Name: Astera Nalin
Species: Zelosian
Age: 46
Gender: Female
Faction: Jedi Rescuer
Rank: Master
Master: I have no current master, I
am a Master!
Former master(s): A man by the name of Seri White, who died in battle a little less than a decade ago.
Homeworld: Zellos II
Trained at: The Jedi Praxeum on Arkania
Spoken Languages: Basic and Zelosian
Written Languages: Just Basic, and that's hard enough.
Concerning you
You are on a mission. How did you dress for it? What else can you say about your looks?
I have a triangular face with well-defined features. Full lips and almond-shaped eyes, high and narrow cheekbones with small ears and a cute nose. I'm somewhat proud of how I look, and I take care of myself to make sure I'm always presentable. My short hair is a natural fiery red, and contrasts my species' bright green eyes well. My skin is mostly smooth and slightly tanned, save for a few random scars gained over the years which resist taking on any color from the sunlight. I am 5'8" (~1.7 meters tall) and weigh about 120 lbs (~55 kg). I'm quite modest in how I dress, preferring to cover as much of my body as possible. Along with my normal outfit, I wear the traditional brown Jedi robe, and always carry my green-bladed lightsaber with me by tucking it into a hidden pocket in my belt.
In order to confront the Sith, you need to be strong. Name one weakness or flaw you have identified but not neutralized.
Well, I am dyslexic, so it’s hard for me to read something and get it right on the first try without focusing, and this also affects my ability to write. Though I suppose you're looking for me to say one of the things that I can yet change?
In battle, I am not against harming my opponent when necessary but I prefer not to take any life, so sometimes I may not use as much force as is needed until I realize that I do need to try harder. I would also describe myself as soft-hearted, which would explain why I’m here as a rescuer rather than a member of the strike team. I cannot bring myself to leave someone who is suffering or in need of help, and I often don’t think past the present moment before attempting to help because, in my experience, if you wait it's too late.
Fighting Sith is not easy. How do you plan to use the Force for this?
I have many skills and abilities within the Force, here they are listed in no particular order:
Telekinesis
Serenity Trance
Center of Being
Alter Damage
Mind Trick
Force Sight
Force Healing
Force Empathy
Detoxify Poison
Comprehend Speech
Sure, you can use the Force… but what else can you do?
I know quite a few things about plants, how to tend to them and help them grow as well as useful ways to use them and which ones are ok to eat, I’ve even got a few good recipes for on-the-field; normal, I think one would imagine considering I
am a plant. Aside from my green thumbs, I have a meticulous attention to detail and a rather good memory, if I do say so myself. I’m good at keeping an optimistic outlook on problems, and am easily able to keep calm and in-control when under pressure. I am ambidextrous, meaning that both of my hands can be used to wield a blade to equal ability in combat, and it’s rather handy for tasks needing precision and dexterity, though I’m not much of a tinkerer or anything of the like. I’m quite adaptable, and able to analyze a situation to quickly make decisions based on what I know in that moment. Socially, I’m good at avoiding confrontations and arguments, and I always make an effort to be kind to others. I do see the bad in the universe, I just hope the good can outweigh it.
Something got you to join this mission. What was it? What events shaped your life?
I can barely remember anything of my time before I was found by the Jedi Order as a 5-year-old. The earliest memory I have is of a game I played with the other younglings at the Praxeum on the planet Arkania.
As a youngling I was a studious child, but not nearly as much as I should have been. My attentions always strayed off the current task, even when I tried to meditate and focus on the force. I an attempt to help me learn to focus, one of the teachers came up with a test to try and find out what the problem was. I have a natural ability to sense the emotions of those around me, even when they were hiding them on the surface. This empathy caused many distractions, and it got so hard to focus past it sometimes that I had to go somewhere I’d be completely alone so I could practice using the force at all.
Yet once I was able to focus I found that certain aspects of the force came to me with ease, skills such as sensing my surroundings and using telekinesis. Focus continued to be my greatest challenge until I became a Knight, but until then I practiced as much as I could at tuning out my own emotions and the emotions of others. Eventually I got to the point where it was effortless to do, but admittedly it was slow going until I actually became a padawan. My master was a great help in learning this control.
I was 13 when I passed the initiate trials, and when I first met Seri White, or Master Seri as I would call him. He was an old Knight who had trained two padawans before me, both of whom had passed the Knight’s trials on their first attempt. Seri was a good teacher, a highly skilled Jedi, and a kind, tolerant person. It never ceased to amaze me how he cared about all the people he came into contact with during missions. He made sure to protect even his enemy from the threat they posed, to others and to themselves. I like to think I learned this trait from him, though it was not one he made any effort to pass on to me. "Compassion is the belief that all life is precious and important. Just because your opponent may be an enemy for now, it doesn’t mean that they can’t change if given a chance."
Seri was quick to notice where I struggled and what my strengths were. He saw potential in me that I myself was blind to. I’m glad to say that his guidance was what began pushing me to get where I am now, though that doesn’t mean I was a good student at all. I can remember many occasions where I must have been the most annoying padawan in the universe to him. He took my phases of questioning and impatience, rebellious behaviors and moodiness in stride, and with a sense of good humor about him as well. He was a concrete wall compared to my young self. Soft clay trying to mold itself rather than accept the guiding hand of the potter.
As a youngling at the temple I trained in the basics of Shii-cho and Soresu. But my current form, Niman, is what Seri used, so that was all he was able to teach me as far as Lightsabers go. It was simple to learn, and I liked how the form was versatile enough to use the Force along with the blade-work. I also liked that it didn’t require any fancy footwork like Ataru or focus too much on the fighting aspect like Makashi. Seri taught me that a Lightsaber, just like the force, was a tool rather than a weapon. A means to protect oneself and the others they defend.
By the time I turned 18, I believed I was ready to attempt the Knight trials, though Seri would constantly remind me to be patient and wait until
he was sure I was ready. He would often tell me: “Not for another ten years if you can’t settle and wait! Focus, and trust in the force to guide you.” I can’t say I’ve gained any patience since then, but I did at least learn how to wait for things I wanted to happen.
I finally got my chance to attempt the Knight Trials only a short time before the return of the Sith and the beginning of the war. I had only held the rank for a few weeks before it started, and I was almost immediately sent to the battlefront. It was horrible, I think especially so for me. I saw many of my comrades, people I considered friends even, fall in more ways than one. As the bodies of the dead would litter the ground, Jedi with weaker constitutions would suddenly give in to their emotions and join the Sith. So many emotions swirling around, loss, anger, fear, hatred... The Sith would speak to us, trying to convince us to turn on our allies, to use what we felt to become 'stronger'.
I have no idea whether or not I also felt these emotions, or if I ever had the urge to give up and work with the Sith instead. The collective feeling around me was too strong to tell where my thoughts and emotions ended and where all
theirs began. If I ever did, I didn't act on the thought at all. Seeing my comrades struck down around me, or changed into someone nearly unrecognizable strengthened my own constitution. I would not fall to the dark side just because the universe around us seemed to be spiraling into chaos. I would not allow myself to think that my path may not be right.
Over the next years I got used to the wartime setting, but I didn't stop hoping for peace, or back down from the challenge of keeping myself together. I never stopped learning after becoming a Knight, as I always could find at least one thing to practice or fix. I learned to meditate and focus better, centering myself and pulling away from the chaos around me in battle to help isolate myself from the emotions of those around me, and calm my mind. I taught myself how to take care of myself and others in survival situations. I even tried to learn certain Force Skills in an attempt to neutralize a few of my physical faults, such as my species' natural blindness in the dark.
By the time I turned 26 I was assigned my first Padawan, a human named Yao-wang. He was a mild-mannered sort on the outside, but I could tell that he had trouble keeping his emotions in check. I worked with him patiently, hoping to help him find his strengths and gain control over his inner turbulence. He was a good student, though he got frustrated and gave up when things didn't come easily enough to him. Before Yao turned 14, we never went to the battlefields at all, and I think I may have lost some of my edge in the two years before we went on our first battle mission together. I noticed almost immediately that the way the enemy fought had changed over the last few years. I was nervous, and didn't feel like we were ready for this quite yet, but if you never try you can never know what you're capable of, right? We weren't on the front lines, rather far from it actually, but I worried all the same that something might happen. Imperial troopers have more strength than just numbers, after all.
At one point during the battle, Yao and I were separated from each other by a group of troopers who surrounded us. I fought my way out easily, and I thought to let Yao get himself out of the situation on his own, as he could've used some practice making a decision and acting on it. I would only step in if he needed me to. He defeated almost half the troopers who had gone after him before I noticed, too late, what was about to happen. Another group of troopers had been standing a little ways away. At first I thought they were hanging back out of fear or caution, but then one of them hit a trigger that set off a bunch of firebombs around us. I was able to keep the flames from reaching me, but everything and everyone else seemed to become engulfed in flame. I saw the troopers that had activated the trap run off to avoid the flames themselves. The others, who had been fighting Yao, struggled to breathe as clouds of black smoke billowed off of their burning flesh. I tried to push the flames further away, to clear the space where I’d last seen Yao standing, but I couldn’t find him. I could hear the screams of people burning around me, friend and foe alike. I could feel their emotions, their collective fear and pain. I tried to find Yao through his emotions but when I reached out to him he was completely silent, as if calm for once.
Later, after the flames died, I found his lightsaber on the ground next to what must’ve once been his body, now charred into ash. The battle was over by then, to this day I can’t remember -perhaps I never knew- who won. I understand his death was not
all my fault, but when I could have saved him by simply making a different decision or just noticing the trap sooner, it’s kind of hard not to feel like it is. About a year later I was assigned my second Padawan, Lovino, whom I ended up treating like a baby bird. I never allowed her to be very far from me, at least not until I was confident she’d be ok on her own no matter what surprises might come up. She passed the knight trials after five years with me, and to this day she is a highly capable Jedi.
At about the same time as I would get my next padawan, a fellow Zelosian named Kiku, the Council granted me the specialization of Jedi Sage. I accepted the title with reserved joy; it’s nice to have your skills be acknowledged. I took the same approach with Kiku as I had with Lovino, attempting not to be too overprotective. He passed the Knight Trials six years later, when I was about 40 years old.
I have not been assigned another padawan since then. In fact, the most interesting thing to happen in my life these last 6 years, besides the many missions I go on, was when I earned the rank of Master about two years ago. My skill and power in the force, and the diligence I've shown in keeping to the light side were what caught the Council's eye in the first place. This, along with how -even in this time of war- I've been able to keep a certain tenderness in my heart and show kindness even to my enemies, earned me the chance to attempt whatever trials the Council would have me face in order to become a Master. I'm not sure I'm allowed to say exactly what I faced, but I can tell you: I passed.
Now, I go to Coruscant in the aftermath of the Sith's attack there. I'm not sure what I hope to find, but from what i've heard I know it won't be good.
How do you fight with lightsabers?
I am a master of the Niman form of Lightsaber combat, which suits me well as I prefer to use the force rather than my blade, and I enjoy the adaptability of the form from situation to situation. I am exceedingly good at making sure I don’t hurt my opponent any more than is necessary, while avoiding injury myself. I am ambidextrous, meaning I can hold my lightsaber in either hand or with both at once, it doesn’t matter.
How do you relate to the other characters?
I try to be friendly and cordial no matter who I'm speaking to, at least unless said person proves to be too difficult; I've proven to be much more passive than one would expect, even when antagonized. My cold side isn't as bad as you might think though, so long as I'm being sociable. My bite is certainly worse than my bark, as any Sith will soon find.
Out of Character
How powerful is she in the Force?
She is a Jedi Sage and a Master, so she’s pretty powerful.
- (Master) She has extreme amounts of both strength and control with this skill, as she should as a Sage.
Serenity Trance - (Master) A brief and specialized meditative state for use in battle. If she can do this for even just a few seconds mid-battle it will allow her to regain her focus and power.
Center of Being - (Master) Another specialized form of meditation, and a stance used in lightsaber combat. When in such a state, she can almost unconsciously defend from even the most flowing random attacks and feints.
Alter Damage - (Advanced) She doesn’t wish to harm her opponent any more than necessary, and this skill is perfect for that purpose. She’s able to prevent her strikes from doing barely any damage at all if she wants, and has a great amount of control over this ability to ensure that.
Mind Trick - (Advanced) She is able to defend herself against most mind tricks, and able to trick most anybody if they’re not defending themselves as well. She’s never really tried to trick another force user before, as she’s had no reason to try it on Jedi, and with Sith she’s usually too busy fighting or throwing things around with telekinesis to try it.
Force Empathy - (Advanced/Innate) She’s a natural empath, and picks up other’s emotions with little effort. Almost all her training with this has been in order to control what she senses, and to tune out the emotions that could cause her to loose her own calm or harm her.
Comprehend Speech - (Advanced) She is easily able to grasp and comprehend the meaning of alien words when attempting to communicate with any being she would not normally be able to understand. Use of this skill takes minimal effort and it kicks in almost automatically on her part.
Force Sight - (Intermediate) While most younglings are taught to sense what’s around them with the force, she studied this further as a way to compensate for her species’ blindness in the dark. She’s able to clearly make out everything within 15 meters of her without needing much focus, and up to 150 meters with concentration. Anything much farther away than that she needs to meditate in order to see.
Force Healing - (Intermediate) She can heal herself or another, but it won’t do much. She can heal mild wounds and take the edge off of worse ones, but any severe wound would take a lot of focus to do anything to, and would most likely need many treatments to completely heal. She has trained with this skill enough to no longer need to meditate in order to use it, but it doesn’t hurt to do so anyway.
Detoxify Poison - (Intermediate) She originally wanted to learn this skill in an attempt to see if she could neutralize the effect that sugar has on her, as other species have been able to do the same with alcohol. It does take the edge off, but she’s a lightweight when it comes to ‘drinking’. Other toxins are much easier for her to neutralize, and tend to clear her system in about half the time they normally would when she focuses.
Has your character encountered members of the other factions before?
More than likely, but exactly who is still up for grabs.
Your character can’t know her every weakness or flaw. Which ones were missing above?
Astera has a soft spot for all living things, and is perhaps too kind to realize when she needs to stand her ground against the ideas of her comrades, and when she needs to step up. While she’ll call out things that would lead to the dark side and stop herself from going that path, she’ll compromise in the cases of others because she wants them to make their own choice rather than have others feel forced to do anything by her. She prefers to avoid arguments, no matter if she’s right or not. She’ll follow any order she is given, but in a way that she feels is right with the force.
As far as her physical flaws, she has Dyslexia: which means that while she is not illiterate sometimes she may as well be. It is a good thing that most of her missions don’t require her to read or write anything important. Also on the topic of sight, her race is completely blind in the darkness. Zelosians also have a strange reaction to sugar, where it has the same effect on them as alcohol does on other species.
As a non-human, list what traits your character has specifically because of their Species.
Zelosians:
- Are blind in the dark
- Have Chlorophyll sap instead of blood
- Get drunk off of Sugar
- All have Emerald green eyes
Nothing is mentioned on the wiki about them needing sunlight to survive, So I’m going to assume it doesn’t affect them that much unless they go without sunlight for weeks, maybe months, on end.
The Dark Side. How well does your character resist it?
Astera is extremely grounded in the light. As a Sage it's part of her job to resist the dark side with all her might, and she's very good at that.
What is your character’s personality like? What motivates her?
Her goal, and what she believes her purpose is in life, is to be the best Jedi she could possibly be, and therefore the best person she could be as well. In every action she takes she’s very reserved, only doing what she absolutely must to win a fight, while causing the least possible amount of harm to her opponent. She’s good at fighting, but that doesn’t mean she likes it at all. She’s kind, bubbly, and easy to get along with, but beneath her welcoming demeanor and ever-present smile lies a calculating intelligence, and the most caring of souls. She values honesty and integrity, and sticks to her morals like glue, appreciating those who also have these qualities, even if their opinions may differ from her own. She may not be the best at knowing what to say and when, but her overall earnestness and a lack of beating around the bush tend to make up for that. As a Jedi she’s used to hiding her emotions or pushing them to the side, but they still exist beneath her calm surface even though it might be hard to tell for sure, and some of her moods can seem to be contagious, or it may seem like she’s catching the moods of others; a sign of her empathetic nature. She has an optimistic outlook on life but doesn’t ignore the bad things in the universe, she simply hopes that the good will outweigh the bad in the end.
Do you have any limits as to what is “ok” to happen to your character?
No. Astera may be a pure light, but that doesn't mean she can't/won't get into any trouble.
Do the ends justify the means?
The ends will
never justify the means to Astera. Do it the right way or you're just as bad as the Sith, and you deserve to fail if you can't do something in the light.
Captivity. Do you want her to potentially be captured?
It's not impossible. IC events would probably have to line up in a way where it'd somehow be useful to the ST/Rescuers for her to allow herself to get captured, or she couldn't avoid capture for some legitimate reason. Who knows, it might be fun to see how her role change from rescuer to the one needing rescue would play out.
What do you think your character is doing in a few IC months?
This question is a little confusing.
If the Jedi loose, she likely won't be alive in a few months. She'd fight to the death, and if they won't allow her to die, she'll never turn to the dark side.
If they win (and she's still alive) she's going to take on a new Padawan, as before the events of the RP she was simply doing missions and helping the Order in whatever way she could, alone. In rescuing the prisoners, she'll realize how out of touch she is with the younger and less experienced Jedi, and request to get a Padawan of her own so she can help them and help herself to understand what troubles the Padawans are having nowadays. For every prisoner that turns, she's going to want to understand why they did, and to stop that from happening by training as many as she can to help them stay in the light.
Does your character have any secrets useful for the GMs’ plots?
ummmm... Nope, there's nothing to see here.
Member
Remram
MrSkimobile
LustForDecay
Days
shylarah
Mae
Foster
The Eight
Pandolin
Ti
, or you could see it as 'yeah she's not leaving this place, EVER'. I do have plans where escape for her is possible, but they involve her breaking this "no-one gets left behind" mentality of hers. I'll change the cs so this is more apparent.
