[Accepted]Pictish20 Vaurcae Application

[pictish20]

BYOND Key: pictish20

Character Names: Sonia Al-Rashid, Nikolai Shamrayev, IRU-Dullahan, ISU-Fafnir, Capet, Following Caution and Curiosity to the Beautiful Sparks, Valorie Hilton, a number of other characters that I haven’t played since NBT.

Species you are applying to play: Vaurcae

What color do you plan on making your first alien character: 55, 0 ,120 -- Xetl’s Brood

Have you read our lore section's page on this species?: 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 specific race:

The main appeal of the Vaurcae to me is their sociability: like all other whitelisted species, Vaurcae have unique physiology and culture that I find fascinating, but the Vaurcae alone have the Hivenet, tying them to all other of their kind in the round. On a more individual level player-wise, being tied so completely to their hive cells and queens gives the species an unified thread, while the diverse broods give that thread many fascinating inflections. All in all, I would be thrilled to have a chance to play as one of the tunnel-bugs.

 

Identify what makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a Human:

On the surface level, their physiology and mechanics are different. They use often faulty voice boxes to make up for their lack of vocal cords; they breathe a mix of phoron and oxygen and eat the dangerous fungus, K’ois; even the relatively un-modified Unbound are at least lightly augmented with Neural Sockets and breathing apparatuses; they have a hardy exoskeleton and photosensitive eyes, with smell as their primary sense. These last two have immediate role-play significance: the lights of the station are brighter than they would prefer, and they are far more perceptive of smell than any other species.

 

Beyond those shallow differences, Vaurcae are strictly eusocial. Through a combination of biology and indoctrination, they are extremely loyal to their queen, hive, and cells. Unlike the often individualistic humanity, the Vaurcae would consider their personal interests of secondary importance. The different castes have different mindsets, as well. Workers are determinedly violence-averse, leaving that to the more combative Warriors. Bulwarks are a middle-ground, defending themselves but not seeking combat. All Vaurcae are more specialized than humans, though Unbound are made to be more versatile than the Bound. They are able to convey information over long distances through their Hivenet and Virtual Reality systems.

 

This virtual reality is the cornerstone of their culture. They learn within their Queen’s realm when first maturing, developing their personalities and skills away from the real world’s hunger, danger, and death. This reality also provides a means of immortality to the Vaurcae, for their deceased have their consciousnesses passed into VR. This gives Vaurcae a brighter perception and less fear of death than most species, though they still seek to preserve their own survival.

 

Character Name: Ka’Akaix’Zak C’thur

Please provide a short backstory for this character:

Born an Unbound worker of Xetl’s C’thur brood, Zak spent their infancy in the oft-changing realm of their queen. Zak found themselves surrounded by the peculiar whims of their brood mates and the uniquely pleasurable experiences that Xetl surrounds herself with. Upon their first release from VR into the Jargon federation, they passed their first citizenship interview and attained Federal citizenship. According to their responses, they demonstrated the adaptability and diligence characteristic of Xetl’s Unbounds, and a strong sense of curiosity along with high ambition. With a positive response to the opportunity of working in the Federation but membership in one of the more problematic cells of Xetl’s brood, Zak found themself with a low secondary social credit score.

 

It was mere days after the interview that Zak was selected by the labor draft and sent off to work for NanoTrasen, dispatched to the Horizon. While Zak does not have the same admiration of Biesel and humanity as a whole as they do Jargon and the Skrell, they hope that they will find new experiences, and demonstrate their skill and usefulness before returning to the Hive. This is their chance to prove themselves. They are not, however, without strife in this deployment. The necessities of employment have separated their cell, leaving Zak alone in this long voyage to the strange human ship. They are anxious, of course, and hope to find a community aboard the Horizon, of both other Vaurcae and their coworkers.

 

What do you like about this character?

Zak’s youth gives me the freedom to develop them as I play and accumulate experience with him, while his loyalty to Xetl provides a direction to guide that development. Speaking of Xetl, she seems to be one of the more peculiar queens, and her hedonism gives Zak a character motivation that doesn’t show as much in my other characters, especially the IPCs and Dionae. Seeking new and pleasurable, humorous, or painful experiences to fight his increasing desensitization is an interesting drive for me, which I look forward to. Another advantage of being a C’thur is their integration with Jargon. The Skrell are a piece of the lore that I had only had limited interaction with up until I started studying for this application, and this character has given and will continue to give me opportunities to increase my understanding.

 

How would you rate your role-playing ability?

I have several species whitelists already, which I like to think I uphold fairly well. I would give myself a 7/10, because I’m still vulnerable to mistyping and other small FailRPs, but I have a strong grasp of English and am able to carry a realistic character. I've adapted well to several different species already, and while the Vaurcae are one of the stranger species, I expect that I will be able to adapt to them, as well. I believe that I am capable of role-playing this species, and would not apply if I did not think so. 

 

Notes:

I have been absent from the server for a while due to my semester and the low pop of the server. Since NBT dropped, I’ve been enjoying my return and wanted to finally go for my next WL. I’m of course happy to answer any questions.

 

Thank you for reading my application.

[Desven]

Hey, sorry for the delay. Been busy this weekend.

I like the concept. However, I'd like to see how you incorporate the more Xetl-specific traits. What does Zak think of the Sensate?

Has Zak interacted with humans before? How does it feel to leave Jargon space?

[pictish20]

Of course! Thank you for your patience with my response in turn.

3 hours ago, Desven said:

I like the concept. However, I'd like to see how you incorporate the more Xetl-specific traits. What does Zak think of the Sensate?

Taught under the Sensate like many of Xetl's brood, Zak feels great pride in the Sensate: after all, what better marker of the hive's affluence and majesty is there than the fact that their greatest members are not specialized in simple survival or labor at all, but in the discovery of new ways to enjoy living. They admire the four Xakat'kl'atan greatly, and aspire to serve the hive as well as those four. Like most who studied with them, Zak didn't specialize in the arts of any particular one, but they do have a greater-than-average appreciation for Luz and the art of humor, as it is something shared between many enjoyers instead of just one. Synz is a point of aspiration for Zak. Never able to earn much of Greed's knowledge, Zak considers finding secrets worth trading to Synz among their greatest aspirations, after brining something worth the Queen's esteem directly to her. Gez and Volz are of course paired in Zak's mind, and while they don't fully understand Gez's masochism, they so understand that it can amplify pleasure by acting as an opposite. In short, they are representations of the glory of Xetl's brood, and the peak of service to their queen. Zak's ambitions draw them to attempt to emulate the Sensate when they are given the chance.

 

3 hours ago, Desven said:

Has Zak interacted with humans before?

Zak has only ever really interacted with Skrell and other Vaurcae. They have, of course, learned some basics as they grew: humans have no exoskeletons (weird), the basics of their history and how they met the Skrell, the way they organize themselves by corporation instead of hive (also weird), and such cursory things -- about as much as the average human would know about Vaurcae, I suppose. I'm looking forward to having Zak learn more about humans and the other species, from little details (for instance, Zak doesn't quite realize that human blood is red instead of a respectable color like yellow-green, perhaps) to lengthy discussions with Tajara about the politics on Adhomai (why are they so complicated?). They are a curious young bug, after all. I'm sure they will both learn how to interact with humans quickly and constantly be surprised by them.

 

 

3 hours ago, Desven said:

How does it feel to leave Jargon space?

Zak is, to put it briefly, ambivalent. It's intimidating, of course, to leave everyone behind, their cell, their hive, the nation they earned their place in. None of those are easy, but they have been asked to leave Jargon in service of their Hive. On that other hand, they are proud to have been selected (even though it was, in fact, a random draft) to demonstrate their ability, and excited by the opportunity to work aboard the grand new ship of the SCC fleet. They know that no matter how this turns out, they'll return to their hive after the work period is done, and they intend to uphold the pride of their brood. A mix of opportunity and risk always makes for an exciting time...

[Roostercat]

Hi! I am satisfied enough with the app to think you have a decent grasp on our lore. Application accepted!