War is the most peculiar of human achievements. Never in any other point of history does the rapid technological development of mankind muster the same drive as it does when it's under the pretences of slaughter, defence, defiance and conquest. Intelligent pools of thought are put together to best figure out how to annihilate the opposition. And it all seems so easy to deny its virtuous place in the world, yet it crawls back over and over, lusting off of the banquets of suffering and hate that so easily fuels its fires. Someday, however, an impasse may arise, where humanity pushes itself so far to brutality that only then will it spend all it has to offer on reversing the carnage it has indulged in for thousands of years.
In 1911EC, the most formidable Empire in history launches the swift invasion of the Eastern fringes of unconquered Europan soil, breaching an unsteady status quo held up by twigs and paper. The reasons behind were mainly driven by the lust for ragnite, the ever-so precious material of Ragnite, a natural resource capable of fulfilling the needs of the fuelling the new age of industrialisation, alongside its only-recent manipulation for medicinal and wartime practices. Only a year before, the Atlantic Federation had been birthed out of a taped-together defensive pact, opposing the ideology of the Eastern Autocratic Europan Empire. Whilst the first troops swept through its border nations, such as Assen and Wesel, the mass mobilisation began for the largest military conflict mankind had seen. Many feared for what the war would bring, but the most optimistic of politicians, commentators, generals and citizens slated a year long engagement that would see a rise and fall of one or more great powers. What followed, however, was soon to be known as the Great Europan War.
It is now December 30th, 1914. Four long, gruelling years of violence has seen the greatest loss of life in any existing conflict. The harsh realities of trench-based warfare has set the world continent into chaos. Things have improved little. On one side, the Imperials were halted before their advance could overwhelm the Federation - and over time, the attrition has slowly begun to whittle down the lonesome giant that persists in claiming the valuable resources and expanding its continental ambitions. However, as the Federation's offensive to liberate Assen and Wesel has progressed at an aching pace, the winter has once again settled in. Now, the frontline sits static once more. The Empire holds heavily entrenched ground with the Federation forced to dig in out of fear of losing its gains. And now, with the long-awaited arrival of Vinland soldiers, it's unsure if the coming days will see any victories for the foreseeable future, or if the war will forever persist until it perpetuates humanity's very destruction.
Hello all, and welcome to Valkyria Chronicles: Changing of the Guard, a lite-fantasy-esq historical war drama focusing on the narratives of characters forced to endure its horrendous conflicts. Now, first thing to put out there, yes this is derived from the universe of the same game name, SEGA's Valkyria Chronicles, however I will immediately say that prior knowledge of the series is nothing much of a bonus rather than a requirement. Returning group members range from long-time fans to those who've never even touched or had heard of the source material anytime before what we did, and we don't so much follow the canonical events. For example, the games follow the Second Europan War in 1935, whereas we're currently exploring EW1 in its closing years, before transitioning over to EW2's inception when we eventually conclude its former self, showcasing the chance of technology, ideologies, character development and more.
For those unaware, CotG was a long-running roleplay that started in 2018 and lasted until early 2020. It achieved over 410+ posts and to this day stands as the most successful thing I've ever miraculously ran on this website. You can find the old thread HERE. With this in mind, it should be a clear that this is a continuation from where we left off, yet jumped ahead to the next arc to openly welcome and accommodate new players that wish to partake in this gritty and downtrodden world. Though, do be aware that there is a bit of an anime aesthetic to the RP, as to catch the visual identity of the original series. Below is a small summary of the events leading up to the war and those which have taken place in-RP so far.
So, the cast are all members of - within the EW1 half of the story - the Federation's 15th Atlantic Rifles, an infantry regiment utilised along the centre frontline for the Assen Offensive. However, our characters originate from an array of nationalities under the Federation's umbrella, neutral volunteer forces, colonial dominions and more. The war itself has been a ruthless bloodbath for most of the years, with the arrival of trench warfare devastating the glorious image of combat. Whether failed poets, nationalists uplifting the spirit of their fallen nation, misguided volunteers, terrified conscripts or members of an upper-class fulfilling their duty, the scale of personalities, opinions, inputs and outputs set within the conflict have seen a great pool of personalities live and die in the hands of brutalist fighting.
We don't want this RP to remain a closed club, however, for just returning members, and are actively seeking an ever growing number of roleplayers who want to throw their character into the midst. If at any point you're interested in joining, please tag me on the thread and I'll be happy to welcome you!
Key: - BLUE - Atlantic Federation Nations - RED - Eastern Autocratic Europan Empire, including puppets and allies - PURPLE - EW1 Participants, non-Federation - WHITE - Neutral Nations
Though there were many attributing factors to the war's outbreak, such as ethnic tensions and desires of conquest, the most cited reason for the conflict was a higher demand of the all-important Ragnite. The industrial age was reaching its end and the new century demanded that the precious mineral fall into the hands of the dominant powers. Imperial economies stagnated as early as 1903EC. Of course, it wasn't the only factor, and remains only a common headline as to the greed of man.
1911EC - The Great Europan War begins with the Imperial invasion of Assen and Wesel bordering its nation. In turn, the declaration of war sends all of the Federation to rush for their help, though they are slow to mobilise their forces to match or outnumber the initial Imperial storm. The First Battle of the Maren River becomes the Federations greatest defeat of the year, with immense casualties on both sides.
- A smaller yet incredibly well-trained army is sent to the Empire's southern borders to expand into its weakest neighbours. Kortrijk and Hazebrouck fall within a month, however Ostaria, Erneutzia and Drivja put up heavy resistance and halt the advance. Meppen joins the 'Southern Alliance' shortly after and sends forces across the frontline.
- Wesel falls in September 1911, whilst Assen is fully occupied by the end of the year. Federation forces have mobilised by that rate, and the frontline becomes stagnant when the winter sets in. What is thought to be only a temporary halt to the conflict turns in to the next four years of trench warfare.
1912EC - The Federation Standardisation Programme is drawn up, with rampant production going into a streamlined arms deployment. Weapons like the Edinburgh SM-Longfield Mk. 3 and Valois Service Dagger are incorporated into the 'common soldiers gear' in an effort to further solidify the Federation's unified alliance.
- The United States of Vinland begins to send the Federation financial and logistical support, lend-leasing them equipment, workers and food to help sustain the war effort. However, they refuse to enter the war.
- The Southern Alliance crumbles during the Hildebrumme Offensive in April, where just under a million Imperial soldiers utilise strong artillery-based assaults to break the relatively thin but strong defensive lines. Though outnumbered at first, the tides favour the aggressors and one by one the nations surrender as their capitals are occupied by Imperial soldiers. Arras declares neutrality and brokers a non-aggression pact with the Empire under the promise of embargoing the Federation, which it upholds out of fear.
- Gallian border skirmishes begin as the Empire uses fear tactics to try and pressure the monarchy into giving its much needed ragnite resources. They refuse time and time again, leading to five incidents of skirmishes.
- The Imperial push into Zwolle picks up momentum and drives the Federation forces down to the Southern Peninsular, though not quite off the mainland itself. In their push, the 21st Atlantic Fusiliers are almost completely wiped out and become the first disbanded-through-defeat regiment of the war.
1913EC - A coalitionary expedition army is put together under the command of General Charleston, and Operation Breached Gates is initiated. It's the first recorded 'Titled Operation' in Europan history and is an utter failure. Forces compromised of mainly Edinburgh, Oceanic and Roeselare forces navally invade the Gulf of Arras, though a blockade from the neutral nation squeezes their landing force into Drvija. In 4 months, only 91 miles was gained and subsequently lost, with 47,000 soldiers killed, 10,000 injured and a further 1,200 captured.
- Gallia is finally invaded by the Empire, however the optimistic Imperial generals are swiftly put on hold when the Gallian Militia was pre-emptively formed three months earlier. Combat boils down to slow frontline movement across the trenches, though the Empire does slowly make its way towards the Capital over the year.
1914EC - The beginning of the year sees the Federation plan its next great attack, the Assen Offensive. Unlike any other, months upon months of planning is utilised to ensure its indefinite success. It began with several days of bombardment across the Garnian Salient. Among several targets, the 15th Atlantic Rifles were sent to Hill 58, where two companies assault around and up the strategic position. Though casualties were smaller than most offensives, much of the company's forces were killed or injured, with half of its predicted assets reaching the peak of the hill. There, they repelled a counter attack by the Empire, and pressed on the following day. The 15th were reassigned up the frontline as it progressively moved closer to the border of Assen.
- September, 1914, saw the third stage of the offensive begin. Like the gateways to a fortress, the border of Assen was entrenched with thick frontlines. However, Federation forces honed in on the city of Amone, a once religious centrepiece for the less-than-stellar Cruxian faith: a symbol of pride for Assen's population. Subsequently, the city was placed under Siege for several weeks, with frontlines devolving into pockets rather than straight lines across Amone. Many members became trapped inside, though civilian-held neutrality zones were set up by surviving locals to nurture soldiers of both Imperial and Federation origin. Unfortunately, the Siege of Amone also saw the first deployed use of gas by the liberators, who knew their underprepared adversaries had no counter or protection against it. The South-Western parts of the city were engulfed with poisonous air for just under an hour. Two days later, the Imperials retaliated with an experimental mechanised artillery piece firing ragnite-infused ammunition, devastating two streets at once. And shortly after, the final offensive of the Federation came, and the city was reclaimed as the first liberated hotspot in Assen, at huge costs.
- The United States of Vinland, after having more than 30 vessels sunk by the Empire and with a prominent naval base being attacked under darkness, joins the war on its allies side. Its troops are slated to arrive in December, where the full scale of their newly reinforced bodies hopes to quell the stagnation in early spring.
Our characters will be, as previously stated, under the command of the 15th Atlantic Rifles. This continuation is set to begin during the Winter of 1914, in the final days of the year, with new introductions of technological prowess, conflicts and spouts of character interaction to happen across its time. These characters are split into 5 infantry roles - Rifleman, Shocktrooper, Gunner, Sapper and Marksman; these serve more as identities and lore guidelines for equipment, potential skills and all that jazz, nothing too gamey.
An image of the character could go here. Though advised you get a faceclaim, ones without are required to have heavier detail in their appearance section as a result.
Name Should be simple enough
Gender Ditto
Age Years and date of birth. Though most beginning characters tend to lie between 16 and 19, characters in their 20s and over are allowed. However, seeing as many are expected to return in EW2 (20 years after), it's best to keep those sort of characters on the low.
Sexuality Self-explanatory
Race Either select of Darcsen or any of the Federation descents. Name a town of origination, own-created towns are available. If you are unsure as to what a 'Darcsen' is, then by all means ask away - especially if new to the franchise.
Appearance Description of how they look physically, as well as their uniform. There are differentiations in the army's clothing when it comes to both their role and personality, meaning that some are easily identifiable based upon their additional adjustments to their uniform. If any, crack on.
Height Easy enough.
Personality What kind of person are they usually, both on duty and off duty?
Rank This will be their rank during the start of the First Europan War. When we eventually go into the Second, the options will open up more. However, unless previously obtained, all characters should start at the Private rank. Open to discussion if you have specific ideas though.
Role What is their role within the Atlantic Federation army? If your character does get a role progression, then list it here later on in the RP.
Equipment Whilst their equipment is going to be mostly similar to that of those below, there are specific melee alternatives, explosives and tools that vary within each role. Personal belongings can also be thrown in here too, if there are any in particular.
Potentials These directly correspond to how they are in their personality, listing their traits and potential upsides/downsides to their combat. See these more as quick-to-identify parts of the character that can progress overtime. Doesn't trigger like in the game, and acts more as a character narration tool.
Biography The account who they were before the war, their life growing up and how they came to be who they are now. Involve their eventual inclusion into the military, including the vital reasons why.
Affiliations Who are they families, major friends or life-impacting individuals with prior to the war's beginning?
Relationships Optional, but a fun way to document how they see other characters they regularly interact with.
Character Theme Not necessary, but can be used if wished.
This sheet is more or less just a skeleton frame that you can rearrange the bones for. Decorate it as you wish, format it as you like and have the freedom to add additional information as you see fit. As long as the necessary parts are included, then it should be all good. I'll let you know in the sheet review if anything major is missing or if there's anything up for debate/change within it. Any questions about suggested characters that don't quite "fit" the mould are open but not always to be accepted, dependent on a case-by-case basis.
Finally, there's the roles that are permitted within the Atlantic Federation Army. Though I'm leaving out the Second Europan War roles for now, they will be added once we arrive there far down the line. Guidelines for said roles showcase their place within the platoon, as well as decide on their main weaponry and specialist role. However, whilst it advantages them in some areas and disadvantages them in others, characters strengths and weaknesses play more into their character + situation. Mostly common sense, narratively speaking, but that's not so much a grand issue to talk about here.
The bulk of any military force, standardised riflemen are the common soldiery that make up the Federation's armed services. Almost exclusively armed with the SM-Longfield Mk. 3 Rifle, one or two shrapnel grenades, melee weaponry and dressed to be effective on their own. Alternatively, most Vinland riflemen have access to the M1912 Fielder, with lower ammo capacity than its Edinburgh counterpart. Riflemen are most effective when put in pairs or groups, allowing for subsequent suppressive bolt-action fire, a favoured tactic by the Federation Infantry whenever a gunner is not present. Some riflemen differentiate themselves by acting as an 'Assistant Gunner', who's primary role mirrors that of the traditional rifleman, however their are burdened to carry additional ammunition whenever topside on the battlefield, and are more likely to be posted with a gunner if they require such help.
Machine Gunners have proven themselves to be the dominant defensive force of any infantryman. As the war broke past its first year, the first renditions of light machine guns popped into the hands of its troops and portable, though heavy, automatic weapons became a limited yet prized addition to platoons. The Federation's service machine gun is the Typhoon Mk. II Machine Gun, a somewhat bulky yet reliable piece of weaponry, only seeing small improvements over its original design in an attempt to lower its weight. Alternatively, the Vinland forces also deploy the newer Robinson Automatic Rifle, or RAR, with its more portable frame yet less reliable construction, also containing a lower bullet count per magazine. Gunners are usually equipped with slightly bulkier gear, such as their detachable bipods, melee weaponry and occasionally a sidearm.
A Sapper does what a Sapper does. Traditionally tunnellers in the early days of the war, sappers have adapted to become more flexible riflemen with a greater emphasis on maintaining defences and bringing down the oppositions. Featuring a carbined rifle counterpart to the rifleman's, these soldiers are greatly known for committing to demolition tasks, carrying the occasional satchel charge if need be, constructing tunnel systems and deeper trench bunkers, as well as acting as the platoon wire cutter at its most basic function. With the carbine, they are also granted standard supplies of newer ragnite grenades, though are usually stockpiled elsewhere until needed so as to not detonate pre-emptively.
The Shocktrooper is a relatively new addition to the standard military rank and files. Soldiers proficient in, or simply ordered to, assault positions with a greater emphasis on aggression. At least, that's the foundation of their role, with a large imbalance resting on the confidence and effectiveness of the soldiers themselves. Whilst at the beginning of the war they were hand picked from recruitment drives, specifically of those who showed far greater courage in the face of death, the full mobilisation of Federation forces has left them with a larger margin of error, meaning not all soldiers act as heroically and brave as expected. Shocktrooper companies were once a separate thing, however they resulted in extreme casualty losses over the course of 1912, and were integrated as a plentiful role within platoons instead. Their weaponry is equal to that of a rifleman, however they far commonly sport carbine variants over the standard rifle variants of Longfields and Fielder rifles. They are far likely to carry more damaging handheld melee weapons and are permitted to more fragmentation grenades than the average rifleman. On top of this, a little additional padding of armour is given to help bolster their effectiveness at frontal assaults, however its effectiveness is nowhere near invulnerable.
Marksmen aren't a common breed, yet their place in companies and platoons are welcomed most of the time. These soldiers are usually the better shots of the group, though the awful terrain of trench warfare hadn't exactly allowed them to thrive at their greatest capacity. These soldiers are permitted 7 or 9 times optical scopes and can be seen sitting in the trenches with their eyes on dangerous targets, such as enemy gunners and officers. However, they aren't useless in standard infantry combat. Beneath their optics are still their iron sights, albeit with the added baggage of a rounded box obstructing their field of view. Equally these soldiers have been able to thrive in varied terrain, such as forests, hills, mountain ranges and cities, such as their widespread deployment in the Siege of Amone. Their rifle may be the same as the standard rifleman, but their effectivity and assignments usually differ when detached from a standard infantry rabble.
Other than that, I think I've covered pretty much everything there is to cover. If there's anything I haven't cleared up, do feel free to ask in the thread and I'll try my best to answer it! One thing to note is that during wartime sections like the Winter Stalemate and any upcoming battles in the final months of the war, there will be a bit more of an emphasis on player agency, with less restrictive events. Players, within lore reasons and all that, can orchestrate a number of small things for their characters to do, such as raids, small defences, interactions with POWs, being stuck in no man's land, heading to the reserve lines and even relaxing in the towns behind the frontline. A big emphasis on character interaction is hopeful in my eyes, with their developments and relationships forming/breaking the further we get into it. I know how much of you guys love your relationships and rivalries, so go at it my children.
Thanks for reading this! If you've left your interest on the OOC and are still interested, please join the discord here as we have a separate channel for the RP's OOC, just to make it easier to communicate, chat and banter about all things relevant and unrelated to the RP! See you out there!
I shall get my CS up either tonight or tomorrow, though I am waiting for some groovy new art for Jean so it might be a little while-crocodile (unless I use the old one as a placeholder)
@LetMeDoStuff Knock knock motherfucker the Slav Zone is here
___________________________________ Leonore-Zofia Küchler-Sokołowšky, 22 ________________________________________________________________________________________ Volhynia | Hoznán / Horazan, Volhynia, East Europan Imperial Alliance ___________________________________
▼ E X T R A I N F O R M A T I O N ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ ► DOB - 10/31/1893 ► Height - 6'0" / 183cm ► Weight - 173 lbs / 78 kg ► Hair Color - Blonde ► Eye Color - Light Blue ► Classification - Sapper ► Rank - Foreign Legionnaire - Acting Corporal ► Sexuality - Bisexual
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D E T A I L E D A P P E A R A N C E
Leo towers over most women from the Federation in an almost statuesque posture, her fit and able frame honed from years of hellish regimen. Fair-haired and with two sparkling azure eyes, Sokołowšky's presence is - barring all else - nothing short of thoroughly impressive. Nestled beneath her army cap and helmet belies her back-length blonde hair, pinned up before battles. No matter where she may find herself, nor with how few resources, Leonore makes a point to take care of herself, and takes immense pride in presenting her best appearance. Always presenting with a unshakeable smile, standing as upright as a mighty ancient oak, the Volhynian is always certain to exude an air of confidence about herself.
Leonore's uniform is a piecemeal assembly of uniforms, strewn together over years of scavenging and stitching. Her singular constants are the iconic white, red, and navy armband of the Volhynian flag, which proudly adorns her left sleeve. She makes note to keep it spotless, always rubbing down any grime or gristle which taints it after each and every engagement.
---P E R S O N A L I T Y
"Extrovert" does not even begin to describe the aggressively outgoing demeanor by which Leonore carries herself. There are few instances in which Leo will refuse discourse..and even fewer in which she will not begin to indulge in all manner of queries and commentaries until exhaustion. This, compounded by Leo's rapid pace of speech, couples together to form a thoroughly colorful vocabulary which leaves its audience wondering if what is spoken is truly what she had meant, or if she simply lacks the diction to hold a more fitting conversation. Perhaps a result of years spent around the Federation's most crass soldiers, Leo seems to be very comfortable asking the more blunt questions in life. She may come across as incredibly to-the-point, and perhaps a bit crude, yet Leonora finds no fault in, "telling it how it is", as she puts it.
---B I O G R A P H Y
The twin daughter of a Volhynian comedian and a Leican-Imperial priestess of Valkyrur, Leonora came to in the eastern city of Hoznán (Known in Imperial Standard as Horazan). In the Volhynian capital metropolis, she was immediately immersed into a turbulent period of Imperial history. From the moment she was born, Leo was exposed to the national rebirth of Volhynia, with more and more voices raising their support for the long-awaited recognition of the historic region within the greater Imperial Alliance. These wishes often clashed with the views of the more conservative hardline Imperialists in Schwarzgrad, who frequently decried this national sentiment as being disruptive to the unity of the Empire. Battles in academic circles soon accompanied fights in the streets and countryside. Citing the composite nature of the Empire, many within the upper echelons of the Imperial Alliance felt that the continued nationalist sentiments of Volhynia's distinct culture - as well as many other subject nations within it - were unfounded. In contrast, the Volhynian volksgeist more frequently decried Schwarzgradian dominance over Imperial politics and culture, claiming the Alliance - in truth - was little more than a formality to High Imperial hegemony.
Leonora, even from birth, was thoroughly torn between the Imperial and Volhynian worlds. Torn between two languages and with two names, the young woman was thrown right into this rift. Instructor after instructor would give contrasting views, the wedge between the two nations only driving between the use of Volhynian and Imperial Standard even in daily life. Her childhood was filled with news of insurrections by paper, and dinnertime conversations of national awakening. Confused and looking for guidance, a young Leo often turned toward her father, asking what to make of the incertitude. He would simply give a gentle smile, put a kindred hand upon her shoulder, and spoke the simple words, "It is better to do the right thing and lose than to do the wrong thing and win. Do what is right, not what is easy."
In the words of her benignant dad's advice, Leonore found her sympathies trudging more and more towards the cause of so many who had bravely stood before the Imperial authorities for the sake of an entire nation. Come the fated day where the Imperial prince saw himself assassinated at the hands of of separatists, Leonore had no doubts in her mind; This was the line in the sand, and the Empire would never be willing to allow the cause of any beneath its iron grasp to be free. Then, it was decided. She searched high and low, traversing all manner of old Volhynian societies before finding the group that would eventually become the Volhynian Legionnaire's Society. In the dead of night, Leonore explained her plans, and gave her last farewells to her siblings with a smile on her face, promising them that - when she returned - it would be to a free Volhynia. With a joyously tearful response, Leo departed her home with the phrase, "Just don't tell mom i'm in Valois."
Upon her treacherous arrival across the Adriats and into Federation soil, Leonore's reception along with the Legion's was met with a rather...lukewarm response. It was clear that the additional help was more than welcome - and from Imperial separatists, no doubt - yet these volunteers, Leonore included, arrived to the Federation with a classical Volhynian uniform, a mishmash of whatever arms they carried from home, and what paucity of Federal language they could pick up from the journey over. Simply put, in 1911, the Federation had no clue what to do with this influx of volunteers from Imperial territories, nevermind how to fit them into the Federation's military structure. Yet, it was ever-clear early on that these men and women who arrived had come to fight, and it was quickly decided in the Federation that they would merely do just that. Leo and her compatriots were put through the standard training regime, and in the weeks of training just before the journey to the front, Leo would march and sing the legendary Volhynian marching tunes with nothing but jubilance, confident that this war would be over by the new year - and with the new year would come a new Volhynia, with a hero's welcome.
The years have not been as kind to her as the initial prospects of war had suggested. Through Maren, Chartreuse, Voiseilles, and Sarrebourg, Leonore has persisted through bloody battle and hellish conflict. Many of her comrades have come and gone, yet her determination remains ironclad. Leo has swore unto herself not to let the many deaths of her friends and compatriots go to waste, and now drives her further and further to see the conflict unto its absolute end, with the proud white, red, and navy flying majestically over Hoznán...no matter the cost.
---P O T E N T I A L S
Fierce Patriot: Leonore will die for the Volhynian cause with nothing but joy in her heart and a smile on her face. Overbearingly outspoken about her admiration towards The Fatherland and its noble plight for freedom, she will never cease to "enlighten" others about the glories and wonders of Volhynia. To her, The Empire is a despotic, tyrannical regime which only desires total Europan domination - and if Volhynia and millions of others trapped within Imperial chains are to be free, it must be military defeated. She borders on fanaticism in her beliefs, and will seldom give any ground on any issues related to the cause.
"Ščo?": When Leonore first signed on to the Volhynian Legions and arrived in Federation lands, she came not knowing a single word of the Federal language. Four years of immersion have helped her comprehension immensely, yet Leo is far from "fluent" in any regard; Her speech is heavily accented, and she often interchanges words she doesn't know with those of her native tongue, fishing for a response. She has heard commands and general phrases aplenty to not be confused with battlefield orders, but in more technical, verbose conversations, Eleonora may have trouble keeping up.
"Marš, Vołyniny, Marš!": East Europans are notoriously stubborn, and Eleonora fits this mold quite well. Equal parts valiant, foolhardy, and utterly obstinate, Leonore refuses to allow any obstacle to slow the inexorable advance of her iron heart. She takes this in stride, often urging her comrades when they find themselves in despair to hold their heads high, always proud, and to forever march forward no matter the bleakness of their battle - For when the dust inevitably settles and the storm is weathered, Leo will say: "Never forget that we are saving nations and enslaved people!"
Veteran Legionnaire: From the moment the Great Europan War erupted, Leo immediately dedicated herself to the Volhynian Legion, trudging off to an unknown land with her comrades-in-arms to fight for a free Volhynia. She has spent four hellish years along the trenches and fields of Europa, and has survived some of its most brutal battles.
Weight 134 lbs Appearance You don't see Michael unless you look down over him. Comparing to his Edinburgh, or anywhere else for that matter, peers, Michael's most distinctive feature is his ridiculously short height. Very easy to recognize, and sometimes a subject of ridicule, but a very valuable asset in combat. His small and thin silhouette made him a more difficult target than others, and as a sapper, a key role on the battlefield, this asset is invaluable. However, don't judge the young man through his size. He actually boasts quite a sustainable stamina, able to carry heavy equipment around the battlefield for quite a good while. Another trivia to note about this young just-about-to-be college student is that he once almost got away with the conscription due to the officer in charge mistaken him for a child. It was only until the man in charge checked the man's profile that they let him hold a gun on the battlefield. His more roundish face contributed to the misunderstanding of his age. Reflecting his rather high social upbringings, Michael always appears well-spoken, articulate and nicely dressed, or at least as nicely as he could in the situation he is in. He is not a strict follower of the noble dress code, but anytime you see him, except on the battlefield after the blood and mud, he is always seen neat and upright in his uniform. With the ruthless war undergoing, he still tried to maintain a slightest bit of humanity in his appearance.
His uniform was quite specially made to fit his rather small posture. It wasn't entirely new though, just a slightly altered version of the smallest possible male uniform. Strapped all around his torso are rucksacks and straps that carries all (almost all) necessary engineering equipment Michael needs in a battlefield condition, along with a few grenades for combat purposes aside from his main gun (provided if he was given some).
Throughout the short few months of his conscription, he had for himself a few scars as well, notably on his right arm, where he was shot through the arm at Amone.
Personality It took a lot to change a man's personality in a matter of months. But those were hellish months. After being subjected to countless near-death situation, having been forced into nigh impossible situation and emerged victorious, Michael had changed from a quiet, terrified boy into a relatively ambivert, readily willing to entertain any guest with a conversation, and a courageous soldier. He couldn't completely hide his fears. He still wanted to go home, back to his family, to his sickly mother at home. But he knew that he wouldn't go home any faster either way except in a casket, so he just bit the bullet, looked straight at his terror in the eyes and walked forward. And that's how he survived, even after being blown up, shot, thrown around and spitted at.
Kind-hearted and compassionate, he is your sweetheart in times of need, and that was not lost under the trampling muddy boots. He can always keep you company with a conversation or two, or sharing a book, a meal together. It might not dawn on you right away, but gradually, his continuous presence either meant he's taken a liking to you or he's worried about you. But regardless, he doesn't take kindly to close-mindedness, even less to cruelty. Despite the looks, he is rather well-educated and intelligent, capable of complex understanding of different subject matter, and often has a rather 'different' approach or viewpoint from the rest of society. Rank Private
Potentials Engineering Master: Due to his background as an engineering student, Michael is capable of absorbing knowledge and understanding various complex machineries. Not a know-it-all or is capable of fixing any machines he come into, but he would be able to do things whilst other people are still scratching their heads over it. Both how to fix it and how to BLOW it up.
Low-profile: His small stature makes him a more difficult target to hit on the battlefield, but it can make it difficult for him to traverse on some difficult terrains.
The Brave Little Pacifist: The baptism of fire did not kill him. It made him a stronger man, braver than yesterday, more experienced than previous battles. He's getting used to it. To the sight of death flashing through his eyes every seconds. To the screams and hostilities of those around him. Now, he feels tempted to approach things with a more confident resolve but not without losing sight of his personal values. Biography In a fine antique yet cozy mansion in the city of Tyrella, a young man by the name of Michael Daunte came into existence. The family had a relatively prestigious history, with ancestors a few times serving as government officials. So it is understandable that the family would place high demands on Michael in terms of education. It was indeed a little tiresome for the young lad, but in exchange, the wealth of the family meant that the Dauntes could do many things. As an attempt to encourage curiosity in Michael, his father likes to take him to places, either domestic or international, so he could interact with different cultures and therefore wanting to figure more about them. Child curiosity is a thing to be feared. And yes, his father did get the greatest out of him. He was fascinated with the world around him, with so many different things to explore. He began to read books after books about different things. First just about countries, but then expands to other stuff, like science, heritage and culture. One of his topic of great interest is engineering, especially the Imperial Alliance's, known for many great masterpieces of it.
The routine spread further into his early teenage years. Soon, Michael began to dig into the more grim and serious aspects of the world around him. It wasn't the shiny and riveting world anymore. He used to imagine a world full of harmony despite its deep rooted varieties, yet the former was never fully achieved. He touched upon politics, diplomacy and then history of conflicts. There were things that he couldn't understand why a human being would do to another human being. He could never. Michael realized that the world wasn't just the world that he used to see it. It was cruel and not meant for softness.
At first he thought the war was just a distant thing. Then it came to him. He was sent to Hill 58, where death fell right on his chest. His soft kindness was trampled when he beat that man to death with his helmet on that hill. Then he went to Amone, where he learnt pain, and how close he had come to meeting God. Softness is a weakness on the battlefield. But he also found something profound in those experience.
Courage.
And with it, he achieved the almost impossible beneath the city of God.
The mission at Amone was a success, and significantly assisted the end of the fighting in the city. For the first time, he felt a slimmer of power. He wasn't completely bound to this manmade torture device. He did something great. And with it, he felt like he could do something more.
Michael was also never a man of staleness. He reveled in entertaining himself with his interests and curiosity. And so was death to him. After a while fussing about the corpses rotting on the battlefield, the blood mixed in with mud and rain and the terrible living conditions in the trenches, it got boring. He'd rather spend more time learning more about Darcsen mythologies, other country's histories or maintaining his equipment well rather.
Affiliations George Daunte - Father (40) Elizabeth Daunte - Mother (40) Anna Elisa Richelieu - Fellow Sapper and Friend (19)
Relationships
Jean-Robin Charpentier He is an ok leader, but holy cross is he bad at socializing. Michael could not help but feel a little bad for him as he tried so hard to flirt. Otherwise, Jean is a kind man who does care a lot, and Michael respected that. He probably knew a lot more than the sapper believed to, so Michael wished for more moments to learn more about him.
Isaac Black He is that cool guy of sort in the group. Michael felt safer under his command than Jean, no offense to the latter, but his personality is...wild to say the least. It can be a little annoying at times, but eh he could say that about anyone.
Lucia Farris In a way, he had affections towards Lucia, but he did doubt if he really loved her or this was just him wanting her to be happy, considering the rumors of what Middleton did to her. Nevertheless, he cared a lot for her and hoped she could be free from his grasp.
Diana Elana Vastergoth Weird. A nice girl in his eyes but weird. At the same time she really reminded Michael of Jean. They both don't have a clue about social cues. They're probably a perfect match for each other.
Franz Blau He also empathizes a lot with his situation, having lost a girl he liked so much in front of his eyes. He is glad that he is able to help him gain some of his confidence back. He hopes that it would remain the same for long, but who can say that statement would be true in the far future. But he hopes that his friendship would remain the same.
Senja Penttilä A peculiarly beautiful lady from North Europa. She's quite eccentric, but kindness goes a long way in forming a friendship with Michael.
Alexander-John Middleton He doesn't deserve a footnote in Michael's memoir if he ever to write one. But at the same time, he does want to understand his psyche. But would he ever want to approach a man directly if he doesn't want to entertain genuine curiosity but only to subjugate those beneath him?
Standing at a diminutive 5’1” and weighing 103 lbs, Elliot is small in every sense of the word. She does not eat much, but she's not in bad shape. Due to the nature of her enlistment, she is typically issued male uniforms, which she does not mind wearing. Elliot does have a habit of keeping herself and her surroundings neat and tidy. She tends to keep her hair short, typically sporting an ushanka and a long coat when in colder climates. She keeps a number of utility belts and pouches on her person for easy access to her gear.
Personality
Composed, stoic, and precocious. She is often seen as 'cold' at times due to her lack of outward reactions. She’s slow to trust strangers but is generally not unfriendly. Although seemingly apathetic, Elliot is a caring and understanding individual, owing to her upbringing. Methodical, inquisitive, and detail-oriented, she loves discussing technical details about machines and weapons. Her honesty is brutal, and her self-loyalty trumps all of her actions. However, she is known to assist others out of her own inconvenience simply because "she wants to."
Though she's only been in the war for two years, she's developed several ways to cope, having joined at such a young age. She has compartmentalized the worst of her experiences in an effort to maintain her sanity. She views the war as a grim necessity, and that fighting in it is her duty-- for her family, for her friends who've died in the war, and for her country. Elliot views her own role as a marksman with pride, though she finds the fact that killing is one of her few talents... concerning, and wonders what she will do when the war ends, only to push that thought aside for the future.
Strangely enough, even after everything she's seen and done, Elliot believes that the world is a beautiful place and that its many imperfections make it all the more admirable. Only time will tell if she retains this worldview.
Rank
Private.
Role
Marksman.
Equipment
SM-Longfield Mk. 3 Rifle (Marksman Variant)
A ubiquitous firearm carried by the bulk of the Federation infantry. This rifle in particular is modified for long-range engagements for use of a marksman, with a x8 scope on top of where the iron sights normally are.
Suppressor
An experimental attachment for the Longfield Mk. 3 Rifle. Helps muffle the noise of the muzzle blast when firing, allowing for better concealment.
Rifle Ammunition
Ammunition for the Longfield Mk. 3 Rifle.
John-Wissel Revolver
A revolver given to officers and marksmen of the Federation. Has a loading lever for easy removal of spent casings, and packs a punch.
Revolver Ammunition
Ammunition for the John-Wissel Revolver.
Flare Gun
Can be used to fire a small flare to send signals that anyone can see.
Flares
Ammunition for the flare gun. Comes in different colors that denote different signals.
Illumination Flares
Throwable flares that emit extremely bright light meant to reveal an area shrouded in darkness.
Garotte Wire
A short ligature, which can be used to suffocate someone from behind. Rarely used due to Elliot's small size, but nevertheless useful in clandestine operations.
Trip Mines
A set of antipersonnel devices with a small explosive payload that can be triggered via pressure or tripwire. Needs time to set up.
Binoculars
A device that allows for long-range surveillance, beyond the range of a normal sniper scope. Useful for reconnaissance missions.
Periscope
A telescopic device that allows the user to see around cover. Useful for safely peeking while in the trenches.
Edinburgh Military Uniform
The standard uniform typically issued to male soldiers, notably of one of the smallest available sizes-- and still doesn't quite fit her.
Trenchcoat and Cloak
A leather trenchcoat that helps keep cold, wind, and moisture out. Comes with a camouflaged cloak that helps conceals the wearer's position, especially in foliage.
Elliot's Ushanka
A trapper's hat with brim bound by a pair of motorcycle goggles. A keepsake from an old friend. Very comfortable.
Miscellaneous Supplies
Survival Knife
A small dagger ill-suited for combat, but good for activities at camp. Elliot keeps it sharp.
Backpack
A military rucksack to store supplies and equipment.
Canteen
A metal container that can be filled with water.
Mess Kit
A set of stainless steel utensils, as well as a metal cup and tray, in case the soldier needs to eat in the field.
Field Rations
A set of nonperishable foodstuffs that will virtually keep forever, as long as it is protected from the elements. Only typically issued if the soldier is sent on extended missions outside the trenches.
Matches
A set of matches for lighting fires.
Repair Kit w/ Spare Parts
Tools and supplies needed to keep a soldier's gear in prime condition.
Compass
A small navigation tool that can be used to determine which way is north. Useful for checking maps.
Sharpening Stone
A small whetstone used to keep blades sharp.
Potentials
Sharpshooter - A crack shot from the moment she picked up a rifle, Elliot's skills are honed by experience, which elevates her prodigious talents to an even greater level.
Countersniper - Although her diminutive size held her back before, her small profile gives her a certain edge in remaining unseen and in cover. It is because of this that she excels at a secondary purpose: to locate and eliminate enemy snipers. Sometimes, it is as simple as laying traps in spots where they are likely to hide, other times, it is triangulating the angle of their shots to get a bead on their location.
Tunnel Vision - It is expected that marksmen, owing to their scopes, tend to focus heavily on one task or target, and Elliot is no different. She prefers to work as a scalpel: taking out key targets with surgical precision, but this can be problematic in its own right. Unless told otherwise, she tends to miss the big picture, preferring to take things one at a time. In addition, missed shots and elusive targets irritate her, which may cause her to double down at the task at hand, rather than to step back and reassess the situation.
Biography
Living in one of the middle-class districts of Castleton, Eleanor was born to a small family that got by about as well as everyone else. Her father worked as an engineer in the city's munitions factory, while her mother was a public accountant. Her older brother, Elliot, was born sickly, but attended school and apprenticed as an aspiring watchmaker. The reason why they were working so hard in spite of the relative prosperity in the nation's peacetime is that the family was deep in debt to a bank that had provided the money for a start-up business. Although they were up-and-comer at the time, they were quickly muscled in by rival competitors and lost much of their sales to bigger conglomerates. The now-defunct business was a burden that the family all wished to carry.
Fast-forward several years, to when she was at the age of fifteen: the advent of the Great Europan War. Eleanor's brother came down with a disease that required expensive medicine-- an insidious illness that left him bedridden. With no other choice, the family paid for the treatments, even if it would set them back on their debt payments by a significant amount. Though he was still only just recovering, the conscription drive would have left him labeled as a draft dodger if he refused to go, and thus with a heavy heart, prepared to send Elliot to his probable death in the frontlines.
Meanwhile, as she reached marriageable age, plans were put in place for Eleanor's betrothal. Although the family had intended for Eleanor to be wed to a gentleman uptown, it became increasingly evident to Eleanor that her prospective husband cared little for the rest of the girl's family at all. As she returned home one night, she noticed a flier plastered against the aging stone walls of the city- perhaps that very same recruitment drive would be the answer to everything.
Against her family's wishes, Eleanor called the betrothal off in a rather unorthodox manner. Namely, she disappeared one morning, stole her brother's credentials, and did not return, leaving only a vague note as to her whereabouts. It simply stated that she had left the city to find work and that they would receive some money within the coming months. As they would later find out, it turns out that she had registered for the conscription drive that the Edinburgh military was holding under her brother's identity, which spared her brother Elliot from draft evasion. Eleanor was always androgynous enough to pass as a man if she wanted to, after all. And although she had lied to the recruiter about her name, sex, and age, the documents and reports she had given the man were legitimate. Donning the new name "Elliot", the young "man" was sent to a military base for training.
She managed to barely squeeze past acceptable levels in basic training, all the while keeping her true identity a secret. Although often mocked for her small stature and her difficulty in keeping up with some of the physical training regimens, Elliot impressed her instructors and fellow conscripts in the firing range. It turned out that she was quite prodigious with the rifle. Once the training period was finished, she was sent off to the eastern front, to assist in the war effort. It was in the crucible of war that she was truly tested. With her skills and more than a little bit of luck, she managed to survive, emerging as a distinguished sharpshooter, having earned a medal for eliminating an enemy officer at long-range.
The girl would spend the next couple of years in the war, her role firmly cemented as a marksman. Assigned mostly to eliminate high-value targets or to scout out locations, Elliot was lucky enough to survive various offensives, in no small thanks to her talent. During her last mission, Edinburgh forces had to retreat, their position having been overwhelmed by the enemy, resulting in massive casualties. Following the dissolution of her battalion in the latest battle against Imperial forces, she was transferred to the 15th Atlantic Rifles to await further orders.
Weight 134 lbs Appearance You don't see Michael unless you look down over him. Comparing to his Edinburgh, or anywhere else for that matter, peers, Michael's most distinctive feature is his ridiculously short height. Very easy to recognize, and sometimes a subject of ridicule, but a very valuable asset in combat. His small and thin silhouette made him a more difficult target than others, and as a sapper, a key role on the battlefield, this asset is invaluable. However, don't judge the young man through his size. He actually boasts quite a sustainable stamina, able to carry heavy equipment around the battlefield for quite a good while. Another trivia to note about this young just-about-to-be college student is that he once almost got away with the conscription due to the officer in charge mistaken him for a child. It was only until the man in charge checked the man's profile that they let him hold a gun on the battlefield. His more roundish face contributed to the misunderstanding of his age. Reflecting his rather high social upbringings, Michael always appears well-spoken, articulate and nicely dressed, or at least as nicely as he could in the situation he is in. He is not a strict follower of the noble dress code, but anytime you see him, except on the battlefield after the blood and mud, he is always seen neat and upright in his uniform. With the ruthless war undergoing, he still tried to maintain a slightest bit of humanity in his appearance.
His uniform was quite specially made to fit his rather small posture. It wasn't entirely new though, just a slightly altered version of the smallest possible male uniform. Strapped all around his torso are rucksacks and straps that carries all (almost all) necessary engineering equipment Michael needs in a battlefield condition, along with a few grenades for combat purposes aside from his main gun (provided if he was given some).
Throughout the short few months of his conscription, he had for himself a few scars as well, notably on his right arm, where he was shot through the arm at Amone.
Personality It took a lot to change a man's personality in a matter of months. But those were hellish months. After being subjected to countless near-death situation, having been forced into nigh impossible situation and emerged victorious, Michael had changed from a quiet, terrified boy into a relatively ambivert, readily willing to entertain any guest with a conversation, and a courageous soldier. He couldn't completely hide his fears. He still wanted to go home, back to his family, to his sickly mother at home. But he knew that he wouldn't go home any faster either way except in a casket, so he just bit the bullet, looked straight at his terror in the eyes and walked forward. And that's how he survived, even after being blown up, shot, thrown around and spitted at.
Kind-hearted and compassionate, he is your sweetheart in times of need, and that was not lost under the trampling muddy boots. He can always keep you company with a conversation or two, or sharing a book, a meal together. It might not dawn on you right away, but gradually, his continuous presence either meant he's taken a liking to you or he's worried about you. But regardless, he doesn't take kindly to close-mindedness, even less to cruelty. Despite the looks, he is rather well-educated and intelligent, capable of complex understanding of different subject matter, and often has a rather 'different' approach or viewpoint from the rest of society. Rank Private
Potentials Engineering Master: Due to his background as an engineering student, Michael is capable of absorbing knowledge and understanding various complex machineries. Not a know-it-all or is capable of fixing any machines he come into, but he would be able to do things whilst other people are still scratching their heads over it. Both how to fix it and how to BLOW it up.
Low-profile: His small stature makes him a more difficult target to hit on the battlefield, but it can make it difficult for him to traverse on some difficult terrains.
The Brave Little Pacifist: The baptism of fire did not kill him. It made him a stronger man, braver than yesterday, more experienced than previous battles. He's getting used to it. To the sight of death flashing through his eyes every seconds. To the screams and hostilities of those around him. Now, he feels tempted to approach things with a more confident resolve but not without losing sight of his personal values. Biography In a fine antique yet cozy mansion in the city of Tyrella, a young man by the name of Michael Daunte came into existence. The family had a relatively prestigious history, with ancestors a few times serving as government officials. So it is understandable that the family would place high demands on Michael in terms of education. It was indeed a little tiresome for the young lad, but in exchange, the wealth of the family meant that the Dauntes could do many things. As an attempt to encourage curiosity in Michael, his father likes to take him to places, either domestic or international, so he could interact with different cultures and therefore wanting to figure more about them. Child curiosity is a thing to be feared. And yes, his father did get the greatest out of him. He was fascinated with the world around him, with so many different things to explore. He began to read books after books about different things. First just about countries, but then expands to other stuff, like science, heritage and culture. One of his topic of great interest is engineering, especially the Imperial Alliance's, known for many great masterpieces of it.
The routine spread further into his early teenage years. Soon, Michael began to dig into the more grim and serious aspects of the world around him. It wasn't the shiny and riveting world anymore. He used to imagine a world full of harmony despite its deep rooted varieties, yet the former was never fully achieved. He touched upon politics, diplomacy and then history of conflicts. There were things that he couldn't understand why a human being would do to another human being. He could never. Michael realized that the world wasn't just the world that he used to see it. It was cruel and not meant for softness.
At first he thought the war was just a distant thing. Then it came to him. He was sent to Hill 58, where death fell right on his chest. His soft kindness was trampled when he beat that man to death with his helmet on that hill. Then he went to Amone, where he learnt pain, and how close he had come to meeting God. Softness is a weakness on the battlefield. But he also found something profound in those experience.
Courage.
And with it, he achieved the almost impossible beneath the city of God.
The mission at Amone was a success, and significantly assisted the end of the fighting in the city. For the first time, he felt a slimmer of power. He wasn't completely bound to this manmade torture device. He did something great. And with it, he felt like he could do something more.
Michael was also never a man of staleness. He reveled in entertaining himself with his interests and curiosity. And so was death to him. After a while fussing about the corpses rotting on the battlefield, the blood mixed in with mud and rain and the terrible living conditions in the trenches, it got boring. He'd rather spend more time learning more about Darcsen mythologies, other country's histories or maintaining his equipment well rather.
Affiliations George Daunte - Father (40) Elizabeth Daunte - Mother (40) Anna Elisa Richelieu - Fellow Sapper and Friend (19)
Relationships
Jean-Robin Charpentier He is an ok leader, but holy cross is he bad at socializing. Michael could not help but feel a little bad for him as he tried so hard to flirt. Otherwise, Jean is a kind man who does care a lot, and Michael respected that. He probably knew a lot more than the sapper believed to, so Michael wished for more moments to learn more about him.
Isaac Black He is that cool guy of sort in the group. Michael felt safer under his command than Jean, no offense to the latter, but his personality is...wild to say the least. It can be a little annoying at times, but eh he could say that about anyone.
Lucia Farris In a way, he had affections towards Lucia, but he did doubt if he really loved her or this was just him wanting her to be happy, considering the rumors of what Middleton did to her. Nevertheless, he cared a lot for her and hoped she could be free from his grasp.
Diana Elana Vastergoth Weird. A nice girl in his eyes but weird. At the same time she really reminded Michael of Jean. They both don't have a clue about social cues. They're probably a perfect match for each other.
Franz Blau He also empathizes a lot with his situation, having lost a girl he liked so much in front of his eyes. He is glad that he is able to help him gain some of his confidence back. He hopes that it would remain the same for long, but who can say that statement would be true in the far future. But he hopes that his friendship would remain the same.
Senja Penttilä A peculiarly beautiful lady from North Europa. She's quite eccentric, but kindness goes a long way in forming a friendship with Michael.
Alexander-John Middleton He doesn't deserve a footnote in Michael's memoir if he ever to write one. But at the same time, he does want to understand his psyche. But would he ever want to approach a man directly if he doesn't want to entertain genuine curiosity but only to subjugate those beneath him?
Place of Birth United Kingdom of Edinburgh, Castleton
Appearance
Standing at a diminutive 5’1” and weighing 103 lbs, Elliot is small in every sense of the word. She does not eat much, but she's not in bad shape. Due to the nature of her enlistment, she is typically issued male uniforms, which she does not mind wearing. Elliot does have a habit of keeping herself and her surroundings neat and tidy. She tends to keep her hair short, typically sporting an ushanka and a long coat when in colder climates. She keeps a number of utility belts and pouches on her person for easy access to her gear.
Personality
Composed, stoic, and precocious. She is often seen as 'cold' at times due to her lack of outward reactions. She’s slow to trust strangers but is generally not unfriendly. Although seemingly apathetic, Elliot is a caring and understanding individual, owing to her upbringing. Methodical, inquisitive, and detail-oriented, she loves discussing technical details about machines and weapons. Her honesty is brutal, and her self-loyalty trumps all of her actions. However, she is known to assist others out of her own inconvenience simply because "she wants to."
Though she's only been in the war for two years, she's developed several ways to cope, having joined at such a young age. She has compartmentalized the worst of her experiences in an effort to maintain her sanity. She views the war as a grim necessity, and that fighting in it is her duty-- for her family, for her friends who've died in the war, and for her country. Elliot views her own role as a marksman with pride, though she finds the fact that killing is one of her few talents... concerning, and wonders what she will do when the war ends, only to push that thought aside for the future.
Strangely enough, even after everything she's seen and done, Elliot believes that the world is a beautiful place, and that its many imperfections make it all the more admirable. Only time will tell if she retains this worldview.
Sharpshooter - A crack shot from the moment she picked up a rifle, Elliot's skills are honed by experience, which elevates her prodigious talents to an even greater level.
Countersniper - Although her diminutive size held her back before, her small profile gives her a certain edge in remaining unseen and in cover. It is because of this that she excels at a secondary purpose: to locate and eliminate enemy snipers. Sometimes, it is as simple as laying traps in spots where they are likely to hide, other times, it is triangulating the angle of their shots to get a bead on their location.
Tunnel Vision - It is expected that marksmen, owing to their scopes, tend to focus heavily on one task or target, and Elliot is no different. She prefers to work as a scalpel: taking out key targets with surgical precision, but this can be problematic in its own right. Unless told otherwise, she tends to miss the big picture, preferring to take things one at a time. In addition, missed shots and elusive targets irritate her, which may cause her to double down at the task at hand, rather than to step back and reassess the situation.
Biography
Living in one of the middle-class districts of Castleton, Eleanor was born to a small family that got by about as well as everyone else. Her father worked as an engineer in the city's munitions factory, while her mother was a public accountant. Her older brother, Elliot, was born sickly, but attended school and apprenticed as an aspiring watchmaker. The reason as to why they were working so hard in spite of the relative prosperity in the nation's peacetime is because the family was deep in debt to a bank that had provided the money for a start-up business. Although they were up-and-comer at the time, they were quickly muscled in by rival competitors and lost much of their sales to bigger conglomerates. The now-defunct business was a burden that the family all wished to carry.
Fast-forward several years, to when she was at the age of fifteen: the advent of the Great Europan War. Eleanor's brother came down with a disease that required expensive medicine-- an insidious illness that left him bedridden. With no other choice, the family paid for the treatments, even if it would set them back on their debt payments by a significant amount. Though he was still only just recovering, the conscription drive would have left him labelled as a draft dodger if he refused to go, and thus with a heavy heart, prepared to send Elliot to his probable death in the frontlines.
Meanwhile, as she reached marriageable age, plans were put in place for Eleanor's betrothal. Although the family had intended for Eleanor to be wed to a gentleman uptown, it became increasingly evident to Elearor that her prospective husband cared little for the rest of the girl's family at all. As she returned home one night, she noticed a flier plastered against the aging stone walls of the city- perhaps that very same recruitment drive would be the answer to everything.
Against her family's wishes, Eleanor called the betrothal off in a rather unorthodox manner. Namely, she disappeared one morning, stole her brother's credentials, and did not return, leaving only a vague note as to her whereabouts. It simply stated that she had left the city to find work and that they would receive some money within the coming months. As they would later find out, it turns out that she had registered for the conscription drive that the Edinburgh military was holding under her brother's identity, which spared her brother Elliot from draft evasion. Eleanor was always androgynous enough to pass as a man if she wanted to, after all. And although she had lied to the recruiter about her name, sex, and age, the documents and reports she had given the man were legitimate. Donning the new name "Elliot", the young "man" was sent to a military base for training.
She managed to barely squeeze past acceptable levels in basic training, all the while keeping her true identity a secret. Although often mocked for her small stature and her difficulty in keeping up with some of the physical training regimens, Elliot impressed her instructors and fellow conscripts in the firing range. It turned out that she was quite prodigious with the rifle. Once the training period was finished, she was sent off to the eastern front, to assist in the war effort. It was in the crucible of war that she was truly tested. With her skills and more than a little bit of luck, she managed to survive, emerging as a distinguished sharpshooter, having earned a medal for eliminating an enemy officer at long-range.
The girl would spend the next couple years in the war, her role firmly cemented as a marksman. Assigned mostly to eliminate high-value targets or to scout out locations, Elliot was lucky enough to survive various offensives, in no small thanks to her talent. During her last mission, Edinburgh forces had to retreat, their position having been overwhelmed by the enemy, resulting in massive casualties. Following the dissolution of her battalion in the latest battle against Imperial forces, she was transferred to the 15th Atlantic Rifles to await further orders.
” What’s up with you looking at me like that? Or do you have something to tell me besides calling me short? Also, my name is Diana Elana Vastergoth, if you are wondering...”
Name: Diana Elana Vastergoth
Gender: Female
Age: 17, November 15th, 1897EC
Sexuality: Bisexual
Nationality & Place of Origin: Atlantic Federation, United Kingdom of Edinburgh – Castleton
General Description Diana is equipped in the standard gear of a rifleman. She wears a good luck charm on her neck, a silver pendant necklace, which has her parents in it. Her long blonde hair is in a tight chignon when she’s on duty. During off duty, she lets her hair down in as a straight hairstyle since it would be easier for her. In the outlook of her body language, she tries to stay strong, but many things are wrong with her with what has happened in the war she was forced to be part of.
The uniform she wears has been modified slightly to make it slightly more hers than other uniforms. It has a slight colorization of the teal shade of a bit of etching on it. One of the pockets of her uniform has her first name etched on the inside of it. Her body type is an hourglass. Therefore she’s beautiful looking for a girl her age. Her stance changed slightly since the horrors of what happened, and she is much more skeptical of what’s going on. She still wants to fight for her country against the empire even though it took her a while to stop being as naive as she was.
Diana has an accent that is a northern Edinburghian accent, different from the other accents in Edinburgh's the United Kingdom. She is no exception to the rule of what kind of accent she has compared to other Edinburghian citizens. It shows how she conducts herself when she speaks to people is always the kindest she can be toward others. Though certain people irk her, and it's pretty easy to understand how they can, it’s about her height or lack thereof being tall.
Height: 5’4”
Weight: 124 lbs
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Sky Blue
Complexion: Tannish, Fair
Body Composition: Athletic, Fit
Rebecca Liana Vastergoth; 23 Age is when this picture was taken of Diana’s mother. Gavin Ryan Vastergoth; 23 years old is when this picture was taken of Diana’s father.
Personality: Diana has always been a hardheaded child during her childhood because of how the Vastergoth Family is. Her emotions were frequently going through them like a lottery machine throughout her entire childhood. It didn’t help that her older sisters frequently teased her throughout her childhood and called her short. It caused her to develop an inferiority complex towards their teasing, and being mean-spirited frequently made her feel lesser and smaller than she actually is. Primarily, she is patriotic to a high degree because of her upbringing in her family in Castleton. She enjoys talking much and usually talks about things she usually wants to talk about or would rather talk about. It helped her to be more open about how mean-spirited her sisters were and feel a bit better overall the constant bitterness she had for them.
As the war carries on, her views had changed from being a naive little girl that had no idea what she is doing. Becoming a quite skeptical individual that keeps her values and hardheadedness intact but has been incredibly scarred in the process. All because of one battle in the war that scars her mentally to this day, the battle of Amone. She would probably never be the same again with those visions in her head, but she has to keep on fighting with all her might. Also, she had always been the friendliest towards the Darscens, which hasn’t changed no matter what is going on with her.
You can tell that in her body language since even though she has grown up while in EW1. Some quirks haven’t left her, which are you can tell when she’s frustrated, nervous, or embarrassed at things that occurred basically because she has a thing for both genders and did share a bed with Victoria White once. It caused much of her feelings to swell up, and she wonders why no one else called her beautiful. One man in the back of her mind comes up constantly, which is no other than Richard A. Donster, the one that is going to marry her older sister, Astra, after the war. She is incredibly frustrated by that bastard and scared all at the same time, all because he joined the war willingly while she was conscripted.
She has some expectations she wants to reach; one is to help her mother out at the Vastergoth Bakery in Castleton. It seems like the best for her since her mother scared her with a package of cookies at the battlefield. Those cookies and the note with them made her happy that she still has the silver pendant they bought. She’s somewhat still a bit of a bratty kid since her parents love her so much, spoiled with attention, so to say. There are some people in the Atlantic Rifles that she likes or has a crush on. And some others that call her a bit weird, like Michael Daunte. She is still finding herself while growing in the war, even though she should probably temper herself for disappointment or failure.
Rank: Private
Role: Rifleman
Equipment: SM-Longfield Rifle + Bayonet Standard Webbing Pouch Trenching Tool Metal Baton Gas Mask Fragmentation Grenades x2
Potentials: Darscen Bond
As such, Diana is part of a long historic family that is the greatest of friends towards the Darscens. Her family’s history of this friendship between them and Darscens is 500 years strong, and she has never left the sides of Darscens. All because every person who hates Darscens also hates the Vastergoth Family to be so incredibly helpful towards anyone who needs help. It is why the Vastergoth Family employs Darscens in their historic bakery in central Castleton and protects their livelihoods from people who are hateful towards them. Diana doesn’t want to harm anyone’s feelings, but she learning quickly everyone cannot handle her family’s worldview. Especially, the family primarily against her family’s values, the Donster Family.
Skeptically Scarred
As Diana grew up literally in EW1, all that caused her to be much more skeptical of all the leadership things. All because of what happened during the Battle of Amone, it was the scariest thing of her life. She will probably never be the same again with the horrors of what had happened.
Talkative
Diana is still talkative as ever, but she does it for different reasons than she did previously. It still calms her nerves since she’s scared, ungodly so and cannot shake many reasons for that. She grew some as such, and she is much more reserved than previously. It hurts her as much as to be a bit more on guard with her feelings.
Don’t insult my height
As one might know, Diana gets defensive of her height; it's one of the failings of herself. She constantly gets told by her parents that she will have another growth spurt one of these days to gain height. However, while in the field of battle, her hands shake because she is outraged and usually will miss her shots. Many people usually insult her height, but the most hurtful was her older sisters.
Embarrassing Shyness
Her naivety has vanished, but the one thing that gets her still in a fuss is her shyness around men and women equally. She is quite embarrassed around them even though she knows what she wants rather than what she didn’t want previously. Slightly more open about her feelings than not, someone can sometimes fluster her completely to being quiet.
Hardheaded
Being hardheaded is like being part of the Vastergoth Family. It’s one of the reasons why Diana wholly got roped in being conscripted by the military for EW1. As well as her beliefs that everyone should be treated right and better than others be treated. No matter what, she will not change her belief system for anyone; it would go against her honor code of being as friendly as possible. It’s why she grew more and more away from what she was when she first joined the war.
Biography: Diana was born to Rebecca Liana Vastergoth and Gavin Ryan Vastergoth in Castleton. They lived in a well-off townhouse, a two-story home with all the amenities for a child growing up in Edinburgh. The Vastergoth Family was large compared to other families in Castleton, with five people living under the same roof for most of their lives. Diana was the fourth child to be born in this family, the youngest daughter. The Vastergoth’s were well known in their hometown since Rebecca and Gavin owned a local Bakery called the Vastergoth Bakery. They used their money to give back to the community that deals with their prices at their bakery.
Most of Diana’s time spent was helping her parents out at home, while her older siblings helped at the bakery. Everyone in the family was hardheaded, but they used that hardheadedness for different reasons or different goals. All wanted to help out their parents since their parents were always working and doing this or keeping their bond with the Darscens together. When Diana turned five years old, her older sister Astra gave her a nickname by Shorty. It didn’t help much when she caused her to be slightly argumentative at her older sisters. She didn’t like being told she was shorter than when they were five years old. It caused her to cry much because of the teasing, which was friendly enough but still hurts.
The parents told Astra and Susan to stop teasing Diana. In turn, they started to cheer Diana up with gifts and things to do for the family, like making a friend specifically. All because they wanted her to have friends that aligned with their history of always being allies to the Darscens. It didn’t take long for them not to know why Diana was showing differences to her older siblings. Rebecca was scared that whatever choice her daughter would make would be lost forever, and it is why she decided to try harder to protect and coddle her. The reason is that she didn’t like the government nor their military, but she wouldn’t outright say it in the open. She wanted her child to stay a child and be part of the Bakery the previous generations of Vastergoths created for Castleton. It was only because her parents were worried about their highly emotional child being on the battlefield fighting against the Empire.
Diana did get a friend after searching for one, which was named Anna Raina Mannerfield. She made quick friends with her. After all, they were similar because their aspirations were basically on point. Besides, Anna wanted to be a baker over a soldier in war, but the Vastergoths were great friends with her family. It was a perfect match to become friends, even though Anna was a bit scared for reasons unknown to Diana at the time. Her mother enjoyed it when Anna visited their home and smiled happily at Anna and knew what Anna had compared the naivety of her daughter. When it was time for Anna to leave, Diana would be going to bed after the wonderful dinner they had with Anna. Anna was always kind and similarly shy like Diana; it was such adorable seeing them give each other hugs. Rebecca was happy that her suggestion in finding a friend worked out in the end; hopefully, she won’t try anything too stupid.
Much time passed after that, her older sisters called her names and got yelled at by their mother for being quite mean to Diana. It was a hateful thing to say, calling her worthless, and she won’t matter too much or including calling her a bitch in front of their mother’s face. Rebecca showed them a thing or two by beating them up for causing so much trouble in the family’s home. It caused Diana to ask why and Rebecca answered her they had to be punished because they were following the wrong path, so to say. No one should be fighting at home or causing harm to their sister’s mental state any further.
After all that, much more time has passed, which caused her to be part of EW1 by being conscripted by a Recruiting Office in Castleton. Rebecca was the most furious about this whole situation because those recruiter officers were cowards in getting a naive little girl to join their war by force. Diana was too patriotic, where she was picked up by them and forcibly conscripted into the military. However, she thought she was doing the right thing by joining this war to become something more than she was at home. It would be an experience, which she wouldn’t soon forget.
All she did on the battlefield was be part of one of the terrifying battles in the War’s history, which was the Battle of Amone. It involved some terrifying new weapon that killed indiscriminately compared to other terrible weapons. Only because there were civilians in the city when The Atlantic Federation fired off those weapons will Diana remember the battle for how awful it was towards everyone in that city. When her birthday rolled around, she didn’t celebrate it because she feels awful and still emotionally scarred from what happened previously. It was in the back of her mind, and everyone could see it in her body language; she was hurt like everyone else was. However, the only comfort was her squadmates that weren’t their leader Middleton.
December 30th rolled around, and she had five months of field experience during the war, and soon it would be the new year. Diana wasn’t her old self like she was when she first joined this war sometime in August. She was incredibly mentally scarred and could only think of going home after the war ends if it ever ends. She feels like it will never end in the back of her mind and is incredibly skeptical about every little thing going on. Better to question than dealing with her hurt in what’s going on, and there are recruits from Vinland, which will be good to interact with. At least, Victoria White is still part of the Atlantic Rifles, some comfort from what has happened to her.
Affiliations: Rebecca Liana Vastergoth – Mother (46 – July 30th, 1868EC) Gavin Ryan Vastergoth – Father (46, October 15th, 1868EC) Susan Irina Vastergoth – Sister (23, November 12th, 1891EC Gregory Leon Vastergoth – Brother (22, November 13th, 1892EC) Astra Sara Vastergoth – Sister (21, November 14th, 1893EC) Anna Raina Mannerfield – Childhood Friend (17, June 6th, 1898EC)
Relationships:
Jean-Robin Charpentiar Diana apologized to him for coming on a bit strong, which was a highly dumb thing to do. She is still taken aback by how human he is, even though she feels sorry for him since she can see that he's still hurting for some odd reason. But she hopes that he would stop pitying himself and become strong so he can see them through this war as a whole. She likes him for who he is and wishes she could start over with their friends and tell him truly that everyone gets off on the wrong foot. However, it's pretty unlikely to get through Jean since he's a pretty selfless person and trying to be a Corporal is hard. She did congratulate him on becoming a Corporal. In a sense, she wants to tell him more praise-type things but hasn't really figured out how to say it yet. However, she was utterly blown away when Jean outright admitted to having a crush on Reyna, Kalisa, and her all at once. He showed her that he's more assertive in his role of being a Corporal by outright telling her and Luke off. She outright told him that she's definitely sorry for making Luke explode since she had no idea about Luke's mother being dead.
Franz Blau She was heartbroken when he reported that The imperials killed the Candy Lady in action. It stung her deeper than what Daniel had said to her before the Artillery Strike. Because she'll be the last person to ever get a piece of candy from her, she saw the look in Franz's eyes and felt sorry for him and wished she could've done something more than cry constantly. Franz is definitely an interesting person since he talked to a new person called Ines about cigarettes and was confused about what was going on. She smiled because it's always nice when new people are introduced.
Alexander-John Middleton She's outright afraid of this guy's authority and disrespect towards her squadmates, which are Darscens. However, she's not dumb enough to give him a piece of her mind since... he would probably kill her for talking to him. She still hates him; however, his concern for Lucia made her go; what the hell? And question if he is underlying a nice guy.
Isaac Black She sees him as a kind and caring individual, which cares for everyone within the Platoon. She respects him, even though she can be a bit hardheaded in her beliefs. Though she only knows his first name, however. She noticed a change in Isaac when he came down to get something to eat; however, she doesn't really know what happened. It would be nice to ask that to him one of these days. It will be better to watch him be a good backup NCO to Jean, which needs all the help he can get. Isaac came up with a nickname for Middleton by Captain Grumpus, which is definitely stuck with her since it makes the most sense. He taught her the basics of playing cards, and it's much to take in since she's not really good with it.
Michael Daunte She got on off on the wrong foot with Michael. She thought he was a child on a battlefield, but his voice showed he was definitely much older than he looks. Never judge a book by its cover. And she judged a bit harshly. At least she did say sorry to him about that. Her first impression is probably horrible in his eyes. She's pretty much happy that Michael & Lucia is a couple in her mind. He's a staunch Cruxian Believer, which makes her happy that people have their own religions. She's not really fussed about religions since she's a staunch atheist that only wants the betterment of all Darscens. It would be nice to talk to Michael some more to see where he lies on issues like Darscens. Michael confused her a bit easier with all his big words in terms of everything, but he did say don't give up hope. That is definitely going to stick with her, and that he outright hates Richard Averring Donster since that man is a bastard and is going to marry her elder sister Astra. He definitely shows that all rich people aren't like the Donster Family.
Luke Godfrey (Keeping this for now) Her first impressions of him weren't excellent since he pissed off Jean, Ines, and her because of his comment about Darscens. She jabbed at him, with an excellent burn about going back into his mother's womb, which she got from her mother specifically, but she definitely felt like a bit of a really mean thing to say. And that was after the fact he was knocked to the ground by Ines. In retrospect, which she shouldn't have apologized to him. He was jabbing at her height by using many different short jokes at her expense, which were utterly pissing her off. It's something of corundum how he can live with being an asshole, which she doesn't get at all. She praised him for winning against some Imperial bastards in a drinking competition because she expressed herself against her own sisters for being cunts, more or less. He did win, which was amazing, but he fell on the ground afterward. Then he challenged her and Victoria to a Drinking Competition, which he lost first. However, she decided to throw in the towel before she would be like him since she doesn't have that strong fortitude against alcohol. She woke his ass up with water; however, you could say that was a bit of a thing.
Because of this reason, she wasn't so impressed and pretty embarrassed with Luke Godfrey. He wasn't a good kisser, but the punishments they had to do weren't as bad as they could have been. Luke was the first boy she kissed like ever, which kind of made her a bit... hard-pressed in what to say to Luke. Obviously, she didn't want to outright say anything to him; she was more focused on other things. Afterward, in the morning of the next day, she woke up with a hangover and caused a morale detrimental thing, ala, by asking Luke if you missed your mother? However, that caused the worst reaction she had seen from someone; he yelled, screamed, and outburst that his mother was dead. She didn't know that was the case; however, this caused her to cry much. It was a bit weird to see him staring at her with a shocked look on his face, which caused him to walk outside in frustration. He wanted to apologize to her, didn't know how to apologize to her, but the entire situation was a bit much. It helped Jean more or less tell them off to calm the child down with a bit of position at being a Corporal. She didn't want what he yelled angrily at her to become true since she enjoys everyone in her squad, even though some people can be a bit of a prick. At least he isn't Richard Averring Donster, which caused her to be reminded of what that guy did to her.
Lucia Farris She thinks Lucia is a sweet little angel even though she can't help but feel like Lucia is going to surprise her with something one of these days while in EW1; however, it's nice that she and Michael are together in her mind, at least since they are super sweet together. The best match made in heaven or whatever a religious person would say since Michael is a Cruxian. She is always in awe at how she is compared to other people she knows, specifically her older sisters Astra and Susan. In everything, she doesn't want to see Lucia hurt because she's too sweet for her own good.
Inès Levesque Her first impression of Inès is pretty much a person who dislikes authority figures for some odd reason. It's mostly how she introduced herself to the squad, specifically to Jean. However, with her addition, she finally realized that her childhood friend Anna is a Darscen. She's happier around anyone who's a Darscen, which is how her family raised her to be. The Vastergoth's 500 years of helping the Darscens from the evils of the Donster Family is definitely a unique thing. Her Franican accent is a bit thicker than Jean. She enjoyed it when she smacked Luke on the Face; that's like the one thing she enjoys, and she can't wait to see it again from the Francian Shocktrooper. She did smell weirdly unique alcohol on Ines' lips and wanted to know what it was but didn't really get an answer since she didn't know exactly. However, it was Red Wine; she was told by her mother never to drink it for some odd reason.
Victoria White Terror induces her first impression of Victoria since she talked about her squad getting obliterated by the Metal Mechanical Monster that the Imperials were using. She was the only squad member that was left alive, and they met in the White Hart Inn. Diana was a bit annoyed or otherwise and was kind of bitching about her elder sisters being cunts, which she did see the odd look on Victoria's face. However, then a Drinking Competition between Luke, Victoria, and her happened. It was a bit of a terrible mistake since she was a lightweight compared to Luke & Victoria combined. However, Luke was already hammered, which made him lose first, then she threw in the towel by giving up and stripping herself only after six drinks. She noticed Victoria's eyes staring at her and couldn't help but be a bit off-put about her. However, she did call Victoria, Mistress, after she woke up sir Godfrey off of the ground so they can get on with the punishments.
Afterward, Victoria came up to her from behind, put her head on her shoulders, and asked her to go to her room and get naked. Victoria asked a question that kind of went over her head and went for the response, or do you want Luke up there because I don't type of deal. Because he was a pussy, when he kissed me. She blurted out that she kissed a girl in her hometown by the name of Anna. Victoria's response was a bit awe-inducing. Victoria and Diana shared a bed, which caused Diana to cry when she called her beautiful since no one called her that like ever. However, she did see Victoria's pendant necklace of her daughter. She did know that Victoria saw her pendant necklace on her. Still, it was a very nice pendant necklace that only accidentally opened almost as much as Victoria's pendant necklace to show her mother Rebecca on the left side and her father on the Right Side of the pendant necklace she wears. It was a lovely experience even though she woke with a blinder of a hangover the next morning, and it definitely hurt. She saw Victoria go outside to chase down Luke after his outburst, but she was too depressed or wanting to talk to Luke and allowed Victoria to do the job of talking to him.
___________________________________ Victoria White, 19, Jan 1 1895 ________________________________________________________________________________________ Prairie, Oceania, Atlantic Federation ___________________________________
▼ E X T R A I N F O R M A T I O N ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ ► DOB - 1/1/1895 ► Height -6'3" ► Weight -190 pounds ► Classification - Shocktrooper ► Rank - Lance Corporal ► Sexuality - Bisexual
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D E T A I L E D A P P E A R A N C E
Victoria is much taller than most women and quite a few men, standing at a full 6'3" when upright. Her brown hair hangs down messily over her face and around her head, held somewhat in place by a rabbit felt slouch hat that had once belonged to a hero of Oceania. While she managed to escape the fate of her original squad at Amone she did walk away with shrapnel scars on her forearms. Another old injury traces its way over her right eye, a result of a bottle being shattered against her head during her days on the streets.
While no longer as thin as she had once been thanks to adequate (in amount if not taste) rations and physical training courtesy of the Oceanic Expeditionary Forces the affects of starvation have not quite worn away. She's rangier than she is bulky, her body lean with a bit of muscle built from conditioning.
Besides the standard issue blue uniform and webbing she wears a waterproof canvas cape and slouch hat as well as twin bandoleers across her torso. A heart locket hangs from a spare bootlace around her neck, inside is a picture of her daughter Elizabeth.
---P E R S O N A L I T Y
Victoria copes with bad situations by putting up a series of façades between herself and the problem. The first layer is that of the boisterous brawler, a former gang member and armed robber who joined the army in search of a paycheck that could be earned through violence. She drinks, she smokes, she gambles and carouses whenever there's an opportunity, reigning it only for the sake of a salary. While capable of presenting herself as orderly (if only because she needs to live up to the new lance corporal stripes on her sleeve she was and will likely always be a thug.
The second deeper layer is that of the Rat. A personification of the mindset she adopted to survive abject poverty and now brutal trench warfare, the Rat is a way to separate herself from her actions. She can slink away to let it run things, sitting out the violence to miserate about it later. The Rat can make snap decisions about what enemy to kill or which wounded comrade to leave behind to die in the fog of war, it takes action where Victoria might hesitate.
The true person hiding behind her masks is in all honesty somewhat subdued. She quietly seethes at the existence of the Federation, seeing it as a tyranny run by distant nations happy to sacrifice the citizens of other countries for its own goals and expresses her rage in the form of scathing cartoons she keeps hidden away. She clings to her Oceanic citizenship because its an alternative to the identity of violence she grew up with. Even then she fights not for her country but because she has a daughter to support with her meager paychecks.
---B I O G R A P H Y
Victoria was born into a family of poor ranchers on the outskirts of Prairie, Oceania. It was a cattle town originally and its people used to be able to make a decent living selling their livestock. But roughly ten years before her birth the fields had turned fallow and the land was caught in a drought. Once successful ranches soon struggled to feed their own children and more and more beggars began to fill the street. It wasn't very long until people actually began to die of starvation. That was the world Jack and Margret White brought their daughter into, and they regretted it.
She was an accident born ten years after her siblings, an unintended existence her parents were not prepared to contend with. With both her mother and father working near constantly either trying to scrape some manner of living out of the dust or performing odd jobs for a bit of extra cash she was largely cared for by her grandmother and three siblings, each ten years her senior. Her two brothers and one sister taught her how to mix a bit of sawdust into flour to stretch it, the best ways to break into abandoned farmsteads to strip away bits of copper to be sold to scrapyards. At night her grandmother made her learn the alphabet and basic math so "some crooked bastard doesn't cheat you."
It was a strange education but it was the one she needed to survive. By the time she was ten all of her siblings had left for the cities of Melville, Bridgeton and Devil’s Cairn in search of work, joining an exodus that had been steadily lowering the population of Prairie. By now the famine was mostly over but the damage was done. Prairie was dying, the people that remained only stayed because they had nowhere else to turn. Without her siblings to guide her Victoria fell in with one of the packs of jobless and ambition-less youths roaming the streets. They spent their days throwing bricks through windows and fighting over turf with makeshift clubs constructed of fence-posts and bottles.
Her career in crime started off small scale, pickpocketing and committing minor vandalism mostly. Scrawling defamatory slogans across the territory of rival gangs came after, followed by fights both unarmed and armed. By the time she was fourteen her family would have nothing to do with her so she began sleeping on the streets or on a grimy mattress in the shack of some fellow hoodlum. She started drinking and never stopped, getting blackout drunk at parties and late night meet ups. Sometimes she was flirty, other times violent. Once she earned herself a permanent scar when a member of another street gang smashed a bottle against her head. In a drunken rage Victoria stabbed the girl to death.
That was when she really started to spiral. Graduating from simple theft to armed robbery, Vicky made her living sticking up travelers on the road and knocking over filling stations. Most of what she earned went right back into cards or liquor, money disappearing as fast as it came in. By fifteen she had ended up in the arms of Charles, a handsome young man four years her senior.
He was a smooth talking con-artist that could make money appear as if from nowhere with any number of scam and they ran wild together both outside and in the bedroom. Eventually the inevitable happened: Victoria was pregnant at the age of sixteen. Charles assured her that it would be all right, he would make enough money for them to move deep into the Federation but it never happened. The money they gained was spent on alcohol for her and gambling for him. Three months into her pregnancy and he was gone, disappearing from her life.
With nowhere else to turn Victoria begged forgiveness from her family. They brought her back into the fold, not wanting to abandon their daughter (or at least not her child).. Grandma Liz helped her through it, having gotten pregnant herself when she was only twenty years old. Time passed by and after a difficult Elizabeth White was born, named for her great-grandmother. Victoria fell in love with her daughter immediately, but was trapped in the same situation as her own parents. How was she supposed to feed her baby?
Her siblings had left to search for work in the cities but that was no guaranteed thing. Ranching was out, she had seen the results of relying on the land. She had no skills except sewing, knitting and street-fighting. The first two could maybe earn her a bit of extra cash here and there but nowhere near enough for her needs. Luckily for her, war was brewing. She signed up the Oceania Expeditionary Force and Victoria the low-rent hood abandoned her tattered pants and shirt for the blue uniform and slouch hat of Private White. She entered boot camp and quickly became friends with the young men and women she would spend her service fighting alongside.
The first year of her service was relatively unremarkable until an encounter with an armored car during the siege of Amone wiped out her whole unit. The few survivors were hastily reassigned, Victoria finding herself in the 15th Atlantic Rifles where she survived a gas attack and took part in the final push to take Amone. It was during that push where she earned her lance corporal stripe, finding a copy of the Imperial defense plans and turning them over to her superiors. Bestowed with a modicum of responsibility and a miniscule increase in pay to match Victoria settled in for a long winter.
---P O T E N T I A L S
Waste Not, Want Not: A childhood spent scrounging instilled in Victoria a need to reuse as much as she can. This manifests itself in the form of knitting, sewing and scavenging. If something can be repaired or refurbished it will be. Socks get darned, pants get patched, empty bottles and a bit of lamp oil turned into makeshift explosives. She also has a habit of looting, checking the pockets of the dead for trinkets or curios.
Hidden Depths: Despite little formal schooling and a rough upbringing Vicky has more facets than one might expect. She's a cartoonist in her spare time, filling a journal and the margins of her letters home with doodles or caricatures. She does her best to stay abreast of the news and considers herself well-informed politically. What a shame that people tend to see no more than a violent alcoholic.
Oceanics Before Others: While the Imperials might have started the war in desperate search for more ragnite the Federation is little better, a conglomerate alliance dominated by the largest nations to the detriment of the smallest. In Vicky's eyes, the only way for Oceania to prosper is to cut itself loose from the lumbering beast that is the Federation. Her love for her country and its identity does not extend to the Federation or the major players within it. This disdain for various governments does not extend to the people under them. Mostly.
Rodent of Unusual Size: An affection for rats in her childhood progressed to seeing similarities between her and them to what is now a full blown alter ego. The Rat is what Victoria sees herself as when she's digging through pockets or caught in a brawl, a creature that claws and bites and thrashes to get the smallest of scraps. Part stress coping mechanism, infantile need to pass off responsibility, all delusion.
---E Q U I P M E N T
- Model 1903 Interloper: The pistol Victoria used during her days as an armed robber, now getting a new lease on life as a sidearm in the trenches. - E-Tool: Sharpened so that it can serve as both an axe and a shovel the E-Tool is handy both for building fortifications and attack them - Longfield Carbine: Standard issue for shocktroopers. Shorter than the standard rifle with a faster firing rate and a bayonet attached for spearing things. - Shrapnel-Ragnite Bombs: Clear trenches and buildings with the pull of a pin. - Pack Rat's Backpack: A collection of her needles, thread, handsaw, trinkets, tobacco, alcohol, ammo and all the other bits and pieces she picks up. - Stormtrooper Armor:The standard stormtrooper armor with a bit of extra padding added by Victoria herself. - Slouch Hat: Once belonged to Thomas Carter, worn in place of a helmet and kept pinned up in the traditional style.
A F F I L I A T I O N S
- Jack White (Father) - Margaret White (Mother) - Liz Dawson (Grandmother) - Elizabeth White (Daughter) - John, Edward, and Mary White (Siblings, all 28) - Charles Blake (Worthless Bastard)
---R E L A T I O N S
-Jean-Robin Charpentiar: Either a coward or a fool, Jean is certainly not cut out for leadership. Victoria doesn't blame him for being unable to treat the now deceased Thomas Carter, she blames him for his failure to take action under fire. -Alexander-John Middleton: He's an bastard but so are most officers. What little interaction she's had with him confirmed that he's just like any other Federation bigwig: high off his own fumes and ready to throw people into the meatgrinder. -Diana: A drunken fling from Amone before the place was gassed to hell. She's cute, short, a lightweight and easily embarrassed, all things that Victoria is not. Perhaps that was the reason they were drawn together. In all honesty the specifics where pretty much forgotten during the chaos of the battle but they did have a nice talk about Elizabeth so there's that.
Isaac is a young man built for hard work, in terms of the enduring stamina of the working class. He is exactly that in the Edinburgh regions. He can be a running, jumping athlete, but it's not his speed so much as his 'fuel' for such versatility that has him well-developed in this area. That and a strong back makes him well-suited to the trials and traumas of war...unfortunately. You find him as a Caucasian with dark brown hair - always looks a bit rough - who has a few bumps and scrapes that are not actually war-related, but the odd mistaken in his line of work. More on that later. A point of order about the eyes. They're not actually strange, like in the picture. That's just the sun. Isaac has a shade of brown eyes that reflect well in the fire or sunlight.
Attire-wise, Isaac does prefer to wear black, at least under the green fatigues of his uniform. It's kind of a joke that stuck, 'Isaac Black, back in black', so he went with it. Black shirt and pants with belt - as above - under body armor vest, and all of that under a green combat fatigue coat and an optional dirt-and-forest motif camouflage cloak. Naturally, they'd be giving him the basic combat boots, but if there was a shortage, he'd be fine in his work boots. The coat of his uniform has the insignia of a Lance-Corporal, but he doesn't always wear it. Isaac would rather people recognize and respect him than the rank. More on that later.
His general range of expression is often deep in thought or considering, mostly due to the life he's lived, which can get serious at times. Isaac is a pretty serious guy, at times, but he's not immune to cracking a smile, telling a joke, or being properly concerned. And the truth is, he looks like a man who could have real raw anger, if pushed in just the right direction. However, what is also seen is that he appears to want to control himself when it involves those whom he is close to in some way.
Height
5'10"
Personality
The kind of guy that Isaac is tends to first involve him thinking 'Well, what's most important right now?', and then saying 'Yeah, we should take care of that, first thing.' before ultimately committing to it. Things that he's pretty sure are too important to miss out on taking care of, leaving the least to chance whenever possible, generally makes him stubborn to a fault. Bad consequences make him rather insistent, though he will eventually let it go...'with protest noted'. So, if he sees a bad call and he calls it a bad call and he gets overruled, he knows there's not much he can do about it, but he'd want it known that he thought it stank, and if it DID stink...he'd want someone to bear that stench for life...especially if he lives through that mistake.
Isaac tends to be the definition of 'harsh, but fair'. He doesn't want to be party to the rough stuff. The rough was thrust upon him with not enough of the smoothe, but sometimes you gotta deal with that, so here we are. Thus, Isaac tries to mitigate disaster and take responsibility. Should he be working his ass off to keep everybody alive by doing something against orders, he's going to be the one to take the brunt, but he's also going to say 'There was no alternative here'. He can stand up to a brow-beating from a higher rank and counter with plain old common sense, use of the head muscle where it might otherwise be lacking. He's not gonna throw away perfectly good lives for no reason. The point of war is to make them pay more for it.
So, Isaac can be a hardy guy, but that's on-duty. Off-duty, he likes reading and sitting in the sun, letting the world dissolve away with some kinda' drink in his hand. He lets loose the focus of the guy trying to watch everyone's back and cracks a smile. He's not really loud-spoken unless he needs to be, so when he's talking to people normally, he has a kind of calm and steady voice that doesn't excite easily. His kind of fear or panic in ANY sort of situation is somewhat subdued into a worried kind of 'Oh crap'. He tries to take an interest in people, though feeling maybe they don't want to know much about him working at a farm and such. Well, maybe the one thing he does, but that could just as easily freak people out.
What you find out about Isaac is that he's generally dependable. He'll hear your problems, even though he can't guarantee he'll be able to do anything about them. If you need him to keep something to himself, he'll do it if the request is reasonable. What he will not do is let anybody intimidate him, though he isn't the type to just go looking for a fight, not unless someone's threatening his own. If something goes wrong, it weighs heavily on him, especially if he screwed up, personally. A decent guy, overall, and he doesn't want change that. He's not the uniform. It comes off when he's not 'on the job'.
Rank
Lance Corporal
Role
Gunner
Equipment
Typhoon MK-II Machine Gun - Isaac use to sport an HR-14, like every other Gunner earlier in the year, but technology marches on, and so he sports this more portable lead-spewing hellion that looks like it came out of car engine, somehow. Comes with a backpack full of appropriate magazines for the weapon, standard for all Machine Gunners.
Black Knuckle Duster Trench Knife - A well-balanced trench knife used for closs-quarters, especially in confined spaces, with hand-guard bearing spikes both for protecting his hand and harming others with a quick punch.
Combination Hatchet/Prybar - Not what Isaac would call a prybar, but this small axe weapon with the sturdy mounted door-wedge can indeed force most doors open. He acquired it the day his squad reached the Seige of Amone
Padded Flak Vest - He's had this from the beginning, a strap-on black vest given to Isaac by his Drill Sergeant as a token of respect for his fighting skills, in that he wanted the recruit to live a little longer to make use of said skills. It's blocked a few shots that could've really put him down in a number of close calls, but it's still good.
Gasmask - Issued to the 15th Atlantic Rifles and anybody else going into Amone, these were originally labeled as 'mining masks', but their use became painfully clear when the Federation bombarded the city with gas bombs that only such masks could hope to protect one against.
Rikes - An Appennine Wolf-Hound Hybrid, raised by Isaac and his family to become a domesticate and trainable animal. Sold off in Hadleigh, he was bought up by the army and given further training as a messnger carrier and attack dog. He is still mainly a wolf and does not bark, ever, but functions in the army and responds to clear commands by humans, especially Isaac. Rikes was sent to Amone to pass messages between a spy outpost and the Federation lines within the great city. He is equipped with a messenger dog vest and the vicious cunning of his species.
Potentials
Enlisted Man - Otherwise known as looking out for the little guy or working-class man of the people. Isaac's in this for people at the bottom of the command chain, not the brass. This war is about keeping people alive on his side, dead on theirs.
The Wolf Among Us - He has sharp instincts and gut feelings, stops at the sound of a rustle or a twig snapping, and is ready to tear into the enemy as soon as it shows itself without delay, especially if they threaten his 'pack'.
Sage Wit - Isaac's sense of humor puts him as some sort of wiseguy, emphasis on wise, at times. He considers things, so he can at least try to see your angle, or perhaps find something funny to say if it'll lighten the mood.
Biography
He was born, which was...kind of surprising, really. His parents thought it was actually safe to engage in the right interaction, in which he was then born during a particularly-cold October. His siblings - Alex and Emeri - were conceived to be born in early summer, and at a different day of the week and week of the month, but you can't quite predict this sort of thing, sometimes. There he was, though, and there he would remain, a part of the Black Livestock Ranch. Isaac grew into the responsibilities of a farm as a kid, helping out with little tasks and chores around until he was old enough to get pulled into heavier work. This was a place of harvesting two things. The first was wearable material - wool and leather - and the second was edible material - mutton and beef - to be sold at the nearest town. Said town - which they were technically a part of, but on the most outskirt of outskirts - was Hadleigh.
The Blacks also had another trade, one that did not involve the death of animals, but rather the training. The Blacks were the trainers of wolf-dogs, the generational breeds of wolf hybrids who were to become the constant companions of human beings, reliable to the core. And do you know who they put to the task of it? Isaac. He and the latest generation raised each other as pups, giving Isaac insight into their line of thinking, how they react, and so on. It wasn't always done right...but he would always get back in and learn to train these creatures right. This is how he got those cuts. He'd had a few that were not exactly ready to go un-feral, and that made them keen to bite or scratch. He was deterimined to get it right, though, so he redoubled his efforts, considered the thoughts of the wolves, why they did things. Eventually, people got themselves some prime wolf dogs.
It came to the point where he got really into it, even enjoyed the challenge, and then went with one of his siblings to go deliver all their goods to a buyer. At this time, talk of the dangers of war were spreading wide. He and Alex were trying hard to ignore it. However, you could say that some people wouldn't allow it. Particularly, a recruiter with the power of draft was taking sudden notice that he was rather-easily moving what he assumed to be full-blooded wolves to a place to be sold. The astonishment led him to confront Isaac and call for his induction into the army. Isaac informed him that he was needed far too much in the business of providing food and clothes to those that needed it to possibly break away. The recruiter insisted, citing his impressive display as a reason for him to make it manditory, that he had a will of steel that they needed, and that he wasn't taking no for an answer. Isaac said no anyway, and umm...well, there were other soldiers right there.
So, he wasn't really given much of a choice. The kingdom tended to trample on personal rights when it came to bailing themselves out of a tough spot like this. Naturally, they gave him a speech about being honored and that he was being given a shot at juumping ranks and using some of that commanding presence he displayed and raw nerve with some other recruits. There were no guarantees, but the alternative was to call him a coward and a traitor in the face of a danger to his country, so of course Isaac had to bear it and make sure they pay him right for this. He wasn't going to do this for them. This was going to be about people like him and times like this, where this kind of problem was no-doubt affecting lots. So, it was off to the army for him...
ADDITIONAL INFO
The time of war for Isaac Black has worn on him in a number of ways. He finds himself highly-protective of those to be found in his squad...provided they aren't being real assholes. Granted, he wasn't going to create a situation where you get abandoned for being a pain. That just wasn't right. However, things have affected him, due to his experiences in combat. The whistling of bombs naturally leaves him unsettled, thanks to the bombardment of Hill 58 after they captured said position. Also, situations witnessed or inflicted by the use of machine guns have, on occasion, made himself members of his Squad or even himself at the end of his barrel when they crumple from being shot to death. He and Britta Hagen have an impressive kill count, thanks to their hardware. And thanks to the mass-slaughter of a cavalry charge against machine gun nests, he'll never look at a horse the same way again. Not without hearing that terrible sound again... Isaac has, as a result of all the new advancements coming to war, learned to keep a good ear for that kind of trouble. He was personally part of an assault against armored machine gun vehicles and the mobile ragnite cannon device. He had discovered an ingenious method to ruin the cars, at least. If you can jam the exhaust vent on the things, the whole vehicle overheats and becomes a hazard for all occupants. Even if they bear with it, the ragnite engine won't, and will soon break down.
All of this is not without some goodness entwined. Isaac fully regards many of the 15th Atlantic Rifles as a second family, or his 'pack'. a fair few, he could consider his friend, without question. He takes immediate offense at other people giving them hell for any reason, especially on things like Darcsen hate, since his immediate superior - Jean-Robin Charpentier - is a good friend with ALOT on his plate. Actually, quite a few of them did, so it was always good to look after them all. Fortunately, the wolf-hound - Rikes - was a natural morale boost and registered lethal weapon, all in one neat package. And speaking of those he was close to and 'neat packages', Britta Hagen! That's kind of a long story, but it boils down to he and the Lady Gunner having alot of common ground, a fair bit of competency between them along with a good and friendly demeanor, as well as...one particular night of scotch-fueled passion. These things happen in war, and the two of them are aware that what they shared was at least in-part tension-breaking. It wasn't enough in of itself to say for sure if any feelings they had for one another, but between all the other things shared between them...and half the squad knowing about all this...it seemed like it was alright to make it official.
Of course, Private Lucia Farris wouldn't ever shut up about it, either way, but she was a walking morale boost in of herself...which was surprising, because she herself may've been the strangest one of all. The young Assani girl had been this attache' to their first and most-odious commanding officer, Middleton, better known as Captain Grumpus. The squad seemed to often come together to make sure that she wasn't suffering under the direct orders given by the man who originally told her - day one - to shoot their own people on-sight if they tried to return to the trenches for safety during the Battle of Hill 58. Isaac and generally everyone else was perfectly fine, looking out for her. Of course, the short-in-height and great-in-ability Sapper, Michael Daunte, did one better. She really liked him. Very strange sort of girl, overall, and so little known about her, apart from the fact that they'd been battling to reclaim her land of birth, this whole time.
Affiliations
Allen Black - Father Erin Black - Mother Alex Black - Older Brother Emeri Black - Older Sister Rikes, Ellis, and the rest of the pack - Wolves that he raised to become useable by people.
Relationships
Britta Hagen - Close confident, fellow farmer, talented gunner, and first love. Jean-Robin Charpentier - Good friend and shining example of the Darcsen people. Lucia Farris - Kid sister of the 15th Atlantic Rifles. Bit strange and mysterious, but not in a bad way. Mickey Michael Daunte - Small sapper, big heart, and great inner strength, even against smarmy POS officers. Diana Elana Vastergoth - An often-troubled girl, but good-natured and pure.
Alexander-John Middleton - Captain Grumpus! (Or whatver his rank happens to be at the time.)
Character Theme
NOTE: I'm essentially adopting this character from her original creator. If the owner wants to use her in this RP, I'll give it up without issue. I ran Britta after the owner vanished from the last RP, mainly out of respect for a good design. Very little has actually changed in profile, except in terms of character development and normal upgrades.
"You can do it. I trust you."
Name Britta Hagen
Gender Female
Age Nineteen years (born on November 5th, 1896EC)
Sexuality Heterosexual
Race Westershelde, Atlantic Federation
Appearance Britta stands at 5'6" and is slim and physically fit from the plenty of time outdoors she spent as a child growing up. She definitely isn't overly muscular of any sort, more or less leaning towards the athletic side of things than anything else. Her skin is fair and creamy with a hint of golden undertones from a healthy dose of being out in the sun. Her ash grey shaggy bob coupled with her azure eyes does however tend to give off a rather comely appearance that most would find attractive. Her hair is usually kept as neat and tidy as she can manage, but spending time outdoors and in combat on the front lines tends to hamper her efforts, so usually she just goes with whatever she can afford.
Stronger and fitter than most of her peers, she boasts quite a remarkable amount of stamina and strength, fully able to carry heavier equipment around in combat. Her sets of uniform differ from the clean ones that are recently washed, to the dirty mud-covered ones fresh from the front lines. The rank badge of a private is sewn onto the shoulder of her uniform, a gunner patch sewn just below to indicate her role in combat.
Personality Britta has always been a highly energetic lively soul who can't hardly sit still in any given situation. As a child, she was often seen playing outdoors, running around in the open fields or swimming in the streams or rivers. She'd always been a wild and free-spirited girl who did whatever she wanted whenever she wanted. Her parents were the easygoing type and allowed her the freedom to do whatever she liked so long as she did not do anything dangerous or got herself into trouble with the law. It is needless to say that the girl knows how to have fun. She was brought up to be very open-minded and accepting of everyone, regardless of social standing, fame or rank.
In tense situations, she is known to be calm and level-headed, not being one prone to panicking or losing one's self in the situation. Despite her steadiness, Britta is not without her fears. She is afraid of losing her loved ones and dying. Honestly, the thought of war and frontline combat has never not terrify her, but she knows that there is no running away from it. She is afraid of getting shot, lying wounded and alone to die, with people ignoring her as she slowly bled to death alone. While she is not afraid of death, what she is terrified of is dying alone.
Nightmares have plagued her so after nights in the front, but she has told no one of it for she had thought this would be common. On the more positive note, Britta also has a strong camaraderie with her fellow comrades, always looking out for her squad mates to check if they are alright. Once gained her trust, she is known to be very loyal to the point of unbreaking.
Rank Private
Role Gunner
Equipment
Robinson Automatic Rifle (RAR) - Previously using the HR-14, Britta elected to make use of the lighter RAR to make full use of her better ability to get around and flank the enemy. Both models currently in use are actually better than the HR-14 loadout, but she wanted an edge in lightness. She still has to lug around a pack full of ammo magazines, but at least it's still better than before.
Large Serrated Knife - A long and sturdy serrated knife given to her upon reaching Amone for better close-quarters fighting. The blade is long enough that it burst through the bottom of a knife-holding sheath in her belt, and would've damaged articles of clothing if she simply tucked it under said belt. It is very dangerous, and effectively a small saw.
Standard Combat Knife - What started out as her main melee fighting weapon has turned into a back-up weapon and utility device for prying, general cutting, seeing around corners via reflection, and so on. It's still a decent knife, regardless, but she has a better one...and has both of them while cooking.
Gasmask - The 'mining mask' of Amone, used during the gas bombardments therein, and any other occasion where a sickening yellow mist or something near to it can be found. It's a life-saver, but you still have to watch as others who were not saved keel over and die in a gruesome fashion...
Potentials
Fierce Determination: Britta has never been one to stop or quit something halfway, and that isn't going to stop now. Her grit and tenacity will plenty of good in seeing them through this. Sometimes all you need is a good ol' determined resolve to push you through.
Heart of a Lion: With plenty of courage to spare, whenever no one else is able to step up in fear of the task in hand, Britta has no problem volunteering for it. While she does still have her fears, she does not let it control her.
Thinks Too Much: There are times where Britta just thinks too much, and spends too much time in her head. She needs to spend more time of actually doing something, instead of just going over and over situations in her head worrying about the outcome needlessly. This isn't saying she needs to be more rash, but rather to stop being so overly cautious in everything without reason.
Biography Britta Hagen was born in the countryside of Westershelde, in 1869EC, to a lower class family. Her parents were Gunther and Sonja Hagen, and they were a farmer and a miller respectively. The entire family lived in the family's farm which included a windmill, and the Hagen family lived a simple and contented life. The rural life suited them fine, and the vast outdoors with its rolling green hills and the blue shining rivers were the children's playgrounds. They helped out in the family's farm and mill as soon as they were able old enough to. The family lived off the crops they grew, and whatever money they earned from selling the sacks of flour they sold to the city and whoever else needed them.
Exploration and creating her own fun was something that Britta and Hans had to do on their own, for the family wasn't that well off to afford them many fancy toys. That wasn't a problem for any of them. They had plenty of playing space, and they could do whatever their imaginations allowed them to, so long as it wasn't overly dangerous that is. As she grew older into her teenage years, Britta would go along with her mother with her cart full of flour-filled sacks that she would bring into the city to sell. It was there in the city that she would open her eyes to a whole new world as the country girl exposed herself to the bustling affairs of city life. She eventually made friends from the city, and it was there that she found that she had both a thirst and hunger for learning about things that hadn't bothered her before, like the world powers, military affairs, how the city worked, etc. Her parent were not educated enough to teach her, so she had to learn all she could from her city friends.
The country girl had dreams of visiting and exploring other countries, and wondering how different they would be from her city here in Westershelde. Unfortunately, the Great War happened, and that kinda put a huge dent in her plans. She was out in her usual errand in the city when she happened to come across a recruitment officer advertising good money for those that signed themselves up to fight in the front lines. Her family had gone through a really hard period, and money was scarce, and the money she got from this would be a great help for her family. Without informing her parents, Britta went ahead to sign up before going home pretending as though things were as usual.
The night before she had to leave, she wrote a letter to her parents and brother asking them to take care, and that she did what she thought was the best thing in their circumstances. As fate would will it, unknown to Britta, her younger brother had thought and done the exact same thing a few hours after she left, and so that left both the Hagen parents distraught and helpless as both their children went off to war.
ADDITONAL INFO
She volunteered to fight in this war, to defend home and country, but some of the things done in the name of that war...were utterly deplorable. Nobody in their right mind could ever like an officer like Middleton, of course. His treatment of squad and lower rank in general was disdainful, at best, but what made it worse was how he seemed weirdly attached to Private Lucia Farris while also subjecting her to much more than she seemed ready for. Britta had heard the past tales of several of their squad, and they all had something in their past or something in the now that caused them pain. Some, like Isaac, were conscripted against their will. Others, like Diana, had emotional baggage brought on by family issues. Jean-Robin Charpentier... Where to even begin? Some were torn by the battle and shell-shock. Others hated Middleton and their circumstances here with a passion. All were aghast by the gas attacks of Amone.
The 15th Atlantic Rifles were both damaged, yet tempered, by the war. Nobody said it was going to be easy. She knew that going in. What she did not expect was to find herself deeply invested in the care of others around her. Britta expected that fighting alongside soldiers would be cold and hard and without love or any positivity at all to speak of. She was wrong. They needed each other, to be knit with one another in order to stay strong and endure the pain and difficulties on the road forward. Isaac called it 'pack logic', looking after those closest to you as you fought to survive. Maybe he was right. Honestly, the things that come out of his mouth, sometimes... It utterly shocks you, but then he hits you with sudden wisdom you weren't expecting, and...it may've been wrong to think so, but she was glad that he was here. He may've hated every aspect of the war, including the circumstances that brought him there, but they were lucky to have someone like him watching their backs.
Maybe it started simply because they were both Gunners, and that they worked towards the same ends (which was protecting the squad), but eventually the two of them became very close. They played off of each other in wit, in battle, in confidentiality... It worked so well, that when they had the chance to relax properly, she even - without thinking about it - uhhh...well...they had been suitably drunk at the time is all she was saying about that. However, even though they both accepted that it was mainly something in the moment at the time, the fact was that it was only an awkward thing when they tried to ignore it, ignore that they had real feelings for one another. He'd made her a promise that night, a promise to never let her die alone and lost in this war, and she believed that he would do anything in his power to keep that from happening. He would be there, and that's what mattered most in her eyes.
Relationships Isaac Black - Fellow farmer and boyfriend. Rikes - Isaac's wolf hybrid, still mostly a wolf, but well-trained. Jean-Robin Charpentier - A good friend torn to pieces by the hardships of war, but actually...very dependable. Diana Elana Vastergoth - Cheerful and very pleasant, most days. Often concerned about her family. Michael Daunte - A young man who can stand up to anybody, despite the obvious difference in height. Lucia Farris - The girl we all sympathized with, day one, yet...somehow she always seems to have that pleasant demeanor. Either something is very wrong with her...or very right.
Alexander-John Middleton - A deplorable man, maybe not even the worst of his kind, yet all-too-often it seems that he is the one most-spoken about, especially for having been in charge of them.
Character Theme The link broke. Anyone who has any idea what was in here before, lemme know.
Appearance An imposing man due to wearing a military coat over his uniform combined with his height, Richard stoically carries himself like a machine. His handsome features seem to always be warped by a frown. He never smiles at anything, giving the impression that he carries no love or even enjoys anything at all. Richard's blond hair has been cut just enough that it won't get in his way. Sometimes he can be found smoking a cigarette, which gives him an even more standoffish impression. To top it off, his heterochromia along with his sharp gaze finalizes his antisocial appearance. While he's on a mission, he ditches the coat for greater ease of movement.
Height 6'3/191cm
Personality Richard's personality barely changes whether he's on or off duty. While he's on the job, he follows orders to the letter, like a machine without any will. He's the embodiment of a soldier. Off duty, he's still the same stoic person, just without any orders telling him what to do. He's the type of person to chastise someone if they're being noisy or causing a disturbance as long as they don't have authority over him. He's an apathetic person who feels a large disconnect from emotions. His emotions may rarely waver in any situation, but as a result, he has a hard time understanding emotional people who act on their hearts rather than their heads. With a lack of any personal drive motivating him to do anything or even a desire for pleasure, Richard is just a person who wants to live a simple life and die a simple death.
Rank Private
Role Rifleman
Equipment SM-Longfield MK. 3 Two Shrapnel Grenades Trench Knife
Potentials Calm and Collected: Richard can keep his cool in all situations no matter the danger. Unflinching in the face of death, the smell of gunpowder and the sight of gore won't make his aim or his goal to fulfill the mission waver. As what's expected of a soldier, he clamps down on any emotions that get in the way of the mission even when he's not on a mission.
Efficient Enough: Richard knows the right amount of effort to give toward a mission. He minimizes the the risks of going above and beyond or below what's needed to accomplish a mission. As a result, his results will tend to not be bad, but not excellent either. Just good enough.
Respectful: To any man or woman, Richard maintains proper decorum as what's expected from a soldier. Those who are above his rank are given proper respect and even those at his rank are given the same decency as long as they aren't causing a ruckus. Common citizens as well are respected by him and even enemy soldiers are respected by him.
Military Mind: Richard hyper-focused his studies on the battlefield and as such, he knows how to deal with many kinds of terrain and situations that he may find himself on the battlefield. He has tested his studies personally to gain experience, which has only strengthened this focus of his. He can't imagine himself as a person that's not a part of the military.
Biography The person Richard is now isn't all that different from the boy he was in the past. He was born in the country of Valois in a somewhat large town. A young child with a simple family living in a simple home. His father was an army man and his mother was a baker. Richard would've been a perfectly normal kid if he was born right. He realized there was something wrong with him when his interactions with children around his age when he was six went awry. He could talk with them and understand the conversations just fine, but in terms of connecting with them and forming friendships, he was having trouble. He could recall his mother send worried glances at him in the past.
Richard's first hint of joining the military came when he expressed interest in his father's profession, the first time he expressed positive interest in anything. His mother felt even greater concern, but his father felt pride well up within him. In response to the boy's first sign of desire for anything, the father sat on a chair with a cigarette on his grinning lips ready to tell what was probably embellished tales over the course of his life. Richard's response was expressing an interest in becoming a soldier. That's when his mother's worries became something that distorted her mood and even his father felt worry for him. Though given his pride in his country and his pride for his own service, he tutored his son through the years until he went to a military academy to give him proper training.
During his time at the academy, Richard's interest in the army started to wane to the point he wondered why he wanted to do this in the first place. It could've been the passing whimsy of a child that lasted a little longer than expected, but he didn't really feel like backing out now. Eventually, what little passion he had for the military died out and he just went through the motions, not really giving all his effort in his classes. A few more years pass by until he finishes his time at the academy and he returns home to his family ready to give them the news.
He came back right at the perfect time to hear the news of his father's passing with his father's old coat in the hands of the person delivering the news. He was on a mission and he just got unlucky so they said. Richard took it well with a simple nod, but his mother on the other hand... To say she didn't take it well at all would be an understatement. She became listless and bemoaned her fate all the while with Richard contemplating his future career, though he was already enlisted in the army. When the time came to go on his first mission, he shared his final conversation with his mother.
She stared right as his mismatched eyes and called him a freak in a drunken haze that loosened her lips just enough for her true feelings to escape them. Richard just nodded to those words as they were just confirming a suspicion he had since long ago. After that, he was deployed on the front lines to experience war for himself. He survived harsh battles for months and eventually returned home to an empty house. He was informed by a neighbor that his mother passed away and he was truly alone now. Richard stared at his late father's coat hanging on a coatrack and decided his course in life. He's a soldier that filled his father with pride. A perfect soldier indeed, and as such, a soldier is all he can be.
Affiliations William Grumman (Deceased) Laura Grumman (Deceased)
Race | Nationality | Place of Birth Honngìn | Edinburgher colonial subject | Crown Colony of Sin On, Edinburgher Empire
Appearance Cienie’s typically Honngìn black hair resembles that of the Darcsens — though you’d have to be oblivious to mistake him for one — and hangs in a loose bob, sometimes hastily combed. The unusual milky grey of his eyes had made his parents fear that he was blind as a newborn, though so far they have served him well even when reading by candlelight. His skin is a little darker than the average Europan, though he could hardly be called tanned.
Height 170 cm / 5 ft 7 in
Personality For a poor infantryman, Cienie generally looks unusually happy. He tends to proceed about his business with at least a neutral expression, and more often one of apparent contentment with his lot in life. Some officers have thought him a simpleton because of this, but behind this smiling lies a sharp mind. It’s just that a friendly demeanour comes off as more approachable. When bullets begin flying and bayonets are affixed, Cienie does not falter. Nor does he rejoice and let bloodlust get to his head. He isn’t unemotional, but takes combat in stride without being outwardly fazed or perturbed. This can manifest as idle commentary or spontaneous rhymes during an artillery bombardment or assault, though he’s careful not to let any light-hearted chatter distract or otherwise interfere with effective action. The superfluous speech is perhaps his own form of coping mechanism, calming and reassuring not just his fellow soldiers but himself as well.
Rank Private
Role Shocktrooper
Equipment SM-Longfield Mk. 3 Rifle grenade launcher Rifle grenades Hand bombs Machete Entrenching tool Gas mask First aid kit Notebook and pen Mouth organ Folding bicycle
Potentials Pack Mule: Endurance is something Cienie has in spades, both mental and physical. He isn’t the strongest or swiftest soldier, but he can and will keep going without stopping or complaint. Pain and adversity are nothing too new, and besides: he set off to Europa with a vision, and he certainly won’t rest until it is reality.
Black Cat, White Cat: A mouser’s a good mouser so long as it can catch rats — or so the Scuanese saying goes. Cienie is a practical person, and he personally couldn’t care less if you were prole or prince, Darcsen or Valkyrur. He has an agenda to realise, and by and large, the means are secondary to his ends. Of course, this also means that behaviour some would regard as dishonourable or disgusting are also not beyond him.
The Entertainer: Armed with an expansive repertoire with influences from both the East and the West, Cienie’s musical and storytelling performances behind the frontlines and in the trenches have always been a good morale booster. Even discounting the numerous not-always-intelligible dialects spoken among the Honngìn, his ability to at least hold a conversation in a dozen other languages has allowed him diverse audiences — sometimes even including Imperials, when no man’s land is narrow enough.
Biography Born in a small Edinburgher colony carved out of native territory in the Far East, Hi En’s family are well-educated and respectable, but hardly well-off — in no small part due to his father Séu Kong’s constant drifting and inability to hold down a job even as in government service. His early life was characterised by numerous moves across his homeland as well as constant reminders of human mortality.
Less than a year after being ‘adopted’ at birth by his gravely ill uncle Ii Conn in order to provide him with an heir, as was the traditional custom, the man succumbed to tuberculosis. This left the infant Hi En to be raised by the man’s widow, Ciin. A refined young lady, she educated him, taught him music and literature, and left him with a lifelong interest in the arts and culture — only to pass away when he was 10 years of age, just a year after tuberculosis had claimed Hi En’s biological mother Van as well.
With his father working far away from home, Hi En and his two younger brothers Po En and Su En moved to Fakuh, a large city quite some distance to the north, to live under the roof of his father’s older brother, I Kâng. It was an impoverished nursemaid from the countryside, Kaan Kaan, who cared for him there, acting like a third mother for the young boy. Her son Duven and her daughter Siovu soon befriended Hi En, despite differences in age and background, and the three were always together, playing or tending to the family farm. Little Po En and Su En quickly took a liking to their new ‘big brother’ and ‘big sister’, at Hi En’s expense.
Then illness took its toll again, in 1910. Siovu suddenly felt a cramp in her stomach as the children were plucking weeds one summer afternoon, which quickly led to bloody diarrhoea and fever. She was bedridden within the week. And, after a long month of alternating hope and despair, big sis Siovu was dead from dysentery. The girl had just turned thirteen. That same year, Hi En would have to bid a tearful farewell to Kaan Kaan and Duven, as he moved to the bustling port of Hohsi to pursue further studies.
A series of rebellions and revolutions in 1911 saw massive upheaval and destabilisation tear through the already-fractured Honngìn lands. Regimes and leaders rose and fell, yet the lives of the commoners saw little real change. Although he wasn’t personally affected much, it sparked a sort of passion to effect change in his homeland and the lives of the people around him. He put his all into his studies and learning, even teaching himself Europan tongues in order to unlock the insights of Western science and philosophy. This consistent excellence and forward-looking drive caught the eye of the school headmaster Jen Siouh, who offered his daughter’s hand in marriage (which Hi En was quick to turn down) and the chance to join a work-study programme in Valois, fully sponsored. The boy was quicker still to accept the latter, his mind set on one thing — to learn from Europa and rescue the Sick Man of the East.
The winter of 1913, a convoy of steamers carrying thousands of Honngìn workers arrived in Ostend, with 15-year-old ‘Cienie’ — so christened by the Europan crew and later the immigration officials — being perhaps the youngest in the contingent. Upon stepping foot on dry ground, his first task was to dig unmarked graves for the unlucky ones who had died during the journey.
At first Cienie contented himself with loading trains and wagons at a munitions depot, far removed from the fighting. But after a month of doing this relatively safe work for but a pittance, news came from home that his youngest uncle Ee Kway and his cousin Sark Enn, both always of fragile constitution, had taken ill. In addition, his father had once again been dismissed from his post and was now wandering off to someplace around Scuan. The prospect of higher pay risking his life closer to the frontlines grew more and more attractive.
The volunteer labourers were promised non-combatant roles: digging trenches, carrying stretchers, clearing mines and so on. This promise remained unbroken for a long while. Cienie even managed to land a more skilled job as a maintenance technician, welding and riveting together plates of steel. Life got downright comfortable for some time. He read for both leisure and learning in his downtime, and took up writing of prose and poetry.
Then came the shellfire. A swift Imperial offensive punctured a gap in the forward defensive lines, through which men and metal began pouring through. All of a sudden, tail became tooth, and on one fine morning an entire camp’s worth of support personnel had arms thrust upon them. They were told to prepare for combat by noon.
Cienie was hardly enthusiastic to fight, but his fearless conduct during the defensive action impressed his officers. Being a subject of the United Kingdom with an above-average command of half of Europa’s languages only smoothed things along. He was offered the opportunity to enlist in the Federation infantry with an even more generous salary — better than any of his fellow Honngìn could ever hope to earn. Call him mercenary or reckless, but it sounded like a good deal. After a few more months of training, he was posted to a regular battalion in the 15th Atlantic Rifles. Three months into his service, during which he participated in the last days of the Assen Offensive, restructuring resulted in him being shuffled into a new company and platoon.
Affiliations Ten Séu Kong (biological father), 1874 – Van Tûng’i (biological mother), 1875 – 1907 Ten Ii Conn (uncle/adoptive father), 1879 – 1899 Ciin (adoptive mother), 1878 – 1908 Ten Po En (younger brother), 1899 – Ten Su En (younger brother), 1904 – Ten I Kâng (uncle), 1870 – Ten Ee Kway (uncle), 1876 – Ten Sark Enn (cousin), 1902 – Kaan Kaan (nurse), 1874 – Kaan Duven (childhood friend), 1894 – Kaan Siovu (childhood friend), 1897 – 1910 Jen Siouh (teacher/mentor/sponsor), 1860 –
@samakama Heyo, I'll give it a proper read through in a couple of hours!
If you could, may yah join the discord server? Once there just ask for the Valkyria Role and you'll be able to just bump around with the boys and grills in the OOC there
▼ E X T R A I N F O R M A T I O N ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ ► DOB - 25/09/1895 ► Height - 5'11" / 181cm ► Weight - 165 lbs / 74.8kg ► Hair Color - Peacock / Black ► Eye Color - Dark Green ► Classification - Rifleman ► Rank - Corporal by circumstance ► Sexuality - Heterosexual
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D E T A I L E D A P P E A R A N C E
Jean began his service as a sort of well-catered individual who made an effort to appear pleasant for his peers, and whilst maintaining that neat and tidy aesthetic proved difficult he carried it with him all the way to the trenches, right up until the conclusion of the Assault on Hill 58. The best way to describe the 5'11 Darcsen is raggedy - when on the frontlines - partnered with the faded shade of his skin and dying emerald glimmer in his eyes. His hair has grown in length but remains swept back and over his ears to keep it beneath his head-dressing. Notably, he's gained a stock to his body mass, having grown out of his meagre frame from before. That's not to say he doesn't take care of himself; he cleans when he can and puts the effort in to maintain his uniform, if possible. An additional coating of an unshaven stubble has also taken form around his jaw and mouth. In the early years of the war, he'd have been chastised for not shaving, but that far into the apocalypse, no one really seemed to care all that much anymore. Though rare to crack a smile to those unknown, and seeming to hold a persistent alertness, the dreariness in his gaze has created a vapid shell of who he once was.
When speaking of apparel, the development of the Federation's infantry gear has shown wear and tear until it became more of a tool of practicality than prestige. Jean's own is no different. A mishmash of drab greens and browns, even a dark beige cloth helmet cover handed over from campaigns in far away lands. On each shoulder, the stitch marks of two flags sit on either shoulder. The left houses the Atlantic Federation's military insignia, adopted during the standardisation of 1913. On the right should be the flag of Valois, however Jean's own one has been ripped off, with only the seams still being left.
---P E R S O N A L I T Y
Who is Jean but the broken stare of a lost generation, whose innocence was ripped out with the spines of the deceased. A once optimistic yet careful, well-mannered individual, Jean's wartime experience has worn him down. Pessimistic, as a catch-all term. Though not devoid of hope, his circumstances both on the frontline and news of familial tragedy have made for a somewhat quiet and nervous individual. The last few months, however, have allowed him to build a mould for his role as a Corporal. He isn't without merit and tries to maintain his role for the sake of those in his platoon, only exposing his greater weaknesses when out of combat. Able to at least hold conversation if prompted, Jean's nature of bottling up problems had nearly proven fatal once, yet still finds discomfort in sharing details of his misfortunes simply in disregard to his importance as an individual. Still, if the mood is right, he'll put on a little smile and will do what's needed to please the crowd, even if a little unorthodox from his usual practices.
Above all, Jean's once empty hobby of poetry and writing has exploded into a quiet passion. Most silent hours he spends alone are done transforming his struggles, experiences, sightings and visions of the future into text. Literature is his drive, and so he tends to be far more conversational about anything that aligns with the creative output.
Alternatively, a somewhat cynical and lightly nihilistic side has come out from the war. Whilst he cares about those around him and their wellbeing, sprinkles of light upon the worst that humanity has had to offer fails to resonate with him. What he's seen and done to survive face to face engagements with the Imperials, other humans no less, has shown how painfully brutal life can flip to in an instant. He simply hopes others don't have to ever go through the experiences he and many worse off have, but never will he ever try to stop it; for the fabrics of human nature is built upon the deaths of millions. Any Darcsen, he felt, should have known this better after the pains of their history.
---B I O G R A P H Y
Helen Robin and Herman Charpentier were of two different social standings. One one hand, Helen was from a family of upper-middle class wealth, and after studying archaeology she garnered local fame among North Valois Darcsens as an expeditionary explorer, heading through older regions of forgotten civilisations for the thrill of discovery. Herman, on the other hand, was a man of little success. On the fringes of middle class and lower class, the ex-businessman was driven out of his hometown and was left wandering among Darcsen communities, eventually meeting Helen, and sparking the relationship that led to the birth of Jean.
By the time Jean was born, sharing both their surnames, neither of his parents were married. They'd settled down in the city of Liege a few months. Additionally, he had an older sister. One Olivia Robin-Charpentier. It seemed that the introduction of children to the family had ground all high-end income to a close. Helen became homebound and lost the time to find infamy across the globe, falling short of her goals, whilst Herman spent many thousand hours pumping his life and energy into a failing welfare industry set up for struggling Darcsens of the early 1900s. Everything ground to a halt, and their life stagnated. And so, a co-dependency was spawned out of the siblings, who grew very reliant on one another's dynamic to bypass their childhood days, to stand up for each other (albeit poorly) against other schoolyard kids and to occasionally work around the local community for scraps of money. By the time Helen had returned to archaeology, she made one fatal error on her returning trip, badly injuring herself.
With Valois' hospital bills piled on to their already feigned status, the Robin-Charpentier family descended further down the social ranking. Helen's determination to not take life sat down usually caused more issues for the family as a whole, but it was that admiration that thrived in Olivia's commitment. In November, 1910, she enlisted for a career in the Valois Army, securing a stable and, at the time, well paid income. Unfortunately, it preceded the worst event human history had seen. March, 1911EC - the newly formed Atlantic Federation was attacked, and war was upon the continent. Olivia was sent straight off to the frontline, partaking in many of the early skirmishes across the ever-moving frontline, until the Imperials reached the first bloodied campaign of the war: The First Crossing of the Maren River. Olivia's life ended there. All that was sent back to the mourning family was a greyscale photo of her, drabbed proudly in serving attire, and a medal in her name.
Jean was initially broken by her death, and still to this day mourns the loss of his greatest friend and closest family member. At aged 15, he could barely make any sense of the loss, and neither could his father. Greater social pressures and the closing of Liege's welfare organisation hammered the final nail in the coffin, and the family became jobless. They sold their home and settled in a far smaller shelter. And, as the years of struggle passed, Jean became the target of a radicalised loyalist movement - The White Feather Callout.
Hundreds of disenfranchised mothers, wounded fathers and emboldened children roamed the streets at night, with extensive Darcsen community targeting, and planted symbolic feathers around the city. Cowards, it stood for, and the world wouldn't repay their fear. Even those afflicted by the horrors were still committed to the larger scale, pressuring thousands of men into accepting the conscription where resistance had begun to grow. Jean became the target of such, and even the name of Olivia was used by neighbours and shoppers to further drive him to it. And when his name was called by the authorities, he held out his palms and they took him out to become a soldier.
August, 1914EC. At 18 years of age, Jean was trained alongside a newer platoon of recruits. Driven by the shame his own neighbours had bestowed upon him, he forced himself to excel in training. Without the real war to hold him back, he made hand of leadership exercises and kept physically well; such commitment landed him a 'Lance Corporal' in-house promotion specifically for the platoon, as a few other standout recruits were given elevated start-ups. Come deployment, all soldiers were scrambled, and a newly given Darcsen Lance Corporal was sent to the 15th Atlantic Rifles to join them at the Garnian Salient. Jean, only having experienced a few weeks of the war's stagnation in the trenches, partook in his first major battle, a charge up Hill 58, which saw him survive and fill the boots of a dead Corporal. Greater, undeserved responsibility was placed on his shoulders, and he was left with the traumatic news of his parents' tragic deaths during a Liege Darcsen protest turned violent. With nothing to go back home to, Jean degraded as an individual.
He integrated poorly within his newfound platoon but eased into a few friendships. His stain of a declined mental state and confidence in life, without the assurance of anything back in Valois, took a toll on his ability to lead and garner the trust of his fellow soldiers, more so in his mind than anywhere else. Amalgamating to the Siege of Amone, his second great deployment, Jean saw fierce fighting in the open streets of a crumbling city. Brutal close-quarters engagements, the first deployment of gas and lightly armoured technical warfare sent him further down the rabbit hole, concluding in an attempt on his own life squandered by missing ammunition. Yet when he left the battle, victorious with his regiment, he tried to vow improvement upon himself. For a while, he distanced himself from his friends, only keeping in touch whenever necessary or provoked, and watched many of them take leave as the autumn came to an end. Jean refused the R&R, and remained on the frontline until it slowly began to numb his nerves.
---P O T E N T I A L S
Weathered Soldier: Jean may not have served for the longest period of time - in fact his official military service started at the start of 1914 with extensive and gruelling training - yet the 15th Atlantic Regiment have been on the forefront of 1914's most brutal fighting. Hill 58 and Amone, and between the city siege and the winter of 1914, he's seen endless hours sat in sunken trenches, on sentry duty, and withstanding Imperial gas attacks across the frontier. All in all, Jean has allowed his somewhat grim worldview to solidify.
"The Darcsen Plight": As easily identifiable as any, Jean is a Darcsen. And though that lineage ties all the way back to their Gallian and Europan days of conquest, the world will never let him forget their disdain for his people. Whilst many sympathise, many others let their discontent be known. Thus, Jean is far more at ease around Darcsens like him than those around him - lest it damns his mind, he still maintains a balanced approach toward other walks of life.
The Writer against His Nation: Jean has grown to despise Valois and thus rejects the concepts of nationalistic values. His nation has done quite enough to stamp out his family's legacy, and now it holds his hands in bindings to fight for both survival and pride (with only one reflective in him). This is reflective in his most recent writing pieces, one of which had him temporarily punished. One day, he hopes to not make fame of his writing, but an audience in which to hear his pen.
Details of a Warman: One thing that hasn't disappeared is Jean's keen eye for the finest of changes around him. A few times has seen his eye catch the movement in the dirt, the creeping of an Imperial raiding party and the glint of a marksman's scope, sometimes giving him the best warning a man could get. Though it does assist the paranoia of endless war, it's kept him on his toes and quick-thinking when it was his neck in the noose.
Hello there @LetMeDoStuff, FalloutJack introduced me to your roleplay and I was curious if you're still looking for players! I was looking at Marksman but I was curious if a combat medic was needed. Either way I do hope you'll accept me into the continuing fray!
