Spelunky/Characters

The Spelunker
A heroic (?) Indiana Jones lookalike who ventures into the caves in search of treasure and fame.
 * Adventurer Archaeologist
 * Fan Nickname: "Indie," "Spelunky," "Iowa Jack"... although Derek Yu seems to favor "Spelunky Man."
 * Gag Nose: Sports a large, red clown nose.
 * Heroic Comedic Sociopath: It's up to the player, but there are some serious rewards to be gained by committing wanton murder and human sacrifice.
 * Whip It Good: His default weapon.

The Damsel
A blonde woman in a red dress who needs rescuing. Can be unlocked as a playable character.
 * Damsel in Distress: Well, obviously.
 * Gag Nose
 * Girly Run
 * Intimate Healing: If rescued, she gives the Spelunker a health-restoring kiss.
 * Too Dumb to Live: She sits and waits for rescue, even if she's standing two feet from the exit door. When panicked, she runs in one direction until she collides with a wall or dies. (Of course, when you're playing as the Damsel, the Spelunker is the stupid one...)
 * Whip It Good: Also her default weapon.

The Tunnel Man
The Spelunker meets him in the tunnels between areas. If given enough money, he'll build a shortcut to each area. Can be unlocked as a playable character; he starts with little health and no ropes or bombs, but has an unbreakable mattock that can dig through walls.
 * Afro Asskicker
 * Difficult but Awesome: He starts with only two health (as compared to the Spelunker's four) and no bombs or ropes, plus he can't perform jumping attacks. If he survives long enough to get his hands on some equipment and extra hearts, though, he becomes unstoppable.
 * Ensemble Darkhorse
 * Fast Tunnelling: It's his job.

The Shopkeeper
A harmless old peddler of honest wares.
 * Badass Grandpa: Man, for a septuagenarian, he sure is spry.
 * Dirty Old Man
 * Disproportionate Retribution: Accidentally whip him? Shotgun blast to the face. Accidentally reroll a die in his gambling parlor? Shotgun blast to the face. Happen to be standing nearby when he or his store gets damaged? Shotgun blast to the face.
 * Easily Angered Shopkeeper: Yeah, yeah, it's been renamed to Shoplift and Die, but this is much more descriptive.
 * Fan Nickname: "Shoppy."
 * Gag Nose
 * Jerkass: He runs a sex slavery ring in a cavern. And God help you if part of his store is damaged, even if it wasn't your fault.
 * Mugging the Monster: Getting Swallowed Whole by a man-eating plant is instantly deadly for the Spelunker. Shoppy just gets pissed off.
 * Shotguns Are Just Better: Almost to Game Breaker levels, in fact.

Kali
Hindu goddess of death and change. Likes: blood sacrifice. Dislikes: defiled altars.
 * Disproportionate Retribution: If one of her altars is damaged -- even if you're not to blame -- she'll sic half a dozen Demonic Spiders on you. And that's the least of her punishments.
 * Magikarp Power: The first couple of sacrifice rewards are likely to be lackluster at best. But once you get enough for the Kapala, any subsequent sacrifices are potential game breakers.
 * The Voice

Olmec
A giant, golden, Mesoamerican idol worshiped by the cultists and cavemen. He serves as the game's final boss.
 * Bad Boss: He starts the battle by killing one of his worshipers and injuring another.
 * Boss Arena Idiocy
 * Fan Nickname: He doesn't have a real one, but he's called "Olmec" in some places in the source code.
 * Mook Maker: He occasionally launches three balls of energy that transform into enemies when they hit the ground.
 * Ring Out Boss: You dodge his crushing attacks until he smashes his way through the bottom of the level. Bombs can help speed the process along.

The Walrus Lady
We don't... there can't... look at it.
 * Beauty Mark
 * Big Lipped Alligator Moment: When you beat a custom level, there it is. There is no explanation. There can never be an explanation good enough.
 * Funny Animal

The Ghost
A ghost that appears if you stick around on one level too long.
 * Collision Damage: His only attack, but it's a One-Hit Kill.
 * Mighty Glacier: He's not very fast, but his only attack is a One-Hit Kill.
 * One-Hit Kill: Did we mention that this is his only attack?
 * Stalked by the Bell: If you spend two minutes on a single level, the music becomes oddly distorted. After another half-minute, the Ghost appears from off-screen and slowly homes in on your location.