Valentine

Hyezzz... your vhriend... Hazzzzel....

I've known Cats for about a year, and I can confidently say they still know a lot more about CAT lore than I do. I know they do a lot of work on the Wiki along with CCIA, and they're generally just a really approachable person to ask about lore. I think this post (and the Google doc) shows they have a really solid understanding of Tajara lore, where it could feasibly go, and what could be done to fill empty spaces. That's an easy +1 from me.

BYOND Ckey: ValentineUnderscore Discord username: Valentine Character names: - Roman Markov - Xeqo'naq Oonq-Resh - Rafail Sariff Plenty more I play sporadically. Species you are applying to play: IPC, G2 Industrial Frame. ------------------------------ General Whitelist Requirements What colour do you plan on making your first alien character?: Exempt, IPC Have you read the lore pages for the species you wish to be whitelisted for?: Yes I have. Please provide well articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph format. One paragraph minimum per question. Why do you wish to play this species?: I find it really interesting that IPCs are the only species on the whitelist that were created, in recent memory, by purely artificial means. In my opinion, this makes them the most science fiction-based. IPCs seem rich with the opportunity to explore posthumanist themes regarding identity, what it means to have a "soul," and self-actualization. They remind me of the science fiction stories of old. What makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a human?: IPCs are, unlike every other species, purely synthetic. They don't feel pain, they don't breathe, and they are not biological, or even scientifically defined as living things. But they have consciousness granted to them by their positronic nature, which separates them from something like a robot. They're not robots, but they're not alive either. It's interesting because it could place them in a new niche of sentience, and challenge the idea of what "alive" means. IPCs are not born, they're built. They're given data packs to learn skills that take years, can learn the same way an organic creature can through experience, and then they are let loose, so to speak, under the legal ownership of a corporation or a private citizen until they, if they ever, earn the means to be self-owned. It's an interesting term, self-owned, and it says so much about how IPCs are regarded in the Spur. Even if they're free, someone still owns them. It's not a way you'd consider a human or a skrell. And despite all of their synthetic nature, their most important directive is the same as any living thing: self-preservation (although what self-preservation means to an IPC can change dramatically depending on their occupation and age). ------------------------------ Character Application Character Name: Samson-G2(Model)-11.08.2462(Date of manufacturing)-02(Manufacturing number)21(Unit number) (More practically, just Samson-221 or "Sam-21") Write a backstory for your character. This may include their origin, education, personality and how they arrived to the SCCV Horizon. Hephaestus Production Station Amóni. 8th of November, 2462. The nondescript G2 manufacturing line, built alongside cheaper, more prevalent G1 units, designated Samson, second line, was produced. Among those numbers was a unit designated #021. Their purpose: to aid Operation Violet Dawn, which occurred only 24 hours prior, through feats of engineering and mechanical ability only practical to an Industrial Frame: lifting rubble off trapped people, cutting through cumulative miles of melted plastitanium, twisted corpses of buildings, and burning ruins. Many of these G2s and their G1 cohorts were destroyed or irreparably damaged from the Phoron fire-induced overheating or were buried under collapsing rubble carrying out the final orders issued by the late Prime Minister, fighting alongside human emergency services to save as many people as they could. It would've taken thousands of these units to do the job they were assigned. They were no different from the others who saw the Violet Dawn. They were forgotten too. Samson-221, like those of his kind who were lucky, survived. A melted exterior could be mended: and wires could be resoldered or replaced. Unlike the organics who perished, and who survived, Samson-221 was property. There was no time to process the strain of Mars. When he was cleared for duty once again, Samson-221 was returned to Mars under the full purview of his Manufacturer Agent. His agent, who felt an Industrial frame, who had aided the evacuation of Mars during the Dawn would be received favorably by the populace of Mars, and thus would reflect positively on the said agent, secured assignment for Samson to work on Mars immediately following Violet Dawn in the Moderate Hazard Zone. Although this was ill-favored, within 6 months, Samson was relocated to Mendell City, aiding the expansion of the Hephaestus branch there. For the machine himself, the tone of his life was set by his memories during Violet Dawn. He worked almost non-stop alongside emergency services to save trapped people, and to his namesake, he felt his strength was vast and being used well. His agent quite liked this, encouraging Samson to look at himself like he was a strong, heroic figure because that sort of image would reflect extremely well on Hephaestus Industries. Sam-21 spent a majority of his life in Cua Song, from 2463 to 2466, aiding the uncontested growth of the megacorporation on New Hai Phong in the new decade. For every piece of Plastitanium he welded together, or window he installed, Samson-21 thought he was building a better world. A world not consumed in fire. In June of 2466, Sam-21 was moved from New Hai Phong to the SCCV Horizon, because of simple contractual leasing changes, and his Agent sensing opportunity for the 3-year-old IPC. How has the recent events of the Orion Spur impacted your character? Samson-221, like the others of his specific manufacturing circumstance, was rapidly produced to deal with the Violet Dawn crisis on Mars. Violet Dawn was the beginning of his life, and from it, he understood that no matter how badly something is destroyed, someone like him can build it again. It instilled a sense of benevolence in the G2, encouraged by his handler for marketing purposes. The events of Silicon Nightmares had a huge effect on IPCs, making a lot of people more afraid of them, feeding caustic rhetoric that denounces them, or forcing IPCs to consider their autonomy. Samson never felt he was without freedom: he was owned by Hephaestus, but Hephaestus lets him help people, and that was enough purpose for him. The Solarian Collapse also had a tremendous effect on Samson: he felt Mars was abandoned after the disaster, and with the collapse, and even after the start of the Reunification Campaign, Mars is still forgotten. All of his brothers are forgotten. But they still exist in his memories, and if they give him purpose, then every bolt he tightens perpetuates their memory and hope for a "better world." How does your character view the megacorporation they work for? Sam-221 looks on Hephaestus very favorably, and refers to himself as a "Bearer of Aeson's Flame," citing that unlike the flames of Violet Dawn, "Aeson's Flame" creates things instead of decimating them. He feels that being built and owned by Hephaestus means he has opportunities other IPCs don't have: he can make a difference in the Spur and get the resources he needs to make a difference. He is loyal to Aeson and his dream for Hephaestus.

I will preface by saying I am on the opposite end of the time spectrum from Susan: I joined this forum approximately a year ago, played a little last summer, and returned around November. I wouldn't even say I've been playing here for a year. But what Susan says is something I've thought about quite a bit in the few months I've been here. I've avoided high-intensity events for a few reasons, one is relevant here: If my character got killed (issues with limb metas, etc, etc, aside) it would be a meaningless story point and leave me feeling worse off because it wouldn't have any meaningful narrative impact. and if one can't have a narrative impact in a roleplaying game, why play? Like tabletop games that you've mentioned, player death is very possible. But in those instances, it has a narrative resolution. It's not nothing. I understand that Aurora tends to have a pretty bleak tone: a lot of 'crapsack world' storytelling, corruption, injustice, etcetera. But I feel that same tone extends to how canonicity for players is treated. As Susan put it, it's like the player characters don't matter when it should be a cooperative narrative and they ought to matter a lot. I could see the biggest gripe someone has with what this topic proposes is that it would encourage or create 'narrative protagonist' player characters. But, I have to refute that. There are numerous narratives where a character has impacted the story but isn't the story. As a Heavy Roleplay Server, we should expect our roleplayers not to be fishing for the "I'm the hero" narratives as a given. I like Aurora a lot. It provides a roleplaying outlet you can't find on other SS13 servers, but I agree with this topic.

@Captain Gecko Hello, is there any update on this application? Kind regards.

@Captain Gecko Hey, thanks for reading. Ozikar follows the Th'akh faith as is practiced in the Tza Basin, like his father, and his father's father. His opinion of the SCC as a whole is neutral leaning negative, albeit, he approves of the idea of the SCC since centralization works well for the Hegemon. He doesn't care much for the other members of the Chainlink, because in his opinion, there is little they can offer the people of Moghes that Hephaestus can't. Too many cooks in the kitchen, he'd say. Nanotrasen, particularly, seems to him like they can barely hold onto their position on top, and the Trasen's affirmation that NT will remain the most influential megacorporation at the detriment of the rest of the Chainlink sounds threatening to him. It sounds to him, in some roundabout way, that Nanotrasen would be willing to cause indirect damage to Moghes by somehow weakening Hephaestus if it meant Nanotrasen remained strong, regardless of how true or untrue that is. There's also the standard "humans only look out for their interests" rhetoric, maybe a little blunted thanks to Aeson being the head of Hephaestus, but still. It's difficult for Ozikar to like any of the other megacorporations beyond tolerating their presence when they're more focused on one-upping each other than fixing his actively dying planet.

Hazel is great fun to roleplay with, Nines is super fun (my miner CONSTANTLY bothers her) and Reem has always been competent during my stint in Engineering. I think given the chance to be command, Hazel would bring a great atmosphere to engineering that it sorely lacks most of the time. Major +1

BYOND Ckey: ValentineUnderscore Discord username: Valentine Character names: - Roman Markov - Xeqo'naq Oonq-Resh - Tajrrhraz Sha'relrr - Adebayo Kehinde Species you are applying to play: Unathi ------------------------------ General Whitelist Requirements What colour do you plan on making your first alien character?: I'm torn between Skalamar Red or Janvir Black, one of those. Have you read the lore pages for the species you wish to be whitelisted for?: I sure have, although I mostly read History and the eponymous page. Please provide well-articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph format. One paragraph minimum per question. Why do you wish to play this species?: I'm a big alien species fan because of the opportunity it gives me to explore radical cultures and how biology plays into it. Unathi especially interests me with their honor-bound clan lore, which reminds me of the feudal East. What makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a human?: Beyond the fact they're humanoid cold-blooded reptiles? Unathi have a fascinating ancient traditionalist culture that pedestalizes honor and obedience, they are deeply spiritual and the largest and oldest of their faiths are animist, which sets the tone for the entire foundation of their culture, IE, honoring spirits and ancestors, (we don't talk about the transhumanist guwan), their traditional concept of gender is reliant upon what job you hold, their physical expression is uniquely blunt (they WILL stare at you), they express themselves through the throat, tail stomping, secondary characteristics (like frills) and their voice, chuffing or barking, to name a few. ------------------------------ Character Application Character Name: Ozikar Yathaki Write a backstory for your character. Ozikar hatched in 2444, the fifth child to his father of the minor Yathaki clan, a clan with little to its history or name besides a ceaseless legacy of conflict as a warrior clan, claiming even the apocryphal honor of having bred men who became loyal and honest Kataphracts in antiquity before the reign of the Sarakus saw to their end, embittering them to the rule of the Second Hegemony. Much of the clan's history is lost during this period, although they remained within Kutah and served its lords until the Contact War. When Hutay'zai brokered vassalage to Izweski to spare his lands, many clan Yathaki felt betrayed. They were men who bled for the Traditionalists and would now serve the very enemy they fought, who bathed Moghes in as much nuclear fire as they did. Others, like Ozikar's father, knew that it was their duty to follow the will of whoever sat upon the kingdom's throne. This schism grew steadily. Simultaneously, then-clan leader, Ozikar's grandfather Kithek, had been all but broken by the horrors of nuclear war. He was unwilling to declare so many of his own as Guwan after seeing so many Unathi perish. When the two Yathaki clans came to loggerheads and begged the clan leader Kithek to render a decision, he replied thus: Billions vanished into a ruined world because cold men reinvented the stars. At that point, the schism exploded into duels, and in the end, only those loyal to Hutay'zai—thus Izweski—remained by 2447. Perhaps it was the grief of loss or the grief of time wearing down upon his body, but Kithek did not survive either. Ozikar's father, Arizar, came to be the head of the Yathaki clan with despondent regret: the schism was no more, but the death needed to mend it had broken Kithek's heart and killed him. Arizar instilled this same gloominess over the tattered remains of clan Yathaki for the next two decades. Arizar has become increasingly despondent as the years pass, fearing that the Wasteland will devour Moghes and "pollute" the Spirit-World. Ozikar devised his interpretation: if Moghes is doomed, all a man can have is his honor. This axiom guided his mind during his early life, honing his body and skill at arms to serve the way his ancestors did. Although he had no remarkable military career as his remaining older siblings did, serving under the ultimate banner of Izweski and Hutay'zai, Ozikar still desired honor. He joined the ranks of the Fighter's Lodge in 2461 to find glory, and it was only natural that he began working alongside PMCG subcontractors or city Watchmen, alongside Reclaimers when pitted against Gawgaryn, standing in streets or the wastes, protecting Hephaestus installments. He learned many lessons that deceived his idea of the Warrior's Code, sometimes unsuited to the new Moghes. He would ask himself daily if adapting to a harsh world meant dishonor. Ozikar built contacts with PMCG over these harsh four years, now more disillusioned with his honor, the spirits, and the future. In this time, he realized the wisdom in what Korza Dagamuir did nearly 400 years ago: a man with his home destroyed carved out a future for himself, and it was this that Ozikar would do, as he sadly came to believe Moghes' fate was doom. In short order, he joined with the contemporary iteration of Korza's dream, leaving Moghes behind to seek... seek what? Honor, wealth, a future? The young man didn't know. He was too naive, brazen, or afraid to admit it to himself. He spent a year abroad as a subcontractor for Dagamur Freewater Private Forces before transferring to the SCCV Horizon for contracted security work. How have the recent events of the Orion Spur impacted your character? Events such as the Phoron Scarcity, the Solarian Collapse, or even the Invasions of Biesel for interstellar-wide affairs, while region-specific events such as the Peacekeeper Mandate, The Titan Rises, or even Cold Dawn may impact your character. Hephaestus monopolizing Moghes' guilds during The Titan Rises surprised Ozikar very little. If a Hegemon could claim power over all of Moghes, why couldn't Hephaestus claim power over the Hegemon's economy? Ozikar believes that at the very least Hephaestus couldn't ruin Moghes any more than it already is. When he worked with the Fighter's Lodge, he technically WAS an employee of Hephaestus and protected many of their installments, and they never bothered him much. How does your character view the megacorporation they work for? PMCG is a nebulous entity, so I'll specify what he thinks of DFPF. As said in his backstory, Ozikar became disillusioned with what it meant to have honor in a world where something like 2.8 billion sinta got reduced to nuclear vapor, due to his time working with the Fighter's Lodge, and seeing what the Contact war did to his clan. He regarded what Korza Dagamuir did as the only noble thing to do when your home is destroyed, the only way to honor the Spirits in a broken future, and he was in no place to inherit functionally nothing, so he emulated it. Note: Thank you for reading this far. I'm eager to read notes or comments on my application because I strive to make a character the best I can. Kind regards.