Walt
First appearance: Happy, chapter 34
Last appearance: Crucible, chapter 51
Appears in: Happy, Armageddon, Timeless, CrucibleLatest status
killed in the Death Ball match during Eliza’s blackout
Walt is an earth mage who escapes a coercive criminal organization and finds a new home in Dom’s Death and Taxes guild. Deeply shaped by a traumatic history of abuse and self-doubt, he initially undervalues his own gravity-manipulation and underground-phasing abilities, but grows into a steady, self-assured tactical asset through the guild’s training and the support of close teammates. His journey is one of learning to trust his own strength and his place among people who value him, becoming a dependable presence in the guild’s operations.
Abilities
- Phase (underground movement) — Book 5.5
- Gravity Well (crowd control / tactical support) — Book 5.5
- spell deflection — Book 5.5
- Holo-tech-enabled impersonation of another avatar (Feng) — Book 7
- Enhanced physical strength and durability from physical modifications — Book 7
Book 5.5: Happy
Walt begins as a thief forced to work for the Rat King’s criminal organization, using his earth magic for stealth infiltration. After reaching a breaking point with the exploitation, he breaks away and seeks a guild that will treat him fairly. He applies to Dom’s newly formed Death and Taxes guild, arriving nervous about the group-combat trial and anxious to avoid unnecessary conflict. During onboarding he is skeptical and pragmatic, weighing the guild’s terms in economic terms, but a demonstration of the guild’s capabilities convinces him to commit. Early training exposes deep self-doubt: he undervalues his Phase (underground movement) and Gravity Well abilities because they don’t deal direct damage, and is shaken by the moral weight of the lethality his power actually carries. Lauren’s encouragement helps him begin to reframe his survival-honed skills as strengths rather than a mark of worthlessness. He reveals a traumatic history of abuse in the foster care system and subsequent homelessness, describing himself as only good at “stealing shit and running away,” while forming a close, transformative bond with Lauren, who sees potential in him that he does not see in himself.
As the guild prepares for war with The Jackals, Walt settles into a support role, providing gravity-based crowd control and tactical positioning, and is visibly relieved when assigned defensive rather than frontline duty alongside Lauren. When The Jackals launch their assault on Boomtown, Walt’s fear gives way to anger after Lauren is hurt, and he fights with newfound resolve. In the battle’s climax, he and Lauren move to stop Jackals air mages from destroying the waterfall to flood the goblin settlement; Walt drags the enemy mage Nova underground and detonates the explosives, sacrificing himself to prevent the flooding and save Boomtown. He is later shown to have been resurrected in some capacity, supporting Dom’s assault by launching him across a chasm with a precisely timed Gravity Well, voicing the team’s shared concern about the risk of Dom’s plan, and afterward taking part in a competitive, camaraderie-driven graveyard-camping operation against the defeated Jackals alongside Vanessa.
Status: Alive — exploited thief working under coercion for the Rat King’s organization → Alive — active Death and Taxes guild member, deceased mid-battle by self-sacrifice but present and functioning as a full team member in the guild’s subsequent operations
Lauren: Forms a close, mutually supportive bond; her encouragement helps him begin to see his survival skills as strengths rather than shame, and their partnership deepens into protective loyalty on the battlefield.
Dom: Moves from wary, transactional recruit evaluating guild terms to a trusted team member who both follows Dom’s tactical lead and is willing to voice concern over his riskier plans.
Nova: Becomes a direct combatant, ultimately dragging her underground and detonating explosives to stop the Jackals’ flooding plan.
Key quote: “I learned how to take it - to survive. That’s all I’m good at. Stealing shit and running away”
Book 6: Armageddon
Tombs works as a Death and Taxes specialist whose earth magic lets him phase through solid matter and travel underground, extending the ability to teammates through touch. He scouts the excavation site for Gloria Bastion, tunneling long distances underground to confirm a relic’s location and reporting back exhausted but accurate. During the Sandscrit heist he distracts a nest of giant sandworms to cover the team’s escape, uncomfortable with the piggyback contact required to carry Dom through the ground and trading barbed banter with Smokes to cope with the danger. Between missions he handles looting and resource logistics alongside Wingman the chicken, and he privately balks at the guild’s more brutal methods, calling one of Smiles’ schemes something close to cannibalism.
At the Mile-High Club, Tombs operates the club’s control panels and works to restore camera and Sweeping Wind access after Finn seizes system control and locks him out, a defeat he takes personally and blames on Finn specifically. He is killed in a surprise attack by Jason’s group during the games, and Jason later extracts his memories from the severed head, learning that Tombs studied ancient technology at Vaerwald’s Great Library and helped bring the club’s generators online. Restored afterward, Tombs is embarrassed and defensive about the quick loss, resents Jason for it, and is teased by his own guildmates over the defeat. He is initially reluctant to join the underground push toward Gloria’s excavation site, wanting a shot at revenge against the team that beat him, but Bard’s rallying speech turns his reluctance into open support. In the excavation’s final stretch he acts as an informal mediator smoothing over friction between guildmates like Queen and Bard, scouts the underground dig site and reports his findings to the team, and, when the excavation is hit by a devastating blast, gets the critical generator underground in time to save it, ending the book physically spent but satisfied at having preserved the equipment.
Status: Alive — professional Death and Taxes mercenary → Alive — exhausted but successful after saving the generator
Dom: Tombs carries Dom underground during the Sandscrit heist, a close working partnership he finds personally embarrassing despite its tactical necessity.
Finn: Tombs turns openly hostile toward Finn after Finn locks him out of the Mile-High Club’s systems during the finale.
Jason: After losing a fight to Jason’s group and having his head taken, Tombs grows resentful of Jason and looks for a chance to even the score.
Bard: A rallying speech from Bard turns Tombs’ reluctance to join the excavation assault into genuine support, and the two grow closer through the mission.
Key quote: “Well, shit. Now I feel bad. Let’s go do some murder then, try and cheer you up, big guy”
Book 7: Timeless
As a Death and Taxes guild member, Tombs works as the guild’s phasing specialist, moving through solid rock to reposition teammates and stage underground ambushes against traveler casters and healers. He is quiet and tactically patient, speaking only when necessary, and calmly reassures the team about Smiles’ ability to respawn during a fight.
During the Vault heist, Tombs operates alongside Smiles as part of Jason’s operative crew, phasing through the Vault’s defenses to steal relics under Jason’s orders while avoiding combat detection. He continues to support Jason afterward, phasing through solid crystal and physically restraining Rachael, the Vault’s Caretaker, without harming her so Jason can reach her; the record frames this as a shift from subordinate servant to trusted partner.
After the Vault operation, Tombs appears with the rest of Death and Taxes at a public event held partly for publicity and partly because the game’s servers are down, providing crowd-management support while enjoying the guild’s material success. He later takes part in a rescue operation, using holo-tech to impersonate the avatar Feng alongside guildmate Queen, drawing on physical enhancements that give him increased strength and durability. He is protective of Eliza during this operation and treats the high-stakes mission with casual confidence.
Status: Death and Taxes phasing tactician providing support in guild combat operations → Trusted operative in Jason’s Vault-heist crew, later part of a Death and Taxes rescue operation impersonating Feng via holo-tech
Jason: Moves from a guild support role into Jason’s operative crew, trusted to steal Vault relics and to physically restrain Rachael during the rescue attempt.
Rachael: Restrains her without causing harm, using his abilities to protect her rather than subdue an enemy.
Queen: Forms a working partnership with Queen for the holo-tech operation impersonating Feng.
Key quote: “‘Jason called us and asked us to come. We figured it was good publicity, and besides the servers are down… what else are we going to do?‘”
Book 8: Crucible
Walt appears as the engineering specialist of Death and Taxes, tasked with repairing the Mile High Club’s severely damaged air mana conduits before the club falls out of the sky. Overshadowed by his louder teammates Blaze and Bard, he raises the danger of the near-severed conduits but is dismissed by Bard, leaving him horrified at the casual disregard for the risk; he is visibly relieved once a contract is accepted that grants the time needed for repairs. He also intervenes to pull Bard away from an confrontation with Eliza. Later, competing in a Death Ball match against Fluffy Rules, Walt uses his earth-phasing ability to move through stone and is first to secure a ball, throwing with precision as part of coordinated team tactics; his technical skill previously improved the balls’ mana wards against destruction, and he had earlier fixed the massive conduits beneath the Mile High Club. He trained under Smiles. He is killed during the blackout Eliza causes in the match.
Status: exhausted engineer managing crisis-level structural damage to the Mile High Club → killed in the Death Ball match during Eliza’s blackout
Bard: Walt grows frustrated as Bard dismisses his warnings about the conduit damage, then rescues Bard from Eliza’s anger.
Smiles: Revealed as the one who trained Walt in his phasing and ball-warding techniques.
Key quote: “You nearly severed the air mana conduits that power the club and keep it afloat.”
Appears in
- Happy — 11 chapters
- Armageddon — 12 chapters
- Timeless — 5 chapters
- Crucible — 2 chapters