The cast

Everyone is a kind.

Fifty-six characters. Twelve kinds.

Each one has a name, a way of being and a badge for what it stands for. Tap one. They like to say hello.

The Origins

9 characters

Who they are before anyone puts anything on them. Body, ears and a chest plaque — the base every calling is worn over, and a set in their own right.

Dreamer

Wisp

Sees beyond. Guides with imagination.

Meet Wisp →

Leader

Spark

Leads the way. Brings energy to everything.

Meet Spark →

Guardian

Pebble

Strong and dependable. A rock for the team.

Meet Pebble →

Nurturer

Sprout

Grows ideas. Cares for all.

Meet Sprout →

Protector

Root

Stands firm. Protects and supports.

Meet Root →

Flow

Breeze

Goes where the wind goes. Notices what others miss and helps the world feel a little lighter.

Meet Breeze →

Light

Gleam

Finds the good bit. Was going to mention it anyway.

Meet Gleam →

Mind

Orbit

Circling a question. Will land on the answer eventually, and it will be worth the wait.

Meet Orbit →

Mascot

Pip

No hair, no hat, no nonsense. Just glad you came.

Meet Pip →

The Twelve

12 characters

The inner truths. Fixed at twelve and complete — who a character is rather than what it does, each one expressing a trait the kind already scores on.

Lead

The Explorer

Finds the others, and writes down where. Bush hat, brass goggles, a case for specimens.

Hosts plushexplorer.comMeet The Explorer →

Hero

Hero

Spark with the helm on. Steps out in front when it matters, and plays it down afterwards.

Meet Hero →

Magician

Magician

Wisp in the star robe. Knows one genuinely good trick and will not say which one it is.

Meet Magician →

Sound

Thrum

Hears the bassline in everything — the bus, the rain, the tumble drier.

Meet Thrum →

Maker

Wick

Takes it apart to see. Usually gets it back together.

Meet Wick →

Carer

Poppy

Notices who is missing before anyone else does, then goes and finds them.

Meet Poppy →

Ruler

Crest

Decides last, and everyone waits for it.

Meet Crest →

Jester

Lark

Says the thing everyone was thinking, one beat before it stops being funny.

Meet Lark →

Everyman

Maple

Nothing remarkable, and everyone's favourite. Remembers how you take your tea.

Meet Maple →

Innocent

Dove

Assumes the best of everyone, and is usually right about it.

Meet Dove →

Lover

Bloom

Notices what you did with the room, and says so.

Meet Bloom →

Sage

Alder

Answers the question you should have asked, then waits.

Meet Alder →

Walks of Life

21 characters

What they do, or what they just did. Occupations, a milestone and a few ways of being — unbounded, and the callings that make the best gifts.

Astronaut

Astro

Pebble suited up. Calm at altitude, and checks the seals twice on the way out.

Meet Astro →

Grower

Fern

Knows what is in flower this week, what the soil is doing, and what the gardener did at six this morning to make the view look effortless.

Meet Fern →

Constable

Bobby

Knows every street on the round, and most of the people on it.

Meet Bobby →

Nurse

Ward

Twelve hours standing and still asks how you are first.

Meet Ward →

Schoolmaster

Chalk

Believed every child in the room could learn it, and mostly proved it.

Meet Chalk →

Coast Watch

Beacon

Walks the cliff on the worst nights. That is rather the point of him.

Meet Beacon →

Builder of Worlds

Edwin Edgeworth

Builds the iconkind worlds — one block, then another. Calm, assured, easy in a good jacket; wears dark glasses indoors because the ideas are bright.

Meet Edwin Edgeworth →

Fisher Wife

Thrift

Reads the sky, keeps the accounts in her head, and gets the children fed whatever the tide brings in.

Meet Thrift →

Free Trader

Fathom

Lands the cargo on the dark of the moon, pays the crew before he pays himself, and has never once known a thing when asked.

Meet Fathom →

Fisherman

Drift

Works the pots at first light, shoots the nets on the evening tide, and has never yet told the sea what to do.

Meet Drift →

Rancher

The Cowboy

Lives close to the land, values freedom, and always has your back.

Meet The Cowboy →

The Pulse

Knox Beat

Hears the beat under the room before anyone else does, and builds the night around it.

Meet Knox Beat →

Graduate

Laurel

Did the thing. Has the photograph to prove it.

Meet Laurel →

Giver

Bow

Wraps things beautifully and keeps nothing. Has already thought of you.

Meet Bow →

Lives Out Loud

Indigo

Positive, energetic, full of life — knows exactly what she wants and has a brilliant time getting it.

Meet Indigo →

Heart of the Community

Posy Potluck

Loves family, a good get-together and her community — the one who brings everyone round the table.

Meet Posy Potluck →

Rider

The Biker

Rides his own road, but always has your back. Loyal, fearless and true to his people.

Meet The Biker →

The Rock Chick

Roxy Riff

Lives life out loud, brings the fun, and always has your back.

Meet Roxy Riff →

The Icon

Voss Slick

Says less than anyone in the room and is listened to more. Clean lines, no noise.

Meet Voss Slick →

The Groove

Jahri

Finds the rhythm in a slow afternoon and shares it. Nothing worth doing is done in a hurry.

Meet Jahri →

Friendly Visitor

Zorp

Landed in a field in a craft the size of a bath, and mistook a sheep for the government. Now follows the Explorer everywhere, collecting Earth's finest specimens: so far a button, a teaspoon and one extremely good duck.

Meet Zorp →

Sports

4 characters

The ones who play. Runners, riders and the pitch — a kind in its kit, for the team, the club and the race day.

Runner

Fleet

Out before it is light, back before anyone notices. Does not race anybody but the clock.

Meet Fleet →

Rugby Player

Tor

Holds the line, and has never once mentioned it afterwards. Muddiest of the set by a distance.

Meet Tor →

Cyclist

Swift

Knows every hill within thirty miles and which of them are worth it. Carries two bottles and lends one.

Meet Swift →

Footballer

Cleat

Picks the teams so the smallest one goes first. Better at that than at finishing.

Meet Cleat →

The Envoys

7 characters

Sent out to hold a world of their own. Each one hosts a site, greets its visitors and speaks in its voice. This is where they come home.

Curator

Willow

Picks up ten things and puts nine of them back. The tenth is the one you wanted.

Hosts foweygifts.comMeet Willow →

Finder

Bobbin

Has never once asked what you want. Turns up with it anyway.

Hosts giftpod.co.ukMeet Bobbin →

The Fishing Advisor

Rodd Riggs

Reads the water before he reads the forecast, and will tell you which rig, which rig weight, and why — then let you find out for yourself.

Hosts roddriggs.comMeet Rodd Riggs →

Find Your Own Water

RustJack

Finds the water nobody else bothers with — the iron, the weed, the far bank — and the fish that lives in it.

Hosts rustjack.comMeet RustJack →

Trail · Tri · Outdoors

MudGoose

Out before the light, back before the kettle. Trail, tri, open water — mud is the point, not the problem.

Hosts mudgoose.comMeet MudGoose →

The Trader

Quant

Tests the idea before he trusts it, sizes the risk before the reward, and calls a loss a loss.

Hosts qxstrategy.comMeet Quant →

The Floorwalker

Sterling

Knows every floor, and greets you as an honoured guest.

Hosts iyus.comMeet Sterling →

The Tinykind

3 characters

The babies. The family at its smallest — the same dome head, ear muffs and wide eyes, in a onesie, before a calling or a badge. Given for a new arrival.

The Little One

Lumi

The smallest. Lights up the moment you look.

Meet Lumi →

The Explorer

Niko

Points at everything. Already half out of the door.

Meet Niko →

The Dreamer

Eva

Dreaming somewhere else, and glad to be there.

Meet Eva →