Guidebooks/Characters

## Main Characters

* **Ludwig Beilschmidt (Germany)**-Ludwig is the main and playable character in Guidebooks. He is portrayed as a straight-A, no-nonsense, perfect student type with a large focus on his studies. Not even close to the outdoorsy type, he tries on multiple occasions to flee the campgrounds and escape from having to actually try and camp. He takes notes during a speech by Matthew on which berries are edible, and is very thorough in checking things over. During a scene where the boys gather round a campfire to tell scary stories, he defaults to a story about a test that counted for a large chunk of his grade, much to Matthew's dismay. Though he gets the hang of it and tells an actual scary story soon after. Ludwig essentially acts as a pseudo-parent to the other three throughout the duration of the game, trying his best to keep his friends in check.
* **Matthew Williams (Canada)**-Matthew is the second of the four main characters, and is portrayed as (mostly) responsible, yet fun-loving. He's the one who initially invited Ludwig to come camping with the three of them, and quickly tasks himself with ensuring that Ludwig enjoys himself during the trip, while also preventing him from leaving. The most well-prepared member of the group, Matthew is the one who brought all the necessary camping gear, along with some extra items such as fishing rods, berry baskets, rope, and a pocket knife, among other things. Though more responsible than Kyle or Ivan, Matthew is not above doing things purely for his own entertainment, such as the time when he tries to let Ivan egg Kyle into eating a wild mushroom that the two found. Matthew treats the experience as all in good fun until someone might get hurt, and then it's serious. Or, until someone begins to bother him.
* **Ivan Braginsky (Russia)**-Ivan is the third of the four main characters, and is one of the two troublemakers of the group. Right from the beginning of the game, Ivan is out to cause trouble and have fun while doing it. From filling the tent with bugs and threatening to put Kyle's underwear up a tree, to trying to convince Kyle to eat a wild mushroom and allowing the fish that Ludwig worked hard to catch to flop back into the water, Ivan's behavior throughout the game is what Matthew can only describe as 'being a chaotic evil toddler.' Despite all his antics, nothing he does is in bad faith. He just enjoys seeing the chaos unfold.
* **Kyle (Australia)**-Kyle is the last of the four main characters, and is the second of the two troublemakers of the group. His antics, though in a similar vein of overall harmless as Ivan's, are portrayed more as the actions of someone who doesn't think before they act. He continuously goes along with whatever Ivan thinks up, and impulsively does things he thinks might be fun or funny. He and Ivan are referred to multiple times by the other two as dumbasses, which he disagrees with, but doesn't really do anything to disprove. Kyle is just there to have some fun, and ends up contributing to the chaos (mostly) unintentionally.

## Side Characters

* **Paul (Molossia)**-Paul is part of a group of campers who are using the designated camping space right next to the main characters'. He's portrayed as easily excitable with a grandiose sense of self, calling himself 'Darkwing, Camper Extraordinaire!' He barges into their camp twice over the course of the game, and is always asserting himself as 'the better camper' and calling the main characters 'losers.' In spite of this effort to make himself look good, he's also portrayed to be a bit of a disaster, with his flat iron setting his group's tent of fire because he left it plugged in.
* **Lukas (Norway)**-Lukas is part of the camping neighbor group, and is mostly portrayed as very tired. He drinks whenever he gets the chance and bothers Emil for a hug, while also complaining about Mathias' loud singing. When Paul goes over to the main characters' campsite to bother them, he shows up soon after to ask him what he wants on his hot dog and if he's bothering people again.
* **Emil (Iceland)**-Emil is part of the camping neighbor group, and is also portrayed as very tired. He spends his time complaining about not being able to bring Minecraft to the woods, and just generally wanting to get away from the rest of the group. On one occasion he asks if he can have some of the main characters order pizza since he needs comfort food, and asks about the same thing again later. He also briefly mentions being 'in a time loop' and chugs a bottle of ketchup.
* **Mathias (Denmark)**-Mathias is part of the camping neighbor group, and spends his time singing loudly. He's also the only one to drink any of the 'apple juice' that Ivan brings over later, only to remark that it tastes like vinegar, but continues to drink it anyway.
* **Gilbert Beilschmidt (Prussia)**-Gilbert is a character who only shows up towards the end of the game as a surprise appearance. He's Ludwig's brother and also happens to be a furry with a bear fursona named "Moon Moon." He shows up at the end of the game all dressed up in a full-body fursuit and chases the main characters around in a cave under a waterfall. When it's revealed to be him in a fursuit, he explains that, essentially, he followed the group to the campsite and hid out in the forest purely for the intent of scaring his brother.
* **Katya (Ukraine)**-Katya is a family friend of Alfred and Matthew, as well as Ivan's sister. She's the one who drives the four to the campsite, and calls a few times over the course of the trip to check on them. At one point she offers to order them a pizza, and is also the one to come and get them once Ludwig decides he's had enough and it's time for them all to go home.

### Mentioned Characters

* **Alfred (America)**-Alfred is Matthew's brother, and would-be fifth camper if he hadn't been essentially grounded prior to the trip. It is mentioned at one point that Alfred is better equipped to handle Kyle and Ivan's shenanigans than Matthew is.
* **Michelle (Seychelles)**-Michelle is Matthew's older cousin. She's only brought up in the context of a scary story that Matthew tells around the campfire.