Character Name: Robert Holden
Age: 25
Gender: Male
Appearance:
IRL
In Game
Personality: A realistic optimist, Robert is someone who tends to look for the bright side of things but still makes sure to keep it in the framework of realism. A cautiously optimistic person, one might say. For instance, in an essay for a philosophy class, he once wrote that while on a global scale, humanity as a race is actually pretty awesome and has massive potential, on the other hand, he keeps in mind that most people are not the exemplars of what the best of humankind can offer, and therefore keeping in mind that collectively humanity is an existence full of wonder and potential but most people you meet will disappoint you, is the wisest course of action one might take. A less philosophical example is the fact that while he sees his job, acting, as a great artistic endeavour that explores deep into the psyche and consciousness of a role that may bring forth hidden insight and deeper truths of who people are...starving artist is a thing for a reason, and theatre actor is not really paying the bill, so better quit while you're ahead and switch track.
In his personal life, Robert tends to be more on the introverted scale of social engagement type, rather than the extroverted one. Of course, being an actor, he has no issues putting on a more extroverted mask, and he does it often. He doesn't quite like it, but is also pragmatic enough to chalk it to 'just how the world is'. Just like how some people are more academically talented and thus can go through schools easier than others, some people are just more socially talented, while others have to put in extra work. Nevertheless, on his off days, he dislikes going out unless necessary, opting to stay at his apartment reading books, playing music, and of course, gaming.
As a gamer, Robert gravitates to RPG exactly because to him, immersing oneself in an RPG as the character you create feels like acting to a certain extent. He doesn't exactly have a specific class he doesn't like to play, but he tends to always incorporate some form of magic into his build. While focusing mostly on roleplay, Robert also enjoys theorycrafting builds and min-maxing the build for optimal efficiency.
Background: Having been enamoured with acting ever since joining the theatre club in middle school, Robert Holden, once upon a time, was someone who was idealistic enough to throw away a scholarship to a prestigious university in the STEM field to study acting instead...to his parents chagrin, of course. Of course, unlike many stories written in the scripts, the real world is not always kind to idealism, and he found himself struggling to make it as a theatre actor, he landed good roles here and there, but the reality was that it simply did not pay enough for rent. Robert 'wisened up' and thus came to his current 'realistically optimist' outlook, decided to quit while he was ahead and took the offer of an agent to switch to more glamorous showbiz instead. Starting as a small extra here and there, he had made considerable progress in showbiz within the past 3 years. While he was nowhere an A-list actor, he had recently got a breakthrough by landing the main lead role in a TV show adaptation of a rather popular fantasy romance novel.
He realized that rather than pure acting skill, the agency was more interested in his pretty boy look, but he figured you gotta do what you gotta do. That being said, he did miss the artistic side of acting. Of delving into a role, researching and imagining what the person he was playing would be like as a real person, and eventually immersing himself in the role that for the period of the performance, he was no longer Robert Holden, but the character he was playing. To Robert, the joy of acting is precisely when you are portraying a character that is vastly different from who you are. And thus, when he heard of the virtual MMO Tales of Endoroth, he became interested in using the game as an outlet, by becoming a persona, as different from himself as possible. Of course, being a man, one of the roles that would be the furthest from who he is...is to act as a woman. It's not something done on television or in movies unless the role is specifically a transgender role, or something along those lines because television is more 'grounded' than the surrealism of theatre. In theatre, it was a practice with a long tradition from Cross-gender acting in Greece to the 'onnagata' of Japan's Kabuki theatre. Robert had always been interested from an artistic perspective, but hadn't actually had the chance to do such roles, and so...that was how Claudia Solaria von Gatriel joined the world of Tales of Endoroth.
TOE Name: Claudia Solaria von Gatriel
AttributesRole: DPS/Secondary Healer
Profession: Paladin/Sorcerer/Warlock
Weapon Of Choice:
NyxbladeWith a brilliant golden hilt and red blade, Nyxblade appeared to be a holy sword bestowed to valorous warriors at a glance. While that was the original purpose of the blade, one of the old gods Xal'Zagoth intervened in its creation, turning it into a cursed blade whose sole purpose is to entrap souls. Upon finding a worthy wielder, Nyxblade gradually asserts its influence until the victim succumbs to its power. Those fully corrupted by this dark weapon abandon all ties to their former life, assume the name Nyx, and obey Xal'Zagoth's will.
-Flavor Text of Nyxblade
A magic item of legendary rarity that is a very rare drop of the boss Nyx from the 'Emergence of the Old Gods' event in TOE. The longsword deals fire and slashing damage. Though limited by a cooldown, it can also be used to channel purple flames in the shape of a tentacle for a ranged attack, dealing necrotic and fire damage in a large AOE. Each time it felled an enemy, the soul counter goes up, to a maximum of 5. Each 'soul' can be expended to deal extra damage or heal the user. Expended souls cannot be replenished until the next day. Robert grinded the Nyx boss for the sword extensively, to the point of almost missing an audition the next day because he overslept.
Other Equipment:
Cuirass of the Vital AegisForged in the heart of a celestial forge and blessed by the spirits of the ancient healers, this radiant armour pulses with the essence of life itself. As it envelops the wearer, a warm, golden glow infuses their being, fortifying the body and amplifying the restorative energies of healing magic. In battle, it is said to mend wounds as swiftly as they are inflicted, making the wearer an unyielding bastion of vitality.
-Flavour Text of Cuirass of the Vital Aegis
A magic item of rare rarity that gives extra HP as the 'False Life, Greater' spell effect that is replenished every day. It also gives extra HP to the user's healing spells.
Ring of the Inferno PactForged in the flames of a boundless volcano and inscribed with runes of ancient firelords, this ring burns with an unquenchable ember. When worn, its wearer feels a surge of molten power coursing through their veins, amplifying their command over flames. However, this pact comes at a cost; the ring's fiery essence sears away any resistance to the cold, leaving the wearer vulnerable to frost's chilling embrace. As the heat intensifies, so too does the cold become an ever-greater threat.
-Flavour Text of Ring of the Inferno Pact
A magic item of rare rarity that significantly boosts fire damage in exchange for giving a frost weakness to the user.
Starshard AmuletCrafted from the essence of a shattered star and set with gems that shimmer with the hues of the elements, this amulet is a conduit of pure arcane energy. When worn, it pulses gently against the wearer's chest, infusing them with an abundant wellspring of mana. The amulet's intricate enchantments weave a protective aura around its bearer, granting them resilience against the elements.
-Flavour text for the Starshard Amulet.
A magic item of a very rare quality that boosts MP and grants resistance to elemental attacks of the user's choice. The amulet comes with a set value of resistances that can be allocated to various elements based on the needs of the user. Robert allocated about 50% of the total resistance to offset the frost weakness from the Ring of the Inferno Pact.
Cloak of ProtectionAn arcane cloak weaved with magical threads that grant protection to the wearer.
-Flavour text for the Cloak of Protection
A magic item of uncommon quality that gives extra defence that stacks with armour for the user.
Magic:
[Divine Soul Sorcerer]Word of HealingHeals a creature of the user's choice within the 60-foot range. The spell has no effect on construct and deals half damage on undead.
Flame StrikeConjure a divine pillar of flames with a 10-foot radius and height of 40 feet, that can be conjured within 100 feet of the caster. Half the damage is fire damage, but the other half results directly from divine power and is therefore not subject to being reduced by resistance to fire-based attacks.
Spirit GuardiansSummon guardian spirits within a 15-foot radius of oneself. For the duration of the spell. Hostiles within the radius have their speed reduced and take radiant damage over time while friendlies receive increased defense.
[Warlock]Eldritch BlastA beam of crackling energy that streaks toward a creature within 120 feet range. At the current character level, eldritch blast summons four beams, each can be directed at different targets.
Tendrils of ProtectionConjures black and shadowy eldritch tendrils that increase defence. The user can choose to end the spell by having the tendrils sprout in a 5-feet radius around the user, dealing psychic damage and chance of giving the frightened status at afflicted enemies.
[Paladin]Divine SmiteDesignate one enemy as a target of divine fury. While the spell is active, attacks from the user or its allies against the enemy have additional radiant damage.
Channel Positive EnergyHeals allies in a 30-foot radius of the user with divine energy.
Other Skills:
[Divine Soul Sorcerer]Angelic FormManifest a pair of angel wings and a halo. The angel wings can be used to fly while the halo emits a source of light.
Metamagic: QuickenedAllows the user to cast spells with reduced cooldown. Can be used 15 times each day.
[Warlock]Soul CrucibleA secret knowledge that imbued one's armament with the soul of the user. Allows the user to use Charisma instead of Strength to deal damage from melee weapons.
[Paladin]Aura of RighteousnessGives allies in the party resistance to status effect based on the Paladin's Charisma status.
Virtual History:A scion of the noble house of Gatriel, having the power to command celestial magic due to being descended from Gatriel the heavenly angel, Claudia Solaria von Gatriel used to be a Countess who made a contract with the old god Xal'Zagoth to prevent her people and fief from being burnt down by an Ancient Dragon. The old god returned the ancient dragon to slumber, but in return, Claudia must now serve as his champion, doing his bidding lest the dragon awakens once more and devastate her home. In doing the bidding of her patron, Claudia now found herself as a member of the Ebon Covenant, in the company of dangerous and malicious figures who banded together for protection and possible cooperation...such was the nutshell of the backstory for Claudia Solaria von Gatriel that was crafted by Robert.
A male picking female avatars in games is hardly a novel concept. Some do it because they explicitly wish to troll other players, some because 'If I'm spending a lot of time with this character might as well make it a hot girl', and some actually do it in an attempt to explore their sexuality. Robert's reason was none of the above. He was interested purely in its 'artistic merit' as an actor, that is to say, to experience playing a role that is vastly different from who he is. Whereas Robert is an introverted somewhat cynical man, Claudia is an extroverted caring woman who is torn by her natural kindness and her deal with the old god. That is all there is to it to Robert, an interesting role to play and explore, nothing more, nothing less.
Robert first joined TOE about two years ago, about a year after he made the shift from theatre to showbiz. It was at this point, that Robert started to miss actual acting again rather than being a glorified fan service. While there was nothing stopping him from acting, his new schedule made it hard to dedicate time to a theatre troupe. It was then, that a friend of his from high school—who was still pursuing a career in theatre, unlike Robert—invited Robert to join The Ebon Covenant, his RP-focused guild in the virtual MMO Tales of Endoroth. The Ebon Covenant was an RP guild for evil RP, with the concept being a secret society of various evildoers who banded together for protection and ease of cooperation. Its members range from crime lord to a demon possessing a demoniac, to necromancers, to—in Claudia's case—a noblewoman who made a pact with an evil old god.
Now, two years later, what started as just a fun hobby has turned into a passion that Robert sunk quite a bit of time on. He mostly played with the guilds, but as someone who also likes to optimize builds, Robert occasionally plays with players outside the guild, since not all of the guild members focus on grinding for the best loot if it doesn't concern their RP. Of course, while Robert did not go full-on RP mode while playing with players outside the guild, since he treated Claudia as he treated a role he would play in a theatre performance, it was hard to break character completely while on 'Costume', especially after playing the character for so long, making Robert interact with people using the personality of 'Claudia' rather than 'Robert' just minus the whole fantasy noblewoman backstory bit. His ladylike prim and proper mannerisms as well as his fancy way of speaking as Claudia often make people in his party joke about his true identity being some famous socialite rich girl or even the princess of England or some other country that still has monarchs. A fact that Robert is quite pleased with as it means that his acting is impeccable. It is, admittedly a somewhat eccentric way of playing an MMO, but Robert always said that the eccentric artist is a trope for a reason. Art is rather quirky at times.
Notes:
*Claudia is built with dumping Strength and maximizing Charisma both for melee damage and spell damage.
*Jacob, Robert's friend and Guildmaster of The Ebon Pact is currently the only one who knows Claudia's IRL identity.
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