✎Name:
Leon Schäfer
✎Age:
22
✎Sex:
Male
✎Nationality:
Non-citizen Resident of the Spruce Dominion. Formerly German.
✎Appearance:
Leon isn’t very distinct in his appearance, but, most people aren’t. He is 6’1” with sandy brown hair kept neat in a modern side-comb. Leon’s physique is quite excellent, due mostly to his military service and general belief in keeping healthy. He is most often seen in public in his plain black non-descript work uniform. His naked skin carries a number of minor marks from the war, but the only notably visible damage is on his left pectoral area; a large patch of burned skin, an archaic removal of a tattoo that had depicted a German insignia.
Keeping his stubble at a gentle five o’clock shadow, he is well groomed for the most part. During his clandestine activities, he is usually seen in simple dark jeans, plain t-shirts and a knee-length black parka jacket. As is the case with all involved in the DFV, when conducting outside operations, his face is covered at all times.
✎Character Type:
Military personnel in the Deutsch Freiheit Vorne, and within European resistance movements in general. Maintains Civilian appearances in everyday life.
✎Rank/Title:
Former Leutnant (Lieutenant) in the Mench Panzer Division of the Heer. Currently acting as a de-facto Oberst (Colonel) in liberation circles despite the impossibility of ever actually receiving promotion.
✎Job/Position:
Line technician for East Imperial Refining Industries. This job is one of the most menial and lowly-classed jobs still required to be carried out by humans in the Empire, and hence is reserved almost exclusively for Non-Citizens in any Dominion. Refining operations of crude oil, rare earth elements and a variety of other substances is currently massive in the relatively recently conquered Europe. Mining operations are excessive.
✎History:
Born on the eve of the War, Leon knew nothing of it for a long time; the Great War was one fought via proxy and politics for almost half of its duration. Months after his birth the world he yet knew nothing about plunged from the precipice of peace and descended into further chaos. Leon was born into a mostly average working class family in the suburbs of Berlin. Whilst he didn’t live a life of luxury by any means, he was afforded every possible opportunity he could have hoped for during war time. The school that he and his old brother attended was a fantastic facility. His early childhood and into his teens, he and his family were relatively sheltered from the war. Given the massive distances involved and, and the size of Europe as a continent, the war was not a quick one even with the advanced weaponry deployed by both sides. Right up until he was sixteen, Leon lived a good life, if one constantly overshadowed with some fear.
In his sixteenth year however, the Empire swooped down from Greenland and quickly overtook Ireland, The United Kingdom and much of France. Whilst fighting with the Empire up until that point had mostly been against 3rd Generation Armoured Dragoons*, yet the Imperium gobbled up Europe’s western front in seemingly unstoppable 4th Gen Dragoons. Panicked, and requiring immediate response, the Federation unanimously enforced a quasi-conscription decree in every member state. Under this legislation, each member had to increase its armed forces by a certain extent but was free to do so how it saw fit. Germany, having already been the largest deployer of troops during the proxy wars, other than Britain, was running thin and enacted a brief period of mandatory conscription. Such is how Leon, at the age of sixteen, found himself alongside his brother in basic training.
Though some would call it a blessing, Leon would later in life reflect that it was curse; excelling at basic training he also showcased superb tactical ability and great resolve. Leon was not an extraordinary individual, merely got caught up in the fever of the war and showcased talents deemed wanted. After six months of basic training he was, without warning, taken from the camp. En route to an airbase located several kilometres south, it was explained to him he had been selected from among basic recruits to join the Laufen Panzer Division**. Surprised but also somewhat relieved, not sure of how to react, Leon now just seventeen years of age, accepted what he was being told.
Arriving via cargo plane, having flown east for several hours, he began to raise some questions. Why were they flying away from the frontlines where the Panzers should be? Why was he the only cadet ‘assigned’? Sequestered into what was revealed to be a research facility, the truth was laid out before him. He was in fact going to be put through a rigorous regime of training again, nothing like he had experience this far; the war could hinge on his performance.
Initially the training seemed odd, unusual and at times pointless. Much of it was mental training, hours at a time standing still in silence alone, tests with experimental weaponry in which he was asked to attempt to fire guns with no triggers. It all seemed like madness. That was until, three weeks into the stay he had reached breaking point. He just wanted it to end, even the frontlines would be better than this daily mental strain. During yet another ‘weapon practice’ he began damning the gun itself, wishing his hatred into it; and it fired.
This moment is what lead to the ‘greater plan’ being divulged to him. The weapon was not magic, just an extremely advanced neural interface which operated off neural firings. Perplexed he question why this would ever be needed over a conventional trigger; Mensch Panzer*** was the answer. The Prototype Dresden Mk 01 was shown to him at this point. The Mensch Panzer, a molding of man and machine, no cockpit, no control systems, simply a cavity into which the operator slotted, controlling the machine as their own body, via direct neural interface. It was beyond that of even the 4th Gen Dragoons, which only had partial neural targeting systems.
The next three years of Leon’s life have very little to be said about them. He trained relentlessly, more determined than ever, feeling special for having been chosen, regardless of the actual circumstances of his choosing. In his twentieth year, the nineteenth year of the War, he along with two other Dresden pilots were deployed, back in Germany. The Siege of Dusseldorf had been going catastrophically for the Federation forces attempting to hold the city. Imperial Dragoon Squads were doing an outstanding job of mopping up resistance. His first real taste of combat was something incredible, with Leon knocking up a thirty seven confirmed Dragoon kill count. He and his two other Dresden pilots turned the tide of the Siege. Victory was short lived however, as the mental strain on them had been too much. One of the other pilots died when his heart suddenly stopped, and both Leon and the third pilot fell into deep comas not long after the battle.
Wishing to hide the nature of the Dresden project, Federation forces quietly moved the mechs to an undisclosed location in Berlin. The two pilots remaining alive, were kept in civilian hospitals, with no definite conclusion as to whether they would wake or not.
Leon did. After the war.
*Murica Mechs - 3rd Generation Armoured Dragoon 4th Generation Armoured Dragoon
**Literally: Running Tanks
***Literally: Human Tank
Leon Schäfer
✎Age:
22
✎Sex:
Male
✎Nationality:
Non-citizen Resident of the Spruce Dominion. Formerly German.
✎Appearance:
Leon isn’t very distinct in his appearance, but, most people aren’t. He is 6’1” with sandy brown hair kept neat in a modern side-comb. Leon’s physique is quite excellent, due mostly to his military service and general belief in keeping healthy. He is most often seen in public in his plain black non-descript work uniform. His naked skin carries a number of minor marks from the war, but the only notably visible damage is on his left pectoral area; a large patch of burned skin, an archaic removal of a tattoo that had depicted a German insignia.
Keeping his stubble at a gentle five o’clock shadow, he is well groomed for the most part. During his clandestine activities, he is usually seen in simple dark jeans, plain t-shirts and a knee-length black parka jacket. As is the case with all involved in the DFV, when conducting outside operations, his face is covered at all times.
✎Character Type:
Military personnel in the Deutsch Freiheit Vorne, and within European resistance movements in general. Maintains Civilian appearances in everyday life.
✎Rank/Title:
Former Leutnant (Lieutenant) in the Mench Panzer Division of the Heer. Currently acting as a de-facto Oberst (Colonel) in liberation circles despite the impossibility of ever actually receiving promotion.
✎Job/Position:
Line technician for East Imperial Refining Industries. This job is one of the most menial and lowly-classed jobs still required to be carried out by humans in the Empire, and hence is reserved almost exclusively for Non-Citizens in any Dominion. Refining operations of crude oil, rare earth elements and a variety of other substances is currently massive in the relatively recently conquered Europe. Mining operations are excessive.
✎History:
Born on the eve of the War, Leon knew nothing of it for a long time; the Great War was one fought via proxy and politics for almost half of its duration. Months after his birth the world he yet knew nothing about plunged from the precipice of peace and descended into further chaos. Leon was born into a mostly average working class family in the suburbs of Berlin. Whilst he didn’t live a life of luxury by any means, he was afforded every possible opportunity he could have hoped for during war time. The school that he and his old brother attended was a fantastic facility. His early childhood and into his teens, he and his family were relatively sheltered from the war. Given the massive distances involved and, and the size of Europe as a continent, the war was not a quick one even with the advanced weaponry deployed by both sides. Right up until he was sixteen, Leon lived a good life, if one constantly overshadowed with some fear.
In his sixteenth year however, the Empire swooped down from Greenland and quickly overtook Ireland, The United Kingdom and much of France. Whilst fighting with the Empire up until that point had mostly been against 3rd Generation Armoured Dragoons*, yet the Imperium gobbled up Europe’s western front in seemingly unstoppable 4th Gen Dragoons. Panicked, and requiring immediate response, the Federation unanimously enforced a quasi-conscription decree in every member state. Under this legislation, each member had to increase its armed forces by a certain extent but was free to do so how it saw fit. Germany, having already been the largest deployer of troops during the proxy wars, other than Britain, was running thin and enacted a brief period of mandatory conscription. Such is how Leon, at the age of sixteen, found himself alongside his brother in basic training.
Though some would call it a blessing, Leon would later in life reflect that it was curse; excelling at basic training he also showcased superb tactical ability and great resolve. Leon was not an extraordinary individual, merely got caught up in the fever of the war and showcased talents deemed wanted. After six months of basic training he was, without warning, taken from the camp. En route to an airbase located several kilometres south, it was explained to him he had been selected from among basic recruits to join the Laufen Panzer Division**. Surprised but also somewhat relieved, not sure of how to react, Leon now just seventeen years of age, accepted what he was being told.
Arriving via cargo plane, having flown east for several hours, he began to raise some questions. Why were they flying away from the frontlines where the Panzers should be? Why was he the only cadet ‘assigned’? Sequestered into what was revealed to be a research facility, the truth was laid out before him. He was in fact going to be put through a rigorous regime of training again, nothing like he had experience this far; the war could hinge on his performance.
Initially the training seemed odd, unusual and at times pointless. Much of it was mental training, hours at a time standing still in silence alone, tests with experimental weaponry in which he was asked to attempt to fire guns with no triggers. It all seemed like madness. That was until, three weeks into the stay he had reached breaking point. He just wanted it to end, even the frontlines would be better than this daily mental strain. During yet another ‘weapon practice’ he began damning the gun itself, wishing his hatred into it; and it fired.
This moment is what lead to the ‘greater plan’ being divulged to him. The weapon was not magic, just an extremely advanced neural interface which operated off neural firings. Perplexed he question why this would ever be needed over a conventional trigger; Mensch Panzer*** was the answer. The Prototype Dresden Mk 01 was shown to him at this point. The Mensch Panzer, a molding of man and machine, no cockpit, no control systems, simply a cavity into which the operator slotted, controlling the machine as their own body, via direct neural interface. It was beyond that of even the 4th Gen Dragoons, which only had partial neural targeting systems.
The next three years of Leon’s life have very little to be said about them. He trained relentlessly, more determined than ever, feeling special for having been chosen, regardless of the actual circumstances of his choosing. In his twentieth year, the nineteenth year of the War, he along with two other Dresden pilots were deployed, back in Germany. The Siege of Dusseldorf had been going catastrophically for the Federation forces attempting to hold the city. Imperial Dragoon Squads were doing an outstanding job of mopping up resistance. His first real taste of combat was something incredible, with Leon knocking up a thirty seven confirmed Dragoon kill count. He and his two other Dresden pilots turned the tide of the Siege. Victory was short lived however, as the mental strain on them had been too much. One of the other pilots died when his heart suddenly stopped, and both Leon and the third pilot fell into deep comas not long after the battle.
Wishing to hide the nature of the Dresden project, Federation forces quietly moved the mechs to an undisclosed location in Berlin. The two pilots remaining alive, were kept in civilian hospitals, with no definite conclusion as to whether they would wake or not.
Leon did. After the war.
*Murica Mechs - 3rd Generation Armoured Dragoon 4th Generation Armoured Dragoon
**Literally: Running Tanks
***Literally: Human Tank