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Character Full-Name and Titles::
Arakine Stormshard
Character Race and Class::
Elven Knight Errant
Why does your character wish to join Blackguard? If the answer is "gold", tell us why gold matters to them.:
Arakine is not a conventional mercenary by any measure. Her motivations can be best summarised as follows (in no particular order):
It is something she has been for a great part of her life, and so - in times of distress or self-doubt - she returns to what she knows. Self-reliance, teamwork, and self-determination are virtues that hold a great deal of appeal to Arakine.
Arakine is something of a 'missionary by deed'. Rather than spread her faith through words, she seeks to shine her light through, as Ghandi would say it, being the change she wants to see in the world. You don't need a torch in daylight, nor do you need a storm-shelter on a calm day. Instead, the best places to test your faith are at the extremes. If she can hold true to what she values, and also maybe inspire these virtues in other people when surrounded by storm-clouds, then she's doing well.
Lastly, Arakine is an odd bird. She doesn't really fit in amongst her own kind. She's no big damned hero, no knight in shining armour. Rather, she's the unlikely product of time, evolution, and interaction. This doesn't make her a snowflake, but rather someone who doesn't fit in well with your average elf.
So in summary - a mercenary company is the perfect place for a tragic-heroic knight-errant in the Arthurian tradition to find a home. She can be of use, and in serving, she can maybe inspire.
Describe your character's past. Where did they grow up? How did they learn their trade? What kind of work history do they have? Whatever you think is relevant to who they are – but aim for at least 3 full lines.:
As with all good stories about Elves, Arakine's starts in a palace, surrounded by fine wines and exotic silks. The firstborn child of a magister and a servant, she was nevertheless legitimised. The thirty-odd years she spent in this environment weren't to her liking - there's only so much icewine one can drink out of exquisite footwear before it gets to you. So she ran away from home and took the life of wandering warrior.
She had always thought of herself as sensible and rugged. But exposure to humans and their culture changed that. She travelled the length of Azeroth, learning skills a little more useful than those she'd picked up at home. As the months turned to years, and years to decades, it became apparent she was quite suited to the lifestyle of a wandering sell-sword. She took jobs based on how challenging and exciting they were rather than necessarily how well they paid.
In time she came to work as a mercenary-auxiliary to the Silver Hand, and fell in love both with the idea and with a young human squire. She was (and still is) far too impetuous and headstrong to make a real paladin, but did her best to live by their ideals - fighting alongside human knights during the various Orc Wars, and watching her human lover grow old and mature. The place she found most at home was the Argent Dawn - a group of misfits and outcasts united by common purpose and desire change the world.
And then Silvermoon fell. You do not watch the almost extermination of your race and remain unchanged by it. Dreams turned to power, and there wasn't space in her heart for love of a treacherous human. She became one of the first Blood Knights, and gleefully fed on the energies of a captured Naaru, despite the headaches, and the broken-glass-weeping that echoed in her mind.
She was a paradigmatic blood knight for a few months - strong, powerful, and uncaring about those that came between her and her goals. Until she encountered a human paladin in the snows of Northrend, still wearing his now-obsolete Silver Hand tabard. No, love wasn't rekindled amidst the death and the blood, but something else was.
Arakine has spent the rest of her life since that day trying to find redemption-through-deed for what she had done. This is not some epic quest draped in finery and accompanied by bards. Rather, it is something done in secret and shadows. It is through small deeds and direct action that she works, rather than through fine words.
Tell us about your character's skillset. What can they do that would be valuable to a mercenary company?:
Arakine is a Jane of most trades, but a master of relatively few. She’s reasonably competent with all forms of weaponry, but prefers to fight from horseback. The role that she found most enjoyable in her various posts and employments was that of trainer. In less martial terms, she’s a practiced and pragmatic non-magical healer, and has a fondness for making swords. She has a large collection of ‘inappropriate’ literature, including the classic “The Crusade in the North: Cold Days and Hot Knights”. She couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket, but likes to share stories. Lastly, she doesn’t – strictly speaking – need the coin. She therefore tends to donate much of her income to the Company’s “widowers’ and orphans’” fund if there is one. And if there isn’t? She’ll set one up. Knowing that the bastards are cared for, and that the mortal remains brings a great deal of peace.
What are your character's feelings regarding the other Horde races?:
Arakine has fought alongside and against every race in the Horde, both as a member of the Alliance, a mercenary, and as a more formal member of the Horde military. She therefore has a healthy respect for their martial skills, even if she has personal distaste for Orcs and Undead. She's far too professional to let any of this show, however.
Old enemies, old loyalties - does your character have them? Who with?:
Arakine has left too many friends (and one lover) dead in the snows of Northrend. To the day she dies, some part of her will always be an Argent.
By contrast, her behaviour was regarded as largely unacceptable by the established Blood Knight order. She holds the lowest possible rank one can have without being a squire. The reason for that is simple – to strip her knighthood would admit to making a mistake. Blood Knights do not make mistakes.
She has a history of emotional wreckage rather than proper family. This includes a half-sister and a young son. She does her best to knit them together into a group, but one might as well herd greased lynxes. She has little time for the drama and nonsense that Elven life seems to attract, and this, results in numerous inadvertent slights and insults.
Finally, write a quick paragraph, describing your character doing something typical to them. (This is to help us get a feel for how you play, so make it something you might type in RP.):
Arakine sat by the embers of the campfire in the dark before dawn polishing her helmet. It wasn't a particularly nice helmet but it was hers. She lost herself in the dim and flickering fire, and found herself humming softly to herself. To the cultured ear, it would sound like someone trying to torture a cat. It was only when she saw the reflections of the others in the metal that she realised she had an audience and coloured slight. "Your pardon. I hadn't meant to disturb you. There's tea"
Blackguard deals with mature themes and content. Please confirm you, the player, are over 18.:
Yes
Why do you wish to join Blackguard?:
I have recently left the Gilded Blades after some nonsense-drama (I personally don't like my characters being power-emoted to death by Guild Officers), and so I asked two friends two recommend places where my Knight-Errant might fit. Tuuh (Nazleq) talked in such glowing terms about you lot that I thought to myself that I should try. Swiftie was also very complimentary.
What I want in a guild is something drama-free, story-rich, and fun. Having seen the way you lot RP-RP and play Volleyball, I'm impressed. Why? Because making the small things fun is what appeals to me.
Tell us a bit about yourself. Hobbies, job, talents, accomplishments, whatever you're comfortable sharing.:
I am a failed medical student who somehow became a war-crimes specialist. I work in a biotech company, and know rather too much about pirates. I have the worst super-power ever (resulting from brain-damage), and I'm something of a nerd. I grew up reading stories about musketeers and knights and so on, so I have very odd ideas about what form heroism takes.
Tell us about your background in roleplay.:
D&D first, but that eventually branched out into other systems. Given the choice, I'd be running 7th Sea of World of Darkness around a table with friends. MMO RPG didn't come naturally to me - I started playing SWG and WOW only when I moved to Leuven for study. The biggest frustration for me about MMO RP is the lack of consequence' we cannot really change the world. To my mind, RP has two fundamental and primary rules:
1) Wheaton's Law: "Thou Shalt Not Be A Dick"
2) Stories matter.
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