“ | This tournament is more than a chance at personal glory. We're fighting for the very survival of Earthrealm. | „ |
~ Liu Kang, as he explains to Johnny Cage that he must win to gain the honor of Earthrealm. |
“ | That is incredibly brave what you did, refused the First Order and save that man's life. | „ |
~ Leia praises Finn, for he betrayed the First Order and saved Poe Dameron. |
The very opposite of a Cheater, these are heroes who fight fairly in battle and never resort to dirty tricks, such as stabbing someone in the back or attacking a defenseless opponent to win battles. They also uphold a promise be they owe a promise to a friend, companion, or even their rivals or enemies. Typically the opposite of Pragmatists, though through character development one can also be the other.
These heroes have a habit of wanting to fight an opponent fairly that they would sometimes allow their opponent to gain an advantage (like Vegeta letting Semi-Perfect Cell achieve his perfect form so the two could have a fair fight). In this category, these heroes tend to also compliment their foes for their abilities. A common theme of this is that they are trying to bring honor to themselves, for others, or even their organizations. Often, these heroes are respected for their need to play fair by allies and enemies alike and also find a "worthy opponent" to battle against.
By default, all Pure Goods are honorable due to them showing respect to everyone including their enemies. Pure Goods would never cheat in order to win UNLESS the cheating isn't for selfish reasons and/or they're facing against people that aren't going to play fair anyway (e.g. Qui-Gon Jinn against Watto so that he can free Anakin).
However, not every hero is honorable. In fact, some of these heroes can forgo their honor if it means completing their goals and aiding their homeland. Likewise, they can use underhanded tactics to gain advantage in the battle. Here are several exceptions to this category where heroes use such ruthless methods to the point of going from “honorable” to “downright pragmatic”:
- Underhanded Heroes: In spite of their code of honor, these characters use their skills of deception, skullduggery, thievery, and manipulation to gain an upper hand, whether be for the good of others, undermining criminal enterprises from within or going after bad guys directly. Puss in Boots, Joseph Joestar, some portrayals of Batman, Nightcrawler, Michael Westen and Garrett are good examples to this rule.
- Unscrupulous Types: Despite their honorable personality, these heroes are usually defined by dark experiences that have made them cold and unforgiving, and due to the settings in which they exist, there will usually be no compunctions to using more extreme methods. L Lawliet, Near, Kiritsugu Emiya, Rorschach, Spider Jerusalem and Shadow the Hedgehog are prime examples to this rule.
- Well-Intentioned Extremists: Despite their good intentions, these characters commit morally dubious acts for good causes and earnestly believe they're doing good for the world. Alister Azimuth, Lelouch vi Britannia, Stan Pines and Satsuki Kiryūin are good examples to this rule.
NOTE: To prevent further abuse of this category, try not to add any heroes who employ ruthless, underhanded or downright “dishonorable” to this category. Likewise, many anti-heroes (but some exceptions, like Zuko) and heroes by proxy don’t qualify for this category.
All items (14021)
- A (Xenoblade Chronicles)
- A-ko Magami
- A.C. Eos
- A.K. Waters
- A2
- AAARRRGGHH!!!
- Aang (Avatar)
- Aanya
- Aaron (The Little Drummer Boy)
- Aaron (The Prince of Egypt)
- Aaron (The Walking Dead)
- Aaron Cash (Arkhamverse)
- Aaron Davis
- Aaron Dingle
- Aaron Herres
- Aaron Hotchner
- Aaron Mitchell
- Aasim
- Aatami Korpi
- Aayla Secura
- Abbey Bominable
- Abbie Mills
- Abby Anderson
- Abby Mallard
- Abby Park
- Abe Lincoln
- Abe Sapien
- Abel (Fire Emblem)
- Abel (Street Fighter)
- Abel Rotomaster
- Abigail (Once Upon a Forest)
- Abigail and Amelia Gabble
- Abigail Chase
- Abigail Lincoln
- Abigail Roberts
- Abigail Walker
- Abigail Whistler (Live-Action Marvel Universe)
- Abominable Snow Monster
- Abraham Erskine
- Abraham Ford
- Abraham Lincoln (Adventure Time)
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- Abraham Van Helsing (Bram Stoker)
- Abraham Van Helsing (Hellsing)
- Abraham Van Helsing (Hotel Transylvania)
- Acacia
- Ace (DC League of Super-Pets)
- Ace (Doctor Who)
- Ace (Lilo & Stitch)
- Ace Ambling
- Ace Operatives
- Ace the Bat-Hound
- Ace Ukiyo
- Achilles
- Acid
- Ada & Eva
- Ada Tucker
- Ada Wong
- Adaline Pratt
- Adam (Record of Ragnarok)
- Adam (Waxworks)
- Adam Clay (The Beekeeper)
- Adam Francis
- Adam Gibson
- Adam Heffner
- Adam Kent
- Adam Newman
- Adam Park
- Adam Stanheight
- Adam Warlock (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Adam Warlock (Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy)
- Adam Warlock (Marvel)
- Addam Velaryon
- Adelbert Steiner
- Adelheid Bernstein
- Adelina Fortnight
- Adella
- Adeltrud Walter
- Adi Gallia
- Adira
- Admiral Dane
- Admiral Raddus
- Ado
- Adolin Kholin
- Adonis (The Kingdom of Ruin)
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- Adrian Monk
- Adriana Slododac
- Adventure Core
- Aech
-
- Aegis Alver
- Aela the Huntress
- Aela's Companions
- Aerie
- Aerith Gainsborough
- Aerobolt
- Afro Samurai
- Agate Crosner
- Agatha Heterodyne
- Ageha Chono
- Ageha Hijiri
- Agen Kolar
- Agent 3
- Agent 4
- Agent 47
- Agent 9
- Agent Bishop (TMNT 2003)
- Agent Burns
- Agent G
- Agent Heather
- Agent J
- Agent John Travis
- Agent K
- Agent Kallus
- Agent L
- Agent Otto
- Agent Phil Coulson
- Agent Six
- Agent Venom (2010s Marvel Animated Universe)
- Agent Xero
- Agil
- Agitha
- Agnes Brown
- Agnes Gru
- Agnes Jurati
- Agnès Oblige
- Agumon (Adventure)
- Agumon (Adventure:)
- Agustín Madrigal
- Agâh Beyoglu
- Ahadi
- Ahri
- Ahsoka Tano
- Ai (Neo Geo Battle Coliseum)
- Ai Hoshino
- Ai Kamiyo
- Ai Katai
- Ai Mie
- Ai Miyashita
- Ai Ohto
- Ai Otori
- Ai Sen
- Aichi Sendou
- Aiden (The Originals)
- Aiden Pearce
- Aika Tsube
- Aikko (Jankenman)
- Aiko Hatayama
- Aikurō Mikisugi
- Aila Jyrkiäinen
- Aina Sahalin
- Aine Yūki
- Air Bud
- Aira Harune
- Airi Arcadia
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- Ais Wallenstein
- Aisha (Winx Club)
- Aisha Campbell
- Aisha Clanclan
- AJ (Blaze and the Monster Machines)
- AJ Frost
- AJ Styles
- Aja Leith
- Aja Tarron
- Ajak (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Ajar
- Ajax (Age of Mythology)
- Ajax (Duckman)
- Ajax (Genshin Impact)
- Ajay Ghale
- Ajay Sidhu
- AK-12
- AK-15
- Akagi (Kantai Collection)
- Akamaru
- Akame (Akame ga Kill!)
- Akane Awakusu
- Akane Murokasa
- Akane Owari
- Akane Tsunemori
- Akari Acura
- Akari Hoshizaki
- Akari Ichijou
- Akari Sakura
- Akari Seto
- Akari Watanabe
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- Akatora
- Akatosh