Thank you @Leodiensian and @Leos Klien for helping @Arthanus. I like what I see so far. Just let me know when you've completed your bio so I can look at it all one more time.
We're waiting for one more person but I'll have the IC up no later than friday night/saturday morning - PST. Thanks everyone for being patient!
edit: Also @Leos Klien, can you put your sheet over at the characters tab? thanks.
@Arthanus Well, if you're looking to more directly tie the characters together - perhaps when she was a ronin she encountered the Sons of Mikaboshi? It makes sense if she spent some time at sea to encounter a spirit turtle, right?
@Leodiensian Sadly its a Stone Tortoise not a turtle, Tortoise are land creatures plus this one is made of Stone so not so good for water on getting the Spirit. :( Leos Klien is already working with me to finish up the character's bio. Thank you though.
Hisayo no Kurushime "Tormented Sustaining Generation"
Age:
47 in human years, but rather young for an oni
Race:
Nure-onna Oni
Gender:
Female
Appearance:
Weapon(s):
Class:Mage - Masters of the mystical arts, mages are proficient in one elemental spell, but their skills with warrior weapons are very poor.
Bio:
She was born of sorrow like more Nure-onna are. For a child of her bloodline to live, their human father's lives must be taken in exchange. And this usually leads to contempt and bitterness to lie between mother and child. But not in the Kurushime women. For three generations the female oni have fallen in love with human males. And for three generations their lovers have been so enchanted with their beauty, so enraptured with their love and so loyally dedicated to their happiness that they have willingly given up their lives for the Kurushime women.
And it was so exception on the night Hisayo was born, a full moon as her mobile and the lapping lake waves as her lullaby. At first her mother could not stand the sight of her, for even one look at her daughter brought on fits of sobbing wailing cries. It was Hisayo's grandmother who cared for her mostly in the every early years of her existence. For, sincerely, that was all it was. An existence.
With no battles against humans to wage, the Nure-onna and their magics were abandoned. Living either in brothels or as mistresses to high officials, there was seldom a need for any other talents than their beauty. And, in her grief, Hisayo's mother gave her body to a wealthy man, for his pleasure. The smiles that graced her mother's face were no more than those of a well painted mask. With the death of her father, her mother's love as gone with him.
And Hisayo was nurtured for by her grandmother, though her mother was indeed kind enough to ask her new master to let them live in their luxurious estate. So Hisayo was not uncomfortable growing up, even though the other concubines' children never played with her, for fear of the oni blood in her veins. And there were often whispers of envy among the human women, since the Kurushime women were all youthful beauties that aged far too slowly and never seemed to get sick or come down with pox. But it was the men's eyes Hisayo disliked most of all.
Those leering eyes came from boys, guards, tutors, and even the lord of the manor. They all fell on her with heaviness and tried to worm their way into her nightmares. Leering eyes and lecherous gazes making her skin crawl as if she could fell their hands all over her... Her grandmother trained in the manners of a proper Nure-onna. To remain removed, aloof and distant from the terrible humans. To rise above their scorn and poisonous words. And to never lose herself to her magic.
For an oni that harms a human is intolerable.
Special Ability:
Heavy magic spells over water +Drawing the water from plants to form mists to hide in or use as a sphere of protection
Misc:
((i know it's in Chinese but it fits her perfectly))
Name: Zashiki Warashi Age: Unknown Race: Zashiki Warashi Oni
Zashiki Warashi are an incredibly small population of Oni that reside primarily in the Western province. Despite their few numbers, these creatures have created quite a reputation for being mischievous tricksters, thieves, and spies. They are the most racially diverse subspecies of Oni; their size and shape differs drastically between individuals but they all share the same dark appearance with black hair, black skin, black eyes and black nails. They refer to themselves as a particularly large family and treat each other as such, making them very guarded and wary of outsiders. Legends say that Zashiki Warashi are a small group of rebels from the Shadowlands who escaped into Igan under the cover of darkness many millennia ago, and have adapted to live in the world of light.
Zashiki Warashi are seen as some of the most harmless and, in some cases, pathetic examples of Oni to walk on this plane. They're annoying, cheeky, greedy Oni who universally delight in the misfortune of others and go out of their way to be a nuisance. Legends say that homes and villages were first lit artificially at night to keep Zashiki Warashi at bay, as they are all capable of using shadows to move about and damage property. Compared to the powerful Yokai or the mysterious Kitsune, Zashiki Warashi are seen as a laughing stock - their reliance on darkness and their weakness to light makes them easy enough to banish with a simple flame.
There's only one catch - Zashiki Warashi are voracious eaters. Their preferred meal? People.
A ravenous Zashiki Warashi is nothing to scoff about. The hungrier they get, the brighter their bioluminescence becomes; they fluoresce and become easier to spot with glowing eyes, hair and nails singling out a hungry specimen. All of a sudden their harmless ability to move through the shadows becomes a deadly trap - one foot out of the safety of the torchlight is more than enough for these fast, strong and agile creatures to drag you down and rip you to pieces.
These days cases of attacks are few and far between; it's been around 50 years since the last innocent was devoured by a Zashiki Warashi, and the culprit was executed a few weeks afterwards. Nowadays Zashiki Warashi are bargained with, supplying livestock or copious amounts of raw meat in return for leaving one's belongings alone. Sometimes they are even hired to gather intel or spy on others, especially between the wealthy merchants around the Western Province. Their danger has been extremely diluted over the years; their reputation as mere annoyances was much better than being feared and attacked for being bloodthirsty monsters, so the Zashiki Warashi worked hard to maintain their image.
Gender: Female Appearance: A short, vaguely feminine looking creature. Zashiki is almost completely pitch black with incredibly dark skin, a short bobbed haircut and a liquid, tar-like sheen on her eyeballs. She only stands at 3ft, adding to her infantile appearance - she sports the large eyes, pouty lips and chubby cheeks of a toddler. Zashiki has thick dark nails which are usually cut very short and blunt, otherwise they will grow into long sharp talons.
Weapon(s): Zashiki mainly uses Hand-to-hand combat or her Kyoketsu-shoge Class: Ninja Bio: When Hakumei was first put forward to the public, everybody presumed it would be a select few of the finest warriors Humanity and the Oni had to offer. Nobody thought it would become a melting pot of misfits and outcasts; even fewer thought a Zashiki would be even considered for membership. When the family approached Gaignun and offered up a candidate, many villagers scoffed at their audacity. However, any Oni worth his salt would know to be just a little wary of the Zashiki's track record, even if they claim to have changed their ways.
"This one seems fairly disappointing," admitted the Warashi Elder, "but I can assure you she is the best daughter we have on offer at the moment." Yes, as it turned out, the juvenile Zashiki scarcely left the shadowy seaside grottos where many Zashiki lived due to a recent complication. 'Recent' in Oni terms, of course; she had crept onboard a merchant's vessel in a bid to run away and her hunger nearly cost the lives of the sailors. Were it not for some speedy intervention from her older brothers and a lot of lanterns, the runt would've created quite the scandal just off the coast of the Western Province...
In typical Zashiki Warashi fashion, money was passed and the incident was hushed before it became too big of a rumour. Pretty easy to cover up, the girl hardly made a name for herself in the towns so there wasn't any suspicion when she was 'grounded' to the family grounds after that little stunt. As you already know, Zashiki Warashi are notorious for playing tricks and annoying the locals, but they make damned good spies when you need them, and they're greedier than dwarves. Their reputation's already pretty filthy as it is, the last thing they needed is a near-massacre adding another mark on their name.
Why send out such a defiant and unpredictable brat to a supposedly high-calibre taskforce, I hear you ask? Think about it; the little creature's grown up around dozens of very experienced shadow-walkers, most of them are already informants and stealth agents, the others are far too cunning to be tied down in any binding contract. And the Zashiki Warashi family isn't like your human families - they care for each other dearly because they're all liable of causing another family disaster. Nobody is ignored, and everyone keeps an eye on each other. So how did she manage to slip past thirty-or-so highly skilled and very intelligent Oni in one go? Furthermore, how did she manage to go through the harbour unnoticed, then board the ship? There are more Zashiki crawling in the alleyways of those port towns than there are in the caves, I can assure you.
It's the only way I can think of that saved her life; the Zashiki are a bunch of fun-loving pranksters but they don't take kindly to relatives muddying the name to the extent where they pass the thin line separating 'annoyance' and 'threat'. They also don't turn a blind eye to potential just because the kid made a mistake - even a big one like that. The sentence was a good 40 years of being locked up at home, but they didn't treat her like a prisoner. Some of her older siblings trained her, showed her a few tricks. Everyone became her prison guard, though; whenever she attempted escape she was always caught, brought back, and punished for it. According to the elders, she lost her right to go out when she risked the lives of innocent people.
Three years into her punishment and suddenly the Elders offered her up for this new taskforce thing. I don't think they're going soft...it's a business agreement, see? A way to clear their name - something the Zashiki Warashi desperately need. No doubt a deal was struck - 'behave yourself and bring honour to your family, and we'll let you go.' Boy, you should've seen the look on her face when she realised she was being traded from one prison to another! I'm not too sure if she has people in Hakumei acting as her parole officer or not, but if she ran away from the General's specialist taskforce, she'd be a wanted fugitive. No town in Igan would be safe for her. By the time she realised that though, it was too late to back out, she was signed up by the Elders and off she went.
Just goes to show you, not all chains are visible. That Zashiki is eager to see the world but she's also pissed. I wonder what kind of shit she'll stir up within the ranks when they meet her properly.
Special Ability: Shadow-Walking. Every Zashiki Warashi is capable of this ability. In the absence of light, Zashiki Warashi are said to be capable of moving around as they once did in the Shadowlands. They become weightless, able to float around in the darkness and pass between shadows like spirits. Their dependence on darkness means that they become stronger, faster and much more dangerous in the dark, but their shadow-walking is restricted to any shadow they can see that is large enough for them to squeeze through.
This ability ties in with their weakness to light. Zashiki Warashi become sluggish, dizzy and nauseous if exposed to light. They burn very easily, and are increasingly weakened if they are constantly kept in bright light for an extended period of time. It is known as lightsickness - the only cure for it is to return them to the darkness and wait for them to recover.
Misc: Culturally, Zashiki Warashi do not have individual names until someone they wholly trust names them. Every Zashiki Warashi responds to either Zashiki or Warashi or both.
@LovelyAnastasiaYour character is super neat! I actually own a hairpin that's exactly like the one in her first picture, the pink one with the flowers trailing from it. I picked it up on my study abroad in japan actually.
@ReaptheMusic Why thank you~ Usually I make berserker types, but maybe this little oni can be sort of the kind you didn't know to fear till you messed with her companions.
@Reapthemusic provided I get accepted, would you be interested in a predetermined link to my character? She certainly needs someone to keep her in check; an unruly, slippery brat with a strong inclination towards deserting wouldn't simply be tossed into a taskforce without some gentle persuasion (read: bright light and copious amounts of fire) to keep her in line.
It's a rough guideline and I'm not keen on developing it until I get the OK from the GM, but I wanted to know your thoughts. And if anyone else wantsto take up that role, don't hesitate to volunteer; I'm really into character development. I'm sure we can work something out.
@Reapthemusic provided I get accepted, would you be interested in a predetermined link to my character? She certainly needs someone to keep her in check; an unruly, slippery brat with a strong inclination towards deserting wouldn't simply be tossed into a taskforce without some gentle persuasion (read: bright light and copious amounts of fire) to keep her in line.
It's a rough guideline and I'm not keen on developing it until I get the OK from the GM, but I wanted to know your thoughts. And if anyone else wantsto take up that role, don't hesitate to volunteer; I'm really into character development. I'm sure we can work something out.
I don't mean to come off as rude or anything, but as someone who's had the opportunity to study samurai at great length I'm afraid Tatsuji would be more interested in killing her than spawning any sort of relationship there. He's very much the ideological samurai, concerned with making a name for himself, his family, marrying a pretty wife, etc and wouldn't want to have to deal with any bratty individuals coming around and threatening his already shaky reputation (as he is now an Oni). So a predetermined relationship is out of the question. That being said, since they will be ordered to work together, he will most likely be the one to keep her in line. With that in mind, she would even then still be walking on thin ice for his temper.
@LovelyAnastasiaI don't think you have to worry about that, you've picked the element of water- in my opinion the most powerful element. It is unstoppable, no matter what barrier put in front of it, it will always find a way- it can be calm and serene and typically seen as a healing elements to it, but equally it can devastating. You can stop a raging inferno- but you can't stop a tidal wave.
@LovelyAnastasiaI don't think you have to worry about that, you've picked the element of water- in my opinion the most powerful element. It is unstoppable, no matter what barrier put in front of it, it will always find a way- it can be calm and serene and typically seen as a healing elements to it, but equally it can devastating. You can stop a raging inferno- but you can't stop a tidal wave.
That's really well put. Also, you could have her able to perform a sort of blood bending technique if you wanted. She is a straight up mage, afterall o3o
@Astronaut JonesYeah sorry about that, I'm currently putting through a bit of a rework, that will require you to check it again - it's nothing that'll change who the character is, just putting more depth into everything.
@LovelyAnastasia Nice job with Hisayo! She's accepted, but just to confirm for reference sake, as a nure-onna she has the body of a snake correct? I ask because the artist rendering has her with lower limbs and just wanted to make sure.
@Stitches Zashiki is approved! I was about to ask if she had a name until I read the misc.
Thanks again you two! Glad to have you on board. Adding a mage and ninja to the ranks really mixes things up now. Please put your sheets over at the characters tab. Looks like we have a good ratio of male and female characters.
provided I get accepted, would you be interested in a predetermined link to my character? She certainly needs someone to keep her in check; an unruly, slippery brat with a strong inclination towards deserting wouldn't simply be tossed into a taskforce without some gentle persuasion (read: bright light and copious amounts of fire) to keep her in line.
It's a rough guideline and I'm not keen on developing it until I get the OK from the GM, but I wanted to know your thoughts. And if anyone else wantsto take up that role, don't hesitate to volunteer; I'm really into character development. I'm sure we can work something out.
Unless someone already pm'd you, I'd love to have Gaignun be the one to look after her. I think the legend behind her people coming from The Shadowland would be a driving factor for him, since he at one point dealt with a major conflict from there. They have somewhat of a history together anyways considering her elders approached him about her recruitment into Hakumei. Let me know what you think :)
I hope my character doesn't come off as too weak... Guess her dose of insanity will have to help her boost her power
I think Leos said it best with his following post. I know I didn't explain how magic works in this world, but much like the avatar shows, the element has to be drawn from a source --- this applies only to using heavy level magic. Light and medium spells can be created out of nowhere, but of course it won't be as powerful. It's sort of my way to keep it balanced and allow you to get creative with the environment.
@Arthanus How's the end of your bio coming along? Feel free to pm me if you have any questions.
Tentatively interested- I have an aggressive Monk character in the works.
That's great, as a monk is the last class that needs to get filled!
