[Accepted] vtipoman's Skrell application

[vtipoman]

BYOND Key: vtipoman

Character Names: Kolton Richards, Elizabeth Raub

Species you are applying to play: Skrell

What color do you plan on making your first alien character (Dionaea & IPCs exempt): Grey-ish blue

Have you read our lore section's page on this species?: Yes.

---

---

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:

I like the race's overall behaviour. I like how they value logic and intelligence and how calm and calculated they appear. Their lore is also interesting, and I love the idea of a peaceful race "betrayed" by it's own creation (talking about the Glorsh rebellion).

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

Skrell are more peaceful, calm, prideful and calculated than humans. They seldom make quick, harsh decisions, because they absolutely hate making the wrong ones and having to admit their mistakes. Their way of speaking Basic is different, too. They speak in short, simple sentences, while trying to remove any excess or repetetive words, and they might have problems expressing emotion. They mostly eat "soft" or liquid food, and preffer plant-based diet. Skrell don't really care about genders, and won't mind being called by the wrong gender pronouns. They only enter conflicts if they know they'll succeed. Because of their headtails, they don't like wearing hats. Another thing to note is that, for the most part, they don't have any deities- their two major religions center around stars and science.

 

---

---

Character Name: Xamir

Please provide a short backstory for this character, approximately 2 paragraphs

Xamir's parents met on a faraway mission. His father was a scientist, mother a doctor. They fell in love, and later were both cured of the genophage. They had three kids, Xamir being the youngest of the three siblings. The two older kids followed in their parents footsteps, becoming xenobiologists. Hovewer, Xamir didn't want to study- he wanted to learn, but not from books. He kept dreaming about adventures out in the frontier, about exploring the universe. He wanted to experience the world, not read about it. After discussing the matter with his siblings, he decided to pack his belongings and leave to explore the universe.

Currently, he's travelling across different systems, ocasionally taking odd-jobs here and there. He keeps a small digital notebook, filling it with notes on his journey. Currently, he has no name addition.

What do you like about this character?

I wanted to create a Skrell with an interesting twist- instead of studying, he'd learn by exploring the universe. This would allow me to roleplay a typical Skrell character in a variety of civilian jobs. I'd love to roleplay discussing with other Skrell- about his past, and if his decision was right or not.

How would you rate your role-playing ability?

I'd say I'm a pretty good roleplayer. I played on a variety of heavy roleplay servers, including Bay and Pol and several Garry's mod HL2RP servers. I tend to create realistic, unusual characters. Characters that run away when something goes wrong. Characters that would rather surrender than fight. Characters that feel real, not like a videogame protagonist.

---

---

Notes: If Xamir's backstory shows too... non-Skrelly, I might change it into a something more standart. Thanks!

[Loow]

Remember: You can post a link to your application in OOC once per round.

[Muncorn]

So, having just gotten accepted myself, time to give some advice here.

 

Character Name: Xamir

So, knowing that your character has an interesting backstory, there is still a need for a last name. If not for general rules, NT would generally want one for all employees, as it's awful for record keeping otherwise, and the like.

 

Notes: If Xamir's backstory shows too... non-Skrelly, I might change it into a something more standart. Thanks!

So, yeah. Nearly all Skrell, with very, very few being an exception, follow in a scientific role in life, whether it be research, medicine or engineering. Whilst there will always be a few that do journalism, cooking or something else, they are still specialised in one way or another. That's not really a cultural thing either, it's more biological. If they were, say, raised by non-skrell it could hold ground with a jack of all trades, but with a traditional Skrellian background, not following the tradition would likely mean heavy ostracism. Now, I don't want you to completely change the character, nor their backstory, but the addition of this ostracism would be useful for the character as a whole, both for their personality and reasonability as a whole. Though, this could all be bypassed for the sake of a character, since it's still possible for it to happen, just very unlikely.

So, how does Xamir react with other species? I'm presuming you know the basics of the relationships between the Skrell and other species, concerning the Glorsh Rebellion and the ongoing cold war with the Unathi. Considering the differences between Xamir and most other Skrell, what differences does he have with these?

Other than that, this shows good potential. I'm all for development through practice, so I look forward to hopefully seeing this passed through.

[vtipoman]

Response

Thanks for responding! I understand what you're saying, but I'd like to try and justify these errors: (I might still be wrong though. Feel free to correct me)

The thing is, Xamir is supposed to be rather young. Old enough to be considered an adult, but without a clear focus in his life. That's why I went with the jack-of-all-trades thing. He hasn't found anything he'd specialise in yet, and the civilian jobs he takes are just temporary. That's also why I went with the first name only. According to the wiki, "Name additions are a common facet of Skrell culture. While not necessary in Jargon society, it is common for a Skrell to add a name, word, or phrase to their name at some point in their lifetime. ". He, having just finished basic education, won't have any name additions. (And it would make for a cool RP moment to "adopt" one after a canonical round).

As for the relations, he won't be very keen to meet or befriend machine-based races/Unathi. He'd try to avoid talking to them, but he won't stir up any trouble or start any conflicts. I imagine other Skrell would look down at him, maybe even despise him. He could try to befriend them and explain his decision, but I think he'd focus on meeting and befriending humans instead.

[Guest Marlon Phoenix]

Hello! Sorry for the delay. Currently Skrell naming conventions have to follow the server rules - a first name and a last name. Loow actually expanded on what the naming convention of skrell means on the wiki; it revolves around adding ' and - to names to signify importance or belonging. You can always add these naming additions onto your standard first last name convention, to show something that Xamir felt so strongly about on-station that he added it to his name.

As a whole your application hits all the right beats. Even though your skrell doesn't have a long history of prestigious university degrees, wanderlust and a desire to explore the galaxy is still something a Skrell can feel very deeply. That's a very active way to be a Qeblakian and interpret "find your place in the stars", to physically go out and explore the stars.

You show an understanding for the species and I'd be happy to see you explore your character and the race with a whitelist. Application accepted!