OOC: Application
|| Player Information ||
Name: Box
Personal Journal: the_safe_air
Time zone: EST
Contact: boxofgrenades@gmail.com AIM: insovietme
Current Characters: None!
|| Character Information ||
Fandom: Dragon Age II
Name: Sebastian Vael
Canon Point: After the close of Act II.
History: a wiki link goes here
Personality:
At first blush, Sebastian appears to be following the white knight archetype as strictly as possible. He takes his religious devotion with a moralistic streak and two spoonfuls of sugar. He comes off self-righteous and eager to preach to others, but without the over-zealous cruelty that makes it easy to hate. For the most part, he’s a Chantry apologist, willing to turn a blind eye to some of their cruelties to support the majority of their deeds. Throw in a vow of chastity and it’s no wonder he’s practically the Chantry’s poster boy.
Underneath his sheepish qualities lurks a mind of his own, which makes him so much more appealing than any poster. His compassion isn’t so much a byproduct of his devotion as the cause, and that informs his relationships with others. For example, his comments to Fenris are more meant to help him see that he has worth than an attempt to drive up his conversion quota. In addition, despite having every single justifiable reason to be angry at Merrill, a blood mage, he tends to be remarkably civil and almost entirely kind to her in their conversations. While he occasionally can be rather preachy, he admits that preaching can’t convince a person to change as well as leading by example can.
For all his strong beliefs, Sebastian isn’t nearly as sure of himself as he seems. Even before he joined the Chantry he had a tendency to be impulsive, and after all these years, that tendency remains in full force. He’s spent so much time following others and feeling worthless that he has trouble making decisions for himself. He waffles and wavers between his impulse to return to Starkhaven and his duties at the Chantry. He’s never entirely sure of his own choices, so he’s waiting for some sort of sign that he’s doing the right thing. He also has a lot of anger boiling inside him, and a strong desire to have purpose and value. Put those two together, and he can get very, very vengeful if pushed too far. His family and especially his surrogate mother Elthina function as berserk buttons: hurt them and he hurts you. Plain and simple.
Despite his flaws, Sebastian occasionally demonstrates more wisdom than his impulsiveness belies. He used to be quite a rake before he joined the Chantry, which makes his current morality more hard-won than handed to him on a platter. He doesn’t preach from the position of always being better, but from the position of always trying to be better. He knows how hard it is to find a path in the world because he doesn’t even know his own. Some people turn hypocrisy into venom, but he turns his into sympathy. He’s open-minded about other’s beliefs, easy-going about being teased, and reasonable about dangerous situations. Even in the midst of a total emotional collapse, he’s capable of recognizing tyranny and injustice for what they are.
Oh, and as a minor note? Sometimes when he gets emotional, he has a habit for going too far in the melodrama to the point that his sorrow swings back around and becomes funny.
Skills | Powers: First and foremost, Sebastian is a skilled archer. He’s of nobility, and however little that used to matter in terms of bloodline, it certainly matters in terms of skill. He wields his grandfather’s bow very proudly. He’s a rogue, no matter how he tries to paint it, and that means he’s fairly squishy and prefers to stay in the back row should a fight break out. His specific specialization can be found here:
Royal Archer
He has this talent tree filled up, except a few upgrades here and there:
Archery
These are his other available talent trees. He’d have dabbled in them, but not maxed any particular areas:
Specialist
Sabotage
Scoundrel
Subterfuge
First Person Sample:
[He clears his throat with a few coughs. After a fumble and clatter, his tell-tale brogue warbles over the mirror.]
Can anyone hear me? [He pauses.] This is going to take some getting used to.
[Loud again.]
I thought it would be best to pray together. To remember the people who aren’t here with us. [He stumbles for a moment, and when he speaks again, his voice has a little more humor in it.] I know, I’ve got it backwards. [He presses on.] But distance erodes memories over time, and if we are not careful, I fear we will slowly lose those we hold dear. The thought of them being here scares me, aye, it does. But the thought of forgetting them to demons and darkness terrifies me more. [His voice goes soft by the end, nearly trailing off. But it regains strength by the time he speaks again.]
I’m not going to let that happen, so long as I can help it. [A pause. A sigh.] Maybe I’m being foolish. I probably am. You don’t have to join me if you’d like not to. Not everyone’s heard of the Maker. Not everyone finds solace the same way. So long as you’re happy, do what you will.
But prayer’s the only way I know how--how to make this all right. If you’d follow me, I would be honored.
[Awkward pause.]
So what do you say?
Third Person Sample: Dealing with the roving bandits and marauders prowling Lowtown was an unquestionably good deed, but sometimes it sat uneasily on Sebastian’s already frayed conscience. On days when he awoke remembering demons under mansions and his family put to the sword, even getting out of bed felt like a declaration of war.
He seldom accompanied Hawke on those mornings, and instead buried himself in chores and menial tasks for the Chantry. It wasn’t as satisfying as introducing thugs to their Maker, but it distracted him from the thoughts plaguing him well enough. Supplies and messages needed to be delivered down the stairs separating Hightown from Low, and Sebastian volunteered to carry them. Aching knees were a small price to pay for the sense of being wanted, however little the messages mattered in the grand scheme of things.
At the very least, the stairs were simpler than the alleys and narrow walks that spread across Lowtown like spiderwebs. Sebastian could only climb up or follow down, occasionally moving aside for impatient dwarves or rushing couriers. No sideways. No upside downs. No twisting paths. No mazes. No monsters. No other way to go except up or down. One foot in front of the other, climbing or falling in time, no need to waver or wonder over the slightest mis-step. Sometimes people tripped on the climb up or stumbled all the way down, but for the most part, walking proved simple. Thoughtless. Automatic.
On the days when he awoke burning with anger, Sebastian wanted nothing more and nothing less.
Name: Box
Personal Journal: the_safe_air
Time zone: EST
Contact: boxofgrenades@gmail.com AIM: insovietme
Current Characters: None!
|| Character Information ||
Fandom: Dragon Age II
Name: Sebastian Vael
Canon Point: After the close of Act II.
History: a wiki link goes here
Personality:
At first blush, Sebastian appears to be following the white knight archetype as strictly as possible. He takes his religious devotion with a moralistic streak and two spoonfuls of sugar. He comes off self-righteous and eager to preach to others, but without the over-zealous cruelty that makes it easy to hate. For the most part, he’s a Chantry apologist, willing to turn a blind eye to some of their cruelties to support the majority of their deeds. Throw in a vow of chastity and it’s no wonder he’s practically the Chantry’s poster boy.
Underneath his sheepish qualities lurks a mind of his own, which makes him so much more appealing than any poster. His compassion isn’t so much a byproduct of his devotion as the cause, and that informs his relationships with others. For example, his comments to Fenris are more meant to help him see that he has worth than an attempt to drive up his conversion quota. In addition, despite having every single justifiable reason to be angry at Merrill, a blood mage, he tends to be remarkably civil and almost entirely kind to her in their conversations. While he occasionally can be rather preachy, he admits that preaching can’t convince a person to change as well as leading by example can.
For all his strong beliefs, Sebastian isn’t nearly as sure of himself as he seems. Even before he joined the Chantry he had a tendency to be impulsive, and after all these years, that tendency remains in full force. He’s spent so much time following others and feeling worthless that he has trouble making decisions for himself. He waffles and wavers between his impulse to return to Starkhaven and his duties at the Chantry. He’s never entirely sure of his own choices, so he’s waiting for some sort of sign that he’s doing the right thing. He also has a lot of anger boiling inside him, and a strong desire to have purpose and value. Put those two together, and he can get very, very vengeful if pushed too far. His family and especially his surrogate mother Elthina function as berserk buttons: hurt them and he hurts you. Plain and simple.
Despite his flaws, Sebastian occasionally demonstrates more wisdom than his impulsiveness belies. He used to be quite a rake before he joined the Chantry, which makes his current morality more hard-won than handed to him on a platter. He doesn’t preach from the position of always being better, but from the position of always trying to be better. He knows how hard it is to find a path in the world because he doesn’t even know his own. Some people turn hypocrisy into venom, but he turns his into sympathy. He’s open-minded about other’s beliefs, easy-going about being teased, and reasonable about dangerous situations. Even in the midst of a total emotional collapse, he’s capable of recognizing tyranny and injustice for what they are.
Oh, and as a minor note? Sometimes when he gets emotional, he has a habit for going too far in the melodrama to the point that his sorrow swings back around and becomes funny.
Skills | Powers: First and foremost, Sebastian is a skilled archer. He’s of nobility, and however little that used to matter in terms of bloodline, it certainly matters in terms of skill. He wields his grandfather’s bow very proudly. He’s a rogue, no matter how he tries to paint it, and that means he’s fairly squishy and prefers to stay in the back row should a fight break out. His specific specialization can be found here:
Royal Archer
He has this talent tree filled up, except a few upgrades here and there:
Archery
These are his other available talent trees. He’d have dabbled in them, but not maxed any particular areas:
Specialist
Sabotage
Scoundrel
Subterfuge
First Person Sample:
[He clears his throat with a few coughs. After a fumble and clatter, his tell-tale brogue warbles over the mirror.]
Can anyone hear me? [He pauses.] This is going to take some getting used to.
[Loud again.]
I thought it would be best to pray together. To remember the people who aren’t here with us. [He stumbles for a moment, and when he speaks again, his voice has a little more humor in it.] I know, I’ve got it backwards. [He presses on.] But distance erodes memories over time, and if we are not careful, I fear we will slowly lose those we hold dear. The thought of them being here scares me, aye, it does. But the thought of forgetting them to demons and darkness terrifies me more. [His voice goes soft by the end, nearly trailing off. But it regains strength by the time he speaks again.]
I’m not going to let that happen, so long as I can help it. [A pause. A sigh.] Maybe I’m being foolish. I probably am. You don’t have to join me if you’d like not to. Not everyone’s heard of the Maker. Not everyone finds solace the same way. So long as you’re happy, do what you will.
But prayer’s the only way I know how--how to make this all right. If you’d follow me, I would be honored.
[Awkward pause.]
So what do you say?
Third Person Sample: Dealing with the roving bandits and marauders prowling Lowtown was an unquestionably good deed, but sometimes it sat uneasily on Sebastian’s already frayed conscience. On days when he awoke remembering demons under mansions and his family put to the sword, even getting out of bed felt like a declaration of war.
He seldom accompanied Hawke on those mornings, and instead buried himself in chores and menial tasks for the Chantry. It wasn’t as satisfying as introducing thugs to their Maker, but it distracted him from the thoughts plaguing him well enough. Supplies and messages needed to be delivered down the stairs separating Hightown from Low, and Sebastian volunteered to carry them. Aching knees were a small price to pay for the sense of being wanted, however little the messages mattered in the grand scheme of things.
At the very least, the stairs were simpler than the alleys and narrow walks that spread across Lowtown like spiderwebs. Sebastian could only climb up or follow down, occasionally moving aside for impatient dwarves or rushing couriers. No sideways. No upside downs. No twisting paths. No mazes. No monsters. No other way to go except up or down. One foot in front of the other, climbing or falling in time, no need to waver or wonder over the slightest mis-step. Sometimes people tripped on the climb up or stumbled all the way down, but for the most part, walking proved simple. Thoughtless. Automatic.
On the days when he awoke burning with anger, Sebastian wanted nothing more and nothing less.