Heroes, for a given value of such

There's a few people who everyone knows: Folk heroes, their stories growing in every telling. Sometimes they're real people who did real things that now echo in the popular conciousness. Sometimes they're more myth, acting as rallying cries, cautionary tales or aspirational ideals.
Sometimes they're just a person who did something important
* Archmage Mogriss, Human Wizard and Emeritus Archmage Fondon, Occasionally-Gnome Wizard (Living): The two most powerful arcanists in the Valley. Fondon spends most of his time being a wizard, which lead to Mogriss taking over the role of Archmage due to her ability to actually do paperwork, show up to meetings, and have an attention span longer than 10 seconds. Mogriss is always seen with her apprentice/possible jester Zanaphia. 
* Ashfallen, Denizen of Leng Arcanist from Rappan Athuk (Living): A strange creature native to the plane of nightmares, Ashfallen serves as the librarian of Rappan Athuk, and the chief liaison to its inhabitants. He met the Great Downward during their adventures there, and possible took a shine to them.
* Boko, Human Wizard from the Sands (Folk Hero): Boko is an urban legend in the Valley. A huge, muscled man with dark skin covered in tattoos. The tattoos are said to be of every spell worth knowing, and each morning Boko looks at his reflection to prepare his spells. Supposedly, every time he learns a new spell, his other tattoos move to make room for the new magic. In stories he fills a role of a wise and friendly traveler one encounters on the road, dispensing free and timely advice. There's enough consistent reports that it's likely that he's a real person, although nothing else is known for certain.
* Cedric The Really Quite Fortunate, Blessed Be, Hafling Bard from the Stoneheart Mountains (Historical Figure): Cedric lived 200 years ago, born in 1603E. He worked in a small trading post in the Dwarflands, as a kitchen-hand. He dreamed that he was destined for something greater, and decided to set out into the world with his out-of-tune lute and 3 copper pieces. Though numerous setbacks and tragedies befell him, he nonetheless maintained faith in his dreams, and in Leaf Duskfoot, the god of Halfling and Travel. There was something to Cedric however, and no matter how much trouble he got in, he (and his increasingly battered lute) would always make it out of danger unscathed. He was kidnapped by the Meatchewer goblins, sold into slavery in the Sands, kidnapped by the Cult Of The First Dragon, and yet every time he'd make it out ok. Religious scholars of the day theorized that he was actually a favored soul of Duskfoot, though for the life of them they couldn't figure out why. During his time, Cedric wrote dozens of songs, plays, poems, and accounts of his travels. For all the interesting times he'd had, none of them were any good, and few were even readable. Eventually he'd die of old age in Skor, not penniless but certainly not rich. He had written his own eulogy, which was as indecipherably awful as everything else he'd ever made. After his death, his personal notes were found - thousands of pages of meticulous, historical facts covering some of the most important events of the century. For his "contribution" to history, a statue of him stands in Skor, and in a nearby museum, his lute rests on a pillow of velvet. The lute is battered, untunable and old, but has seen more important history than most people will in their entire lives.
* Falnil Deathless & Kyrain Hilterguarde (Living): When Lady Maya D'Larariel came to Dejune, she brought her two most loyal soldiers with her. When she returned to the Dales, they remained behind to keep an eye on the Valley, and report back any threats to the Dales. Falnil is rumored to be immortal, coming back to life mere moments after being slain. Kyrain is a 7-foot tall wall of muscle, and claims to be descended from an ancient bloodline of elvish heroes. This may well be true, as both are fierce fighters, easily a match for the best the Valley has to offer.
* Chief Engineer Lord "Foil" Dragonfoil, Tsarthar Druid of The Forest of Hope & Crumbs the giant pigeon (Living): Rescued from the depths of Rappan Athuk by The Great Downward, Foil showed his true colors when he sacrificed his life to distract a dragon. While the Tsarthar race (looking like heavyset anthropomorphic toads) was created by the evil god Tsathogga to serve as his minions, Foil's long imprisonment has left him lighthearted, with a love of all living things. When the original members Great Downward disappeared following the defeat of Orcus, Foil formed a new group in their name. Over the decade, he's created a group more than worthy of the name. His animal companion is a dwarf-sized pigeon named Crumbs.
* Lady Kingsley, Human Paladin of Muir, The Engineered Princess (Historical Figure): A friend of Shades, Kingsley would go on to sacrifice herself in Rappan Athuk to form the Engineered Princess, an "imitation" god, who would die only minutes later fighting Orcus and his hordes. She knew this going in, and was happy to make the sacrifice. She did not go quietly, and she did not go alone. It was only recently that her story was told for the first time, and her church is limited to a handful who were inspired by her story. 
* Kruin, Human Kruin of the Sands (Living): A force of nature and ill-luck, Kruin was an original member of The Great Downwards. While she suffered much misfortune, she possessed a mastery of magic, axes, and being batshit insane that no one has ever rivaled. These days she does her own thing, and everyone's fine with that, so long as she does it a long way from them.
* Laniss Elven Wizard, The Librarian (Legend): Laniss was another member of The Great Downward. He was a powerful wizard who disappeared in Rappan Athuk. Some say he became one half of the god of magic, along with an ancient mage named Akbeth Estella. Some even say the two of them killed Hecate, the previous god of magic, and took her place. All these stories are wrong.
* Madame Scarlet, Half-Orc Adventurer (Folk Hero): Very little that's verifiable is known about Madame Scarlet. It's likely she was born sometime around 500E in the Valley, and she spent a lot of time at sea. Her reputation as a hero of the downtrodden, along with some notoriety as a Casanova and skilled duelist has made her the center of many a saucy tale. The first stories were written by Scarlet herself, although they're clear fictions. Her complex love affair with the then-Queen of Skor has been written about many times.
* Sister Macry The Bloody, Chosen Soul of Muir, Hallowed Be Her Name, Human Paladin of Muir (Historical Figure): In the 4th age (many millenia ago), Macry tried to summon an avatar of Muir into the Valley, using herself as the vessel. She planned to purge the Valley of all evil with holy fire. Rightly fearing a massive genocide (and possibly a few xenocides), followers of Darach Albith slew her before the ritual could be completed. Her actions are either a terrible blight on Muir's name, or a wasted opportunity, depending on who you ask. 
* Tabitha, Human Oracle (Living): Tabitha is known far more by reputation, as the most terrifying person in the Valley. She was originally Mortimer's cohort in the Great Downwards, but now runs the town of Greyton. Her mere presence is said to be enough to make a corpse tuck in its shirt and wipe its nose.