Alucard \\ Adrian F. Ţepeş (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
cryptsleeper) wrote2021-05-31 12:39 pm
cryptsleeper) wrote2021-05-31 12:39 pm
(no subject)
OOC INFORMATION
Player Name: Dia
Are you over 18?: Yes
Contact: PM Alucard's account
Other Characters in Game:None
IC INFORMATION
Art by Oglops on plurk, please don't redistribute as this was specifically for the game!
Character Name: Alucard/Adrian F. Tepes
Canon: Netflix Castlevania
Canon Point: End of season 3
Background: Castlevania wiki
Suitability: Note: Alucard may be coming from the end of s3, but this application from here on out will discuss s4 spoilers.
By the end of season 3, Alucard has decided that impaling corpses on the front lawn in order to protect himself from betrayal and ensure his safety is the best way to survive. In short, he takes a few steps down the road to becoming Dracula in full, and while he gets better by the conclusion of s4, the opportunity to throw Alucard into an extremely bad situation via imprisonment, dig down into the question of how much like dad are you really going to be?, and watch him process a new world where what is correct may not be readily apparent is something I am personally incredibly interested in exploring.
Based on his being summoned alone and then thrown into prison, Alucard's going to have no interest in being of service to the Kingdom of Thorne. Pushed hard enough and he might be interested in vengeance rather than simply isolation, and much of that would depend on his escaping imprisonment and reaching the Free Cities. Based on the description, it is very similar to the state of technology Alucard grew up with in the castle. That said, he might also find Nowich of interest depending on his state of depression vs. state of anger, especially with regard to the vampire population.
Much of Alucard's initial arc would be focused on exploring and choosing a side in the conflict. For me, these two things are linked and key to plot engagement, as his CR will very much impact his choice on how to engage with the war. Likewise, this will go on to define how much closer to his father's view of the world he does (or doesn't!) end up being drawn towards, and thus where his ultimate allegiance may end up lying and what he's willing to do (a lot, probably) to defend it.
Powers:
1. Superhuman strength and speed - Like any typical vampire, he can lift more and move in the blink of an eye
2. Rapid healing - Save from blows from silver or seemingly Dracula, Alucard can heal quickly and endure what would be bone shattering blows on anyone else
3. Levitation - he can float for no reason other than dramatics
4. Wolf shifting - He can become a large white, fluffy wolf.
5. Fighting abilities - Alucard is a highly effective swordsman and can manage very well at hand to hand as well.
6. He can control his sword with his mind - Seriously. He can. He can make it float away from him and still control it, the whole thing is needlessly extra.
7. Perfect hair at all times.
8. Extended fangs and nails - Alucard's fangs can extend and grow larger. His nails can do the same, and can scratch new markings into metal.
9. A series of bats - In addition to turning into a wolf, Alucard can become a number of bats, about ten to twenty in number.
PERSONALITY QUESTIONS
Describe an important event in your character's life and how it impacted them. The murder of Lisa, Alucard's mother is the key event for not only the entire video game franchise, but also Alucard's entire life. By all implications, while Alucard's childhood was weird (he specifically mentions physically growing very quickly), it was also a generally pleasant one with parents who loved each other and him. His mother in particular was well known for her medical abilities, being generally successful in that line of work thanks to Dracula's centuries of knowledge and her own natural charisma. It was her success as a physician that caused the village's former wise woman and healer to inform the church that Lisa was a witch, eventually leading to her imprisonment and murder in Targoviste.
It would have been bad enough to lose his mother in such a horrifying way, but Dracula's rage and inability to grieve like a normal person made it so much worse. Rather than simply murder the priest who oversaw the trial and execution (as per Alucard's suggestion, as he saw that anger as justified), Dracula decided to destroy all of Wallachia instead, summoning an army from Hell to wreck the country and ensure no trace of humanity remained upon the land. That was the moment Alucard accepted that for the betterment of humanity and in accordance with what his mother would want, his father could not live. In understanding that, and eventually seeing it through, Alucard took on the weight of not only destroying his remaining family, but wrecking his own home, creating a massive vampire power vacuum, and (thankfully) making a whole two friends along the way. The grief and needing to heal from all of it has lingered with him the most through the series, impacting many of his choices.
Does your character have a moral code, or other set of standards they try to live by? Yes. Alucard's moral code is built on justice and responsibility. Some of it is eye-for-an-eye, such as when Alucard understands his father's anger and advises killing the priest responsible for starting the whole thing and overseeing Lisa's execution. What he also understands is that blaming all of humanity and going down a path of destruction is disproportionate, and also not going to help his father's grief. As a result, Alucard tries to fight his father about this. This results in a grievous wound that sends Alucard to hide under Gresit for a year to recover. Once reawakened by Trevor and Sypha, the dhampir takes responsibility for what has to happen next: Dracula needs to die, and he is going to have to be the one to do it. That it will deprive him of his last family member is irrelevant - he failed to stop this once, and his mother would be aghast at what has happened in her name. He has to correct that.
Season three carries through that sense of responsibility, but in another manner. When Sumi and Taka arrive, they explain the cruel vampire circumstances they escaped from and their hopes to free their people. Alucard, having been gifted the Belmont Hold of centuries of vampire hunting lore, lets them access it, imagining Trevor would approve of the move. He wants to use the gift responsibly and in accordance with what he thinks would be wanted by someone who is absent. Unfortunately Sumi and Taka attempt to murder Alucard, and while he kills in self defense, the fact he goes so far as to impale their bodies on the front lawn shows a warped code threatened to become closer to Dracula's than Alucard's firm stances in season 1 and 2. In grief and in fear, he has to adjust his code to prioritize his own survival.
When season four opens, a few other corpses have joined those initial two. However, the arrival of a dead rider on a horse bearing a message begging for help slowly inches Alucard back towards where he was in seasons 1 and 2. He buries not only that body, out of respect for the man's attempt and willingness to give his life to save others, but the impaled bodies on the lawn. The rest of season 4 works through this warping of his own code, albeit at a speed run's pace.
What quality or qualities do they admire most? The people Alucard surrounds himself with are the best reflections of the traits he admires most: resourcefulness, honesty, and dragging him out of his own headspace.
So far as resourcefulness goes, this is on full display in season two. While he and Trevor do not exactly get along, Alucard understands what Trevor brings to the table, either as a lucky drunk or the last son of a warrior dynasty. The fact that Trevor also happens to be sitting on the greatest resource in the world to defeat Dracula - his family's Hold, the personal archives and object collection of the Belmont family - likewise reinforces this. That Sypha can then look at the material within and use her natural skills with magic and language to quickly synthesize a spell to lock onto the castle and draw it to them (even if she lands it a little too close and that's a Problem) likewise reinforces how much he values this. Alucard's picked two absolute powerhouses to help save the world with (even if there's doubt, see the question below), and the fact that they are able to use their skills in wonderful, unexpected ways is incredibly important both in getting to the castle, and in defeating Dracula and the threats that come after.
Honesty - be it in the form of Sypha threatening to set Alucard's hair on fire or Greta calling total bullshit on dramatic entrances - is important for Alucard both in finding allies and looking after his own well being (see paragraph below.) In first speaking to Trevor and Sypha regarding the legend of the sleeping solider (which drew Sypha into the sewers of Gresit to essentially find Alucard), he asks less after the legend and more after how the two view the state of the world. Both answers are frank, and for him that is good enough in order to proceed in defeating his father with the two. Journeying together helps to use that basis of honesty to build up enough trust to proceed in the deed, although Alucard's own honesty fails him when the two leave at the conclusion of season two. Left alone, Alucard makes depression dolls of the two and even goes so far as to voice them, failing his own value check in that regard. When faced with Greta in season four, she is blunt and frank with him, forcing down walls that Alucard built up in order to protect himself emotionally. That last part is important, as it highlights another highly Alucard specific value - pulling him out of his own head.
In season two, even as he was going to commit patricide, the comradery and chemistry between himself, Sypha, and Trevor became an important form of support as the moment drew closer. While much of it took the form of the three of them prodding and poking at each other, there were also moments of checking in, like Sypha ensuring that Alucard was ready to storm the castle. Likewise in season four, Greta's refusal to permit Alucard's flashy style and temporary help over something more substantial (because he was clearly going to just do that and leave, she could read him almost instantly) proves important. In staying, Alucard's able to start to work through his trauma and emotional issues rather than simply dwelling on all of it, as he would have if he remained in the castle.
Do they have a part of themselves they dislike? Alucard likes to project an exterior of being cool, calm, confident, and in control. To the point where by season four, people are not impressed by this as a flashy entrance, but can correctly read it as masking insecurities and issues that have been on display for four seasons.
The first part of himself that Alucard dislikes is one he didn't even realize at first. In season two, Sypha refers to Alucard as too cold and sad to get close to. The camera focuses on his overhearing the comment, and the reaction makes it clear that this is not only new information to him, but hurtful information as well. In season three there is a marked attempt to be more outgoing to a certain extent (or at least to better mask that sadness), but this ends with a near death experience.
Emotions, specifically not being great at them, is another huge part of what Alucard dislikes about himself. The same cool, calm sense of self he wants to project means that he is not great at emotional responses - he can't control them - and they result in extremes. While they don't go so far as I'm grieving so I'm going to destroy all of Wallachia, impaling corpses in a fit of extreme emotion isn't exactly the sign of someone in control.
Likewise, when having these emotions, Alucard projects the issues. With aforementioned corpses, Alucard makes explicit reference to his father, suggesting that this isn't an out of control emotional issue, just a response that he's following. (Obviously this is not a good thing either.) In both seasons two and four, he also projects his issues on Trevor. Sypha correctly calls out Alucard's fear in making the wrong choice about who to destroy Dracula alongside as taking the form of Alucard needling Trevor again and again, and just worsening things. In season four, in dealing with the lingering trauma of Sumi and Taka's betrayal, trying to do the right thing, and dealing with suddenly letting an army of refugees into the house again, Alucard declares that he's simply becoming Trevor, rather than owning up to the fact that he's in a bad place emotionally and needs to own that.
What is their sign, and why? The Hierophant's emphasis on an individual's moral values aligns well with Alucard's character and the moment in season 4 that eventually draws him out of behaving like his father. Alucard was raised with his mother's emphasis on hospitality, doing the right thing, and doing the greatest good no matter what - even if it involves patricide. The greatest good is burying the dead man who gave his life trying to seek your help, in spite of the impaled corpses on your lawn. The correct and just thing is important no matter what, and a core part of Alucard's character.
SAMPLES & ARRIVAL
Samples: TDM 1 | TDM 2
Arrival Scenario: Imprisonment
Player Name: Dia
Are you over 18?: Yes
Contact: PM Alucard's account
Other Characters in Game:None
IC INFORMATION
Art by Oglops on plurk, please don't redistribute as this was specifically for the game!
Character Name: Alucard/Adrian F. Tepes
Canon: Netflix Castlevania
Canon Point: End of season 3
Background: Castlevania wiki
Suitability: Note: Alucard may be coming from the end of s3, but this application from here on out will discuss s4 spoilers.
By the end of season 3, Alucard has decided that impaling corpses on the front lawn in order to protect himself from betrayal and ensure his safety is the best way to survive. In short, he takes a few steps down the road to becoming Dracula in full, and while he gets better by the conclusion of s4, the opportunity to throw Alucard into an extremely bad situation via imprisonment, dig down into the question of how much like dad are you really going to be?, and watch him process a new world where what is correct may not be readily apparent is something I am personally incredibly interested in exploring.
Based on his being summoned alone and then thrown into prison, Alucard's going to have no interest in being of service to the Kingdom of Thorne. Pushed hard enough and he might be interested in vengeance rather than simply isolation, and much of that would depend on his escaping imprisonment and reaching the Free Cities. Based on the description, it is very similar to the state of technology Alucard grew up with in the castle. That said, he might also find Nowich of interest depending on his state of depression vs. state of anger, especially with regard to the vampire population.
Much of Alucard's initial arc would be focused on exploring and choosing a side in the conflict. For me, these two things are linked and key to plot engagement, as his CR will very much impact his choice on how to engage with the war. Likewise, this will go on to define how much closer to his father's view of the world he does (or doesn't!) end up being drawn towards, and thus where his ultimate allegiance may end up lying and what he's willing to do (a lot, probably) to defend it.
Powers:
1. Superhuman strength and speed - Like any typical vampire, he can lift more and move in the blink of an eye
2. Rapid healing - Save from blows from silver or seemingly Dracula, Alucard can heal quickly and endure what would be bone shattering blows on anyone else
3. Levitation - he can float for no reason other than dramatics
4. Wolf shifting - He can become a large white, fluffy wolf.
5. Fighting abilities - Alucard is a highly effective swordsman and can manage very well at hand to hand as well.
6. He can control his sword with his mind - Seriously. He can. He can make it float away from him and still control it, the whole thing is needlessly extra.
7. Perfect hair at all times.
8. Extended fangs and nails - Alucard's fangs can extend and grow larger. His nails can do the same, and can scratch new markings into metal.
9. A series of bats - In addition to turning into a wolf, Alucard can become a number of bats, about ten to twenty in number.
PERSONALITY QUESTIONS
Describe an important event in your character's life and how it impacted them. The murder of Lisa, Alucard's mother is the key event for not only the entire video game franchise, but also Alucard's entire life. By all implications, while Alucard's childhood was weird (he specifically mentions physically growing very quickly), it was also a generally pleasant one with parents who loved each other and him. His mother in particular was well known for her medical abilities, being generally successful in that line of work thanks to Dracula's centuries of knowledge and her own natural charisma. It was her success as a physician that caused the village's former wise woman and healer to inform the church that Lisa was a witch, eventually leading to her imprisonment and murder in Targoviste.
It would have been bad enough to lose his mother in such a horrifying way, but Dracula's rage and inability to grieve like a normal person made it so much worse. Rather than simply murder the priest who oversaw the trial and execution (as per Alucard's suggestion, as he saw that anger as justified), Dracula decided to destroy all of Wallachia instead, summoning an army from Hell to wreck the country and ensure no trace of humanity remained upon the land. That was the moment Alucard accepted that for the betterment of humanity and in accordance with what his mother would want, his father could not live. In understanding that, and eventually seeing it through, Alucard took on the weight of not only destroying his remaining family, but wrecking his own home, creating a massive vampire power vacuum, and (thankfully) making a whole two friends along the way. The grief and needing to heal from all of it has lingered with him the most through the series, impacting many of his choices.
Does your character have a moral code, or other set of standards they try to live by? Yes. Alucard's moral code is built on justice and responsibility. Some of it is eye-for-an-eye, such as when Alucard understands his father's anger and advises killing the priest responsible for starting the whole thing and overseeing Lisa's execution. What he also understands is that blaming all of humanity and going down a path of destruction is disproportionate, and also not going to help his father's grief. As a result, Alucard tries to fight his father about this. This results in a grievous wound that sends Alucard to hide under Gresit for a year to recover. Once reawakened by Trevor and Sypha, the dhampir takes responsibility for what has to happen next: Dracula needs to die, and he is going to have to be the one to do it. That it will deprive him of his last family member is irrelevant - he failed to stop this once, and his mother would be aghast at what has happened in her name. He has to correct that.
Season three carries through that sense of responsibility, but in another manner. When Sumi and Taka arrive, they explain the cruel vampire circumstances they escaped from and their hopes to free their people. Alucard, having been gifted the Belmont Hold of centuries of vampire hunting lore, lets them access it, imagining Trevor would approve of the move. He wants to use the gift responsibly and in accordance with what he thinks would be wanted by someone who is absent. Unfortunately Sumi and Taka attempt to murder Alucard, and while he kills in self defense, the fact he goes so far as to impale their bodies on the front lawn shows a warped code threatened to become closer to Dracula's than Alucard's firm stances in season 1 and 2. In grief and in fear, he has to adjust his code to prioritize his own survival.
When season four opens, a few other corpses have joined those initial two. However, the arrival of a dead rider on a horse bearing a message begging for help slowly inches Alucard back towards where he was in seasons 1 and 2. He buries not only that body, out of respect for the man's attempt and willingness to give his life to save others, but the impaled bodies on the lawn. The rest of season 4 works through this warping of his own code, albeit at a speed run's pace.
What quality or qualities do they admire most? The people Alucard surrounds himself with are the best reflections of the traits he admires most: resourcefulness, honesty, and dragging him out of his own headspace.
So far as resourcefulness goes, this is on full display in season two. While he and Trevor do not exactly get along, Alucard understands what Trevor brings to the table, either as a lucky drunk or the last son of a warrior dynasty. The fact that Trevor also happens to be sitting on the greatest resource in the world to defeat Dracula - his family's Hold, the personal archives and object collection of the Belmont family - likewise reinforces this. That Sypha can then look at the material within and use her natural skills with magic and language to quickly synthesize a spell to lock onto the castle and draw it to them (even if she lands it a little too close and that's a Problem) likewise reinforces how much he values this. Alucard's picked two absolute powerhouses to help save the world with (even if there's doubt, see the question below), and the fact that they are able to use their skills in wonderful, unexpected ways is incredibly important both in getting to the castle, and in defeating Dracula and the threats that come after.
Honesty - be it in the form of Sypha threatening to set Alucard's hair on fire or Greta calling total bullshit on dramatic entrances - is important for Alucard both in finding allies and looking after his own well being (see paragraph below.) In first speaking to Trevor and Sypha regarding the legend of the sleeping solider (which drew Sypha into the sewers of Gresit to essentially find Alucard), he asks less after the legend and more after how the two view the state of the world. Both answers are frank, and for him that is good enough in order to proceed in defeating his father with the two. Journeying together helps to use that basis of honesty to build up enough trust to proceed in the deed, although Alucard's own honesty fails him when the two leave at the conclusion of season two. Left alone, Alucard makes depression dolls of the two and even goes so far as to voice them, failing his own value check in that regard. When faced with Greta in season four, she is blunt and frank with him, forcing down walls that Alucard built up in order to protect himself emotionally. That last part is important, as it highlights another highly Alucard specific value - pulling him out of his own head.
In season two, even as he was going to commit patricide, the comradery and chemistry between himself, Sypha, and Trevor became an important form of support as the moment drew closer. While much of it took the form of the three of them prodding and poking at each other, there were also moments of checking in, like Sypha ensuring that Alucard was ready to storm the castle. Likewise in season four, Greta's refusal to permit Alucard's flashy style and temporary help over something more substantial (because he was clearly going to just do that and leave, she could read him almost instantly) proves important. In staying, Alucard's able to start to work through his trauma and emotional issues rather than simply dwelling on all of it, as he would have if he remained in the castle.
Do they have a part of themselves they dislike? Alucard likes to project an exterior of being cool, calm, confident, and in control. To the point where by season four, people are not impressed by this as a flashy entrance, but can correctly read it as masking insecurities and issues that have been on display for four seasons.
The first part of himself that Alucard dislikes is one he didn't even realize at first. In season two, Sypha refers to Alucard as too cold and sad to get close to. The camera focuses on his overhearing the comment, and the reaction makes it clear that this is not only new information to him, but hurtful information as well. In season three there is a marked attempt to be more outgoing to a certain extent (or at least to better mask that sadness), but this ends with a near death experience.
Emotions, specifically not being great at them, is another huge part of what Alucard dislikes about himself. The same cool, calm sense of self he wants to project means that he is not great at emotional responses - he can't control them - and they result in extremes. While they don't go so far as I'm grieving so I'm going to destroy all of Wallachia, impaling corpses in a fit of extreme emotion isn't exactly the sign of someone in control.
Likewise, when having these emotions, Alucard projects the issues. With aforementioned corpses, Alucard makes explicit reference to his father, suggesting that this isn't an out of control emotional issue, just a response that he's following. (Obviously this is not a good thing either.) In both seasons two and four, he also projects his issues on Trevor. Sypha correctly calls out Alucard's fear in making the wrong choice about who to destroy Dracula alongside as taking the form of Alucard needling Trevor again and again, and just worsening things. In season four, in dealing with the lingering trauma of Sumi and Taka's betrayal, trying to do the right thing, and dealing with suddenly letting an army of refugees into the house again, Alucard declares that he's simply becoming Trevor, rather than owning up to the fact that he's in a bad place emotionally and needs to own that.
What is their sign, and why? The Hierophant's emphasis on an individual's moral values aligns well with Alucard's character and the moment in season 4 that eventually draws him out of behaving like his father. Alucard was raised with his mother's emphasis on hospitality, doing the right thing, and doing the greatest good no matter what - even if it involves patricide. The greatest good is burying the dead man who gave his life trying to seek your help, in spite of the impaled corpses on your lawn. The correct and just thing is important no matter what, and a core part of Alucard's character.
SAMPLES & ARRIVAL
Samples: TDM 1 | TDM 2
Arrival Scenario: Imprisonment