witches reign app
Name: May
Character Name: Vol'jin
Series: (World of) Warcraft
Gender: Male
Age & Canon Point: Unspecified, but probably the human equivalent of late teens. He's from close to the end of "Vol'jin: The Judgement" - in other words, very early on in Warcraft III.
Requested Sponsor: Lapis Lazuli or Opal (note: without video game magic, rings sized for a human won't fit him)
Entry position (Cadet, SeeD, Instructor, other): Cadet
History:
The Darkspear trolls once lived off the coast of Stranglethorn Vale, home to the remnants of the Gurubashi empire. As aggression and rivalry began to grow between the various fragmented tribes, the trolls began to fight each other more and more, making life difficult and dangerous for the smaller and (relatively) more peaceful Darkspears.
When it became clear that the warring was not going to end, the chief of the Darkspears, Sen'jin the witch doctor, led all of his people across the sea to the west. When they neared the Maelstrom, they found and settled on a set of jungle-covered, uninhabited islands.
Safe from Gurubashi raids, Sen'jin's son had nearly the perfect childhood; there was plenty of food to be had from sea and land, no shortage of beasts to hunt, and infinite ways to get into trouble with his best friend Zalazane.
Even learning was fun for Vol'jin; training with glaive and bow went well and quickly due to his natural talent, as did learning voodoo magic from his father alongside his best friend. Still, he had barely started to seriously entertain the dream of becoming a shadow hunter when his life changed permanently.
One night a vision came to Sen'jin as he stared into his fire: humans, death, destruction, murlocs, and his own doom. Knowing that his own time was limited and that the Darkspear Isles would no longer be a safe haven, he called Vol'jin to him and ordered him to go to First Home, the resting place of the loa, to be tested by the spirits and - he hoped - found worthy to lead the tribe onwards to their next home after he was dead.
Worried about his father's actions (and about facing the loa alone) Vol'jin asked Zalazane to go with him; Zalazane, never one to turn him down, accepted.
The tests they went through over the next week were varied and more than occasionally painful. Vol'jin saw the future several times: himself, alone and struggling; himself, fighting Zalazane; people he had never seen, yet found strangely familiar. Each time, the loas challenged him to choose between himself and the tribe; each time, he chose the tribe without hesitation.
Though both trolls successfully passed through First Home, they each lost something along the way - for Vol'jin it was temporary: a thumb, cut off to pass a test; for Zalazane, more permanent: his previously unshakable faith in his friend.
Picking themselves up from their trials, they set out towards home. With each step away, the visions of the future grew fainter and fainter in Vol'jin's mind until he was finally left with only the vaguest of memories and the knowledge that above all else, the tribe must always endure.
Abilities & Physical Abnormalities:
Vol'jin is an island troll, which means he's something over 7 feet tall, not including his hair (bright red and generally spiked into a mohawk), though he seems shorter due to his near-permanent slouch. He is lanky, blue, long-eared, and stronger/more agile than he looks. Trolls have tusks of various lengths; Vol'jin's are fairly long, a bit curved towards the end, and occasionally decorated with metal cuffs to match the piercings in his ears. Troll hands and feet are noticeably different from most other humanoids, being both larger than normal and having two toes per foot and three fingers per hand.
All trolls can regenerate to a certain extent; they heal quickly and well from normal injuries and can grow back severed fingers and toes (and possibly other... extremities.)
Due to his age/inexperience, Vol'jin isn't yet the great shadow hunter he will be later in canon. Moreover, shadow hunters' most powerful abilities are connected to the blessings of the loa, which aren't exactly present outworld... However, as he does know at least something about voodoo, he'll probably be able to manage hexxing one person at a time into the traditional frog shape, casting curses that cause pain and damage, and some healing to start with. He's familiar with herbs and herbal magic as well, but since the plant life is probably totally different between worlds, that likely will not be any use.
Physically, Vol'jin is in great shape and is already skilled with glaive and bow. He can ride raptors, which might translate decently enough to chocobo-riding. As a rule, trolls love to dance; Vol'jin's no exception, but it's more of a capoeira style that won't help him much in dance class.
Personality:
While his recent trials have made him grow up quite a bit - into someone worth taking seriously - Vol'jin is still young and has not yet had any demanding real-life responsibility greater than being the chief's son... nor does he have the wisdom and gift for strategy that will come with experience. There's still a bit of relaxed playfulness to him that hasn't yet been muted by the hardship, duty, and betrayal ahead.
The other side of that coin is a bit of naivete. He still really has faith in people, including and especially Zalazane. Despite the visions he had (and Zalazane's own doubts) Vol'jin still thinks they can make it work, that the future is mutable enough that nothing can separate best friends. (He's wrong.) That said, he's not so accepting that he can't tell when something is obviously up with someone as long as he isn't blinded by previously-established friendship.
The whole sense of confidence/youthful immortality thing is compounded by the fact that he really hasn't lost anything irreplaceable for most of his life, thanks to the safety of the Darkspear islands. More accurately, he doesn't know he has - during the months (the loa are apparently tricky with time) he was in the deep jungle, humans landed on the island and began to raid the village, his father was kidnapped and killed by the Sea Witch, and orcs arrived to evacuate the rest of the village to Kalimdor.
His devotion to the tribe is quite as real as his (current) belief in the magical power of friendship. He really will do anything to make sure it survives, no matter the cost to himself, which would definitely leave him uncomfortable in a setting where that was out of his hands for good. It may however, as in canon, translate to loyalty and a feeling of family among extremely close friends.
Vol'jin is actually quite good-natured and friendly in general; while he hasn't actually met any non-trolls yet, in his future he will form a very strong friendship with Thrall very soon after they meet. He enjoys both laid-back fun and getting into a bit of trouble, but being forcibly separated from his partner in stupidity will probably dull the mischief for quite a while, as will his tendency to behave more as he thinks a shadow hunter should. Still, if it's tempting enough...
His patience could use some work, as could his temper; he has a fairly short fuse, and when frustrated or annoyed he's prone to resorting to combat (though not necessarily with whatever made him mad) to work out his feelings. Killing things is even better for cooling him down.
Like his father, Vol'jin knows that adaptability is vital to survival; having it drilled into him by the loa only reinforced his ability to accept and even encourage change and unconventional solutions. As a shadow hunter, though, Vol'jin's idea of solutions will not always be quite as peaceful as his father's. While he will in his immediate future be willing to make broad changes to accommodate others' sensibilities, he is not now and never will be averse to solving extremely problematic issues with an arrow in the back - being "sporting" is not high on his list of priorities, especially compared to "winning." Also, while he knows change is necessary and must be accepted, a change as immediate and total as finding himself alone and tribeless in another world is not a trivial thing.
Finally, Vol'jin is a strong proponent of respect given where it's deserved: to the loa first, then to anyone else who's earned it. And - not to say he's overproud - he feels like he's earned a little respect himself, having passed the loas' tests and become a shadow hunter at such a young age. He won't exactly demand it, but he will be a little miffed if he's condescended to or treated like a complete inferior. He does not put up with bullies.
What are your plans for the character in-game?
While he'll definitely miss his world and want to return to it, Vol'jin will jump on the opportunity for more chances to work on his combat skills. Being a SeeD in itself won't interest him as much, however, as his plans for the future back home are so important to him. The same goes for GFs and paramagic - he'll be more keen to work on his canon abilities. Still, it's a challenge and mastering them could be advantageous, so he'll step up without complaint.
Aside from that, I'm interested in seeing what happens when he has a bit more time to grow up rather than being thrown almost immediately into leadership and intrigue.
Anything else?
Vol'jin has probably heard of humans enough to recognize them on sight, given the proximity of human settlements to Stranglethorn Vale, but it's not likely that he's ever actually seen any. Because he was away in the jungle while his people were fighting humans on their island and doesn't actually know about any of that yet, he won't be immediately hostile. He also doesn't speak anything but Zandali, so a translator thingamabob will be necessary.
There's a troll called Yenniku in canon who has an ambiguous relationship to Vol'jin and Sen'jin, but in my opinion it's most likely just the quest giver lying or the quest text writer getting things wrong.
Complete TWO out of the FOUR options.
i) IC Questionnaire (can be found on the application page)
What do you prefer to be known as?
Ya call me by my name like everyone else...
How old are you?
I be old enough.
Do you have any history in combat?
Ya askin' if Vol'jin scared of fightin'?
If so, have you ever killed?
Killed a lot of beasts. [long, slightly awkward pause...] Dere ain't been no sign of da Gurubashi since my papa moved us to da Islands.
i) How do you feel when you get involved in some project that calls for immediate and rapid activity?
I done tings on short notice before.
ii) Do you organize and initiate leisure activities?
Zal and me... We be havin' plenty of fun.
iii) What role do you take when working in a group?
What kinda group we talkin' about? Lotta times ya gotta be changin' places to make someting work out right.
iv) How talkative are you around other people?
Depends on da other people.
v) What three things would you want to have with you on a desert island? State your reasoning.
Desert...? Eh. I be bringin' a boat, mon. And some water for da trip back home, and a fishin' pole to eat with.
vi) Is it important to be liked by a wide range of people?
Bein' liked ain't a bad ting but it be more important to do what's right.
vii) When the odds are against you, is it worth taking a chance?
Dat's anotha question Vol'jin ain't gonna answer. What kinda odds, and how much ya gotta risk on dem?
viii) Do you consider yourself to be an impulsive person?
Havin' a plan be good but sometimes dere be tings ya can't plan ahead for, so ya always gotta be ready to act witout one.
ix) Would you agree that planning things ahead takes the fun out of life?
Nah, mon. Ya can plan fun tings too.
x) Do you like surprises?
What kinda surprise? A raptor gettin da jump on ya be excitin' but I dunno dat I say I like it all dat much.
xi) Do you sometimes wonder if there is something wrong with you?
... No, dere ain't noting wrong wit me.
xii) Do you consider yourself to be smarter than your superiors, and disagree with their decisions?
I don't tink I be smarter dan my papa. He been livin' a lot longer dan me... and I know da loa be seein' a lot more dan any troll.
xiii) Lastly, how do you feel about cabbages?
Cabbages...?
ii) Prose sample
When they neared the edge of First Home, the nambu was gone as if it had never been there. Vol'jin slowed, then stopped to examine the spot more closely. The giant raptor's body was gone as well, not even a picked-clean bone left behind, and the alchu bugs had completely rebuilt. He hunkered down, trailing his fingers across the jungle floor. He remembered every step of the fight down to here, where the raptor had fallen. Even the deep, scarred gouge its body had left in the moss and dirt was gone. The jungle on the Island healed quickly, like the trolls that lived in it, but...
"Mus' be da loa," he mumbled to himself. And - new-made shadow hunter or not, he wasn't going to ask them a question as stupid as that. He flicked the dirt off his hand and straightened up, glancing around, but Zalazane was out of sight.
Vol'jin shifted uneasily, something in the back of his mind teasing him with the taste of blood on his tongue and the smell of death and burnt herbs. The way back to the village was straight; he could catch up easily enough. Still, it was odd that Zalazane hadn't waited...
Shaking his head, he followed the trail through the undergrowth til he saw his friend ahead. "Yo, Zal!" he called, and was strangely pleased to see the other troll stop and half-turn. For half a second he wondered why he would be surprised at that, and then the thought vanished along with the feeling itself, leaving nothing but the sense that they should be heading back.
"What ya want?"
"Ya tink ya get home first and steal all da glory?" Vol'jin grinned, half-shoving Zalazane off the path as he finally caught up. "No way, mon. We go home together."