The big one: Character discussions!

[Anastasia]

Reika is nice - Usagi likes her and is glad that Motoki is at least with someone she can look up to rather than an evil skank. They don't interact much, but that's about the long and the short of it - she's a nice young woman who happens to be her first crush's girlfriend. Usagi's pretty sure Reika knows all about her one-time feelings for Motoki, and appreciates that she isn't condescending about it or anything.

I did get the impression that she knew something was weird with Mamoru, but how much and so on was never clarified, since we only really got that bit at the ball and a line from Mamoru about Reika acting weird - needless to say he didn't expand on it despite my proddings.

Dunno if the Crown has room for a cool base, unless we use that storage room I got locked in with Motoki and Mamoru, one time. I wouldn't mind Reika and Motoki taking more of a role, but if any random NPC is to be Sailor Neptune it should be Unazuki!

Speaking of that, isn't it odd that two of the most 'achingly hot' girls happen to be close to Motoki? Not quite sure where to go with that, but it is worthy of note...

(Poor Maya. Is she the only girl in the universe who isn't beautiful/really cute?)

Yeah. The storyline ended up not being gotten into. I was just laying the seeds for it to blossom but never went past that point. I had more planned - be it things like that lunch with Ami, Usagi, Motoki and Reika to more palpable interjections. She was going to be a MotD or MotD victim for a little while, before this got badly shelved. Some good drama there - imagine her seeing Tuxedo Kamen, hesitating, and reaching out with a '...Ma...mor...'!

It is a little odd - Motoki has it going' on, yeah yeah yeah! Go figure that one, too. Well, Motoki is cute, almost like a taller and not totally evil Jadeite, and is friendly. That gets the chicks.

Maya is Maya. Someone has to be average or below average. More reason that I feel bad for her and tend to like her.

[Anastasia]

(Poor Maya. Is she the only girl in the universe who isn't beautiful/really cute?)

Junki's mom wasn't attractive, but that's all I can think of.

It's also an RP. Most of the serious characters tend to be attractive by definition. It is make believe, remember. <_<

[Asrana]

It's also an RP. Most of the serious characters tend to be attractive by definition. It is make believe, remember. <_<

Was I badmouthing you? Didn't think so. >_>

Just answering Usa's musings. =p

[Anastasia]

It's also an RP. Most of the serious characters tend to be attractive by definition. It is make believe, remember. <_<

Was I badmouthing you? Didn't think so. >_>

Just answering Usa's musings. =p

I know, I'm just saying. <_<

[Anastasia]

Character entry #17

Beck

Source Material(s):

http://forfeit.electromaz.com/lufia2/art/maxim.jpg

http://forfeit.electromaz.com/lufia2/art/maxim2.jpg

Maxim from Lufia 2 inspired some of Beck's apperance. His fighting style was culled from a variety of sources, notably stylistically from Swordmasters from FE6/7/8. A general mishmash.

General:

Let's compare and contrast, shall we? A flawed, angry but noble swordsman who embodies the fighting spirit of Gaia. While his tongue is occasionally sharp, his devotion is sharper. So! For 100 yen, how far away from Beck was that? Beck wasn't meant to be such a jerk - he just came out that way. His edge and anger never faded into anything more productive until it was far too late - his better half was overshadowed by his acidic words.

This wasn't intentional or anyone's fault, it's just the way he developed out. I ran with it and it made him interesting if grating to RP. There's not much else to say here - he's very simplistic in motivation and action.

Notes:

His sword's name is 'Nameless'. This was wholly intentioned - it simply is what it is. He makes a very interesting contrast with Balder - in many ways, Beck should be the bad guy and Balder the good guy based on heritage and attitudes. His youma form was known as the 'Death'. He was meant to be a lingering threat for awhile, but you got him right off. Good for you girls.

He sincerely respects Usagi and Makoto for different reasons, even if he'd never admit it to anyone but maybe Usagi. He also personally concedes that Hotaru is a very deadly warrior. I like the small irony that one of Dei's passing acts came back to smite Jadeite in this form - his critical at the end of the battle was hellishly perfect.

[Ebiris]

Beck Stuff

Usagi really pities Beck, although she doesn't show it to him in the same way she shows it to Balder and Serenity jr, who're about the only people she pities as much - mainly because Beck just doesn't seem to respond well to anything she does unless it relates to killing Jadeite.

It also bothers her that she often feels pulled each way between Beck and Balder - in all honesty, she likes Balder more as a person, but she's acutely aware of what he's done, especially to Beck (and it's because of what Balder did that Beck's so aggravating), so keeps a mostly neutral viewpoint between them.

Knowing what Beck's been through and lost, she's willing to cut him a ton of slack, and will only reply with light teasing at most when he's being particularly abrasive. That's not to say that Makoto gut-punching him didn't elicit a small internal cheer, but Usagi can't bring herself to really be harsh on him herself.

Besides, when he does loosen up (for those brief ten second periods every couple of days), he can be surprisingly good company.

[Anastasia]

It also bothers her that she often feels pulled each way between Beck and Balder - in all honesty, she likes Balder more as a person, but she's acutely aware of what he's done, especially to Beck (and it's because of what Balder did that Beck's so aggravating), so keeps a mostly neutral viewpoint between them.

That's the crux of how Balder and Beck interact, and why it's such a deliciously amusing and twisted interplay. Beck's the victim but he's aj erk because of it and Balder's the badguy but more likeable and the victim also all at once.

It's a nifty, self contained moral and ethical mess.

I think you're right. At heart and under all the pain, grief and rage? There's an honorable, decent and very human person. Circumstances make this a rare side to be seen.

[Bean Bandit]

Hmm...Beck certainly is a jerk. I don't think this ever made Makoto look down on him, though she does disdain his attitude-she can't abide people taking out their frustrations on people who don't deserve it. This was the crux of her initial clash with him...Usagi, who's attitude she respects deeply, even if she doesn't fully agree with it in every case, was losing patience with him.

That alone was so completely and jaw droppingly rare (Makoto and Hotaru disgreed directly with Usagi more than a few times, but they never elicited the same type of annoyance and constant irritation that Beck managed) That Beck's sneering little comment as they passed was just the last straw.

Makoto: *Inner Monologue* Alright, Usagi, you had your chance. My turn.

>POW<

It was catharthic, both IC and OOC, but it was a watershed moment in her dealings with him. All the niceties got pushed to the side, and the gloves came off. It was meant to be just ripping into him, but it was more basic when I got into it. It turned into a way for me to examine Makoto's most basic motivations.

Makoto's a good girl, but she's not the same type of girl as Usagi. She's a firm believer in appropriate application of the rod, so to speak. She admires Usagi for being nothing but kind to the Gaians (Balder, for example, where she tried hard to follow Usagi's example) (With mixed results, really. >_>)

Beck has had a hard, awful life. Makoto simply doesn't care. It's nothing that can be used as a club to beat other people with, and she called him on it.

[Anastasia]

Interesting, Mako-chan.  How does the hatesex idea factor into all of that?

----

Character entry #18

Jun.

Source Material(s): Sailor Moon canon.  Very slight nods to other stereotypical wise hermit figures like Yoda tossed in here and there. Mostly whole cloth extrapolated from the concept of Gaia.

General: From the beginning, Jun was shaded to be an older version of Kunzite; wise, aged and still bearing traits from his youth, yet distant and waiting for his one day. A toned down version of Kunzite that's also had a lot of long waiting and thinking to do on many matters. I generally like how it worked - his intensity was there as well as loyalty, yet he was his own person as well.

Wishing on the Crystal was a last resort. When he came on what had happened to Dei, he knew it was too late to reveal himself and attempt to remedy what went down. His only option was one hidden ace in the hole; a part of the Silver Crystal that came to him. So he wished and gained great insight and power, yet lost all fighting ability. His task was to wait for that day when the Sailor Senshi of the future would come to him. Like Queen Serenity, he served the will created by Queenie's last wish, albiet in another form. Taking the ability and vigor of a proud warrior was the most fitting price to take from Jun, as well as sliding in well with what the Crystal wanted from him.

Notes: Jun's name has meaning. What it is I never decided - be it a name he had on Earth or something only know to him. I never could quite decide what. Yes, he's gay. It's not anything that matters much to him anymore, however. He's mainly just relieved that this is all over at last - he'll take control of Gaia if need be, now that he doesn't have a percieved death sentence hanging over him. He tends to see people as warriors, especially the Sailor Senshi. The little teenage fight between Hotaru and Usagi reminded him that they weren't just heroes. He personally pities almost everyone invovled - though he does have some personal contempt for how Beck carries himself now, and vaguely dislikes Rei. I think those two just rub badly from what little I did with them.

Jun is quite the cook - probably better than Makoto and Ikkuko. Doubly so since he has magic to openly alter taste, though one can wonder if this invalidates much of the point of cooking skill. He thinks Mamoru is handsome, but nothing more. He's fond of Hotaru in her way, he finds her darker side amusing.

[Ebiris]

Jun Stuff

I think Usagi preferred Jun in his 'wise hermit' mode. There's too many haughty prettyboy warriors around her, these days, so he was something of a breath of fresh air in that regard.

I rather like the dynamic they built up, with him playing the wise but obtuse mentor and Usagi being a somewhat cheeky and reluctant pupil - she's often so eager to learn anything and everything to do with magic, but his indirect methods of teaching frustrate her. Hopefully she'll figure out the answer to his puzzle one of these days, but I did enjoy the banter they had at Miro's, with Usagi finally admitting that he's not so hard to talk to, 'for an old guy'.

Whether that continues now that he's a bishonen warrior remains to be seen, but I hope it does. Most of the older NPCs that are either so genuinely nice that she could never backtalk them (Serenity for example) or have leave her feeling like she has a very high standard to uphold (pretty much everyone she's purified), so having a mentor figure deserving of occasional disrespect (from her point of view) and thick skinned enough to take it is quite the blessing.

[Asrana]

Hotaru found Jun...well, entertaining, of all things.

She enjoys pretty much any kind of magic learning, even if it's posing a riddle to let her toy with and grumble over, so she'll honestly attack anythign eh gives out, and not really care if it's frustrating or weird or the like. It's magic, and far too personalized to really be taught easily in a straightforward manner, she thinks.

That aside, What got her is that she started to get a reaction, even just an amused one, from the continual little needling...so she upped it. And then the argument happened, and she got in a REAL argument of sorts with him, and whoa was that fun. >_>

Just the way he interacted/interacts with her makes her think of him...like her mother's brother, or something. She can't banter with Eiichirio, but Jun will provbide at least a sounding board and humor her as a kid. Hmm...on thought, that factors into it, too. At some points ti did seem like he was willing to just sigh and maybe mutter 'children...', while at the same time address a muse of complex magic. It's a mixture that Hotaru's been kind of berefit. She enjoys being both annoying as a child for once, and being addressed seriously in an area of study.  It's just not a combination that exists for her.

As an aside, minimal Beck commentary: He's an asshole, Hotaru wants to kick him in the head a few times, with her senshi boots. He's #2 on her list of 'security risks', that's now obsolete because they aren't hiding anymore.

[Anastasia]

Jun Stuff

I think Usagi preferred Jun in his 'wise hermit' mode. There's too many haughty prettyboy warriors around her, these days, so he was something of a breath of fresh air in that regard.

I rather like the dynamic they built up, with him playing the wise but obtuse mentor and Usagi being a somewhat cheeky and reluctant pupil - she's often so eager to learn anything and everything to do with magic, but his indirect methods of teaching frustrate her. Hopefully she'll figure out the answer to his puzzle one of these days, but I did enjoy the banter they had at Miro's, with Usagi finally admitting that he's not so hard to talk to, 'for an old guy'.

Whether that continues now that he's a bishonen warrior remains to be seen, but I hope it does. Most of the older NPCs that are either so genuinely nice that she could never backtalk them (Serenity for example) or have leave her feeling like she has a very high standard to uphold (pretty much everyone she's purified), so having a mentor figure deserving of occasional disrespect (from her point of view) and thick skinned enough to take it is quite the blessing.

Yeah. It was a nice dynamic there in - you two could talk easier than the average really old person(TM). This often came across as that you took him seriously, but not SERIOUSLY, you know? Jun's also fun to RP, especially discreetly trying to hint you towards complex, difficult concepts with the barest comments.

Elaborate on this part, though?

or have leave her feeling like she has a very high standard to uphold (pretty much everyone she's purified)

[Anastasia]

Hotaru found Jun...well, entertaining, of all things.

She enjoys pretty much any kind of magic learning, even if it's posing a riddle to let her toy with and grumble over, so she'll honestly attack anythign eh gives out, and not really care if it's frustrating or weird or the like. It's magic, and far too personalized to really be taught easily in a straightforward manner, she thinks.

That aside, What got her is that she started to get a reaction, even just an amused one, from the continual little needling...so she upped it. And then the argument happened, and she got in a REAL argument of sorts with him, and whoa was that fun. >_>

Just the way he interacted/interacts with her makes her think of him...like her mother's brother, or something. She can't banter with Eiichirio, but Jun will provide at least a sounding board and humor her as a kid. Hmm...on thought, that factors into it, too. At some points ti did seem like he was willing to just sigh and maybe mutter 'children...', while at the same time address a muse of complex magic. It's a mixture that Hotaru's been kind of berefit. She enjoys being both annoying as a child for once, and being addressed seriously in an area of study.  It's just not a combination that exists for her.

As an aside, minimal Beck commentary: He's an asshole, Hotaru wants to kick him in the head a few times, with her senshi boots. He's #2 on her list of 'security risks', that's now obsolete because they aren't hiding anymore.

Heh, glad to see that you like that combination. Uh, I don't have a ton to say here - I hit on some of the same points with Usagi above, and your comments delinate what should be said very well.

Anyway, he didn't quite get to the muttering point of children, but you did press him!

[Ebiris]

Elaborate on this part, though?

or have leave her feeling like she has a very high standard to uphold (pretty much everyone she's purified)

Basically she feels responsible for the former youma + Balder, and that she has to set a good example for them to become productive members of society.

Plus when people look up to you to the degree that for example Balder clearly does, you really want to live up to those standards and not disillusion them.

For those reasons Usagi strives to be as tolerant and pleasant as humanly possible around those she's purified.

[Anastasia]

Character Entry #19

Reiko Tomoe.

Source Material(s): Hotaru's character sheet and a lot of bouncing off Hotaru-chan's RP and reactions.

General: Reiko started very basically - Hotaru sketched out some traits and feelings. She wants a normal, happy daughter vs Miss Gloomy 'taru. This combined with being a workaholic were the defining traits I had to work with. So I sketched her out as a slightly acidic but normal woman who has a job she's really into but still tries to reach a very distant daughter. Sounds good on paper?

In reality? Bouncing off Hotaru can be difficult, especially when tension is present. It leads to often strained and difficult RPing at first - not a bad thing, but it lead to Reiko's sharper side coming out. A few passing, resigned comments flowed into something more; into a real back and forth of emotional barbs between mother and daughter. This fit - they were clearly not on the best terms and didn't communicate well at all. When her daughter started to act strange? More than enough grist to pick up the pace on that, in essence.

So how does Reiko stand? She's still a work in progress - she's mellowing out again now that Hotaru and Reiko have better communication and have done some relationship repairwork. Even moreso because she's now a mother all over again, this helps prompt introspection coupled with  a lot of hard thinking thanks to Hotaru going to Gaia.

Notes: Apperance 4 is about right for her. I don't play it up too much since she's a wife and not often viewed that way by the view of the PCs, but she's quite hot. Reiko and her husband strike me as the sort that are close, but in a distant way - they're happy with each other, but don't always have to be within feet of each other.

Totally not gay in the least. Sorry, Hot-chan.

She works for an unnamed firm. She's upper/middle management of some sort, probably, but it's never had reason to be gone into. I'd peg her salary at around, say, $90,000 bucks of current US dollars? Quite good, and coupled with her hubby's paycheck? Cha-ching. Has tons of stored up vacation time. This never quite came up, but I've always had an inkling she wants a family pet.  Did I mention she and Ikkuko should have devastatingly appealing lesbian sex? Speaking of, she took a bit of as hine to Ikkuko and vice versa - they're the opposite side of the coin with family and life choices.