Trope. Sommerfeld family is making Yiddish typesets (a dialect associated with Ashkenazi) due to Hebrew being only typeset available to Jewish printers at the time. This also justified that their hometown is Prague where its Jewish demographics are Ashkenazim who adopted Yiddish as their second language.
• Happily Married: Both Benjamin and Rachel are a loving couple.
• Imperiled in Pregnancy: As Rachel was pregnant in Act II during the German Peasant Wars, she had to stay with Claus in Tassing.
• Jewish and Nerdy: The Sommerfelds—Benjamin, Rachel, and grown-up Esther in Act III—are printers who are well-read and skilled craftsmen. In fact, they were returning from their work with Johann Froben to create Hebrew-type sets and experimenting with Yiddish typesets before ending up in Tassing due to peasant revolts across Holy Roman Empire.
• Yiddish as a Second Language: Justified as Sommerfelds were of Ashkenazi descent and developing Yiddish typesets to distribute published sets to their demographics.

• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: One interpretation of his character. While he is kind on the surface, he is ultimately wanted for murdering another man in a drunken brawl. Act II reveals he is still quick to anger while drunk, and should he live to Act III, his behavior has worsened and his reputation in town has suffered due to his violent temper.
• Good Parents: Despite his violent temper, he is supportive of his son.
• Preferable Impersonator: Brigita knows his true identity, but has done nothing about it because Jobst is a far more caring and responsible husband than Martin ever was. That, and he keeps her relationship with Veronica a secret.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Becomes a far more unpleasant man should he survive to Act III, his drunkenness having worsened and his resentments mounted as the town's opinions of him have soured.

Alexander Rappolt

• Voice for the Voiceless: During his conversation with Magdalene, when he speaks on behalf of Kazimierz, who can only talk with signs.

Kazimierz Wierzbieta

• The Speechless: He is often mute and can't talk.
• Talking with Signs: When Magdalene talks to him, he writes something down on a piece of paper and holds it up for her to read.