A 27-year-old former Coast Guard mechanic who accidentally survives the sudden destruction of all buildings on Earth. He possesses a strong physical build and a deep-seated hatred for bullies. Forced into a lethal televised dungeon, he struggles to protect weaker participants and retain his humanity rather than adopting a ruthless survival strategy. His ingenuity frequently allows him to exploit glitches in the game's programming.

Beatrice's prize-winning Persian show cat who transforms into a highly intelligent, talking participant after eating an enhanced pet biscuit. Her impossibly high charisma stat allows her to casually charm dungeon monsters while winning over galactic viewers. Her vain exterior hides genuine vulnerability and a growing sense of loyalty to her human caretaker.

A shapeshifting alien who serves as Carl and Princess Donut's registered guide and guild master. He is a former dungeon crawler who survived to Level 11 decades ago by making a desperate deal that resulted in long-term indentured servitude. He despises the Borant Corporation but actively works to keep his current trainees alive to secure his own eventual freedom.

A married pair of heavily armed crawlers who previously worked for ICE. Following misguided tutorial advice, they adopt a ruthless playing style. They pretend to offer friendship before brutally attacking weaker participants to steal their loot and experience points.

A massive, cruel orc who serves as the host for a specialized broadcast that revels in crawler deaths. He is a prince of the powerful Skull Clan, possessing immense influence outside the dungeon. He delights in forcing participants to make impossible, deadly choices for the amusement of his audience.

A two-foot-tall kua-tin (fish creature) who works in the communications department for the Borant Corporation. She acts as a liaison for the Crawler Assisted Outreach Program. She views the crawlers with profound sympathy and quickly forms an emotional bond with Princess Donut while discussing Earth television shows.

The most beloved program host in the history of the galaxy and a former participant who survived to Level 12. She wears mechanical armor to replace the legs she lost during her own time in the dungeon. Motivated by money, she provides Carl with crucial advice on manipulating the system to retain galactic popularity.

Princess Donut's original owner. Her cheating prompts Carl to end their relationship moments before the apocalypse begins. Although she is absent from the immediate events of the dungeon, her past actions actively shape the dynamic between Carl and Princess Donut.

An able-bodied employee from an eldercare facility and the leader of the Meadow Lark party. Refusing to abandon the 40 elderly residents trapped outside during the collapse, he works tirelessly to protect them despite knowing the odds of survival are extremely low.

One of the four able-bodied fighters in the Meadow Lark party who worked at the assisted living facility. He actively assists Brandon in defending the elderly residents from dungeon monsters.

A Level 5 crawler and staff member from the eldercare facility. She helps protect the vulnerable residents and takes drastic, desperate action when an elderly man breaks a severe dungeon rule.

A pragmatic and capable fighter in the Meadow Lark party. She bears the heavy emotional burden of having mercy-killed 12 elderly residents to prevent them from burning to death at the hands of a monster.

An eccentric elderly woman who pushes a shopping cart through the dungeon. She exhibits highly unusual behavior, selectively disappearing from official broadcasts and carrying advanced alien technology that cannot be used in the game.

A baby velociraptor that Carl and Princess Donut receive as a pet after clearing a boss room. Aggressive and constantly trying to bite them at first, he requires careful training to become a valuable, albeit highly dangerous, pack hunter for their party.

The teenage daughter of Frank and Maggie. She is severely injured by a booby-trapped rat corpse that Carl leaves behind for her father, leading to a violent end at the hands of her own mother.

An elderly resident under the care of the Meadow Lark party. He unknowingly violates a severe dungeon rule by urinating outside of a bathroom, which directly summons a devastating high-level monster to punish the area.

A 99-year-old woman in the Meadow Lark group who flirts playfully with Carl and expresses deep gratitude when he risks his life to drag her to safety from a gravity trap.

A goblin shaman who, alongside Lorelai, is completely charmed into building a coal-powered motorcycle for Carl and Princess Donut. He happily trades goods for Carl's meth and provides useful information about dungeon mechanics.

A goblin shaman who falls under Princess Donut's spell. She gets aggressively drunk, heavily flirts with Carl, and helps build the copper chopper vehicle for the pair.

A caretaker stationed in the Level 1 safe room. He provides Carl with context about the cruel reality of the dungeon planets, explaining that Earth is effectively dead regardless of who survives the crawl.

A Borant Corporation administrator who overrides Zev's authority to place Carl and Princess Donut on a far more dangerous and sadistic spin-off show. He threatens Carl with immediate execution if he fails to comply.

An associate producer for Odette's talk show. She physically meets with the crawlers to prep them for their holographic interview broadcast.

A crawler forced onto The Maestro's Death Watch program, where he must guess if his friends will survive an ambush to earn a teleportation save. He bravely refuses to play the sadistic game.

A crawler pulled from certain death only to be forced to gamble on the lives of his teammates for galactic entertainment. He completely refuses to play The Maestro's cruel game.