Post by Lepa on May 7, 2024 1:57:58 GMT -8
Name: Vance Devlin
Gender: Male
Age: 27
Race: Human
Home: Wastelands Templar Base; originally Fairvale
Alliance: The Templars
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Family: Unknown
Friends: Matilda Rosenberg, Cyril Gallant, Spade Moonbay
Rivals: Ferris Campbell
Likes: Old folklore, women
Dislikes: Monsters, magical creatures, fairies
Job: Knight-Corporal with the Templars
Relationship:
He is good friends with Spade Moonbay and better friends with Matilda Rosenberg. He has his disagreements with his knight partner Cyril, but they're ultimately a very tight combat unit who faithfully support each other. He has a playful rivalry with Ferris.
Personality:
Vance does not make the best first impressions. Owing it to his previous history as a thief and rogue, he can be somewhat insolent and a bit too laidback. His words are often dismissive and he shows little respect to authority, which usually lands himself in trouble with superiors. He seems to have little regard for other people's feelings, often poking at or teasing them. In truth, he is actually very perceptive; this is partially just his own way of learning about people, and partially because it amuses him. Despite this, he can be rather charming - which is possibly why he's been able to get away with his behavior more often than not.
Vance also comes across as lazy, as he tends to casually protest about tasks assigned to him. However, he is rather reliable and will accomplish his assignments to the best of his ability. He is also surprisingly loyal to his comrades, especially his partner Cyril.
Powers:
Even before his training in the Templars, Vance was rather athletic and dexterous. Outside of his armor, he is very quick and surprisingly flexible, allowing him to more easily maneuver through obstacles or evade attacks. He is not as fast as he'd like to be while wearing armor, but he moves faster than most others at his level. Years of training have further enhanced his base speed as well. Depending on the situation, his fighting style alternates between hit and run tactics, or a quick, aggressive onslaught.
Weapon: Scáthallta (Wild Shadow)
Vance's weapon is a blade infused with shadow magic. In addition to its standard use as a melee weapon, its magical properties mostly focus on hindering foes.
Temporary Blinding: He can channel a shadow blob and strike it towards an enemy's face, which does no damage but temporarily shrouds their sight in darkness.
Silencing: Vance can channel a different, similar looking shadow blob, which does not blind the user but instead temporarily silences them. This is mostly meant to prevent foes from casting magic that requires verbal components, but it can also be used for strategically quieting foes, like silencing a guard.
Lifesteal: If Vance focuses before attacking, his sword can drain a little bit of energy and magic from a creature upon contact. He can also absorb an even greater amount of energy and magic from a small range, no weapon contact required, but he must stand still and focus to do so; moving or being attacked will cause him to lose his concentration on the spell and he must start over.
Single Spell Absorption: Vance can "charge" his blade's magic absorption beforehand, allowing it to absorb one magic attack and store it for several hours. He can then shoot the attack back out of his blade at any point, otherwise it will fizzle out over time. He can only store one magic attack at a time and cannot absorb other creatures' energy or magic during this time.
History:
Vance had always been a bit of a troublemaker in his youth. Acutely aware of his good looks, he would often use his appearance and words to charm others, only to steal from them while they were distracted. Of course, he never seriously harmed anyone. He'd gotten into his fair share of scuffles and fist fights, but in the end, he'd never paid for anything worse than a few bruises and a night in the local stockade. It was messy, but exciting, and it amused Vance to no end.
His games would come to an end when news broke of a nearby town being overrun by monstrous, magical forces. Initially, Vance's own town, Fairvale, was relatively unbothered by such threats. The settlement had magical barriers erected decades ago, allowing it to flourish without fear. Yet, when the barriers were mysteriously dispelled, panic set in. The current population had no one magically knowledgeable enough to create a new barrier. They were left vulnerable to the new threats on the horizon, and soon all sorts of evil fae and monsters began descending upon the town.
Viewing them as an annoying inconvenience more than anything, Vance took it upon himself to deal with these creatures. He ended up working alongside an especially strong farm girl named Matilda, and the two would become the biggest threats against the strange forces. Vance himself was competent enough in battle to cut down lesser monsters in one stroke, but his real strength lay in his ability to carefully navigate around the words of magical tricksters. This drew ire from the fairies in particular, leading to them plot Vance's death.
When Matilda failed to reach Vance in time, he was saved by Spade Moonbay, a human enslaved by fairies who stole him as a child. He had just escaped and burned with vengeance. After learning of Fairvale's plight, Spade would team up with Vance and Matilda, eventually working with the rest of the town to drive out the creatures that invaded their home. Fairvale was eventually liberated, and Spade parted ways, leaving Vance and Matilda to watch over the town. News of the magical activity - and ensuing victory - quickly spread, warranting the establishment of a Templar base in Fairvale. Both Vance and Matilda were eagerly recruited for their experience. They helped establish the watch before eventually leaving for other bases in order to hone their training.
Though he had become friends with Matilda and trained alongside her, Vance was surprised to find that they weren't assigned partners. Instead, he would be teamed up with Cyril Gallant - someone Vance found too uptight and disgustingly idealistic. They squabbled at first, but through training and some moments of hardship, Vance and Cyril eventually learned to understand each other. They have since become close friends, though most wouldn't believe it from how much Vance seems to brush off Cyril.
Vance is currently stationed at the Templar base near Aster City. He himself wasn't too interested in the relocation, but went along at Cyril's request.
Anything else:
- His weapon's name is in Irish Gaelic.
- His personal creed, shared with Cyril, is "Light after darkness." For Vance, he personally views it to mean "no matter how bad things are, the worst things won't last forever."
- Full body:
