Lots of folks come and go from this little electronic stage; if you want to see the first appearance of any semi-major character, you can probably find it by searching over on the recap page or the transcript page. Below you can find brief profiles of the characters I consider to be nearly completely major. The links with their names go to when they first make a serious plot contribution, which may or may not be their first actual appearance.
Rosemary Ripley Rosemary is tough, strong, fast, fairly fearless and, on her good days, almost capable of being noble. She is, to put it bluntly, a Wandering Hero. (Or a Heroine if you insist on being politically correct...) Wandering Heroes may be great fun to read about and even to incorporate into your society's myths and legends, but actually living with one can quickly prove to be a serious pain.
	Sylvester In no particular order, Sylvester is the head of the family, an intellectual, a well-meaning twit, and the current owner of the Mansion of E. Or at least in the case of that last item, that's what all of his carefully-collated paperwork says. It doesn't mean for a minute that he controls the Mansion. Also, he doesn't exactly have a last name, but that's nobility for you...
Mortimer Mortimer is Sylvester's younger brother. He is likable, easy-going and cheerful, but he is also a Trouble Magnet juiced up with so much power that on a good (or bad) day he can draw off the problems of primitive tribesmen living otherwise utterly untouched by modern civilization in the heart of distant rain forests.
	The Gnolls Gnolls are among the most common inhabitants living under the Mansion. From left to right, these three are... Camora, who might have been another Wandering Heroine, if she didn't yell so much or make so little pretense towards nobility, her mate Comshaw, an officially registered Poker who is very good at his job, and Niddle, a well-meaning fellow if a bit sheltered and overly-excitable. The fact that Niddle and Mortimer have the exact same haircut is just one of those Wacky Coincidences.
Frederick Frederick is Sylvester and Mortimer's elderly and rather eccentric great-uncle who has an interest in music and large bladed weapons. He shares his bed with a multi-talented Scary Lady who as the comic begins is very much a Woman Of Mystery.
	Hopobefever Hopobefevfer/Hpobfvfr is a Ghast, a race of resilient humanoid slime-creatures who are distinguished from one another by the Little Floaty Things which constantly hover near their heads. Even more than other Ghasts, she capable of soaking up enormous amounts of punishment, a fact which stands her in good stead as she grimly pursues her duties as a Squad-Leader in the Basement "Council Police".
Shona and Sina (and Skuy) From left to right: Shona carries messages for a certain Basement VIP while Sina (bearing the tasty cakeshroom) is discovering she is very good at organizing things besides birthday parties. They are sisters, and, sadly, don't get along all that well. Skuy, younger, shorter and rather more timid, is not their sister, but ends up associating with Sina a lot due to.. things besides parties. (It's pronounced "SKOO-EE")
	Basement VIPs The multispecies society and economy of the Mansion's basement are currently dominated by these three individuals: Agita the Motihaul (tall and green), Nevus the Wyrm (small and pink) and Guttle the Gobule (squat and angry). You generally don't get to be in the positions they currently occupy by being nice. Also note that even more so than most, the artistic look for these three characters changes and evolves as the strip progresses.
SubShaft 44f The SubShafts are a dank dark region of the Basement where various unpleasant mechanical activities regularly occur. Still, for some people, existing there is marginally less awful than existing elsewhere (or not existing at all.) The current inhabitents of SS44f appear some Sundays: from left to right, you have Cully (the New Guy) Chunner (the Grizzled Vetern) and Crud (the Well-Meaning Hair-Triggered Bean-Breeder.)
	The Grubbs Amos and Nellie Grubb are an elderly married couple who live right next door to Frederick in the Mansion; Amos works with books, while Nellie works with plants. They and Frederick and the Scary Lady all share a long history.
Forest Nomes There is a village of Nomes (not Gnomes) in the forest which surrounds the Mansion. From left to right, we have Nitfol, who near the start of the strip finds himself involuntarily dragged from his self-imposed solitude, Umboz the widower squidcoaxer and his young daughter Vezza, and the Nomish village Healer Piu. Any relationships they have beyond species, you'll have to read about and find out for yourself. Also be aware that Nitfol is another character whose artistic design changes fairly radically as the strip progresses.
	Ploot and Voog the Wyrms Ploot (left) and Voog (right) are, as noted, (Big/Deep) Wyrms, a hardy species which mostly lives deep under the Mansion in the so-called "Hot Zone". (They have some sort of Relationship with Small/Shallow Wyrms like Nevus.) These two, however, have been further up in the Cold Zone, and have managed to secure a mention here by being helpful to folks, Ploot perhaps more selflessly and willingly than Voog.
Forest Saurs Saurs are (mostly) scavengers who, like Nomes, live in the forest around the Mansion. With eyebrows, is Snerk, a would-be go-getter who tends to go-get in over his head, and Ig who, while displaying healthy curiosity, tends to adopt a much more laid-back approach to life. Despite what the picture may imply, they are not friends and do not spend much time together, either "on screen" or off.
	Flange and Sprocket Flange the Helipath and Sprocket the Gnoll are the Basement's most highly sought-after team of mechanics, experts at keeping various rickety bits of equipment going, or even on occasion installing new ones. Their expertise and discretion have earned them some vary high-profile clients. Sprocket is not the most emphatic or outgoing person in the world, but he and Sina have developed a tumultuous on-going relationship.
Agorn and Skradt Another pair who are listed together not because they are in any way a pair, but because they both toil as enforcers for one or another Basement VIP, and thus proceed to get involved in the ongoing MoE action. Agorn the Gnoll is the literal spear-carrier, while Skradt the Troglodyte, sports the scar. Of course, even a spear-carrier is the hero of his own story...
	Maggle and Wrawa the Troglodytes Maggle (left) and Wrawa (right) are two well-meaning female Trogs who live in the Basement. They probably get along well enough when their paths cross, but once again, are not particularly friends. Maggle is cheerful and easy going, while Wrawa has, fairly or otherwise, earned something of a reputation as a killjoy. Trogs are another group whose look has changed fairly drastically over the years, so be prepared for that.
The Weirdo and Fantod Weirdoes are the local equivilent of jesters, at least among the Humans of "Mansionland". The resident Weirdo in the Mansion of E, being of direct and literal mind, goes by the name The Weirdo Who Lives In the Attic. As can be seen, Fantod is, somewhat literally, his right-hand man.
	Faddle and Shabash Faddle is something of a hustling Basement ne'er-do-well who makes a few appearences before getting a steady gig on (real life) Saturdays for a spell. Shabash, if anything, has made even worse life-choices than Faddle. Her fairly unheroic escapades are the focus of some Saturday strips well. Unlike many others here, there is a certain amount of on-screen overlap with these two characters.
Another Forest Nome This gal's name, (Fizmo), is a mild spoiler. She starts off the strip doing more or less her own thing, but eventually begins interacting with some of the other cast-members. She is a (mostly) cheerful talkative and foulmouthed iconoclast, though she might not know the meaning of that last word.
	Nitid Another Helipath. He makes a living painting signs and wall-messages for his fellow Basement inhabitants. He is not a typical member of his pragmatic and technically-minded species.
Ace and Rufus Ace and Rufus are two more siblings of Sylvester and Mortimer who put in appearences at various points. Ace is a competent and rugged individual, and is even smarter than most people realize, including possibly himself. Everyone is well aware that Rufus is very smart, and that definitely includes himself.
	Violet and Aloysius Violet Hopkirk and Aloysius Culpepper are two younger inhabitants of Eetown, the Human village attached to the Mansion. Both are, in their own ways, intelligent and talented, and are struggling to find their place in the General Scheme of Things. They aren't currently friends or anything. The gull doesn't really have a name.
Hax and "Digger" Odel Hax looks like a hat with legs, which is not surprising, because that's essentially what he is. He is a Fixit, a species which gets around by hitching rides on the heads of both willing and unwilling passersby. He works for a rather shadowy and ill-defined individual who goes by the name "God". Digger is short. Really really short. He's also really really good at digging, and works for no one but himself. (Ooh! A spoiler!) Beyond that, he is much like God, an enigma wrapped in a mystery. Or a riddle. Or something.
	Frowgler the Horned Frog Frowgler is an even more mysterious figure, one whose operations are based in the Mansion's forest, rather than the Basement. He shares the name and general appearance of a famous individual from "Mansionland" popular culture, and seems to know an awful lot about most everything.
The Fuzz and the Robot Even more so than the gal above, saying or showing too much about these two guys would probably spoil a strip newcomer's enjoyment, but they've appeared in enough real-life Sunday strips they deserve a spot here. If you want to immediately see what I'm talking about, the robot (3375) first appears here and the Fuzz (Frizzlegarb) here.

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