Danorth
05-25-10, 05:29 AM
Name: Ignis
Age: 250, give or take ten years; he appears to be 36.
Race: Human
Hair Color: Black to Silver
Eye Color: Red with the occasional glint of deep blue
Height: ~5'11''
Weight: ~165 lbs.
Occupation: Former Blacksmith; Slight dabbling in Stone Crafting
Personality: Ignis is a benevolent being. He's spent hundreds of years of his life attempting to right that which he sees wrong in the worlds he visits, all the time trying to better himself and doing his best to kindle goodness in others. When it comes to the grind, he will draw his weapon and fight hard and well if he must, but he much prefers spar as a friend or ally or simply relax and enjoy the company of others.
Appearance: Slightly wearied and worn-looking at first sight, Ignis' first impression is likely that of a tired traveler and warrior. Kind, almost sad eyes, a scruffily kept short beard, and unkempt hair portray his often gentle and kind demeanor. He wears loose-fitting, lightly worn clothes: hakama and a half-kimono top, the sleeve and cloak flowing over the left half of his torso and the kimono-obi holding the cloth to him, all adorned with a black-based flame pattern. The right half of his torso is covered with bandages, the arm clad in an armor sleeve. His strange attire is bolstered by a large, polygonal stone object that he carries with him, often on his shoulder, which contains his weapon.
A drawing of my character (yes, by me) can be found HERE (http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm122/AmesAlbums/Ignis36.png).
History: Ignis' beginnings were long ago. He was the apprentice of a great flame-wielder, a human with the ability to bend flames to their will. He learned a great deal from his master. The man was like a father to him. While Ignis' true parents seemed distant, his master was there with him every step of the way when he had a problem, something he felt he needed to speak about, or needed something to do. These were good times, and he wished they'd never end. Sadly, all things have an end, and this was no exception. His master, having become fed up with the politics in Ignis' city, assassinated one of the new politicians and fled the city, leaving Ignis a great weapon and the chance to enter a new apprenticeship at an academy.
A voice began to appear in his mind. It had been there all along, perhaps waiting for the right moment to spring its input, and now was that time. Yes, Ignis was a good child, but this new voice was not interested in kindness or benevolence. It was interested only in destruction and power. It distracted him, tempted him towards horrible deeds. Ignis' personality began to disintegrate, jumping between the kind but shy boy he'd always been to a violent, stress-stricken wreck. His sleep was wracked with nightmares of flame and destruction and his days with drowsy academy work and bouts of anger which drove away potential friends and created a ring of bullies and nags.
Ignis' potential as a flame wielder was impeccable, and it only increased as the voice began to contact him. His building confusion and stress caused his ability to ebb and flow, retract and explode, along with the fluctuations in his personality. When he was wrongly accused of cheating in a course in the academy, his anger flared. The outer shell of sanity split for what seemed like an instant, and when he regained his senses, the building was destroyed, the students unlucky enough to have been caught inside scorched in their seats. The dreams he'd been having began to come true as he lapsed in and out of consciousness, the unconscious part of him killing and burning all in his path as the conscious mind tried to no avail to stop it.
Needless to say, he left the burning wreckage of his former home and lived life in solitude, traveling the country, trying to master his alternate self which had given itself a name: Shinji.
Eventually he found himself an estranged group of traveling companions. For a time, albeit a short one, he wandered from town to town with this group- a cat girl, several people with wings like a bird's, even a strange woman who could turn her body parts into weapons. He still struggled with his alternate half, but not as often.
The group drifted apart after a time. All good things must come to an end, remember. And so, for many more years, he wandered. He mastered his other self and further mastered his art of flame wielding. And after almost 15 painstaking years, he caught up with his old master who'd come to a new life's work- the mastery of planar travel. "All that's left here to right is petty evil, my boy," the master had said. "There's much more out there to tap into, to explore, if only we can get there to fix it."
The old man died days before he should have truly found the key to his study, but Ignis was there to follow up at the age of 33. He continued his master's study and soon found himself careening through space and landing hard on the other side of the tunnel he'd created, everything snapping shut behind him, dumping him into a new universe entirely. He spent years upon years further mastering the plane-shifting ability and exploring new worlds and universes, righting things he crossed that he saw to be wrong or evil, rising against challenges, attempting to improve himself and others. Each time he traveled to a new universe, the laws were different- time, space, magic, everything had at least a small difference. What seemed to him like hundreds of years only aged Ignis a total of 3 years in appearance and physique.
In previous universes, the metal sleeve Ignis wears on his right arm deflected or disbursed most any magical assault, and its dull-glowing plates were strong enough to parry a blade as well. His cloth vestments' flame-patterns danced and shimmered like a true flame, slowed. The great stone sheath that held his Yanmaodao (a 'Chinese' straight bladed sword with a curved slashing tip, not unlike a scimitar, and a long handle) was a hovering artifact that followed its master like a sentinel, the runes on its surface glowing a slow-burning red. It served as the medium of Ignis' travel between planes, its polygonal panels separating and dragging him through strange windows.
As soon as the stone scabbard dropped Ignis into this new world, it fell to the ground after him, losing its glow, the magic seeping out of it and dissipating. It no longer automatically followed him around or even hovered. The metal sleeve he wore adopted the state of steel, and the flame-dancing clothing stopped its formerly ceaseless animation, freezing and becoming just a mundane flame pattern. The magic he used to easily spin flames to his design and will sputtered to nearly nothing, making even the kindling of a campfire (a formerly simple, quick 'snap of the fingers' task) a straining effort.
He became a wanderer once again, as he did every time he hopped plains, carrying the heavy stone scabbard over his shoulder.
To this day, the voice within bothers him from time to time, seldom causing him to spit a bit of sarcasm or an angry outburst. His eyes flash dark blue when the darker side of him takes hold, even if it is for only a few moments.
Skills: Swordplay, to his own sadness, is something that Ignis is well practiced in. His ability with his weapon of choice, the Yanmaodao, is at least above average, and he easily has the strength to handle the blade. He prefers honorable tactics.
Ignis' most interesting talent, formerly at least, is the ability to influence flames. This power has dwindled to a flickering candlestick in comparison to the forest fire it once was in previous universes, but he is still able to start a fire much more easily. The ability increases with the volume of flames in a given area. With a roaring fire, Ignis may be able to pull a small fist-sized amount of flame and hold it in the air for a few seconds as a bit of an amusing show, but in the ways of combat, this ability is next to useless.
His tertiary but possibly most useful ability is his ability, adopted over the centuries, to speak in tongues, allowing any creature listening to understand what he says. This does not mean that they necessarily can communicate back, however. In order for them to do so, Ignis must be able to understand the language that they reply in.
Tongues is a very limited speech, as well, for example- complicated phrases and words are broken down, and specific things are difficult to convey. The receiver of a message spoken in tongues might receive "do very want food," while the speaker may have said something more along the lines of "I'm starving to death."
--Swordplay, above average.
--Control/Influence (not direct creation) of flames, mediocre at best.
--Tongues, limited and one-way
Equipment: A Yanmaodao sabre (Steel, Average)(Wikipedia Article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yanmaodao)), a large stone sheath, a long pipe used likely for tobacco (Oak, Average), and a metal gauntlet sleeve on his right arm (Steel, Average).
Travel goods and rations are kept in his kimono and kimono sleeve, fitted with pockets on the inner layer.
Familiars: Formerly, the stone scabbard, which used to float and follow him but is now just an ornate, heavy scabbard which he must carry.
[If you're interested, I began to write a back story for my character years ago when I first role-played with the 19-year-old Ignis. It can be found HERE (http://z15.invisionfree.com/Safehaven333/index.php?showtopic=16&st=0&#last).]
Age: 250, give or take ten years; he appears to be 36.
Race: Human
Hair Color: Black to Silver
Eye Color: Red with the occasional glint of deep blue
Height: ~5'11''
Weight: ~165 lbs.
Occupation: Former Blacksmith; Slight dabbling in Stone Crafting
Personality: Ignis is a benevolent being. He's spent hundreds of years of his life attempting to right that which he sees wrong in the worlds he visits, all the time trying to better himself and doing his best to kindle goodness in others. When it comes to the grind, he will draw his weapon and fight hard and well if he must, but he much prefers spar as a friend or ally or simply relax and enjoy the company of others.
Appearance: Slightly wearied and worn-looking at first sight, Ignis' first impression is likely that of a tired traveler and warrior. Kind, almost sad eyes, a scruffily kept short beard, and unkempt hair portray his often gentle and kind demeanor. He wears loose-fitting, lightly worn clothes: hakama and a half-kimono top, the sleeve and cloak flowing over the left half of his torso and the kimono-obi holding the cloth to him, all adorned with a black-based flame pattern. The right half of his torso is covered with bandages, the arm clad in an armor sleeve. His strange attire is bolstered by a large, polygonal stone object that he carries with him, often on his shoulder, which contains his weapon.
A drawing of my character (yes, by me) can be found HERE (http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm122/AmesAlbums/Ignis36.png).
History: Ignis' beginnings were long ago. He was the apprentice of a great flame-wielder, a human with the ability to bend flames to their will. He learned a great deal from his master. The man was like a father to him. While Ignis' true parents seemed distant, his master was there with him every step of the way when he had a problem, something he felt he needed to speak about, or needed something to do. These were good times, and he wished they'd never end. Sadly, all things have an end, and this was no exception. His master, having become fed up with the politics in Ignis' city, assassinated one of the new politicians and fled the city, leaving Ignis a great weapon and the chance to enter a new apprenticeship at an academy.
A voice began to appear in his mind. It had been there all along, perhaps waiting for the right moment to spring its input, and now was that time. Yes, Ignis was a good child, but this new voice was not interested in kindness or benevolence. It was interested only in destruction and power. It distracted him, tempted him towards horrible deeds. Ignis' personality began to disintegrate, jumping between the kind but shy boy he'd always been to a violent, stress-stricken wreck. His sleep was wracked with nightmares of flame and destruction and his days with drowsy academy work and bouts of anger which drove away potential friends and created a ring of bullies and nags.
Ignis' potential as a flame wielder was impeccable, and it only increased as the voice began to contact him. His building confusion and stress caused his ability to ebb and flow, retract and explode, along with the fluctuations in his personality. When he was wrongly accused of cheating in a course in the academy, his anger flared. The outer shell of sanity split for what seemed like an instant, and when he regained his senses, the building was destroyed, the students unlucky enough to have been caught inside scorched in their seats. The dreams he'd been having began to come true as he lapsed in and out of consciousness, the unconscious part of him killing and burning all in his path as the conscious mind tried to no avail to stop it.
Needless to say, he left the burning wreckage of his former home and lived life in solitude, traveling the country, trying to master his alternate self which had given itself a name: Shinji.
Eventually he found himself an estranged group of traveling companions. For a time, albeit a short one, he wandered from town to town with this group- a cat girl, several people with wings like a bird's, even a strange woman who could turn her body parts into weapons. He still struggled with his alternate half, but not as often.
The group drifted apart after a time. All good things must come to an end, remember. And so, for many more years, he wandered. He mastered his other self and further mastered his art of flame wielding. And after almost 15 painstaking years, he caught up with his old master who'd come to a new life's work- the mastery of planar travel. "All that's left here to right is petty evil, my boy," the master had said. "There's much more out there to tap into, to explore, if only we can get there to fix it."
The old man died days before he should have truly found the key to his study, but Ignis was there to follow up at the age of 33. He continued his master's study and soon found himself careening through space and landing hard on the other side of the tunnel he'd created, everything snapping shut behind him, dumping him into a new universe entirely. He spent years upon years further mastering the plane-shifting ability and exploring new worlds and universes, righting things he crossed that he saw to be wrong or evil, rising against challenges, attempting to improve himself and others. Each time he traveled to a new universe, the laws were different- time, space, magic, everything had at least a small difference. What seemed to him like hundreds of years only aged Ignis a total of 3 years in appearance and physique.
In previous universes, the metal sleeve Ignis wears on his right arm deflected or disbursed most any magical assault, and its dull-glowing plates were strong enough to parry a blade as well. His cloth vestments' flame-patterns danced and shimmered like a true flame, slowed. The great stone sheath that held his Yanmaodao (a 'Chinese' straight bladed sword with a curved slashing tip, not unlike a scimitar, and a long handle) was a hovering artifact that followed its master like a sentinel, the runes on its surface glowing a slow-burning red. It served as the medium of Ignis' travel between planes, its polygonal panels separating and dragging him through strange windows.
As soon as the stone scabbard dropped Ignis into this new world, it fell to the ground after him, losing its glow, the magic seeping out of it and dissipating. It no longer automatically followed him around or even hovered. The metal sleeve he wore adopted the state of steel, and the flame-dancing clothing stopped its formerly ceaseless animation, freezing and becoming just a mundane flame pattern. The magic he used to easily spin flames to his design and will sputtered to nearly nothing, making even the kindling of a campfire (a formerly simple, quick 'snap of the fingers' task) a straining effort.
He became a wanderer once again, as he did every time he hopped plains, carrying the heavy stone scabbard over his shoulder.
To this day, the voice within bothers him from time to time, seldom causing him to spit a bit of sarcasm or an angry outburst. His eyes flash dark blue when the darker side of him takes hold, even if it is for only a few moments.
Skills: Swordplay, to his own sadness, is something that Ignis is well practiced in. His ability with his weapon of choice, the Yanmaodao, is at least above average, and he easily has the strength to handle the blade. He prefers honorable tactics.
Ignis' most interesting talent, formerly at least, is the ability to influence flames. This power has dwindled to a flickering candlestick in comparison to the forest fire it once was in previous universes, but he is still able to start a fire much more easily. The ability increases with the volume of flames in a given area. With a roaring fire, Ignis may be able to pull a small fist-sized amount of flame and hold it in the air for a few seconds as a bit of an amusing show, but in the ways of combat, this ability is next to useless.
His tertiary but possibly most useful ability is his ability, adopted over the centuries, to speak in tongues, allowing any creature listening to understand what he says. This does not mean that they necessarily can communicate back, however. In order for them to do so, Ignis must be able to understand the language that they reply in.
Tongues is a very limited speech, as well, for example- complicated phrases and words are broken down, and specific things are difficult to convey. The receiver of a message spoken in tongues might receive "do very want food," while the speaker may have said something more along the lines of "I'm starving to death."
--Swordplay, above average.
--Control/Influence (not direct creation) of flames, mediocre at best.
--Tongues, limited and one-way
Equipment: A Yanmaodao sabre (Steel, Average)(Wikipedia Article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yanmaodao)), a large stone sheath, a long pipe used likely for tobacco (Oak, Average), and a metal gauntlet sleeve on his right arm (Steel, Average).
Travel goods and rations are kept in his kimono and kimono sleeve, fitted with pockets on the inner layer.
Familiars: Formerly, the stone scabbard, which used to float and follow him but is now just an ornate, heavy scabbard which he must carry.
[If you're interested, I began to write a back story for my character years ago when I first role-played with the 19-year-old Ignis. It can be found HERE (http://z15.invisionfree.com/Safehaven333/index.php?showtopic=16&st=0&#last).]