#[AND ALSO how wilhelm joined to put less strain on his family and help them and katrina joined to escape her family

[fullofmemories]

thinking about how wilhelm and katrina have mirroring but opposite flaws in the way that wilhelm cared too much about others despite all the darkness to the point of self destruction and katrina lets that fear of the darkness isolate her and lead her to self destruction 

[elaristalselin]

Character Development Questions: Hard Mode (Elaris Edition)

So I’ve edited a lot out to keep from spoiling too much, but there’s still plenty of info on this Mystery Boi that everyone is so curious about!

1. Does your character have siblings or family members in their age group? Which one are they closest with?

He doesn’t actually have any siblings, and his mother is like….300 years older than him. That’s partially why he’s so jealous/protective of Wilhelm and Memor; he wishes he had someone that close to him in his life when he needed it most. If he had had a sibling, his life would have gone in a VERY different direction

2. What is/was your character’s relationship with their mother like?

HAHAHAHAHA. He hates her right now. A lot happened that already put a huge strain on their relationship, but then there was some serious gaslighting that happened to both of them and that’s what broke them up so badly. Then again, he hasn’t seen her in years so *shrug*

3. What is/was your character’s relationship with their father like?

His father died when he was about 2-3 years old, so he doesn’t really remember him. However, as a tiny child, he desperately wanted to grow up to be like him. He wanted to be a big strong soldier that would protect his mother and the rest of the village

4.Has your character ever witnessed something that fundamentally changed them? If so, does anyone else know?

Only one other person knows, but yeah he saw some shit that really messed up his view of his life and of Silshaar. He’s not telling anyone else any time soon.

5. On an average day, what can be found in your character’s pockets?

He’s always got an entertainer’s pack, a mouse, and forgery kit in his bag, but he also will often stuff his pockets with stolen goods and he never leaves without the seashell given to him long ago

6. Does your character have recurring themes in their dreams?

A lot of his dreams are of his childhood and life at *REDACTED*, but there’s often his current friends inserted in his dream worlds, interacting with the environs and changing the course of events. While not nightmares, his dreams often make him feel uncomfortable, as his friends are often seeing him during his most vulnerable times.

7. Does your character have recurring themes in their nightmares?

His nightmares often revolve around being found out, be it the party learning of his past or of his past demons finding his present self. He’s hiding too much, and that’s been weighing down on his psyche. He hasn’t stayed with anyone long enough for his life story to come up prior to this adventure, so he’s been dreading having to explain himself or risk putting the first friends he’s had in years in danger.

8. Has your character ever fired a gun? If so, what was their first target?

Guns don’t exist in this world, do they? If so, he’d probably have gone foxing at some points, but I don’t know if he’d actually participate. 

9. Is your character’s current socioeconomic status different than it was when they were growing up?

Yes. His childhood faced an extreme shift from dire poverty to luxury. Now, he shows traits of growing up under both statuses: He hoards food and has sticky fingers, but also has a very strong love of fine clothes, jewelry, and galas.

10. Does your character feel more comfortable with more clothing, or with less clothing?

Elaris’ comfort has less to do with how conservative or skimpy the outfit is, and more to do with how it makes him look and feel. His common clothes are generally full-length pants and light overshirts, but if he sees an outfit that shows more skin that it covers, he’s just as likely to want it. The fabrics, quality, and situation are the biggest draws for any particular garment for him. A silk kimono cardigan paired with a strappy tank and lace-trimmed shorts is his current desert outfit, so I think that says enough about his modesty.

11. In what situation was your character the most afraid they’ve ever been?

*REDACTED*

12. In what situation was your character the most calm they’ve ever been?

An old, old friend of his used to help calm him down after some of his harder days. She would cast thaumaturgy multiple times to emulate the soundscape of the ocean whilst he would prestidigitate the gentle sea breeze and the scent of salt in the air. They would close their eyes,  and in those few moments, they could escape their troubles.

13. Is your character bothered by the sight of blood? If so, in what way?

Blood is not typically in the job description of a bard, but he’s come into contact with the sick and wounded enough that he’s not particularly phased by it. Unless it’s large amounts of his own blood, in which case he begins to panic a bit. Being stabbed would alarm most people, though.

14. Does your character remember names or faces easier?

Faces, probably. He doesn’t often deal in names anymore. Most of the people he interacts with are nameless but with big pockets in his mind. You come to remember whose face to avoid when aliases can be so easily utilized.

15. Is your character preoccupied with money or material possession? Why or why not?

Definitely. His background gave him a very strong connection of money equating to survival. It doesn’t matter too much to him how he gets it, but he can never feel quite comfortable unless his coin purse can sustain him for at least a month

16. Which does your character idealize most: happiness or success?

He was taught that success should always trump personal happiness. He definitely values happiness, but to him, true happiness is meant to be a byproduct of success.

17. What was your character’s favorite toy as a child?

Continuing with wanting to be like his father, he had a small wooden sword and shield that he adored. As a tiny child, he’d storm around his mother’s cottage, wildly swinging at sacks of food, trees, even the plants in his mother’s garden. After they moved to the capital, he played with other children his age, playing “guards and marauders.” He insisted on being the handsome, smart captain of the guard.  

18. Is your character more likely to admire wisdom, or ambition in others?

I’d say wisdom. His closest friend was calm, introspective, and wise. He sees wisdom as a counterbalance to his lack of it. He’s smart and ambitious, but wisdom and good judgement evade him. Having someone to keep him on the right track and supplement his conscience-- the way Memor does for Wilhelm, for instance, is something he misses.

19. What is your character’s biggest relationship flaw? Has this flaw destroyed relationships for them before?

He can be incredibly manipulative. It’s just so deeply ingrained in him that it’s not even something he can turn off. After so many years of training, charming people into doing his bidding is his default mode of operation. As such, the longer people keep him around, the less they trust him and the more they see him as the conniving little rat he is. He knows this and usually keeps from staying anywhere long enough for it to come up, but he realizes that it’s going to cause some major problems later on in the party.

20. In what ways does your character compare themselves to others? Do they do this for the sake of self-validation, or self-criticism?

He knows he’s a bad person and is terrified of others knowing how bad he is. This is why he works so hard to put up a facade. He's very self-critical to the point that he overanalyzes how the party members would react to finding out what happened in his past, which only spurs him to reinforce his facade further.

21. If something tragic or negative happens to your character, do they believe they may have caused or deserved it, or are they quick to blame others?

He typically blames himself, because usually he is the one that caused the issue. Be it being caught with his hand in someone’s safe or the rare instance where he mixes up his lies, his fall is usually caused by his own folly.

22. What does your character like in other people?

Money. Next question

In actuality, he loves people who are open-minded and can think critically and question any situation. Intelligence and a dark sense of humor are nice as well.

23. What does your character dislike in other people?

He doesn’t like people who look down on others just because of their backgrounds/class/race, and is usually put off by blind faith.

24. How quick is your character to trust someone else?

Not very. He hasn’t shared very much with the group intentionally. He usually can tell quickly if he’ll like someone, but trust must be earned.

25. How quick is your character to suspect someone else? Does this change if they are close with that person?

Elaris can read a situation and the actions of others really well, so he can often tell when something’s up. It’s been a long time since he was close to anyone, so we’ll see if his party dynamics affect this.

26. How does your character behave around children?

While not directly hostile towards them, he’s….not very kind. In the few instances where he has to interact with children, he often will try to scare them by making up extravagant lies, such as how during the full moon, kobolds will snatch up bad little kids and eat them.

27. How does your character normally deal with confrontation?

He tries to be diplomatic if the confrontation absolutely has to happen. See when he tried to get Wilhelm to stop skipping out on fights. If it’s not necessary, he’ll avoid it like a pair of crocs.

28. How quick or slow is your character to resort to physical violence in a confrontation?

He’s not above it by any means. Stealth and subversion are more his forte, but if push comes to shove, he isn’t afraid to strike first.

29. What did your character dream of being or doing as a child? Did that dream come true?

He wanted to follow in his father's footsteps and join the city guard within the Spade’s domain. Elaris wanted soooo badly to continue his father’s legacy and uphold this childish vision of duty and harmony created by countless bedtime stories of his father and of heroes that came before him. Of course, having to steal your food to survive and then being trained to be someone completely different changes how you feel about your childhood dreams.

30. What does your character find repulsive or disgusting?

He’s most strongly repulsed by slavery and other egregious crimes against human rights, but onions and runny noses gross him out a lot as well.

31. Describe a scenario in which your character feels most comfortable.

Drunk and/or too high to really care about his problems, preferably on the lap of someone hot and surrounded by wealth.

32. Describe a scenario in which your character feels most uncomfortable.

Being placed in a situation that forces him to confront his past traumas, such as by being tied up, seeing people being abused, or by people specifically saying they love him.

33. In the face of criticism, is your character defensive, self-deprecating, or willing to improve?

He knows he’s not perfect, so depending on how comfortable he is with the person (Say Wil or Rosario) He’d be pretty self-deprecating but also willing to improve. Otherwise, He’d pretend to be that way, but hold a slight grudge against whatever stranger said that to him and passive-aggressively work to do whatever it was they criticized more and more.

34. Is your character more likely to keep trying a solution/method that didn’t work the first time, or immediately move on to a different solution/method?

He’d try a few times, simply assuming that whatever went wrong was on his end. If it’s something involving danger, such as pickpocketing, he’d definitely try something/someone different rather than risk getting caught.

35. How does your character behave around people they like?

He’s less afraid to let his snark out and is generally more excited to be around them. He’ll actively look for ways they can have fun together and things that will make them like him more. This is partially intentional, trying to make them like and trust him enough to keep them on his side.

36. How does your character behave around people they dislike?

Unless he REALLY dislikes them the way he does Ocha and Ifa, he’ll disguise any inkling of disgust around them and play the coy, submissive elf facade up to keep their guards down.

37. Is your character more concerned with defending their honor, or protecting their status?

Honor? He’s never been honorable. Status can be manipulated and changed, but honor is like a public manifestation of his alignment, which is much harder to get people to like.

38. Is your character more likely to remove a problem/threat, or remove themselves from a problem/threat?

Can he take on that threat? If it’s something that he sees within his power to remove, Elaris would rather get rid of the nuisance covertly than see it persist. If it’s beyond his control, you better believe Elaris is as far from the problem as possible.

39. Has your character ever been bitten by an animal? How were they affected (or unaffected)?

Elaris was probably bitten by Basil a few times after initially taking him in. Basil was scared and hungry, so it was inevitable that he’d snap a few times. Elaris saw a lot of himself in the terrified little mouse, so after saving him he did his best to give him enough space to make him feel safe and let Basil come to once he felt comfortable enough.

40. How does your character treat people in service jobs?

Despite his air of pompous regality, he’s suprisingly respectful to people in service jobs. He’s been there and lower, so trying not to make their lives as hard as his was is the least he can do.

41. Does your character feel that they deserve to have what they want, whether it be material or abstract, or do they feel they must earn it first?

Elaris thinks he deserves any material goods he can get his little hands on, but at least with emotional matters he feels like he needs to earn it. He works so hard to get the others to like him because he thinks that right now, he doesn’t deserve them. It’ll take a lot more changing on his part before he feels like he’s atoned enough to deserve genuine affection.

42. Has your character ever had a parental figure who was not related to them?

Yes! It was a horrific figure to have as a parental figure, but *REDACTED* assumed a semi-parental role at times. He manipulated Elaris into believing that *REDACTED*, so Elaris latched onto him. 

43.Has your character ever had a dependent figure who was not related to them?

Not really, no. The closest thing he’s ever had to a dependant is Basil. He’s not the most parental figure...

44. How easy or difficult is it for your character to say “I love you?” Can they say it without meaning it?

Hoo boy. It’d be somewhat impossible for him to say it at this point. Too much trauma associated with him saying that. He can say it insincerely and has done that far more times than he is comfortable saying, but he’s got too much baggage to say it in full honesty. Even if he truly did love them, it’s just not something he’d be able to say outright. He’d find other ways to show his affection to them.

45. What does your character believe will happen to them after they die? Does this belief scare them?

He thinks that he’d go to the Priesthood of Silshaar’s equivalent of hell, but he’s too afraid to think of what he’d face there, so he just tries to rationalize the possibility that death is the absolute end and nothing else with happen afterwards.