How Many Characters?

[TheRedChamber]

This is intended to be another 'tell us about your work' type thread - no agenda, no particular help sought, just a lot of shooting the breeze about how we write.

Today's question is how many characters do you tend to have in your stories? If your immediate response was 'how every many the story needs', then do you often find your stories need large ensemble casts? What's the most characters you every put in a story (of how many words)? Have you ever written a story with exactly two characters in? (One for Toys/Masturbation). Really? Are you sure the barkeep didn't pour them a drink, or the hero's wondered what his mother would think if she could see him now? Of course, that's another discussion about what exactly constitutes a character.

A couple of possibly useful terms for types of character. (feel free to add your own or to wrangle my definitions)

A mentioned character - doesn't actually appear in the story, but is mentioned in passing. While it's possible for a mention to cast a long shadow, mainly they're just there for colour.
An influencer character - a character who actually helps shape or influence the plot in some way or acts at least slightly outside their expected roles - a barkeep pouring a drink cause the hero's down isn't an influencer, one who suggests that he talk to the lonely blonde in the corner is, even if that's his only line.
Sexual characters - those who take part in the the sex scenes of the story either with the MC or in their own trysts accidentally or intentionally witnessed by the MC.
Allies - those who help the main character(s) acheive the goal of the story.
Antagonists - those who prevent the main character(s) achieve the goal in the story.
Rivals - those who compete alongside the MC for the hand of their beloved.
Choice Characters - or maybe the MC needs to figure out who their one true love actually is as part of the story - it could be anyone?
B-Plot Characters - characters who are important enought in the story that they get their own encounters, growth and resolution arcs.

My own record for maximum named characters is 12 in the space of 8,500 words (including the male and female MCs) - This was in the context of 'business hospitality at a strip club' so I ended up with 3 men from the main firm, 3 men from the customer firm and 6 female strippers to accompany each of them. Within that word count, it's impossible to draw everyone in detail and inevitably a lot of words were used on the physical descriptions of the ladies. It worked okay and was necessary for that shape of story, but did persuade me that I needed to be really careful about how many people I let into my stories.

From the opposite end, I've done a fair few stories which have featured only or nearly only two characters, but other people creap in round the edges (a best friend who communicates only with text messages, another customer in the late night shift). I'm not sure that completely isolating characters is desirable (but maybe for certain stories it can be), but in writing this thread, I've found myself thinking 'that story only has two' only to remember a few seconds later that there were more people featured.

 

[Lifestyle66]

My first story was He Missed You-750 words with just the husband and wife. There's a passing mention of a driver getting out of his car at a gas pump they were worried might see them for one paragraph. Otherwise, it was just the two of them.

And my Different Proposition stories are just the two of them talking, but they mention others in their discussion.

The most characters is in Lifestyle Ch. 08: Parties with 13+ characters. The attached Ch 09 added two more, but just Ch 08 had at least 13 named characters, not counting the guys passing through for the gangbang and the two old guys voting on membership.

 

[Rustyoznail]

That's not something I keep track of. From memory, the most main characters I've had was 4 - three guys and one woman in a gang bang. The story also had two main characters from another story in a supporting role, and a few "Shop assistant played by..." characters. I usually only have two or three main characters, and a supporting cast that drifts through as needed.

 

[JadeMynx]

So far my maximum for a sex scene is 6. On top of that 2 more prominent characters are mentioned. Honestly don't want to go further than that. At least not at this point in my "career." It is just too hard to keep things flowing smoothing when you have to keep naming people over and over again while they move this way and that.
I try to think of writing in two ways. The first is like a engineer on a budget. With this mindset there is a need to only include what is absolutely necessary to the story. Not everything needs to be named. In practice this falls apart because I get caught up in the details, which brings along the other way I think of writing. The creative flow side of things. Sometimes you just gotta do things cause it feels right, trust the creative process.

In theory I try to keep my character number as low as possible. Actors cost money you know?
Could be fun to see if you could cohesively fit large numbers of characters into short stories though.

 

[NotWise]

The number of characters in my stories is hugely variable. One of my first stories has three characters total, and most of the story plays out between two of them. My longest story has an enormous cast list, and part of that was because the two main character spent most of the story telling each other tales, and every tale they told had it's own, sometime fairly large, cast.

"Finding the Fourth Girl" was the only story I've written where juggling the characters was a problem. It started with a large cast of characters at a hookup party who were vying to be included in the after party. The after party whittled the cast down to eight characters. To make things more complicated, there was a fairy tale imbedded in the story in which three of the main character took on different names and roles: Nadia became Good Queen Nad, Seth became Sir Knight, and Beth became Princess Leotard.

Oh yeah, and "Every Girl in Edgarville" featured every girl in Edgarville, plus a few in Grover and more from surrounding towns and ranches.

Both of those might have been problems, but each was a blast to write.

 

[MrPixel]

In my story series about a big hotel and the resident harem it would take a few hours to re-read everything to count the number of named characters and their roles. The "core" group currently has 8 women and 3 men, and the most recent sex scene in a yet-to-be-published installment has the 11 players plus two "extras", guys recruited for the scene.

I'm with NW - it's been an absolute blast assigning personalities to the various players, even the walk-ons. I seem to not need a cheat sheet for when a previous minor character reappears in the story line; I somehow know who they are and why their reappearance is necessary to tell the tale. I also have no compunction in introducing new cast members.

In theory I try to keep my character number as low as possible. Actors cost money you know?

It seems my production budget is unlimited.

 

[SamScribble]

In theory I try to keep my character number as low as possible. Actors cost money you know?
Could be fun to see if you could cohesively fit large numbers of characters into short stories though.

Interesting that you say this. I got my first big break writing radio drama. And, yes, actors cost money. Somewhere between two and five characters seemed to be the sweet spot.

 

[BiscuitHammer]

Oh, jeez...

The Alexaverse cast gets bigger and bigger. There are four core and equally important main characters- Mike, Karen, Alex, and Alexa. They're supported by eight constant key characters- Jordan, Freja, Jeanie, Mona, Janet, Lisa, and Lady Jenny Penrose. They have roughly twenty supporting characters who are regulars.

Time Rider has three main characters, Mark, Becky, and Nanu. Support characters come and go.

The Great Khan centers on Boldbator and his four wives, with maybe four close supporting characters.

My Naughty Neighbour focuses on Mike and Lynn, supported by Xiong.

Amberley Bloodstar is all about Amberley, narrated by Amberley. Supporting cast come and go as necessary.

Sapphic Serenity stars Bronwen and her mom, the supporting cast is transient.

Love You, Daddy! is a narrative by Evangeline with her dad Mike. One regular supporting cast member, her bff.

I'm pretty sure the Alexaverse cast is bigger than all my other story casts put together. Gah.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I keep my casts small. Usually two or three lead characters, one or two support characters.

My Arthurian novel had more overall, but in any single chapter, as above.

My Mickey Spillane piece had maybe a dozen speaking parts, which for me is a lot.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

I try to resist the urge to get more supporting characters along, but on the other hand a new person with a couple lines can really add to a story. So I try to reduce my named cast to a manageable number, and make it clear who are the key characters.

I have a 750 word story (Denying Alex) with six named cast plus mentions of parents - the number of people wasn't a problem there (protagonist, antagonist, object of desire who used to be antagonist's best friend, antagonist's contrasting nice brother, antagonist's new best mate, someone who goes off with brother). The last didn't really need a name but it helped save a couple words.

In my Smoking Hot series I have three main characters. L's husband is offstage the whole time, A's mum likewise. His sister gets a few lines. D's flatmate and flatmate's nightmare girlfriend are there for plot reasons, and we meet D's family in the last chapter. L and A have a pair of college friends, now married with young kids, and some other old college friends, but only two appear, a few others are referred to. A has half a dozen colleagues, too, though some are mere names. A couple of the college friends were going to get larger roles but got cut from the narrative, so will get their own story eventually.

There's a German waitress and an Asian newsagent, a Polish bakery assistant, none named but get a few lines as needed.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

I actually do keep track of the characters in all of my stories.

The story with the most characters is "Elements" with 46. It has 118,000 words. My longer stories (100K+) all have dozens of characters frequently shared between them. That's why I track them.

I only have one story where just two characters are involved.

 

[TadOverdon]

Named characters who get laid? An average of 12.

Innumerable walk-ons and stunt cocks.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

My first story I published here had dozens. The next one had two. I now have one that has hundreds. Of course, not all of them speak, but they are there.

First story: Walker Brigade - Book of Incidents
Second: currently not published here - an oversight I'm sure - Mother Nature
Largest: Warrior One - Fleet Action - it not only has people in it but androids and ships that talk.

 

[Voboy]

Once I realized all my stories would wind up being connected, I started to keep a list of all of 'em, mostly so I'd avoid name repetition. But there was no way to keep it updated.

I'd guess most of my stories, if "character" is defined as "person whose name is mentioned," have maybe a dozen or so? If the criterion is "speaking role," my average might drop to about seven or eight, I imagine.

 

[Candy_Kane54]

All of my stories have two main characters, all but one written from one character's POV. One story mentions no other characters at all while all of the rest do mention one or more ancillary characters. Many are making a cameo appearance before never being heard or seen again while the rest are recurring characters, some of which have their own stories from their POV.

 

[Trionyx]

I don’t consider myself stupid but I find myself getting lost when multiple characters are quickly thrown at me right off the bat. This tends to be found in longer stories where the author tries to introduce the reader to the characters all at once, such as at a party or family reunion. I’ve clicked back more than once due to this issue.
If a writer wants to have many characters, it is best to trickle them in slowly as the story evolves and leave the names of the step-sister’s four kids and two nieces out of the story. One extra little recommendation is to avoid using Similar names

 

[Unblemished]

My stories so far are pretty low on character count. But then my stories so far are pretty simplistic, so that tracks. Not being falsely modest there, but in the sense that they're quite straightforward sex-plot situations, not to mention short and focused. An example would be the viewpoint guy, his girlfriend's sister with whom he is sleeping, and the not-seen girlfriend. Or a guy, his unseen casual partner, and the casual partner's flatmate who tempts him.

A few have more: Going the Distance has the protagonist mentioning multiple other flatmates who don't play any direct role, who are potential sexual hooks or supporting characters to use if I ever write a sequel. Back to the Ex is literally just a girl and her ex, but the in-progress sequel also has the girl's long-suffering female friend as an ally, a few background people, and potentially a cameo from another story if it'll fit. Another one I'm working on is about a girl getting in all sorts of ghastly situations while desperately looking for a partner, so there's a lot of characters there, even if most are pretty minor.

So it varies. Mostly I have very few, but that's because of the type of story I'm currently writing. If I ever did a long-form romance or something, I'd add more.

 

[SimonDoom]

Interesting question. I had to go back to my story list and think about it.

Usually I have just one or two main characters, and the rest are supporting characters, if they exist at all. My standard is to have one POV/protagonist, and another major character with whom the protagonist has an erotic encounter. I may have a third character, like a dad in a mom-son incest story, who plays the role of foil or villain.

In an exhibitionist story I may have one main character who has encounters with multiple people who are not major characters.

I have yet to publish a Literotica story that has more than two major POV characters, but I'm working on it.

 

[yowser]

I think there are a couple principles involved. A longer story allows for a greater number of characters. In erotica especially, if it is a short (6K words or less) story it is likely best if just two or three folks are involved, with supplementary characters as needed to sharpen the plot/conflict. More than that and things can get confusing.

More characters demands more skill from the author in making sure that the entities are distinct (and as Trionyx said, best not to have 'similar' names unless there is a good reason and their personalities clearly differentiated.) Describing unique traits for each (important) character gives the reader a handle on keeping track of who is who, or otherwise you have a messy scrum and you are giving the reader too many chances to disappear in confusion.

My highest character total comes in a fairly long (for me) story of 14k, with four or five major players and a host of supplementary characters, all with speaking parts, maybe 13 or 14 in total. In this case it helped to have a recognisable plot template (a detective novel spin off, the 'Mike Hammered' challenge,) so characters other than the narrator/protagonist had roles that were easily distinguished (receptionist, two thugs, policeman, a bike messenger, etc.) and confusion minimised.

 

[Bubo_bubo]

I almost always use the same characters, no matter how long or short the story is. All 26 of them.

Non-jokey answer: I have fairly large number of characters in my stories. While each story has a single MC, around which gravitate a number of secondary characters (who change and vary over the course of a story, but with usually between half a dozen and a dozen into play at any point of the story). Any bit players I really don't count.

But what I noticed is that the majority of my individual scenes have only two characters in them (excluding background characters), and I very rarely have scenes that have more than four characters in them. I think it's because my writing is rather dialogue-heavy and dialogue with a lot of characters becomes quickly very confusing and/or hard to write.

 

[Bramblethorn]

This is intended to be another 'tell us about your work' type thread - no agenda, no particular help sought, just a lot of shooting the breeze about how we write.

Today's question is how many characters do you tend to have in your stories? If your immediate response was 'how every many the story needs', then do you often find your stories need large ensemble casts? What's the most characters you every put in a story (of how many words)? Have you ever written a story with exactly two characters in? (One for Toys/Masturbation). Really? Are you sure the barkeep didn't pour them a drink, or the hero's wondered what his mother would think if she could see him now? Of course, that's another discussion about what exactly constitutes a character.

Usually only two or three on-stage sexual characters, but I tend to end up with a fair bit of supporting cast as part of character development; people's ties to others are an important part of who they are.

"Red Callum, Sweet Cate" only has two major characters, but part of the backstory is that Callum has fucked every woman in town.

Loss Function: about two point five major characters, around half a dozen friends, family, and colleagues, one or two of whom might be influencers.

Anjali's Red Scarf: two central characters and Lucy, who's more than B-list but a little more peripheral. Anjali's parents are very significant to the story, and to some extent her grandmother. Beyond that, a large cast of workmates, friends, family, ex-es, and whatnot.

 

[HBuff]

The one story I have published here, in the Non-Consent section, was directly inspired of the 1938 Alfred Hitchcock movie "The Lady Vanishes", so it has about the same number of main characters as the movie; three women end up in the captured train along with a couple of male supporting characters, and then there are the soldiers, the wicked Doctor and the two officers leading the fifteen or twenty soldiers, not to mention the two middle-aged locomotive operators who also get their bit of fun with the English 22-year-old lady (instead of getting shot like they do in the original movie).

The story I submitted yesterday for the Halloween contest is consensual and it has only two characters --- the male racing pilot and the mysterious woman. This story uses an "I" narrator. Completely different! Variety is the spice of life, isn't it?

 

[burgwad]

I like this question.

I’m an introvert, and I think this shows in my character spreads. My central protagonist is almost always shy, low-key, risk-averse. Their love interests are often extroverts bored of just hanging out, keen on dragging my protagonist out of their shell, and constantly teasing them into taking risks.

These two or three characters comprise the bulk of the weight of the characterization in any given story. Other characters orbit them, but their importance/screen time is story dependent. I’ll spare you the tedium of a fuller explanation.

That said, I also skew low on character counts for writerly reasons. I believe strongly that if two characters can be smooshed together into one, then they should be (for reasons of economy and focus, but possibly also because of how chatty my characters tend to be). That said, I awe at and completely respect epic many-charactered stories like Game Of Thrones, Infinite Jest, or Mad Men. But that’s pro-grade shit, and I know myself to be bush league.

 

[PennameWombat]

A couple of possibly useful terms for types of character. (feel free to add your own or to wrangle my definitions)

A mentioned character - doesn't actually appear in the story, but is mentioned in passing. While it's possible for a mention to cast a long shadow, mainly they're just there for colour.
An influencer character - a character who actually helps shape or influence the plot in some way or acts at least slightly outside their expected roles - a barkeep pouring a drink cause the hero's down isn't an influencer, one who suggests that he talk to the lonely blonde in the corner is, even if that's his only line.
Sexual characters - those who take part in the the sex scenes of the story either with the MC or in their own trysts accidentally or intentionally witnessed by the MC.
Allies - those who help the main character(s) acheive the goal of the story.
Antagonists - those who prevent the main character(s) achieve the goal in the story.
Rivals - those who compete alongside the MC for the hand of their beloved.
Choice Characters - or maybe the MC needs to figure out who their one true love actually is as part of the story - it could be anyone?
B-Plot Characters - characters who are important enought in the story that they get their own encounters, growth and resolution arcs.

My own record for maximum named characters is 12 in the space of 8,500 words (including the male and female MCs)

I have a non-erotic story (a 750 word entry, Melancholia in Pictures) which has one character, Patricia, reminiscing about her parents as she goes through photos. Well, other characters knock on her door right at the end and it’s clear she has feelings for one of them. But I consider it a single character story.

I have plenty of stories where only the two focal characters have sex, but in only a couple are they essentially the only characters. In Through a Glass Lightly they never touch, they’re in separate buildings and only see each other through the windows. In Third Time Lucky the FMC is giving the MMC a blowjob when they’re interrupted by unnamed others right at the end.

My Mel’s Universe has expanded to close to a hundred named characters, counting the aliens. The main focus on the core stories (starting with Mel’s Phone Call, my first posted story here, and since grown to eight chapters in the main thread) is on Mel (Melanie), Chris, Sam (Samantha), Teresa, Terry, Dave, Bobby and Anna. Kelly Zabriskie is (to date) a mentioned-only character who casts a shadow over things. Maria, Veronica, Fred, Frank, Shelly, Helen and Joyce are all featured extras who get plenty of ‘screen’ time, while many more (wider family, soccer players, classmates, etc.) make appearances. Joyce has her own series that interleaves heavily. Other story lines have other main characters (e.g., Asha, Tracy and Aron in You Promised Me Geeks) and the stories interleave.

I’ve never bothered to count named characters in stories, so can’t give a max. I have a spreadsheet for the Mel’s Universe cast and timeline, so I know the total who’ve been worth naming. I use who and how many I need for any specific storyline. My most recent couple of stories (one an offshoot set in Mel’s Universe, the other a stand-alone) each had over ten characters directly involved in sexual activities and more named. I have a few other stories with similarly large groups involved in getting jiggy.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

And here is the character and information sheet for Warrior One...

Warrior One Character Sheet
Candle Steel – Ships Command android
Rebecca “Becky” Gold – Ships android - nurse
Nancy Silver – Ships android – nurse
Finn Collins – Ships Doctor - Commander
Ezra Nichols – Captain – Warrior One
Phinias Beckett – Lieutenant Commander – First Officer
Connor MacDonald – Commander - Chief Engineer
Sean O’Connor – Lieutenant Commander - Assistant Chief Engineer(f)
Samuel Carlson – Ensign – Sensor Officer
Moshe Byers – Lieutenant – Countermeasures Officer
Eric Nolan – Commander – Chief Navigations Officer
Michael Flannery – Ensign – Communications Officer
Teague Kinsella – Lieutenant Commander – Chief Weapons Officer
Molly Vaughan – Lieutenant – Helm(f)
Egan Dwyer – Lieutenant – Sensor Officer
Tara Morrissey - Commander - Protocol Officer(f)
Lafferty Owens – Major – Commander ships Marines
Joyce Tanner – Captain – Executive Officer of ships Marines(f)
Carl Glen - Staff Sergeant Marine contingent on Warrior One
Beth Sams - Sergeant Marine contingent on Warrior One.
Ethan Phillips - Corporal
Claude Johns - Lance Corporal
James Boone - Private
Lawrence Bean - Private
James Quinlan – Commander – Linguistics
Other Characters…
Milford Cook – Admiral Fleet One
Shaffer Steel – Admiral’s Command Android
Fina Dugan – Captain Pech – Fleet One Carrier(f)
Ossian Kavanagh – Captain Caoineag – Fleet One Battleship
Carol Ryan – Lieutenant – Commander Flight Two-Two-One(f)
Fleet Two personnel…
Brianna Adair Admiral Fleet Two(f)
Pan Steel Command Android Admiral Adair Commander Fleet Two
Chandler Steel Ships android – Warrior Two
Ronan Pierce Warrior Two Captain
Kevea Scully Warrior Two First Officer
Fleet Three personnel…
Bridget Brogan Warrior Three Captain(f)
Mac Nisse Collins Commander - First Officer
Mister Steel Command Android
Blake Mara Commander - Chief Engineer
Neil Gowan Lieutenant - Bridge Engineer Station
Clare Dugan Lieutenant - Weapons Officer
Kennedy Murphy Lieutenant JG - Helm/Pilot
Fleet Four personnel...
Kaylee Lowery Admiral Fleet Four(f)
Donal Carey Warrior Four Captain
AMV Chicago – Captain Garrison Collins
– Chief Engineer Kelly Masters(f)
– Kyle Ships AI
Fleet Command Battleships
Tór - Fleet Command Battleship - Captain Mealla Bree(f) - Admiral Cook - Attached to Fleet Cook
Sé - Fleet Command Battleship - Captain Brion Gillan - Fleet Admiral Tóla Shanna(f)
Crón - Fleet Command Battleship - Captain Deaborá Alleen(f) - Fleet Admiral Éilís Grady(f)
Roisín - Fleet Command Battleship - Captain Hogan Tomás - Fleet Admiral Lonan Fitzgerald
Fleet Troop Transports
Nuadu - Fleet Troop Transport - Captain Cóilín Cody
Troop Commander - Major General Magnus Hanlon
Colonel Sé Mal Eoin - Executive Officer
Irél - Fleet Troop Transport - Captain Iacób Ó Giolláin
Troop Commander - Lieutenant General Órlaith Róisín (f)
Colonel Cadden Kiley
Fleet Supply Ships
Uasal -Fleet Supply Ship - Captain Dermot Cabe
Fleet One
Warrior One – Fleet One Dreadnought – Captain Ezra Nichols - later Admiral Nichols
Mauthe Doog – Fleet One Battle Cruiser - Fleet Command Ship – Admiral Milford Cook Fleet Commander
Pech – Fleet One Carrier – Captain Fina Dugan(f)
Sensor Officer - Brennan Maguire - Lieutenant
Command Android - Diamond Steel
Chief Air Group - Commander Alastar Quinn
Selich – Fleet One Cruiser
Seonaidh – Fleet One Destroyer
Wulver – Fleet One Destroyer Captain Rosslea Ossnat(f)
Glaistig – Fleet One Communication Ship
Ceasg – Fleet One Destroyer - Captain Séamus Malone
Caoineag – Fleet One Battleship – Captain Ossian Kavanagh
Airne Mor – Fleet One Battle Cruiser - Captain Torna Hagan
Fleet Two
Warrior Two – Fleet Two Dreadnought – Captain Rohan MacKenna / Commander Ronan Pierce
Dún Muire – Fleet Two Battleship – Fleet Command Ship – Admiral Adair Fleet Commander
Wilmount – Fleet Two Battle Cruiser
Tilliums – Fleet Two Carrier
Taoibh Coille – Fleet Two Communication Ship
Lisieux – Fleet Two Cruiser
Knock Grena – Fleet Two Destroyer
Iveragh – Fleet Two Destroyer
Iona – Fleet Two Battle Cruiser - Captain Ailíse Sheridan(f)
Gleann Fia – Fleet Two Destroyer
Fleet Three
Warrior Three – Fleet Three Dreadnought – Captain Bridget Brogan(f)
Kyernia – Fleet Three Battleship – Fleet Command Ship – Captain Fleet Commander Sárán Conlan
Slíghe Dhála – Fleet Three Battle Cruiser
Naomh Eoin – Fleet Three Cruiser
Lios a Dun – Fleet Three Communication Ship
Kraceevee – Fleet Three Destroyer
Glencullen – Fleet Three Carrier
Ennisfree – Fleet Three Destroyer
Dooneen Faim – Fleet Three Destroyer
Cóis Dara – Fleet Three Battle Cruiser
Fleet Four
Warrior Four – Fleet Four Dreadnought - Captain Donal Carey
Scáthach – Fleet Four Battleship - Fleet Command Ship - Admiral Kaylee Lowery Fleet Commander(f)
Dalbhach – Fleet Four Battle Cruiser
Nuadha – Fleet Four Carrier
Fionúir – Fleet Four Communications Ship
Ailill – Fleet Four Destroyer
Oillín – Fleet Four Destroyer
Síofra – Fleet Four Destroyer
Fítheal – Fleet Four Battle Cruiser
Aisling – Fleet Four Cruiser
Fleet Cook (Destroyer Fleet)
Narvla - Destroyer - Captain: Commander Áinle Ó Daire*(f)
Ó Fearghal - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant Commander Beccán Boethius
Ó Cathaláin - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant Commander Ólchobar Mac Aodhagáin*
Cashlea - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant Caughey Abbán
Draigen - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant Maolán Faolán
Becc - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant JG Gobán Ó Ciaráin
Nóra - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant Commander Keeva Ó Donnagáin(f)
Lonán - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant Commander Ámhra Gráinne
Fáelán - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant Nóise McKinley
Rónán - Destroyer - Captain: Lieutenant JG Scolaí Dillon
Mauthe Doog - Battle Cruiser - Captain: Captain Donal Kelly* - Flagship Admiral Milford Cook commanding
Poll Steel - Captain Kelly's command android
First Officer: Commander Cian Bardon
Chief Engineer: Commander Onóra Cassidy
Chief Navigator: Commander Egan Lacy
Marine Commander: Major Séamus Conlan
Marine First Officer: Captain Eileen Reilly(f)
Weapons Officer: Lieutenant Commander Abrám Shanley
Altan - Battle Cruiser - Captain: Commander Abigeál Kerrin(f) - Lieutenant Neil Coulter 1st Officer
Éidin - Battle Cruiser - Captain: Lieutenant Commander Conall Ó Riagáin
Nóe - Battle Cruiser - Captain: Lieutenant Commander Dana Tracy*(f)
Tór - Fleet Command Battleship - Captain: Captain Mealla Bree*(f)
* Members of the Command Planning Group.
K'lar personnel...
M'lat Captain of the Vestron
M'tan Vestron Chief Engineer
M'fal Vestron First Officer
M'nan Vestron Communications Officer
M'tat Captain of the Kor
M'mal High Admiral of the K'lar Fleet
M'son Captain of the Metron
Saxon personnel...
Barclay Fleet Captain
Scout Ships
Seeker Two man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Commander Nolan Tóla
Second: Lieutenant Patrick Egan
Searcher One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant JG Doyle Farrell
Finder Two man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Bridget Carlin - Scout Ship Squadron Commander - Fleet Two
Second: Lieutenant JG Cassidy Tulla
Caster 4 One man scout ship
Captain: Commander Gillian Saraid - Scout Ship Squadron Commander - Fleet One
Scout 2 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Cass Pól - Scout Ship Squadron - Fleet One
Explorer-1 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Anna Duff - Scout Ship Squadron - Fleet One
Chaser 3 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Michelle Watson - Scout Ship Squadron - Fleet One
Quest 2 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant JG Becky Miller - Scout Ship Squadron - Fleet One
Hunter 4 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Jordan Dax - Scout Ship Squadron – Fleet One
Sheba 1 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Zander 12 – Scout Ship Squadron – Fleet One
Iska 1 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant JG Cantor 5 - Scout Ship Squadron – Fleet One
Caaleen 1 One man scout ship
Captain: Ensign Jenkle 4 - Scout Ship Squadron – Fleet One
Discovery3 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant JG Alison Hanna - Scout Ship Squadron – Fleet One
Spy 3 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Gail Beck - Scout Ship Squadron – Fleet One
Rider 4 One man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Patricia "Pat" Torrance - Scout Ship Squadron – Fleet One
Joy 2 One Man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant JG Nikki Jennings - Scout Ship Squadron - Fleet One
Avenger 2 One Man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant JG Carla Becker - Scout Ship Squadron - Fleet One
Rogue 3 One Man scout ship
Captain: Lieutenant Holly Snow - Scout Ship Squadron - Fleet One
Progenitor Crew/Passengers
Thesses Matriarch of the five/six groups of survivors
Eliot Thesses husband
Laflureians
Diplomats & Warriors
Bid D'old P'ak D'shun
Bly D'flo P'ed D'cal
Bek D'lak P'li D'sec