[Original] Charme [A]

[Charme]

ORIGINAL or CANON:
Original


Series of Origin:
N/A, Final Fantasy-based Tabletop Setting


What was the inspiration for them / do they embody a particular feeling or emotion?

Charme's inspiration is Music and passion. A being that manipulates magic to summon music and set the scene, he thrives on being center stage.

Charme is also a character I used previously in a tabletop campaign and I fell in love with him, as did my party members. Honestly, I could write a small novel based on this but I will keep it as simple as possible to remove a lot of that development. I think it's far more important that he gets to develop from scratch in this universe.

This character will have lost everything in the beginning. This will not be a chip that he carries on his shoulders throughout the series because I would rather keep said background static and create dynamic experiences throughout what happens in THIS universe rather than carrying over grudges from a previous one.

Name:
Charme

Nickname:
Boss,
Kid,
Dancer,

Age:
16

Gender:
Male

Species:
Hume/Human

Being Type:
Somebody

Position: (Good, neutral, evil?)
Chaotic Neutral

Appearance:

Charme is a beautiful young boy wrapped in free-flowing silks. He is hardly discernable as male with soft and delicate features, sporting both braided and free blonde hair, and verdant eyes. His body type lacks the general masculine features as well- with his lack of fighting prowess, he relies on his beauty, wit, and dexterity to get through many situations. It's all grins and laughs here- he is never caught with a frown. Accessories of various materials lay on his shoulders and arms. Crystal, metal, stone, and even bone adorn his body.

He's quite tiny as well. Barely reaching five-and-a-half feet, he is petite and slim. Part of the draw of free-flowing silks is the fact that he can flair it to catch the eyes of those who might otherwise look over his head.

History:

There's not much history behind a young boy living in poverty who sold himself to the Darkness. The child sought glamour and love, and as such he gained the ability to entice others, the ability to pull their gazes. His want for freedom, contact, and attention endowed him with power. Thus, Charme took on his name and enticed the world!

The story of Charme is that of beauty, secrecy, and manipulation. In a world very far away, he sold himself to a Dark entity simply known as 'Secret Keeper', a demi-god who collected vast amounts of data by stealing it from the memories within peoples' Hearts. The Heartless flocked to her and she tore them apart, examining the information within their bounty.

She had been locked away for hundreds of years by a servant who had betrayed her. Thus, she contacted the dying orphan via his dreams. 'Free me,' she said. 'I will give you everything you want and more. Consider this... a down payment.' Charm was gifted with a piece of her power- he told her what he wanted and one of her loyal servants came to him with a contract. It was simple. Sign the contract, be gifted a piece of the Keeper, and you can go on your way.

Needless to say, to this day this was widely considered a bad idea.

But regardless, the greed, hunger, and ignorance of the Darkness led Charme to his new duty. To free her, he needed a key to the Doors of Stone that bound her. 'A group of adventurers traveling the world for the Heroes' Guild happened to have stumbled upon this key,' so said the loyal servant of this Secret Keeper. 'Meet them and guide them to the door. Open it yourself, or charm them into it. I don't care. If she's freed, your part of the contract will be fulfilled.'

So he did. Charme met this party at an inn during one of his performances, drank two of them under the table, and proceeded to tell them how much he needed bodyguards for his caravan. Think! Drinks every night, a warm place to rest afterwards, and Charme would bring in money by the wagonloads. The party watched in drunken awe as he twirled the Aether to his will, creating music and lights, and couldn't say no- the Entertainer's plan began to unfold. Over the next few months, Charme carried them throughout the world as they each traveled towards their separate destinies. The motley crew was quite dynamic- an aged samurai searching for peace, a young farmboy who wished to be a paladin, a black mage who built machines to amplify her spells, and quite a few more. With every day, they grew to trust Charme. The Caravan grew more than this unnamed narrator could justly explain in such a short overview of the grand scheme.

He was headstrong, a little silly, and the first to step into any situation. Perhaps it was his youth that gave him his confidence, but that very youth is what made the older party members so protective of him. As Gil poured in, Charme built the caravan higher and higher. Repairing a decades-deceased airship, building a machina-fueled empire with the black mage, dancing drinking and loving all over the world! The world was at his fingertips. But the day of reckoning eventually came.

He stood in front of the Secret Keeper's prison-keeper. The man, turned into a dark entity with infinite life, raised a brow. What could a caravan of mortals do to him? Charme activated the pinnacle of his abilities, Opus. The ability to conjure up Aetherial items from his imagination. A stone door with a single hole to fit a key. He looked to the farmboy who had held the key since the beginning. The only one who had never truly fallen for Charme, for the farmer-turned-warrior's youthful inexperience had led to anxiety regarding the allure of the dancer. But the boy took out the key that he'd been warned would release a powerful being and shoved it in, believing it would lead to the prison-keeper's demise.

Oh, how very right he was. The only problem was that it spelled their own demise as well. The party was churned by the mass of Darkness released from its prison, the same power that the prison-keeper used the past hundreds of years. Charme gained nothing more than what he already had as the accumulated Darkness within that door burst forth.

As is its nature, this Darkness summoned more. His world crumbled and he fell into the Lanes Between, confused and hurt. But Charme felt no fear- he felt fear in the past, when he feared he might not find food. Water. A roof to sleep under. He feared freezing to death in his sleep. He could survive the cold and biting hunger of this weaker Darkness.

When he finally did wake, he found himself standing upon beautiful stained glass. Whispers surrounded him, warning him. It told him that he had awoken a power within him, but as his light grew so would his Darkness. Time was running out- the door was already open. He had to either walk through it or close it.

The stained glass beneath his feet, a beautiful hume with blonde hair and striking green eyes, began to dissolve into shadows. He inevitably succumbed to it and finally opened his eyes to a new world...

He pulled himself out of the debris and stared over Twilight Town. Looked like it was time to start over.

Current Primary Objective:

Discover a way to free himself from the Darkness's taint
Attempt to find eternal beauty
Learn the secrets behind Light and Darkness, their places in this universe, and the magic behind them

Learning type:
Kinesthetic

Personality:

While bubbly, clever, and perceptive, Charme loves to play the ditsy, bumbling sweetheart. He is constantly moving, humming, or singing- many times he's doing more than one at the same time. His performance is his life. Wherever he goes he seeks the center stage. He wouldn't say this, of course! But his love for applause is an addiction he can't fight.

He's an Entertainer at heart, after all. Doesn't matter where or when, he dances.

He's a lover, not a fighter. Through and through. Honestly, his 'weapon' is a performing instrument, a baton. It's pretty much useless in combat. So you can expect he'll be attempting to charm, think, or run his way out of an engagement! And speaking of engagements- Charme loves, but he doesn't commit. Makes it a point not to, actually! Regardless of race or gender, this playboy is completely foreign to the concept of conservatism. If there are singles abound, you can bet Charme will be raising an eyebrow and throwing a braid or two over his shoulder. His tendency to kiss and forget have been his bane times in the past, but generally his travels keep him away from the claws of his previous interests.

Despite all his charms, he has a tendency to delve into hedonism. Drink, the heavenly aroma of flavored cigars, and a comfortable pallet of pillows are all he needs to have a good time. If he can charm some company, all the better! His sloth and lust can end up taking much of his time away as his perception drains with the drink- his vice is his carefree nature at times.

Home World:

Non-Canonical Final Fantasy world known as Stellara, named after the Goddess of the Sun from the said world.

Natural Affinities/Abilities/Skills:

Charme has the ability to manipulate the Aether to, well, charm everyone around him. His abilities aren't enemy-centric but instead are more utility-based. After his fall, he lost the ability to use Opus. It appears that his powers have dimmed somewhat in his loss.

From The Heart:

This ability allows Charme to manipulate the terrain around him to raise the mood of all parties within. If they were hostile before, they're now wary. If wary, they are friendly. If friendly, they're trusting. This field will last until destroyed or changes via another ability. This simply means that enemies would be far less likely to attack Charme over a party member. Or perhaps even might come to enjoy Charme instead of attacking him. For those that don't have the mental capacity for that, they might instead be far less intent on eating him, going so far as to leave him be or follow him around like a lost puppy if they were inclined.

From The Heart has a passive partition- it is Charme's performance itself. He can summon music, lights, and slight feeling around him. He uses his own passion and imagination to create auditory, visual, and sometime sensual illusions around himself. This doesn't have any affect really, but rather exemplifies his passive nature. It also happens automatically when he uses the active to this ability.

Charme creates rose-tint, essentially.

Mime:

Charme has the unique ability to steal a little knowledge from those around him. His ability to perform and his ties to the Secret-Keeper, one who steals information from the Hearts of others, has granted him the ability to look into the Hearts bound to his own through those Aetherial chains and use one ability per turn that they have used in the same turn. Since it can only be used on the same turn as the person using it, it keeps the same cooldowns and resources, requiring the ally to have the resources to use it to begin with.

For ultimate-level spells like Meteor, Ultima, etc., Charme's abilities drop. Understandably, a spell that requires absolute mastery cannot be perfectly performed with a hip shake and a little Aether.

Center Stage:

Another AoE ability, Charme can divert attention at will. Maybe it's a blast of music or a rose-tinted blow-kiss, but Charme chooses who looks his way. Anyone CAN look his way, but the entities that he focuses on are hard-pressed to NOT do so. While not a natural draw, it's not something that feels magically induced.

Limitations/Drawbacks:

The first and most obvious limitation is Charme's inability to be physically strong. He can't lift heavy objects very well, he's not very efficient in tests of raw physical ability, and must rely on his dexterity when it might not be optimal.

The second comes from his lore- he has Darkness within him, as everyone does. The innate issue is that he has quite a bit of it. He took Riku's path and chose to open his Heart to it. This puts him in a pickle, as it did with Riku. The Heartless will be drawn to that Darkness. It will allow Dark beings more powerful than himself to control him easier.

The third would be his proficiency- Charme doesn't know the slightest thing about combat. He doesn't know how to wield a weapon effectively and he doesn't know how to fight very well. He has to rely on his wits in combat to avoid an unfortunately short departure.

Ability Limitations:
From the Heart Active: 4 Post Cooldown.

Mime:
Once per post. Will be his most-used ability, easily, and will make him reliant on his party members to be relevant in combat. All mimicked spells are subject to their original cooldowns.

Center Stage: 2 Post Cooldown. Every third post, Charme can direct attention his way.


Passive:


Heartborn Echo
It works with his ability to manipulate the area around him with beautiful lights and supports his utility/non-combat position in combat.

Weapon:

Sun-wu Baton. A beautiful, ornate golden baton that can shift into three different forms. A needle form, which Charme uses to hold his hair up, a baton form, which he uses to orchestrate his performances, and a staff form, which he uses like a cane or pole to perform feats.

Based from the Staff of Sun Wukong, it's a relic he gained from another world during his months with the D'Amoure Caravan.

Role Playing Sample:

Charme's lips touched briefly on the shopkeeper's hand. His emerald gaze caught hers and he straightened up, grinning again. He noticed her eyes twitch towards his smile and he rose a brow ever so slightly. Despite her age, the elderly shopkeep had been a real challenge.

She tsk'd at him. "Come now, Mister Charme! I'm an ol' lass!" Her hand went towards her white hair, pulled tight into a bun. "I've seen a dashin' devil in my days, young sir. And I could see you comin' from a mile off!"  She went back to her desk, sorting through some of the supplies she hadn't yet finished organizing for sale.  She cleared off the desk space a little better, putting a few odd effects into the drawer.  She knew without a doubt that if she left her granddaughter in charge of this shop, not a single accessory would ever get sold. Hell, the inexperienced gal would just give them away to pretty young things like this one. But an aged woman three times this boy's senior wasn't that silly, no! She continued to mark things with prices as she moved bangles and beads here and there.

Her tone was reprimanding to an extend, but Charme could hear the laugh behind it. She hadn't seen a challenge like him in a while, he guessed.  Charme nodded thoughtfully, a small smile playing over his near scarlet lips. He knew that scarlet was a good choice for the day. "It may sound strange, Miss? Miss Jannet,"- She scoffed at his words, but the smile was there- "but I've not found a challenge yet 'til I came across you." His grin was back again. A flash of white teeth, a quirky brush through his braids. "I shoulda known that I couldn't get that discount by merely being pretty, you know? So I've got another deal to make!" He pushed up the bangles and bracelets covering his wrists. "I'll do advertising for you! And as such, I'll work off that discount since unfortunately my Munny's running a little low."  His eyes skimmed over the gorgeous coral haircomb, his heartbeat picking up slightly as his focus nearly slipped over the beauty of it.  How good it would look with his scarlet hair-wrap!

The elder woman raised a brow. "Advertising..." The tiny town outside wasn't exactly bustling, but there were too many young men, women, and couples running around outside for her shop to be so slow. She pondered, looking at the gorgeous young thing before her. "Mister Charme, I am willin' to accept that deal. I'll even offer a little more!"

She leaned in closer to him and in hushed tones said, "Get these couples 'round here to buy their puppy-loves some gifts. Yer a dangerous creature and I know from experience that a little jealousy makes a lot of motivation! You do that an' I might be willin' to give ya a gift in exchange!" She cackled, nudging his pale, shrouded shoulder.

Charme laughed with her and agreed. He took some samples, waves, and walked out the door. With a quick scan, he decided what place to set up his performance. Honestly, she made it much too easy for him. Garner a little attention? A few diverted gazes? All he had to do was find a lovely single boy or lady out there and profess his intentions to be theirs in front of a few onlookers. Create a more... amorous atmosphere.  Honestly... Charme thought again. How lucky could he be? It's almost as though he'd convinced her to give him the exact 'job' that he needed. Or perhaps the lady was even more perceptive in her age than even he had guessed. Whatever the case was, he'd chose the first to stroke his confidence. Although, he thought, the thought of her seeing through his guile thrilled him beyond normal means. After all, she put that picture of her granddaughter away the moment she saw through him.  So interesting!  He hadn't had any contest lately at all.

Oh, how delicious it was, the challenge and the chase.


Questions/Comments/Suggestions?

I'm gonna put this out there, Charme's HUGE on flirtations and manipulations.  Naturally, since this isn't a setting where one can roll a Charm, his performances in themselves will be greatly toned down and less focused on the individual.  He was pulled out of a tabletop setting where a GM generally governs consequence and into one where the PLAYER determines the consequence, so of course every action will be an attempt that others are absolutely allowed to play along with or deny.  

Simply put?  With Charme's abilities and his actions, they're going to be forward.  He's going to tell people they're beautiful, he's going to be close quarters, but he won't be encroaching their personal space.  The last thing I wanna do is make someone feel harassed or pressed here where they're supposed to have a great time!  :3

I also brought this character because I haven't seen very many attempted lady/fellakillers.  I thought it might be interesting to focus on the relationship dynamic over the combat or story dynamic, that it might pull forth different facets of RP that aren't generally at the forefront. 

[Artemicion]

The lazy moogle had taken the app in its hands, sighing as he sat up, glancing them over. A quill and parchment appeared in his hands, which he took notes on while reviewing it. Once he was done, he simply handed you the parchment, then went back to lie down, dozing off once again.





Heya, Artemicon here!



Review of your profile was a pleasure, and the concept of Charme is rather good! However, there's a few points to tidy up before he's spot on for acceptance, kupo.



In terms of his passive, instead of what you have, use the Reflect based passive off of our passives list, located [urlhttp://worlddestiny.proboards.com/thread/17989/passives-march-26-2016]here[/url]. This helps us keep track of these things better.



The last thing that caught my eye is his Mime ability. In terms of a power for him, I like it, but I'm curious what limitation it has for him. I actually have a note from one of the admins, it's attached to the back, kupo.



OOC: Loving the ability, but when looking at it from a D&D setting, from which he is obviously inspired, I could see it having a little bit more drawback. For conversion purposes, we'll treat abilities like spells. If a caster were to cast Meteor Swarm, would he have the arcane knowledge to mimic it at the same degree as the caster themselves? For this, I can see one of two fixes:



Have him be able to mimic the ability, but dependent on how powerful it is, it "casts" at a lower effectiveness

A limit to his use of Mimic, but with no drawback on the power level at which he can mimic abilities, within reason. Perhaps a cooldown of Mimic equal to the ability's duration.







Alright, kupo. You've got a week to make the edits, and then we'll move onf rom there!

[Charme]

Awright, I went ahead and added restrictions for ultimate level spells as well as properly setting up the Reflect icon.

In my impatience I forgot to add some things to Mime. In the original design, one of the drawbacks to Mime was actually the class itself. Having no natural knowledge of manipulating Magicka/Aether/etc., the Entertainer was forced to strategize around his or her party to achieve pretty much any form of combat ability. The same rings true here- Charme will never learn an offensive spell. He is almost like a Wild Mage- he never knows what spells he might be using for this upcoming turn. As for Cooldowns, generally all cooldowns are applied! :3 It's just like using the actual spell. When it copies the spell, it will also prevent Charme from using that spell again until its original cooldown completes.

If you guys are cool with that I can also add it to the 'drawback' listing. If you'd like me to shift Mime any more, lemme know!

[Artemicion]

Artemicon returned, looked over the document, and with a simple nod. Stamped it with this image:




"Just go ahead and add that all to drawbacks, Kupo! You did good. PM me so you can get your reward, and you'll be good to go!"