Name: Red Age: 24 Journal: redfirelight Contact: AIM @ thisismyomnitool
1. Character's Name: Anders 2. Fandom: Dragon Age 2 3. Time Frame: End of Act 3, before Hawke chooses a side. 4. Age: Unknown -- Likely somewhere in his early-mid thirties.
5. Background: Anders is a mage. Which means he was born with the ability to throw magic around, and play in the crazy demon-infested dream-world known as the Fade. Because of that, and the potential for his brain to get infested by demons from said Fade, he was taken to the Circle of Mages when he was a teen. It was, in his eyes, basically a prison for mages, in which they were constantly watched by their church-appointed (or Chantry-appointed) guardians, the templars, and vials of blood kept on hand in case they ever escaped the Circle Tower.
Anders escaped seven times.
He was hauled back every time, however, and nearly branded as possessed (the Chantry had their own word for it, but the basics are the same). He never was though. Nor was he delving into blood magic, as they also feared. He just really hated the Circle and its restrictions. On his last escape attempt, he actually managed to get away for good, it seemed. He joined up with the Grey Wardens, which gave him immunity, more or less, to the Circle restrictions, so long as he stayed with the Wardens. It seemed like a pretty good setup. He didn't have to follow the strict rules of the Circle, he had a cat, no one was going to execute him for being an apostate, he could travel the world and help people with his magic...
And run into a spirit from the Fade, a spirit called Justice. Spirits were the opposite of Fade demons, embodying virtues, rather than sins. Justice was trapped outside of the Fade, and, in his journeys with the Wardens, Anders and Justice started getting along, until Justice ran into the problem of fading out of existence, thanks to being stuck in the mortal realm, rather than the Fade. The mage decided to help the spirit out. He thought that, maybe, just maybe, if he gave the spirit a willing body to hang out in, Justice would be all right, and be able to continue existing. In addition, he thought that by using the spirit, they could both bring real justice to all mages -- whom Anders still felt were nothing more than prisoners and slaves.
That... didn't work out so well. Because of Anders' understandable, but rather unchecked, anger towards the Circle, and the Templars, Justice became altered once the two linked up. Instead of a calm, rational spirit, Justice became Vengeance -- popping in ot say hello whenever Anders got sufficiently worked up. And, considering he was now backed by a powerful spirit from the Fade, it made his anger all the more devastating, magically speaking. It became apparent when the mage lashed out and killed a Templar-turned-Grey Warden, along with several others, for commenting on Anders' new status as an abomination.
Anders ditched the Wardens after that, and ended up in Kirkwall, a city in the Free Marches of Thedas. He built up a clinic in the city's slums, known as Darktown, healing the poor, the sick, the tired masses free of charge -- while trying to maintain control of himself. In addition, he began working to do all he could in order to help the mages of Kirkwall, as the conditions there were growing more oppressive than they had been elsewhere. Which was how he found Hawke.
He needed help freeing a friend who was in danger of being made tranquil by the Chantry -- a condition that cut mages off from the Fade, the source of their magic, and, it seemed personality. Hawke needed maps of the Deep Roads, which, being an ex-Grey Warden, Anders had in his possession. In the end, they were too late to save his friend -- and, apparently, his ex -- and Hawke gained the services of a healer, out of gratitude for the attempt to help.
Anders hung around with Hawke for six years. Many adventures were had, from stopping an invasion of Qunari, to more mundane things like picking up books for elves, and gathering more companions. Through it all, Anders constantly sought Hawke's assistance on behalf of the oppressed mages, until he eventually took matters directly into his own hands. Telling Hawke that he'd found a way to separate himself and Justice, Anders used his friend's assistance to build Thedas' largest magical bomb. Once again using Hawke, he snuck it into Kirkwall's giant Chantry, and, as tensions between mages and Templars began to boil over in the city, Anders blew the bomb. It took out the entire Chantry, including everyone inside.
People were understandably upset. Most of them, if not all, were calling for his head. And... that's when he woke up somewhere else entirely.
6. Personality: Where he was once witty and sarcastic, lighthearted and easy-going, Anders is a good deal more serious, straightforward, and melancholy. At times, his previous nature pokes through, and he'll crack a joke, or a humorous remark. But, for the most part, his involvement with Justice/Vengeance, and the deaths of the other Wardens have changed him.
One thing that never changed, however, was his feelings toward cats. Anders loves cats. Not even Justice can beat that out of him.
Aside from that, he is a devoted, passionate man with a lot of anger issues. He isn't violent by himself, preferring to use his magic to heal and help rather than destroy, but following his joining with Justice, when he gets angry, he tends to lose all control of both himself, and Justice. He'll become much more likely to lash out, to cause both death and injury, until he calms himself down. Whether this is due to the spirit shacked up in his skull, or due to his own emotions, he can't tell. He claims to be bound up with Justice so tightly that he's no longer able to tell where one stops and the other starts. And this, understandably, concerns him. He is generally overcome with feelings of self-loathing and existential angst following his episodes with Justice.
He has devoted the last few years of his life to freeing his fellow mages, and refuses to stray from his path. And... he can rant about it for hours. What he feels, he feels strongly, and without reservation. If he loves someone, he loves them completely. If he hates someone, there's no room for argument. He refuses to be swayed in his beliefs, especially where the mages and templars are concerned. Even when presented with evidence contrary to what he believes, Anders is much more likely to make an exception on a case-by-case basis, rather than accept that his ideas may not be true. For instance, when confronted by a templar who was genuinely concerned for his mage charges, Anders would only grudgingly admit the man was "good ... for a templar", leaving his overall view of the warriors unchanged.
However, his devotion borders on obsession. He either sees nothing wrong with this, or doesn't fully realize the depth of his obsession. The cause is all-important to him, driving him to forsake even friendship in prusuit of his ultimate goal for his fellow mages. It's a noble sort of selfishness, but is selfish nonetheless. Again, whether or not he would be this way without Justice's interference, he can't tell. Which... just takes him back to the existential angst all over again.
7. Previous Game Developments: None.
8. Appearance: He's not particularly tall or short, around average, really. And he's pale. Probably from hanging around in a part of the city called Darktown, but still. He's blonde, and wears his hair pulled away from his face, even though it's not terribly long, with brown eyes and stubble. He works the haggard revolutionary look. Also the "feathers" look -- as his clothing always includes some kind of ridiculous feathered mantle. Aside from that, there's nothing terribly remarkable about the guy...
At least until Justice comes out to play. Then, his skin, and occasionally even his entire body including clothing, gets covered in tiny, bright blue lines, like glowing veins, and his eyes glow the same color. He starts to look like a blue sun.
9. Abilities: Anders' strength lies in healing. He's what's known as a spirit healer, thanks to Justice being along for the ride. While he can make use of offensive spells, such as fire and ice type blasts, he sticks mostly to his healing spells, and other status-buffing ones. He's capable of reviving fallen party members with his magic as well, but only if Justice comes into play. Justice severely increases Anders' magical capabilities, increasing the number of spells he can cast at once, bolstering his healing ability, or his offensive capability, depending.
In the Keep, his offensive spells will be limited to just a simple shot of fire, and one of ice. Neither will cause anything beyond a second-degree burn, or a bone-deep cold, respectively, not even if he calls on Justice. His supportive spells, such as healing, will be limited to minor injury. Should he haul out Justice for some serious healing, he'll find he can do a bit more -- set broken bones, patch up large lacerations, etc -- but that doing so will leave him weak, with a nasty headache.
10. Languages: Common, for lack of a better definition.
11. Items: His coat, in black, and the rest of his all-black outfit. His staff, and a small collection of lyrium potions. Maybe catnip.
12. Weapons: He carries a magic staff, but no weapons, aside from that. And, even then, it's more of a blunt instrument than it is anything
else. It's a long metal pole, with a sort of diamond-shaped head on it. It can be used to fire a blast of magical energy -- either elemental (fire, ice, electric) or spirit, which basically serves as the catch-all element -- but primarily as a magical focus.
13. Writing sample - Third Person Prose: Oh, that just figured. It would be vermin, wouldn't it? It couldn't ever be something nice. Maybe he should stop setting out the little dishes -- or at least set them out where he could watch them better -- if all they were ever going to attract were rats.
And, since this was Darktown, it typically meant the rats were the size of cats themselves, but, that was beside the point.
Somewhere, in the back of his brain, someone dully informed him that this was nothing more than a colossal waste of time and effort. Time and effort that could be better spent elsewhere, working, wiping out the templar interference -- they didn't deserve to live, not with how they treated the mages. Slavers, all of them, monsters and abominations--
Maker.
A deep breath, a steadying hand against one filthy wall -- they were always dirty, no matter how many times he tried to clean them, by virtue of living in Darktown -- and he pulled himself away from that thought. Just for now. He could write it down later. Do some of that work later. Because, for the moment, he had something else to focus on, and while it wasn't what he knew he should be doing, what Justice knew he should be doing, it was vitally important all the same.
No one ever started a revolution when a rat had absconded with one's pants.
The rodent in question stared up at him with huge, beady eyes, the black fabric clenched in its oversized teeth. He'd been right -- the thing was huge. But it was a rat. And it had invaded his private room. The mage lifted his staff, pointed it toward the rat, and summoned up the necessary energies for a simple, easy fireball. The power flowed through his hands, the blast launching effortlessly from his staff, and...
The rat fled, leaving Anders staring with dismay at his scorched, abandoned pants.
14. Writing sample - First Person: [This appears to be an excerpt from a long, detailed rant on some topic or other. It's apparent, though, that the author has no idea he's being recorded.]
... the mistakes of the few shouldn't be enough to condemn the entire people. The only reason for blood mages and abominations is because of everything we must endure. The templars, the Circle... they force mages into a corner, and are then shocked when the mage makes a last, desperate attempt to survive. But for every blood mage, there are innocents. And people like the Chantry, like the uninformed masses, would see them locked away, condemned, for things they would never do, given the freedom they deserve.
Just because a dog may bite, they see fit to sew shut its jaws! One criminal in a group of fifty good men doesn't automatically mean the entire lot is made of backstabbers and thieves. You cannot hold the actions of the few against the many...
[There's a lot... more. Several pages worth. And it doesn't show any signs of stopping.]
15. Tattoo: Down the middle of his stomach. Just to be different.
3. Please disable customized comments by going to Journal Style > Customize Selected theme and selecting 'Yes' in the 'Disable Customized Comments' section of Basic Options.
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Age: 24
Journal: redfirelight
Contact: AIM @ thisismyomnitool
1. Character's Name: Anders
2. Fandom: Dragon Age 2
3. Time Frame: End of Act 3, before Hawke chooses a side.
4. Age: Unknown -- Likely somewhere in his early-mid thirties.
5. Background:
Anders is a mage. Which means he was born with the ability to throw magic around, and play in the crazy demon-infested dream-world known as the Fade. Because of that, and the potential for his brain to get infested by demons from said Fade, he was taken to the Circle of Mages when he was a teen. It was, in his eyes, basically a prison for mages, in which they were constantly watched by their church-appointed (or Chantry-appointed) guardians, the templars, and vials of blood kept on hand in case they ever escaped the Circle Tower.
Anders escaped seven times.
He was hauled back every time, however, and nearly branded as possessed (the Chantry had their own word for it, but the basics are the same). He never was though. Nor was he delving into blood magic, as they also feared. He just really hated the Circle and its restrictions. On his last escape attempt, he actually managed to get away for good, it seemed. He joined up with the Grey Wardens, which gave him immunity, more or less, to the Circle restrictions, so long as he stayed with the Wardens. It seemed like a pretty good setup. He didn't have to follow the strict rules of the Circle, he had a cat, no one was going to execute him for being an apostate, he could travel the world and help people with his magic...
And run into a spirit from the Fade, a spirit called Justice. Spirits were the opposite of Fade demons, embodying virtues, rather than sins. Justice was trapped outside of the Fade, and, in his journeys with the Wardens, Anders and Justice started getting along, until Justice ran into the problem of fading out of existence, thanks to being stuck in the mortal realm, rather than the Fade. The mage decided to help the spirit out. He thought that, maybe, just maybe, if he gave the spirit a willing body to hang out in, Justice would be all right, and be able to continue existing. In addition, he thought that by using the spirit, they could both bring real justice to all mages -- whom Anders still felt were nothing more than prisoners and slaves.
That... didn't work out so well. Because of Anders' understandable, but rather unchecked, anger towards the Circle, and the Templars, Justice became altered once the two linked up. Instead of a calm, rational spirit, Justice became Vengeance -- popping in ot say hello whenever Anders got sufficiently worked up. And, considering he was now backed by a powerful spirit from the Fade, it made his anger all the more devastating, magically speaking. It became apparent when the mage lashed out and killed a Templar-turned-Grey Warden, along with several others, for commenting on Anders' new status as an abomination.
Reply
He needed help freeing a friend who was in danger of being made tranquil by the Chantry -- a condition that cut mages off from the Fade, the source of their magic, and, it seemed personality. Hawke needed maps of the Deep Roads, which, being an ex-Grey Warden, Anders had in his possession. In the end, they were too late to save his friend -- and, apparently, his ex -- and Hawke gained the services of a healer, out of gratitude for the attempt to help.
Anders hung around with Hawke for six years. Many adventures were had, from stopping an invasion of Qunari, to more mundane things like picking up books for elves, and gathering more companions. Through it all, Anders constantly sought Hawke's assistance on behalf of the oppressed mages, until he eventually took matters directly into his own hands. Telling Hawke that he'd found a way to separate himself and Justice, Anders used his friend's assistance to build Thedas' largest magical bomb. Once again using Hawke, he snuck it into Kirkwall's giant Chantry, and, as tensions between mages and Templars began to boil over in the city, Anders blew the bomb. It took out the entire Chantry, including everyone inside.
People were understandably upset. Most of them, if not all, were calling for his head. And... that's when he woke up somewhere else entirely.
6. Personality:
Where he was once witty and sarcastic, lighthearted and easy-going, Anders is a good deal more serious, straightforward, and melancholy. At times, his previous nature pokes through, and he'll crack a joke, or a humorous remark. But, for the most part, his involvement with Justice/Vengeance, and the deaths of the other Wardens have changed him.
One thing that never changed, however, was his feelings toward cats. Anders loves cats. Not even Justice can beat that out of him.
Aside from that, he is a devoted, passionate man with a lot of anger issues. He isn't violent by himself, preferring to use his magic to heal and help rather than destroy, but following his joining with Justice, when he gets angry, he tends to lose all control of both himself, and Justice. He'll become much more likely to lash out, to cause both death and injury, until he calms himself down. Whether this is due to the spirit shacked up in his skull, or due to his own emotions, he can't tell. He claims to be bound up with Justice so tightly that he's no longer able to tell where one stops and the other starts. And this, understandably, concerns him. He is generally overcome with feelings of self-loathing and existential angst following his episodes with Justice.
He has devoted the last few years of his life to freeing his fellow mages, and refuses to stray from his path. And... he can rant about it for hours. What he feels, he feels strongly, and without reservation. If he loves someone, he loves them completely. If he hates someone, there's no room for argument. He refuses to be swayed in his beliefs, especially where the mages and templars are concerned. Even when presented with evidence contrary to what he believes, Anders is much more likely to make an exception on a case-by-case basis, rather than accept that his ideas may not be true. For instance, when confronted by a templar who was genuinely concerned for his mage charges, Anders would only grudgingly admit the man was "good ... for a templar", leaving his overall view of the warriors unchanged.
Reply
7. Previous Game Developments:
None.
8. Appearance:
He's not particularly tall or short, around average, really. And he's pale. Probably from hanging around in a part of the city called Darktown, but still. He's blonde, and wears his hair pulled away from his face, even though it's not terribly long, with brown eyes and stubble. He works the haggard revolutionary look. Also the "feathers" look -- as his clothing always includes some kind of ridiculous feathered mantle. Aside from that, there's nothing terribly remarkable about the guy...
At least until Justice comes out to play. Then, his skin, and occasionally even his entire body including clothing, gets covered in tiny, bright blue lines, like glowing veins, and his eyes glow the same color. He starts to look like a blue sun.
9. Abilities:
Anders' strength lies in healing. He's what's known as a spirit healer, thanks to Justice being along for the ride. While he can make use of offensive spells, such as fire and ice type blasts, he sticks mostly to his healing spells, and other status-buffing ones. He's capable of reviving fallen party members with his magic as well, but only if Justice comes into play. Justice severely increases Anders' magical capabilities, increasing the number of spells he can cast at once, bolstering his healing ability, or his offensive capability, depending.
In the Keep, his offensive spells will be limited to just a simple shot of fire, and one of ice. Neither will cause anything beyond a second-degree burn, or a bone-deep cold, respectively, not even if he calls on Justice. His supportive spells, such as healing, will be limited to minor injury. Should he haul out Justice for some serious healing, he'll find he can do a bit more -- set broken bones, patch up large lacerations, etc -- but that doing so will leave him weak, with a nasty headache.
10. Languages:
Common, for lack of a better definition.
11. Items:
His coat, in black, and the rest of his all-black outfit. His staff, and a small collection of lyrium potions. Maybe catnip.
12. Weapons:
He carries a magic staff, but no weapons, aside from that. And, even then, it's more of a blunt instrument than it is anything
else. It's a long metal pole, with a sort of diamond-shaped head on it. It can be used to fire a blast of magical energy -- either elemental (fire, ice, electric) or spirit, which basically serves as the catch-all element -- but primarily as a magical focus.
Reply
Oh, that just figured. It would be vermin, wouldn't it? It couldn't ever be something nice. Maybe he should stop setting out the little dishes -- or at least set them out where he could watch them better -- if all they were ever going to attract were rats.
And, since this was Darktown, it typically meant the rats were the size of cats themselves, but, that was beside the point.
Somewhere, in the back of his brain, someone dully informed him that this was nothing more than a colossal waste of time and effort. Time and effort that could be better spent elsewhere, working, wiping out the templar interference -- they didn't deserve to live, not with how they treated the mages. Slavers, all of them, monsters and abominations--
Maker.
A deep breath, a steadying hand against one filthy wall -- they were always dirty, no matter how many times he tried to clean them, by virtue of living in Darktown -- and he pulled himself away from that thought. Just for now. He could write it down later. Do some of that work later. Because, for the moment, he had something else to focus on, and while it wasn't what he knew he should be doing, what Justice knew he should be doing, it was vitally important all the same.
No one ever started a revolution when a rat had absconded with one's pants.
The rodent in question stared up at him with huge, beady eyes, the black fabric clenched in its oversized teeth. He'd been right -- the thing was huge. But it was a rat. And it had invaded his private room. The mage lifted his staff, pointed it toward the rat, and summoned up the necessary energies for a simple, easy fireball. The power flowed through his hands, the blast launching effortlessly from his staff, and...
The rat fled, leaving Anders staring with dismay at his scorched, abandoned pants.
14. Writing sample - First Person:
[This appears to be an excerpt from a long, detailed rant on some topic or other. It's apparent, though, that the author has no idea he's being recorded.]
... the mistakes of the few shouldn't be enough to condemn the entire people. The only reason for blood mages and abominations is because of everything we must endure. The templars, the Circle... they force mages into a corner, and are then shocked when the mage makes a last, desperate attempt to survive. But for every blood mage, there are innocents. And people like the Chantry, like the uninformed masses, would see them locked away, condemned, for things they would never do, given the freedom they deserve.
Just because a dog may bite, they see fit to sew shut its jaws! One criminal in a group of fifty good men doesn't automatically mean the entire lot is made of backstabbers and thieves. You cannot hold the actions of the few against the many...
[There's a lot... more. Several pages worth. And it doesn't show any signs of stopping.]
15. Tattoo:
Down the middle of his stomach. Just to be different.
Reply
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