Revised thoughs:
Damas is some sort of really freaking old pseudo-Heron, from a now-defunct order of elite Imperial Guard that died at the start of the Wind Age. He's lived this long primarily because the mandrake healing ritual works exceptionally well on his kind, though not as well as on actual Herons, but many suspect that perhaps he has learned something else in his many years' travels that has given him his unnaturally youth and longevity...
Ravanna is one of the original Myrmidons, the ones who discovered the dark shrine or whatever that taught them their expert martial arts. She is still alive today because she's one of those rare warrior-mages that you find from time to time, the kind who would usually become avatara but for some reason didn't. She specializes in psyonic spells such as astral projection, and is known by some in her astral form as "The Voiceless One". In her physical form she is still a renowned Myrmidon warrior. (I will need to check with my GURPS about the Voiceless One some more to refine this, when I get home). Culwyeh and Shiver will be later names she takes as a Fallen Lord.
Mjarin is the head of the Warlocks and the Imperial Advisor. In a bid for power, he contacted the rogue necromancer Bahl'al, a Fallen Lord of the early Wind Age, and combining powers they were able to ressurrect Moagim, who returned as the Leveller.
Myrdred is a young and somewhat problematic avatara. He knows of Mjarin's plans and intends to join him when he takes over the Empire. However, when Connacht defeats Mjarin he is penetant and begs for mercy. Then, quite akin to Sauron (coincidentally also aka the Deciever) from LotR, he is very nice and helpful to the Empire and does all sorts of good things and blah blah blah, and they accept that he has honestly turned sides. Anything to help the winning team. Then when the Leveller returns...
Mazzarin is dead, and the talking corpse in the crypt is his own, animated when appropriate by his own freakishly strong magical powers from beyond the grave. Bahl'al has long been searching for this crypt so as to turn Mazzarin into a proper shade, bound to himself...
The Smiths demand the Tain returned after it's use against the Myrkridia. In exchange they offer to build him another weapon. (This winds up being the Sunhammer). This is why Connacht has no Tain later in the game. When the Smiths have their schism, the evil Smiths beam themselves, the Cultists, the Spiders, and all the good Smiths and other Dwarves into the Tain. Move these levels back to where they were originally.
The rest I already covered before. Sound good?
