ooc → application for thevelvetkey.
Player Info:
Nickname: Jelle
Age: 19
Personal LJ: ofmarionette
Method of Contact: aim: Lunixhime | plurk: queeningsquare
Characters Played: -
Character Info:
Name: Archer / David
Age: God knows. (bad pun, I know.) Physically he seems to be in his late teens or early twenties.
Canon: Fate/Apocrypha
Pull Point: Post that series' Holy Grail war.
Background Info:
History: David and the Fate/Apocrypha information on him.
Personality: The first thing anyone would notice about David is that he truly was meant to be a king, chosen by God to become a king all along, since it's clearly reflected in every aspect of his being. Not only is his appearance suited for the job (he's described as having an 'excellent body' and an 'appearance of one prophetized to become a monarch' - he's not too bad-looking and carries himself with dignity), but also in his personality, abilities and deeds. David is a very capable warrior. Even before he became a real king, he fought off wild animals during his work as a shepherd in an effort to protect the sheep. It's said he was even strong enough to beat them to death on his own. He was also capable of defeating the giant Goliath just with his slingshot, even though he was much smaller and less strong than his opponent. This is also where David's talent lies; rather than real brute strength, he specialises in agility and quick thinking (like how he hit Goliath on the head, inbetween his eyes, since it was obviously a weak spot for the giant). The example of his fight with Goliath also shows David's bravery. Even though the regular soldiers shyed away from having to fight such a monster, David was determined to fight him since 'he has defied the armies of the living God'. David is not easily scared, and doesn't hesitate to take on a task, especially not when it's for God's sake. (More on David's devotion to God's cause will be said later.) He has also fought many wars as a king; his whole life practically consisted of one war after another. In fact, he fought so much that God left the task of building a temple to king Solomon rather than David, since he was already 'smeared in blood' from all the wars he had fought in to conquer land for his people. In these battles, his leader capabilities are also shown - he has a natural 'Charisma' skill, a natural talent to lead an army. And believe me, his army was quite big, and yet he led it all on his own.
His personality also makes for a good king. It takes a lot to throw David off; he's described as having an 'imperturbable composure'. Even in the toughest circumstances, he is the one to keep his head cool and try to figure out some sort of solution. David is not easily surprised nor overly emotional, which can make him come off as cold to some people. It's not the kind of guy you'd see cracking jokes everywhere either. He is also very realistic, accepting the situation as-is rather than viewing it in a specifically optimistic or negative way. Instead he will keep his head cool, try to analyze the situation itself and pass realistic judgement onto it. (His alignment is also classified as Lawful Neutral, which would only emphasize all of these personality traits.) David is a pretty fast thinker, he has quick wits - as for example shown in his battle with Goliath and his leadership in many battles. Even as a Servant, he retains all of these traits.
Another very important part of David, both as a hero of the past and a Servant, is religion. He was chosen to be king by God, and therefore he strongly believes in God and wishes to fight for His cause. He wants to carry out God's will, for example in fighting the people who don't follow His will, who do wrong - like Goliath. This is also reflected in one of his Noble Phantasms as a Servant, which one kills people who don't act in accordance with the will of God and does nothing to other people. This is one of the few things he can actually slightly lose his calm and collected composure about - he definitely won't forgive anyone who strays away from God's path (even though in some cases he might be slightly sympathic now as a Servant because of his own mistake in marrying Batsheba - more about that below) and that will show in the way he talks to them. He won't completely start raging, but there will definitely be annoyance viewable in the way he acts and talks. Even as a Servant, he still sees himself as a sort of 'messenger of God' and still works towards the same goals.
Carrying out God's will also means that he tries to be kind to other people, even though it might not exactly be a warm and friendly way of being kind but rather a distant chivalrous way of being kind. This is where we also see traces of his origins as a mere shepherd - he's not very egocentrical or overly proud of himself. Everything he accomplished was only because of God's help, after all. He has respect for every single person he comes across, although this respect will diminish and turn sour very quickly once he notices the person he's talking to is someone who is not acting in accordance with God's will at all, like murderers. But to regular people he will definitely bring up respect, and even if he might not be overly close there will be a distant kind of kindness and respect. Even in battle he is generous and chivalrous. He's still fighting for God, after all, so he would at least want to give his opponent a fair chance to mend their ways or surrender instead before fighting them; he's not someone who seeks out conflict just for the sake of conflict, but only does it to defeat people who aren't doing the right thing. This is also shown in one of his Noble Phantasms as a Servant, in which he first shoots four 'warning shots' (missing rocks) before he slings the fifth real one which will hit.
No human - or Servant / heroic spirit, in this case - is completely perfect though, and the same goes for David. Even though he tries to carry out God's will, in the end he's just as human as all of us and falls for temptation. His personal weakness consists of women, especially women with attractive bodies. (He's often talking about how he wants a wife because of this.) This is also seen in the legend of king David. He wanted to marry Batsheba during his life, but she was already married to someone else. So David arranged that her husband would be sent out to battle, to war, and would be put somewhere on the front lines with little armor so he would die easily. So he practically murdered the man - sent him to definitely be killed - just so he could have Batsheba. And then the man did die, and David married Batsheba. He is actually punished by God for this sin. All of this is why he's Lawful Neutral rather than Lawful Good; sometimes he can't help but fall prey to his selfish desires, especially when they involve women.
As random hobbies David enjoys music and dancing. With music it is especially about playing the harp. David has done it a lot during his life as a human, and he still enjoys it greatly. He's very good at it too, his harp playing is even rumoured to have exorcism abilities. His dancing is.. a lot less good than his harp playing though, so even if he loves to do it he is quite bad at it.
To sum it up, David used to be a capable chosen king who fought for what's right, for God's will, with a somewhat distant and cold realistic attitude about things. And even though he was human and had selfish desires getting the better of him sometimes like all of us, he does try to be respectful to the people around him and do what would be the 'good' or 'right' thing to do in God's eyes as long as his personal longings don't get the better of him. As a Servant, all of this hasn't changed about him, and he does carry these traits with him into the Holy Grail war.
Game Specific:
Arcana: Hierophant
Justification: As said on the arcana page: 'In the upright position, the Hierophant represents formality, knowledge, religion, tradition, and wise advice.' The Hierophant is virtually a perfect arcana for a person like David. He is pretty smart, or at least a quick and good thinker, and is very closely linked to religion through his bond with God (religion is practically the most important thing to him). Formality suits the way he treats others: kindly, but always at a slight distance. You could say that through religion, he's also linked with the tradition of the people of Israel, and one of the reversed Hierophant traits ('misleading advice') could point towards his sin of sending out Batsheba's husband to an useless and fatal war just so he could marry the woman.
Samples:
First Person Sample: [ When the video feed clicks on, there's actually some more silence for a few moments as the man frowns slightly - as if in concentration - at the device. But then when he notices it's working now, that he figured it out, his expression eases up a little to form a more neutral face. This person doesn't seem panicked about the situation in the slightest. ]
I assume this device is working now. [ Thankfully the Grail helps slightly with figuring out this sort of things. He takes a deep breath, as if preparing himself to speak. His voice is rather composed, reassured. ] I have been summoned to this place. For what purpose, I do not know yet.
[ But there is a purpose, there has to be, he knows. Even if he's not here as a Servant, there's always some sort of purpose when God is involved. All he has to do is figure out what, and that thought steadies him, makes him as calm as always. ]
So I would most definitely appreciate it if anyone would be able to tell me more in that regard, even if the situation doesn't necessarily seem too dangerous so far. But I shouldn't remain idle for too long in general, and I believe there has to be at least one kind soul out there who is willing to share some information. [ Then he mumbles a little more for a moment, as if he's talking more to himself than the device. ] ... Or a sign from above to shed some light, perhaps.
[ He turns back to the device, shifting some green hair out of his face. ]
Or, if no answer is provided, I will go search for it myself. But I will await any responses first.
( there's a dear_mun post here too! )
Third Person Sample: He had to admit to himself that it was rather strange to be summoned to this place out of nowhere without a clear purpose, not even just as a Servant so for the fight of the Holy Grail war. Not that there wasn't a purpose to all of this, he was sure there was. There always was a purpose to everything that happened to him, guided by God. The problem was just finding out what exactly it was. Not everything had been clearly cut out for him during his life either, after all, so this was just another trial.
Or a punishment bestowed onto him for his sins, a faint part of him couldn't help but think. But he knew there was no time to indulge in self-pitying, not when there were more important and productive things to be done.
That latter idea was exactly why he was walking through the streets of Prospero, staring around him to make sure to study the surroundings well. This place was strange to him, after all, even with the knowledge of certain more modern things being bestowed to him by the Grail. It was nothing like the streets of Jerusalem, or even any of the other cities, not even like the cities of the surrounding countries from back then. Even though the streets were just as full of people chattering away, it was much different. As he accidentally bumped into a person while lost in thought (he couldn't help but let the thought cross his mind that perhaps he should have found a less busy place to gather his thoughts) and he muttered a polite apology before the man, muttering something back under his breath, walked off again.
... Well, it didn't matter, now did it? No matter how much the surroundings were new to him, or how he couldn't find the exact purpose behind all of it just yet, there was only one clear thing to do. And that was what he had always done: acting the way God would have wanted him to, carrying out God's will. Maybe he could find a harp here somewhere, dedicate a song or another to--
His train of thought stopped for a moment as a woman walked by with long raven black hair, hips swaying like--
He quickly shook his head, trying to regain his senses. ... Fine, so maybe it was going to come with a distraction or two on the side.