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CHARACTER QUESTIONS MEME
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BODY AND APPEARANCE 1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy? He stands at 6'1" and weighs 163lbs 2. How old is he? A youthful and spritely 35!! 3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch? Upright and proper, per professional standard. He often affects a disarmingly relaxed sort of air by tucking his hands in his coat pockets while idling, but those familiar with such things would still be able to spot the habitual military readiness of his bearing: alert, and prepared to react, at all times. 4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities? Fit enough to routinely pass military physicals! He's built some moderate lean muscle from spearmanship reps and such, maintained by pretty routine combat training, and so he's normally capable of fielding at least some decent close-up melee if absolutely necessary. Overall pretty hale and physically fit, no immediate illnesses or dire problems. Of moderate note is that he doesn't tend to sleep particularly well and keeps odd evening hours as a result--if Jade actually sleeps for a full night he will wake up with a splitting migraine without fail, as his eyes start acting up after extensive time without his glasses on them, so breaking it up and shortening his bed hours is actually a more manageable alternative. But this has already been a thing for many years, at least! So by now he's adjusted enough to be quite functional despite it. 5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid? Precise, assured and confident; he has no issue taking up space in an area, and there's rarely much hesitation in his body-language. He's not prone to much in the way of overly emotive gestures, but he's not immune to the occasional exaggerated shrug or wave of his hand either. 6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror? Apparently he looks younger than his age would suggest and is very easy on the eyes, by testimony of various characters throughout the game! Especially when the glasses come off; the most common descriptor sent his way tends to be "beautiful" as opposed to "handsome", really, which probably says something in its own way. Accordingly he does get approached sometimes in this sort of capacity, though interested parties also tend to be just as quickly put off the moment he actually...opens his mouth......if the unnaturally red eyes up close don't do enough unnerving on their own. Still, he's quite aesthetically pleasing from a distance! Even if it's a shame about the personality. Jade himself takes comments on his appearance in cheerfully confident stride out loud; he has no shame in calling himself beautiful too, though it's honestly more to get a fun reaction out of an audience than any actually sincere preening. He has no issue with his physical self-image, and in a logically neutral sort of way he knows that he looks good, but he has little investment or feeling about it beyond maintaining appearances for the sake of social decorum. 7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred? Pretty pale, compared to the rest of the party; compounded on a natural fairness is an upbringing in a constantly snowy region, on top of many years spending more time in labs than outdoors. Would probably burn instead of tanning at this point tbh... Otherwise, he has no visible scarring on his face, but the rest of him tends to be covered in layers in some capacity, so it's hard to say otherwise. However, considering both his childhood of self-experimentation and his stint as a career soldier in general, it's fully possible that he's picked up his share of marks here and there, hidden under sleeves and gloves. 8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style. Somewhere between light brown and dark blond, worn a bit past shoulder-length, bangs parted to his right. It's straight, more loose than heavy in way of volume; he keeps it consistently brushed out, and probably has some kind of decent washing regiment for it, since he apparently takes pretty good care of it?? Sometimes he'll wear it in a loose tie, after a bath or accompanying more formal wear. 9. What color are his eyes? Originally hazel, and technically they still are, but they currently appear unnaturally red due to the fonic glyphs applied to them. Getting very close to his face, it's possible to actually make out the glyph symbology in his irises! 10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features? He generally wears glasses on a daily basis, though it's not for vision correction. 11. What are his chief tension centers? Eyes, shoulders, hands. 12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does he have six of the same suit? He's in uniform for the majority of the game, but outside of that he seems to have a preference towards sleeved layers and darker tones; blues lighter than navy wouldn't actually be his first choice generally, as he's more inclined towards neutral blacks with white, gold, or deep red accents. His taste is also on the sharper and dressier end of the spectrum, well-tailored lines and buttons and gloves. Functional but tasteful, you know? 13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them? Most everything he wears is probably custom tailored, so yes! 14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences? When on active duty he's going to be wearing a Malkuth colonel's Imperial Forces uniform. Long gloves, thigh-high boots with one-inch heels, lots of teal with gold highlights; the usual armor pieces found on Malkuth soldiers are absent, in favor of a large collar that flares over the shoulders and down the back--possibly this is a distinction for ranked fonists specifically? Jade finds it comfortable enough on the whole, and so he wears it to standard regulation. 15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando? idk whatever works best with uniform tights?? SPEECH 1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse? Voiced by Kirk Thornton in the English sub, and Takehito Koyasu in Japanese. Fairly average pitch and tone for a man of his age; unfortunately, bad habit has made it so that there's also a mildly sardonic tint to his diction on such a frequent basis that he now perpetually sounds vaguely sarcastic by default...until he actively puts in the effort to impart seriousness, anyway. 2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate? Evenly and easily; his diction tends to be very clear, and can easily swing authoritative thanks to years of experience either elaborating on his areas of expertise or laying out orders as a ranked officer in the military. 3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics? No particular accent or tic in the game audio proper; otherwise, his dialect tends to lean more formal than not, polite and articulate in a clearly well-educated sort of way. (Even when he's being rude...especially when he's being rude, honestly--) 4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency? Ispanian and Ancient Ispanian, apparently, which is the local standard; he's fluent in both. Since Ancient Ispanian is apparently more of a Latin equivalent than anything--dead as a language, but still frequently used for things like labels and name roots--Ispanian is his default. 5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations? He can ramp up the formality to professional levels for important occasions, but otherwise he doesn't tend to change up much. 6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words? He's an extremely confident speaker on the whole, used to voicing his thoughts and having them heard when he wishes to do so. He rarely has to ponder on what he wants to say, which is also why sarcastic quips come especially easily to him. 7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change? Very articulate! Aggravatingly so, sometimes, which tends to be on purpose. That said, while he doesn't actually tend to inject a lot of feeling into his words most of the time--beyond neutral pleasantry, or neutral amusement--it's still surprisingly easy to tell when he's genuinely upset or angry, if only because it's such a rarity when it happens. He doesn't necessarily lose any eloquence, but things get a lot sharper and more MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL 1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart? Very intelligent; he's been labeled as a genius since he was a child, and it's a pretty accurate way to put it, especially when it comes to his areas of interest and expertise. He's well-educated, but extremely sharp in general as well, able to easily and swiftly catch on to the context of his surroundings or the atmosphere in a room and respond accordingly. His weakest suit is probably emotional intelligence, but even then that's more when it's pointed at himself; he can generally still divine how others tick to an extent, given time, even if he's not so great at figuring out how to appropriately engage sometimes. Others tend to react to his intelligence in a wide range, from being impressed to finding it obnoxious to deeming it frightening; Jade himself is content enough with it sometimes, and...fervently wishes he could turn it off at other times, especially in the last few years. But, for better or worse, he can't. 2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate? His head's quick enough that thinking on his feet is generally no issue, and it's an ability he'd prefer to keep sharp for combat situations. When the luxury's available, though--or for especially important issues, where the answer is going to impact many things--he doesn't mind putting in the time for deliberation too. 3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical? Logical and practical for sure--when he was younger he was all but locked into this mental setting, but with age and experience he's finally started trying to loosen those tightly-wired habits in his head just enough to let the feelings in a bit more. After all, he's found that having an additional perspective in that way is an invaluable tool that he sorely lacks, especially when it comes to dealing with people who are important to him. Considering things outside a logical and practical mindset is still a muscle he has to exercise frequently, though, and he's far more comfortable with leaning back into his old habits if he doesn't watch himself. 4. What kind of education has the character had? In his formative years he was taught in a small local private school consisting of one professor. This covered the basics of reading, writing, arithmetic, and general social education, alongside the natural laws and mechanics of the world--Jade perpetually far outstripped his peers in terms of learning, and he would maintain a focused interest in the fonic sciences. This education was cut a bit short 5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about? Fonology, essentially, with an emphasis on fonic artes and a bit too much experience with dead bodies too (which was uh, more for the fomicry end of things). Jade was inventing entirely new fonic artes before he turned ten, condensing a ravenous interest into experiments and results; most notably, he is the father of fomicry, and is still considered the leading expert on the method and its replicas. Over the course of his career scientist years he wrote multiple books about fonology as well, and the ones that aren't sealed from public perusal are still in active circulation currently. He'll always be interested in anything to do with fonons and their mechanics in general, but he'll rarely turn down the opportunity to study other things even outside his preferred field when given the chance. Jade is just a very scientifically-oriented sort of person, at the end of the day, prone to turning just about any situation into an opportunity for an experiment or two when given the leeway. But more specifically, towards the end of the game, he states that he'd like to get back into researching fomicry again--after a hiatus of over a decade--with the intent to gain a better understanding of human replicas in particular, and ideally improve their quality of life by arguing a case for them as equivalently human citizens of Auldrant. 6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert? He'll gravitate more towards introverted habits when left to his own devices, but doesn't actually have any overtly strong preference one way or another. When he was younger he tended to be a great deal more antisocial outside a tiny circle of insistent friends, for a variety of reasons. But these days? Spending time with people...isn't so bad, sometimes. Especially when they're friends. 7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven? He seems cheerful and relaxed, most of the time--so much so, in fact, that it generally doesn't take most people long to realize that they actually can't really tell what he's sincerely thinking or feeling at all. The amiable front that Jade puts forward is definitely a practiced one, though he's been maintaining and refining it for so many years that it is more habit than not, these days. He was more open and honest when he was a child...and he was also considered very unsettling by others as a result, utterly impassive and seemingly emotionless as he was most times. His feelings have always been very muted compared to other people, and that simply used to be reflected outwardly too, until he eventually realized he'd get a lot farther in social strata by at least trying to be more relatable in his demeanor. So that's what Jade does, most times; his pleasant affectation is of his own volition, but it does require a constant effort, muscle memory that goes away if it isn't exercised enough. 8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic? He has no issue addressing new faces with a smile and a friendly greeting, curious questioning sprinkled here and there depending on how long he's to be associating with them. There isn't a shy bone in his body, really, and if it's looking like he'll be working with them for awhile, he prefers to get to know someone as soon as possible--how they are, and why they're the way they are, as well as what they stand to gain in the current arrangements. Just in case, you know? 9. Is he more likely to act, or to react? He doesn't particularly enjoy reacting to something, mostly because that means said thing occurred outside his expectations and has caught him by surprise. Jade would much prefer to have all the cards on hand with which to act first, when he can. 10. Which is his default: fight or flight? Will generally engage a conflict directly, unless running away is the wiser Staying Alive sort of choice. When there aren't any overt feelings tied in the matter--which is the usual case, for Jade--he has no problem using good sense to determine the best course of action, and he's never beholden to anything as silly as pride in that sense. But when it's personal and he has a lot of investment, this can occasionally change: as some will attest with varying levels of exasperation, Jade can have an extremely hard time giving up on special issues he gets especially stuck on, even when he knows it's detrimental. 11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks? AWFUL AND OBNOXIOUS or so some of his Apparently he didn't always have this sense of humor? While he was always capable of mean-spirited digs at others, Jade was still a much more serious and distant sort of person overall in his youth; it seems that it wasn't until his late twenties that he started developing this, possibly modeling the wit off of Peony's as reference until he could start properly growing his own unique brand of it. In a way, this could be considered the clear starting mark of his "improvement" of his outward-facing persona, at least to a point where he wouldn't be so immediately off-putting to others. But by now Jade does genuinely enjoy finding the humor in things, too, so it's something he's legitimately grown to like using. 12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them? An outright diagnosis is never actually stated in-game, but--perhaps he does? Somewhat? Jade would ultimately agree that there's probably always been something at least a slightly off in how his head is wired, so to speak, being as acutely aware of it as everyone else; from his earliest memories, he has always had acute shortcomings in aspects of empathy and emotions overall that most other people don't seem to possess. Between the testimonies of lifelong friends and family, alongside what we know of his actions in his childhood, there's a very real possibility that Jade at least started out with borderline sociopathic tendencies; they were a lot more obvious when he was a child, and even into early adulthood he'd lean much more easily into them more often than not. It's taken several terrible mistakes and a lot of brightslapping--both rhetorical and literal--from people important to him, for Jade to steer away from extremely dark paths in his life already. Arguably, and as far as he's concerned, he's already committed sins he'll never be able to entirely undo specifically because of that apathy. Which is why he's been...trying to develop himself out of this indifference? Or at least reach a point where he never performs such thoughtless and selfish actions ever again. Trying to build more human habits and mannerisms, to reach out to others and let them reach out to him--in a lot of ways he really is trying to fake things until the habit's so ingrained they become genuine, and it's always going to be an uphill fight against an innate nature more inclined to coldheartedness than not. For awhile Jade doubted he'd ever entirely succeed, really...but examples like Luke's have given him new motivation--proof that people can change...perhaps even Jade the Necromancer. If he puts in the work, and never lets himself forget. 13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person? -Inadvertently inventing fomicry when he was nine -Meeting and learning from Professor Nebilim -Killing...Professor Nebilim....and then immediately trying--and utterly failing--to bring her back as a replica -Finally deciding to give up on fomicry as a means of bringing Nebilim back, which took over ten years of Super Ethically Uncool experiments and culminated in Jade himself nearly dying in an experimental accident--alongside a nice and solid punch from Peony, which perhaps helped the most -GESTURES AT...THE GAME PROPER, IN GENERAL, but especially the moments involving Luke and his ultimate fate. The Jade by the end of the game is a decidedly different person from the Jade at the beginning, which is remarkable in its own sort of way. 14. What does he fear? Not a lot, when it comes to himself! While he has a decent sense of self-preservation, he also has exceptional confidence in himself being able to handle whatever might befall his way to the level best of his ability--if he's failed in that sense, he probably deserves it anyway. And so, threats to his own person don't really faze him. On the other hand, though...when it comes to those around him? Once he finds himself genuinely caring about someone, he does tend to start worrying a great deal about their general wellbeing when perilous situations arise, especially if he himself can't be present to ensure that all is well. Moving to a level even baser than that, Jade's greatest fear above all is probably having a repeat of the Nebilim incident--where his own selfishness and lack of foresight ends up taking the life of someone important to him, in an incident that would otherwise be entirely preventable. 15. What are his hopes or aspirations? At this point he just...wants to do some good, for a change? For all his "intellect" and "talent" it sure feels like he's achieved nothing but sorrow and suffering for an unbelievably large number of people so far. So, while he's certain he'll never be able to absolve himself of these things, he'd still...like to try? It would certainly be nice, to make a wide-spreading impact that's actually of help to others for once; he plans to start with proving the legitimacy of replicas' unique individual existence and participation in the world, and from there...who knows? Certainly not himself, but he'll keep trying his best in the meantime, until he does. 16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him? There are certainly things he won't tell just any random person out the gate, though when it comes to the more compromising details of his past deeds Jade doesn't actually mind clearing the air with people who are close, or have a right to know. Discussing the intricacies of his own feelings, on the other hand, is probably the most challenging topic you could throw at him; while he'll readily admit that he rarely has them, he has a decidedly harder time dealing with them when they actually occur, or admitting as much to others, even when it's obvious. RELATIONSHIPS 1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents. It's, well...kind of an odd affair, for multiple reasons, so this is gonna be a bit long lol. Jade currently actually has two pairs of parents in the most technical sense, both sets being alive and well currently; he was born as Jade Balfour, but that changed to Jade Curtiss, after he got himself adopted by House Curtiss at around 14 years old. "Got himself adopted", you ask? Yes, it's about what it sounds like, as he chose to basically 'transfer' there entirely of his own volition. While the Balfour family is about as normal and upper-middle class as it gets, House Curtiss is a well-respected military family that seems to have enough clout to match nobility, assuming they don't basically qualify as nobility themselves; at the time Jade had Goals in mind and needed the status to get to them, while the heads of house were suitably impressed enough by his genius and talent in fonic artes to consider him a worthy inheritor to the family name. I have...no idea how exactly the adoption process went down, and I really wish I did?? I have a feeling that Jade arranged things so that his new parents proceeded under the impression that they were adopting him of their own volition as a magnanimous sort of favor, though, as opposed to him simply using them as a stepping-stone to the military academy and upwards. Were they unable to have any heirs of their own and decided to take a pick from the pool of sufficiently remarkable children in the area? Or maybe an adoption was mentioned in one of their Score readings, and Jade just took advantage from there?? The main takeaway from this is that Jade bears no grudge or ill will towards his birth parents whatsoever, though, despite basically stepping out of the Balfour family rather the way one might shuck an old coat for a new one. In fact, there's likely a low-key investment that could probably pass for fondness at the very least; after all, his class-climbing efforts might have been a bit easier if they'd uh, died prematurely under mysterious circumstances or something.....which would have been extremely horrible yes, but please understand that Jade was at a very low and grim stage of his life at 12-22 years old, on top of already being a strange and awful child even before that--killing his own birth parents would not have been completely off the table at that point, if he didn't already love them in his own way. (On top of the fact that it would have broken Nephry's heart as well ofc...) In turn, his birth parents probably still cared for him as a son too, even while doubtless being alarmed and concerned by his unsettling tendencies from childhood years--proud of his talents and intelligence, yes, but...also increasingly hands-off with him over time, as it became more difficult to understand what was even happening in that head of his. When Jade informed them that he was moving to the Curtiss family so he could attend the military academy, they were probably worried and a bit confused, but gingerly supportive all the same, if only because they likely already knew there'd be no persuading him otherwise. After the adoption things probably never did stop being mildly awkward with them, either...but Jade probably does still try to touch base with them on very rare occasions like holidays or birthdays--a letter or gift sent every now and then, if nothing else. By contrast he tends to regard his adopted parents with a neutrality that's never really evolved; they're not particularly bad people, nor are they particularly saintly, just overall about standard fare and temperament for nobility. They might have been just as neutral towards Jade in turn, but it's also possible that they tried to pull him into the family fold in their own ways...even if they had, though, they were likely just overall unsuccessful in ever endearing themselves to him in any way more personal. Jade has no particularly sentimental attachment to them, so they're really more like esteemed associates in his head than anything else, and this hasn't changed in years. In fact, he still doesn't automatically respond to just his family name even in the present day, which is why he tends to request that he be referred to by his first name instead when he introduces himself. Jade affords his adopted parents the same respect he would his birth parents, but there's not much more to it than that...his correspondences might be slightly more frequent by obligation, and he'll attend the family gatherings/social functions/etc 2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like? He has one confirmed sibling on the Balfour side, yes! Her name is Nephry, and she's about five years younger than he is; she's now Viscount Nephry Osborne after getting married, and is currently the governor of Keterberg. Very nice lady, smart and sensible and friendly--all around she's a Normal Human Being, in a way that Jade never was, and this disparity between them has certainly molded their relationship in a sense. While it might be surprising to some, Jade is honestly quite fond of Nephry in his own muted sort of way, and she seems to care very much for him too, even if she does also consider him frightening in some respects (and has no problem calling him a "devil" to his friends rip). You can't exactly blame her, after putting up with his absolutely awful childhood So, to put it lightly, his tendency to apathy has definitely strained their relationship on multiple occasions! In the wake of the Nebilim incident, and Jade going away to the Curtiss family and the military academy, a rift of distance also opened between them for quite some time, over which Jade doubtless worried her endlessly. He probably started actually visiting on odd occasions again once he finally gave up on fomicry in his twenties, but after attending her wedding Jade didn't return to Keterburg at all for at least several years--his next visit would be after he was presumed dead in Akzeriuth for a bit, which understandably gave her quite a shock. But even despite his awful habits and these accidentally harrowing sorts of gestures, she still has his best interests at heart: as shown in-game, for example, she's willing to divulge some nastier parts of Jade's past to one of his newer friends just to try and ensure he won't fall into his obsession with resurrecting Nebilim a second time, being well aware of how Bad that whole thing was for him. HONESTLY...SHE'S A VERY PATIENT WOMAN.....probably more than he deserves!! And Jade is aware of it. He probably started distancing himself from Nephry in earnest once his Necromancer reputation really took off, likely in a bid at making her life easier by keeping his grisly shadow out of her affairs--naturally without fully considering how she'd feel about the matter. Post-game I could see him tentatively starting to make reparations with her again...maybe he'll start visiting more than once every five years....it would be a good start!! 3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand? None that have been shown, though they might exist? On the Curtiss side for sure there are probably a least a couple of cousins/uncles/etc who are absolutely insufferable, because it do be like that with nobility sometimes, but there aren't any specific details on any extended family in either direction iirc. 4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them? Honestly, by the end of the game Jade probably does consider the entire party in a practically familial sort of light, at least so far as he can manage with his Limited Feelings Skills. They're all quite dear to him by that point, which probably counts for something. Otherwise, some might argue that Jade's status as the inventor of fomicry renders him the "father" of all replicas by some technicality, but while Jade garners a sincere sense of general responsibility for them by end-game, it's hardly in a particularly parental light. 5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet? That would be Peony! Jade...literally broke into his manor when they were children! Peony had been secreted away to Keterburg to spare him from the political deathfest in the capital (it's a long story), and so was under house arrest at the time. Presumably, Jade caught wind of the rumors that a prince of Malkuth was holed up in there, and he decided he wanted to meet a prince and find out what all the fuss over royalty was generally about, and it's history from there. Peony is now the current Emperor of Malkuth, but he and Jade still interact frequently whenever Jade is staying in Grand Chokmah for a spell; in fact, Peony invites himself to Jade's office 6. Does he have other close friends? The whole Abyss party is a recent but well-cemented addition at this point; as stated above, Jade practically considers the whole party as a second (or third??) family by the end of the game, but even if he didn't, naming them as close friends would be just as fitting. He considers every one of them a person he'd turn to for assistance, if he thinks they could manage it, and he wouldn't hesitate the cover for them too. Besides that, they've been through...a lot, together, and at this point they know more about Jade as a person than most ever manage, and vice-versa. It really is a new and strange sort of development, though--accruing this many additional friends so soon. Before that, the only other close friend Jade's ever had would probably be...Dist, sort of? This is past-tense for a reason, though; said friendship was largely in childhood, and only even happened mostly because Dist pretty much latched on to him and refused to let go, growing on Jade like an inconvenient fungus over time instead. Jade completely severed ties with Dist in his early twenties, when he decided to give up on the replication of living things but Dist continued to insist upon it. He's still extremely short and unforgiving of Dist to this day, too--it's going to take a lot effort and elbow grease to rebuild that bridge from the ashes, and Jade just doesn't have a lot of interest in trying at present. 7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people? It certainly doesn't happen very easily smh...it's not even that Jade goes particularly out of his way to push people away--at least nowadays--but his cutting humor and general cheerily disingenuous personality is a rather acquired taste to most, assuming that his alarming reputation doesn't already repel someone to begin with. Still, Jade has never exactly gone out of his way to seek out friendship either, so it's all pretty self-made in that sense. In short, it's something he's aware of and doesn't particularly mind. 8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends? Family certainly has its place as a priority--especially if we're referring to his birth family, as opposed to his adopted one--but it'd be lying to say that Jade hasn't gone out of his way for his friends a good deal more frequently, especially lately... 9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once? He's single currently, and has never really set out to change this. 10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse? Nope! 11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest? WELL.....if you were to ask him this (and he doesn't opt to just swing for a blatantly false sort of answer), Jade would say that he's never had one, and that would be honest in one sense. As disconnected and muted as his own feelings tend to be, "crushes" in the normal sense just don't occur particularly easily to him, and he'd be just as likely to initially completely overlook it even if he did develop one. So, with that being said! ...........It's possible he might have had just a bit of a crush on Professor Nebilim when he was a child, another piece to add to the muddled mix of general genuine respect and investment he developed for her in the time he spent learning from her. He never did realize it, to say the least, and then...things, Happened, so. You know. Yeah. It's unlikely he's considered anyone else quite the same way since, as of now. (The next closest candidate would be...Peony? Maybe??? But even that would be one of those things where he's just legitimately skipped right over the "crush" phase already, close as they've been for years. Not to mention how Jade is definitely completely unaware of his own potential inclination there as of now, so, SHRUGS--) Could this still change in the future? Perhaps! It's not something he's consciously shutting himself out of ever experiencing, exactly, but alas he's just not very...conducive, as a person, towards these sorts of things either. 12. What does he look for in a romantic partner? Allegedly, somebody more beautiful than he is...!! ANYWAY troll answers aside: he's never really looking, so to speak, since he's almost always got other Important Things to be preoccupied about on a given day! But if he were looking...he'd definitely prefer someone decently intelligent--enough so to at least keep up with him, if not necessarily rival him. Being able to match his humor, and even spar with it, would be a good start towards appealing to him as well. But beyond these things, he definitely tends to harbor more respect and interest towards those who are either already fundamentally Good People, or are at least clearly trying their best to become better--a strong moral compass, and a genuine wish to help others, are two things that Jade believes he lacks...which is perhaps why he gravitates to such personalities in turn, seeing them as reminders and examples to learn from. Provided all these things check out, other aspects are less important; he really wouldn't put too much stock in physical appearances in the end, though a pleasant face is always a bonus. And...an extremely low-key bias towards smart and lovely people with short white hair probably does exist, just a tad.....I SEE YOU OVER THERE INTERACTING WITH RAINE SAGE MORE THAN ENTIRELY NECESSARY IN SOME OF THOSE GACHA CROSSOVERS JADE, YOU AREN'T FOOLING ANYONE-- 13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any? Not by blood, no! And he'd prefer to keep it that way too. Being the father of fomicry is already quite enough of a Dad Experience for him, thanks...!! He's already just barely dealing with that much responsibility as it is!!! 14. Does he have any rivals or enemies? Oh, plenty of them! Even before the events of the game, there's no doubt Jade's made countless enemies over the course of his career--or, hell, just over the course of him Being Alive in general. From would-be bullies in childhood to jealous upper-classmen in his teens, rival or objecting scientists when he was refining fomicry, his stints on the battlefield as a military soldier...Jade doesn't go out of his way to start conflicts most of the time, but he almost never hesitates to finish them in the most crushing and decisive ways possible, and this unsurprisingly doesn't sit well with the people on the receiving end. In result, Jade is no stranger to being despised, and tends to expect it by default; he rarely has too much difficulty dealing with it either, having long since grown a thick enough skin comprised of both experience and a natural indifference to take most condemnations head-on in unaffected stride. Even when it comes to sorer issues that legitimately bother him--such as fomicry, and the resulting misery it's brought upon countless people over the years--well...it's hard to be much more injured by external declarations of hatred, when he already hates himself and his past actions more than anyone else on the daily! 15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale? Eh, it's a solidly indifferent 3 on the scale; gender is pretty much a non-factor to him, as far as his preferences in such matters might be concerned. Sexuality doesn't seem to be a particular issue on Auldrant, really, beyond the matter of some nobler families wishing to carry on literal bloodlines--and so it's a complete non-issue to Jade in turn. 16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him? It, sure is a thing that exists! A bit overhyped on the whole, if you ask him, though he understands the appeal in a vague sense. Jade has thorough clinical knowledge and enough approximate social knowledge on the matter to form this opinion with a decent amount of confidence; ambivalent as he is about it, he has minimal actual experience with sex, as he just generally never feels a need to seek it out or put much stock in the action. It's pleasurable enough, but hardly essential, and the whole process tends to be more of a hassle than the temporary nice sensations are worth. A partner he cares about and some sufficiently involved Actual Feelings could go a long way towards increasing the appeal of it for him? But he's had yet to find either of these things and he's not actively seeking them, since he doesn't particularly feel like he's missing out on anything. 17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits? Probably not the most tender lover around, alas...affectionate cuddling and whisperings of sweet nothings are going to be a hard sell, even if it is with a partner he genuinely likes and cares about--it's not impossible, but it's not really his default either, and it shows. Things are generally more likely to turn out impersonal and efficient without some proper intervention or coaxing from his partner's side of things; combine a lack of practice with the fact that Jade tends to be calculated about most everything he does in life, and it's unfortunately easy to tell how prone this is to manifesting in the bedroom too. Measured and clinical gestures towards what would probably feel nice for his partner and himself--way too much logical thinking and testing, not nearly enough intuition. Rougher sex would probably be the easiest way to steer him out of this and into something more genuine? Since he might have uh, a bit of a masochist streak anyway...work out that low-key self-loathing smh..... Alternatively, turning the whole thing into more of an experiment would probably also get him into it way more than it probably should. Drug play, arte play, that sort of thing. --Look, when you have muted feelings like he does, it's going to take harsher and/or weirder measures to coax them up properly oftentimes, and it's all very unfortunate for everyone involved. BELIEFS Auldrant's calendar is actually dilated compared to our standard Earth one, as each month has 58 days (sans Lorelei-Redecan's 60 days), and each year has 13 months in total; thus, Zodiacs in general technically have no particular bearing?? Jade's Earth birthday would apparently be on November 22 after some conversions, though. Finagle the astrology with this as you will!! idk enough about it to say anything myself SHRUGS 2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life? He's not at all religious on the whole, no, though it wasn't from a lack of trying on the part of his adopted family. The Curtiss family are apparently very devout followers of the Order of Lorelei; in one sidequest of the game, Jade mentions that he was prodded into accompanying them on multiple formal pilgrimages to Daath in his teens, and it probably stands to reason from there that he's also extremely familiar with all the customs and prayers and tenets that come with the Order-following package. Alas, none of these things actually succeeded in sticking to him as intended, as seen in the fact that Jade has little difficulty with the idea of breaking free of the Score once the idea's floated over the course of the story. It's not that he's completely dismissive of the concepts founded upon the Score and the elements surrounding it, necessarily; Jade understands well the influence and importance of the Order's teachings on Auldrant's society, and is quite aware that many people view said teachings as a form of guidance and purpose. There are also components of it that have been soundly proven to hold water regardless of belief: there's the fact the Score has never made an incorrect prediction in the two thousand years recorded upon it, alongside the fact that Yulia Jue, as the Score's creator, undoubtedly existed and exerted great influence on the shaping of Auldrant as it is today. More intangible matters like "aggregate spirits" and "the memory of the planet" are also phenomena that have been recorded and examined enough that there's no doubt of their existence and impact. But on a personal level, viewing these things in a more devout sort of lens just isn't an idea Jade can actually relate to himself; looking back upon his own terrible deeds in life, and reflecting upon the nature of death as he has (maybe a little too much), Yulia Jue's teachings as put forth by the Order have simply never been quite adequate in providing the answers he's tried seeking over the years...and he now prefers to draw his beliefs from his own gathered data instead. It's probably summed up most accurately in how he answers a question about the existence of ghosts, at one point: "I simply don't have any evidence to prove that they don't exist, so it's possible they might." Ah, he probably quite admires the concept of Yulia Jue as a person who existed in the past, though! A peerlessly brilliant scientist, fonist, engineer, and social reformer, all rolled into a single human package?? One only needs to look at the measures taken to raise the Outer Lands, which were devised by her in entirety...it's really quite a pity that isn't talked about more often when it comes to her, as far as Jade's probably concerned. 3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it? He's, trying........he's trying!! Truth be told, taking things like "morals" and "ethics" into proper consideration is a habit Jade's not at all naturally disposed to; for most of his life he's been alarmingly prone to easily foregoing these things entirely, when he's in a single-minded pursuit of his own goals. He's always known what a moral compass ought to look like, more or less--what is conventionally ethically wrong, and ethically right, and why people react the way they do when such things are violated. But it's only very recently that he's started actively wanting to actually hold himself and others to those standards, and it's another uphill path of constant self-reminding that he's making himself tread. It's getting a little easier lately, for better or worse--as recent events have grown a vague but steady sense of guilt, from a flat decades-old plane of apathy, and it's a biting sort of motivator these days. 4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent? Indifferent, for the most part, unless the beliefs in question are imposing active inconvenience or harm at a given time. He's not terribly receptive to any attempts at outright conversion, either, though more casual exchanges of ideas can be agreeable and sometimes quite interesting. 5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them? None that are particularly acute enough to override good sense? At worst, he once had a tendency to be highly dismissive of bratty and egotistical personalities--selfish people remind him of himself, in his youth, and it's an unpleasant association he doesn't care to watch play out in front of him. But even this particular bias has been diluted, in the wake of watching Luke's remarkable development; nowadays he's more inclined to give these sorts just a bit more of a chance, now that it's been proven to him that even the most self-absorbed person can still change for the better. DAILY LIFE 1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt? Very comfortable, evidently. Between the decent affluence of his adopted family and his current profession as a ranked member of the military, he does very well for himself, and keeps efficient enough track of his budget that he's certainly never been in the red for any reason. 2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him? On the upper class of society currently, for certain; he's technically practically within the outer circle of Malkuth nobility, House Curtiss being the highly respected military family that it is. It's a status that Jade rarely taps into and declines to advertise, though, as he finds attention in that vein an inconvenience most of the time, and doesn't care to be too deeply embroiled in the politics most nobility are perpetually deadlocked in. This perspective has definite roots in the fact that he was born to a very average middle-class sort of family, and lived as such very comfortably until adolescence; he's never really gone out of his way to change much about his lifestyle even after being adopted, apart from the etiquette necessities of his new higher status. Outside of caste semantics, though, he's also built quite the menacing general public reputation for himself in the last ten years or so! He's known in both Malkuth and Kimlasca as "Jade the Necromancer", a grim rumor of the military who goes about picking through corpses in the wake of battlefields and allegedly has soldiers wearing dead men's faces among the ranks of his division. The last time Jade attended a major military conflict in a proper soldier's capacity was the Battle of Northern Chesedonia 3 years prior to the start of the game: under his command Malkuth's forces there were able to radically turn the tide of a seemingly lost fight, allegedly in thanks to Jade's crushingly brutal tactics and general feats on the field itself (including, among other things, personally blinding one of Kimlasca's best archers at the time). Kimlascan soldiers have not forgotten this, and even the higher-ranking Generals are leery of meeting him even under peaceful circumstances...but Malkuth soldiers catching wind of the tales are quite leery of him too these days, and lately the rumors have started seeping into general public consciousness as well. Jade doesn't exactly help matters himself; if anything, he's often quite happy to verbally build upon the ridiculous stories when the opportunity arises, and embraces his ominous Necromancer title with an unsettling sort of cheer when people try to bring it up to him as some form of negative connotation. (Having an intimidating reputation can come in quite handy sometimes, after all--and there's a grain of truth in all the hearsay anyhow, you know...) 3. Where does he live? House, apartment, trailer? Is his home his castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does he share it with others? He states that he has a house in Malkuth's imperial capital, Grand Chokmah; presumably this is what he'd call home, on the odd occasions where he's not in some form of military transit. It's likely not the actual Curtiss family manor, but rather a separate building, perhaps on the other side of town; allegedly Jade lives by himself, save for a couple of servants that keep things running while he's away. It's probably no mansion, but a very nice estate regardless, with all you'd need in the way of living there and providing for guests--the most unusual aspect would probably be a personal lab installed towards the back of the building soon after purchase of the property, which allows him to carry on with any sort of research he might be engrossed in when he's home. But he's not home very often at all, thanks to the nature of his current profession; in result Jade isn't exactly attached to the place with any particular sentimentality, but he likes being there well enough on the odd holiday he can afford to linger. 4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on? Oh, nothing too frivolous! But he's at a financially comfortable enough sort of level where he's not generally too conflicted about buying the nicer versions of things every now and then: well-tailored clothes, refined meals in refined places, things like that. Sometimes he needs tools or supplies for Science(tm), or maybe wants to purchase a book or two on fields of fonic theory he's yet to cover thoroughly himself, if he isn't getting stationery for his own note-taking and general writing. Apparently he visits bars often enough that the bartender of a certain place in Grand Chokmah knows him and his preferences pretty well, too... 5. What does he do for a living? Is he good at it? Does he enjoy it, or would he rather be doing something else? He's a Colonel of the Third Division in the Malkuth Imperial Forces, has been for several years now. Before that, he was a member of the Imperial Forces' science divison, but on the whole he's essentially been under military payroll and mentality ever since he completed his education in his teens. Jade's certainly always been extremely competent in the roles he's worked; his transfer out of the science division was entirely of his own volition, and in the time afterwards he's taken to his more active role on the field so well that apparently he could easily qualify for the rank of General by now--and still remains Colonel by his own choice, too. Enjoying it would be a rather strong word, in Jade's own opinion, but he does find the work worthwhile enough that he doesn't see himself stepping entirely out of the Imperial Forces anytime particularly soon, even despite being fully aware of the moral quandaries that can often arise in military matters. He takes it seriously, and does actually try to uphold the law of Malkuth while he's on the job, if his reactions to criminals in the vicinity or even shady business dealings in certain stores the party purchases from are anything to go by. Most important is the fact that his current job keeps him very busy and occupied, though. It being worthwhile is one thing, but it has to stay stimulating too, as Jade is very aware of the trains of thought he can be prone to when he's Not Busy Enough. Nobody wants a repeat of the Nebilim incident--himself least of all--so if he can remain in a profession that keeps him on his toes enough to not be idly considering certain experiments 24-7, he'd quite prefer it. .....Is he compatible with any other kind of job that isn't lab- or military-related, you ask? Well, he does actually have a decent aptitude for teaching--but Jade will never admit it, and has been adamant about rejecting every potential student or would-be apprentice that might come to him asking for knowledge. He doesn't think he has the ability or the right to teach anyone anything in a formal capacity--that was something he forfeited quite awhile ago now, as far as he's concerned. 6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time? Gestures at SCIENCE, as I have for most of this post.....he might not necessarily be a scientist as a dayjob anymore, but Jade still quite enjoys the process of running experiments and recording results; nowadays they just tend to be much, much smaller-scale projects, usually launched on a whim with very brief windows of duration. Associates nearby may or may not be roped into impromptu tests, and also may or may not get full disclosure about it--but they're harmless things most of the time! Mostly. Aside from science, though, he actually enjoys writing a fair amount (although it's still, mostly, also about science....you won't see him writing any romance stories or whatever anytime soon, sorry.....) It's noted in-game that Jade has written multiple books on fonology that are still in active public circulation, so it can be assumed he's been at it for quite awhile already. While he's not working on putting out another book yet, currently, he probably does still have an idle habit of recording notes and outlining passages on theory fairly often in his downtime, scattered across multiple handwritten notebooks and pages kept approximately organized. Oh, he does work out on a fairly routine basis too, though. Nothing unusually intensive, but he does have a physical standard to maintain if he wants to remain doing field work in the military, and it never hurts to keep one's spearing skills sharp either! 7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods? Admittedly he doesn't have a pressing commitment to a round three meals a day, exactly...the more absorbed he gets in a certain amount of work, the more he tends to forget his own appetite, and the more likely he is to skip multiple meals in a day or just sort of snack sparingly between tasks. He does eat better in company, though; when traveling with the rest of the party over the course of the game he probably ended up tracking meals a lot more closely just by virtue of certain other companions being prone to complaining the moment they go too long without a food break of some kind. While he's not opposed to eating out sometimes, he usually cooks for himself on his own, and is quite decent at it--cooking is just another form of chemistry, at the end of the day. ...When cooking for others he also has a bad habit of experimenting in that sense too, though... (How long would it take for someone notice their least favorite food being in a dish if it were seasoned or distributed this certain way? How would this very mild poison react to this broth? If he substituted this for that, would the most picky eater in the party be able to tell??) Apparently his least favorite foods are anything containing pork or rappig meat, while his more favored foods are salmon, tofu, and wine; he's probably quite content with seafoods in general, especially sushi and the like. He also drinks...fairly often, actually! Apparently! Preferably wine, when it can be had, but he won't turn away from most any other kind of alcohol either. In a party sort of setting he's certainly going to indulge a bit, but outside that, he seems to incline towards bars when he's very bothered by something and wants to get his head to let it go for at least a little while. (His alcohol tolerance is respectable enough, but nothing superhuman. He does try not to get completely unflatteringly smashed at any give time...but on the rare occasion it does happen, he's probably the kind of drunk who can act rather convincingly normal and alert until he suddenly says or does something not...entirely sensible...) END {{ Get the HTML here so you can do it yourself. }} |
