#dnd!ledo

[sycamorre]

4 and 21 for the prompts please!

Yessss more thank you! [micro-story prompt]

4. one chance

Everything was packed for Oriana's trip up to the Sun Soul Order. The cart was loaded, and Maia was occupied with giving her younger daughter a last minute talk before she left. Meanwhile, the other two siblings were giving them space, Asta standing a bit behind Maia while Hester stood next to Cassio.

While they waited, Cassio glanced over at Hester, a brow raised. "I know you're protective of her, too. How are you feeling about this?"

Hester thought for a moment, then shrugged. "If it's her chance at getting the training she needs, then I just hope she gets to make the most of it. And I want her happy, that's all."

"You're worried about her, too."

"Always have been."

Cassio hummed, thoughful. There was another pause as Maia continued to fuss over Oriana. But after a moment, the cleric thought of something else. "You know, Ori is not the only one who can possibly have a unique chance at something new here. Your mother was telling me how you had started working with some of the fisherman back home, but you were not enjoying it?"

It was now Hester's turn to look at Cassio with raised brows. "Yes... I thought I might want to follow in our father's footsteps but, well, it just is not the same out on the docks without him."

Cassio nodded, then smiled. "You know, if you wanted to try something different, I heard from the others in the capital that the paladins are looking for new members to train up. You have grown into a very capable young man, and you have a big heart for people. I think you might like an opportunity like this." Hester seemed to want to interject, but Cassio held up a hand. "I am not saying you have to make a choice right this second. Just think about it and let me know what you decide."

21. collapse

"Run. Run as far as you can, and let me handle the others."

Ledo's legs ached, but she kept running, fueled by the promise she made. She was not sure how long she had been going at this point, or how far away she was, but at the very least she wanted the lights of the port city to be out of sight behind her.

In one arm, she held the single bag with rations and supplies that they were able to gather before leaving the ship. Ledo clung to it and the loose coat she now wore as tightly as she could, despite the pain that lingered in her wrist. In her mechanical arm, Drache was being held firmly in place despite his protests. He tried again to wriggle out of her grip, and Ledo was thankful that the joints were able to lock in place in situations like this.

"Not now. Not yet. We need to keep—GAH!"

Something in the road caught Ledo's foot, and she immediately lost her balance, tumbling into the dirt and mud. Everything she held fell and scattered around her, and she found herself nearly frozen from the pain in the moment. She was incredibly aware that her body was in no condition to be doing anything like this, but she had no choice. Pushing herself up with her forearms, groaning, she reached for the bag again, trying to rake in anything that fell out.

Drache recovered quickly from where he fell, shaking off the dirt and stones before running over to Ledo. He nudged her arm gently, arcane engines whining as if trying to speak, like he often used to when she was working herself too long into the night. "I... I can't stop... Not yet." A sound akin to a growl came in response from the tiny mechanical dragon, and he bit at the sleeve of the coat and gave it a full tug. "Ok. Fine," she grumbled, now standing. "Help me find somewhere to rest."

The homunculus took to the air, flying a bit off the road and coming back to lead her a ways out of sight, where a cluster of trees and foliage created the closest thing she could find to shelter, at least to keep anyone on the road from seeing her. In the time it took to walk to it, she could feel the adrenaline wearing off, and the weakness of her own body was catching up to her again. As she made it to the trees, she felt her legs truly give way underneath her, and her vision blurred as she hit the ground. Drache, in a panic, tried to rouse her, but without success. Instead, he took up a watchful position, waiting for her to wake up.

"I'm coming back for you. I promise."

[soartfullydone]

💌?

I love how hard you work and how much pride you take in your work, whether it is your actual job or something creative you're doing. You have so much to offer, and I'm always glad to see when you are taking time for yourself to draw something new or character build or learn to work with some new art medium. It's so, so cool to me and inspires me to want to try new things. (Ugh, but what if it's not perfect? No! We will cure ourselves of our perfectionist tendencies.)

I'm so happy you joined our DnD group and that we've all jived so well. Your characters always bring a new dimension to our game and they're so fun to play against. I think a lot about the cute scene where Riven kept dressing up Ori as they chatted and even about the friction caused by their political understandings. I love Ledo and want to dig into her so bad. I really do think her and Celeste's relationship would be Interesting if I can ever get Celeste to show her hand.

But yeah, I'm glad we've gotten to hang out more lately. Let's shoot for even more! :3

[croatia-hotels-and-apartments]

Subtitle Festival of cold delicacies in imaginative shapes and colors Program: 9,00 – 11,00 & 19,00 – 24,00 The magic of ice cream flavors: Ledo, Re del gelato, Flaviani desserts, Alla Pineta, Gelateria Leone, Arboretum Pub, Adriatic cafe bar Icy workshop: Icy creations at the waterfront Fun icy games Evening entertainment program 20,00 Little icy scene: Lara Pliško, Tereza Mišan, Ana Mišan, Olivia Malbon; dance groups DND and Italian Community Fažana 20,45 Stefano Magic, The Magician's Hat 15/07/2017 Whisky train, Side effect 16/07/2017. Night Express Fažana's pastry - in ocasion of the 15th anniversary of the Tourist Board of Fažana Region Istria Coordinates Geolocation is 44.927633, 13.802715 Jul 15 2017 to Jul 16 2017 Events list image Highlited in events list 0 Link http://www.infofazana.hr/ Place Fažana Show in home 0 http://croatia.hr/en-GB/Activities-and-attractions/Events/NewEvents/Ice-cream-festival

[sycamorre]

Trying to get back into the habit of drawing my artificer, Ledo, even though I apparently only know how to draw her from one angle. At least I've finally gotten the hang of drawing her horns. Purposely kept the lines for this one in a loose, sketchy style where I only cleaned up the original sketch instead of doing clean lineart so I wouldn't fuss over it too much and end up spending too much time on it.

[sycamorre]

You know I gotta get my girl Ledo! Also Wisteria, please. I barely know her, but I love her already.

[send me a character]

Another long one!

Ledo —

Favorite thing about them: It's a hard tie between her design elements and her passion for what she cares about. I love how her design has come out, in part because of how long I've picked away at her over the years waiting for a chance to play her, and how everything fell into place with the campaign's setup, but I also love how passionate she is about things: her work, her goals, and even her problems. Coming off of playing Oriana, who has a tendency to downplay a lot of her emotions due to her anxiety, it's been a good change of pace. Ledo is pretty calm most of the time but won't hesitate to say what's on her mind if she thinks it's important.

Least favorite thing about them: She's really hard to pinpoint morally/alignment-wise. I've settled on lawful neutral, but she flip flops between wanting to actually do some good and not caring about others at all and it's one of those things that will probably either go one way or another as her story develops, but for right now is just hard to feel out without regularly writing or playing her.

Favorite line: "If the universe wanted us gone so bad, it should have done a better job at killing us." for a specific line. But I'll echo your sentiments about their little campfire talk. I had never gotten a chance to show Ledo angry and when a little bit slipped with her "I am no damn pirate," comment, that was satisfying.

brOTP: Already adoring the vibes between Ledo and Char, they get shit done. But honestly I can't wait to see where the relationships with the other characters go, too. Especially Celeste once they get to really talk about Twalan one on one and maybe even Foaly at some point if they ever get to swapping war/battle stories.

OTP: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) You've seen him. I've only let his name slip once, but you've seen him on this here blog. That's all you get.

nOTP: You've also seen him but do not yet know his name. There's a lot of people in the world she would sell to satan for a corn chip, but she would pay for Satan to take this fellow.

Random Headcanon: In-character, her steel guardian Drache is based on a drake for one primary reason: a joke between her and her father. One day he asked her what she might want as a pet, and she said a dragon. She eventually learned that this was not possible, but the family in-joke remained. Out of character, the reason he's a drake is because I didn't want him to be a dog or a bear, and nothing else felt right. I originally was going to make her an armorer or artillerist artificer and she was gonna have a small monkey automaton, but after reviewing the sub-classes and realizing neither of those actually felt right and battle smith felt like the most useful sub-class, that automaton eventually morphed into Drache.

Unpopular Opinion: I doubt this technically counts, but I honestly think looking back that Ledo would have been better as a Pathfinder character. The inventor class is perfect, and I very well might replay her one day if I do ever get to join a Pathfinder campaign. But she feels like she fits well into the current party so I don't dwell on it too much.

Song I associate with them: OH boy. Currently her main song is "Queen of Kings" by Alessandra, but specifically this cover by Annapantsu for thematic reasons. "Runaway" by AURORA was her main theme before that. I have... a very long playlist for her I am still fine-tuning.

Favorite picture of them: I still think this is the best headshot I've done of her, even if I need to update the horns:

Wisteria —

Favorite thing about them: She's just fun! Half of my enjoyment when it comes to thinking about Wisteria is considering the fun things like what she might wear, how her spells might appear since she's a dancing-based bard, or what kind of shenanigans she might get into.

Least favorite thing about them: Intelligence is absolutely her dump stat and hoo boy is that gonna be hard to get used to if I ever do get to play her in some kind of game. She also has no sense of personal space and is the worst kind of nosy.

Favorite line: We'll come back to this one day. One day...

brOTP: Her little eladrin bard gang back home. The tightest clique of court ladies and performers the fey have ever seen.

OTP: This gal's not looking to settle down or just pick one... but I could be convinced if the right opportunity presented itself.

nOTP: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Random Headcanon: Since Eladrin can change their "season" willingly, back in the Feywild she would do it on a whim or based on which court she was performing in, but she heavily preferred spring since that is the court she originates from. However, once she enters the material plane and the idea of the courts is no longer looming over her, her "season" tends to change depending on her overall mood for a while, at least until she starts understanding that seasons in this plane are a set timespan and then she starts adhering to that a bit more as she settles.

Unpopular Opinion: Probably gonna need to actually play her some to get an idea for what this might be.

Song I associate with them: A bit of a cop out if I'm being honest because I haven't worked on her playlist yet, but "The Willow Maid" or "Round and Round" by Erutan because they feel like songs she would perform to

Favorite picture of them: She's ready for mischief and other nonsense

[sycamorre]

🏆 for Ledo!

[OC Memory Prompts: 🏆 —A proud memory.]

The setting sun lit the room from tall pair of windows, beams of warm light washing over the dresser against the opposite wall where a small, dragon-like automaton rested, idle and almost seeming to be asleep. At the corner of the dresser, Ledo stood in front of a mirror, making sure that everything she was going to wearing was as perfect as she could make it. Her hair was pulled back into a large, tidy braid, though a few stubborn curls refused to stay where she wanted them. Her usual bronze prosthetic arm and horn cap were both put aside and she instead was using bright, new silver-brushed ones that were specifically commissioned for this exact occasion, with subtle filigree catching the evening light whenever she turned. Unfortunately, there was little she could do about the scars that marred her face, and it made them both seem so out of place when that was all she felt that others would focus on when they looked at her.

But the most important thing she was checking and double-checking was her new uniform, which she was almost constantly adjusting, despite the fact it had been tailored to her. The last thing she wanted was for there to be anything out of place when she knew that she was going to be scrutinized by some of the most powerful members of the Twalan navy in less than a couple of hours. Ledo looked over her reflection, gaze falling on the patches newly sewn into the shoulders: the emblem of a Sergeant Engineer. She tried to swallow the lump in her throat, her eyes instead shifting toward the painting that hung on the wall over the dresser, the figures of a tiefling couple and child seeming to stare directly at her.

A gentle knock on the open doorframe brought her out of her thoughts and seemed to also alert the automaton, whose head quickly shot up to see what had interrupted its rest. Ledo turned to look in the direction of the sound and saw the familiar face of her uncle, Halthor, as the older tiefling stepped into the room. "Are you about ready, Sergeant?" He asked, in an almost bemused tone. He was also in his own uniform, though it was of an older style that was used a few decades prior, before his retirement. "I know I may tend to be a little late to things these days, but I can blame my age. Can't say the same for you, though. Is everything alright?"

"Yes, I'm… fine," she responded in a low voice, turning back to the mirror to try and smooth down any wrinkles in her coat. "Just trying to make sure I haven't missed anything."

Her uncle gave a light huff, almost chuckling under his breath, unconvinced. Instead, he moved over to join Ledo, a hand reaching out to pet the small automaton as he did so. There was a brief moment where neither said anything, where only the soft whirring of gears could be heard. Halthor broke the silence as he looked over her worried expression in the mirror. "Well, I for one think you look exactly like a young, successful officer should," he mused. A smile stretched across his face, the wrinkles around his eyes deepening as he did so.

Ledo met his gaze in the mirror, and she gave him a soft smile in return before taking a slow, steadying breath. "Thank you. I guess I am just… nervous. Captain Ralon made a comment the other day when I visited the docks that he was surprised at how quickly I was rising through the ranks, and that some others might be a bit… jealous."

"Hmph. Ralon means well, and there may be some truth to that, but you are certainly not the first to reach sergeant this fast. Not even close." Halthor gave Ledo a solid pat on her good shoulder, "A new promotion and you've been chosen to be among the first on the crew of the fleet's newest ship. This event is the admiral's way of celebrating those who have earned honors just like that. The last thing I want you to think is that you did not deserve this, fighting horn and nail every step of the way. You have every right to be proud of yourself for at least this one night."

At that, Ledo did actually chuckle, her smile widening. "Aye, and I have to spend it rubbing elbows and putting on a damn good show."

Halthor shrugged in response, starting to step away. "Navy politics, about as bad as house politics." As he passed by the dresser on his way to the door, he paused and glanced over at the painting. "And another thing. Your father would be immensely proud of what you have accomplished. Of that I have no doubt. And I also know they would both want you to enjoy tonight."

Ledo watched as he left the room, her posture noticeably more relaxed. She looked back at the painting as well, her eyes meeting the unmoving gaze of her father before she reached up to gently hold the signet ring she wore as a necklace. When she spoke again, it was in a whisper that only the ghosts of the past could hear.

"If only you were here to see it."

[sycamorre]

You've all heard my excuses at this point. I wanna draw, I wanna do all the things, but I'm constantly tired, blah blah, the moment I'm free to do anything my brain decides there's just too much to do and not enough time to do it so lets just not. Excuses, excuses, yeah. But I'm angry enough at myself to sit here and stubbornly try even if it's not been the best lately.

Ledo experiment because I want to talk about her story crap but still can't because none of it is relevant at this point in her campaign but boy oh boy do I want to foreshadow and use her for vent sketches

[sycamorre]

I apparently have no desire to color anything right now but I will sit here and stubbornly do my detailed lines that take always take up too much time anyway.

Another Ledo sketch, this time with her final horn shapes and her hair in her usual “working” style that I needed to practice.

[sycamorre]

5, 17, and 34 for Ledo. 35 and 36 for Wisteria. 11 and 12 for Ori!

-character questions prompt-

Ledo —

5. On an average day, what can be found in your character’s pockets?

It's hard to say what Ledo might carry around on any given day, as she does have a tendency to hold onto and carry any small thing around that she thinks she might need if she has the room to do so. She claims it's a side effect of her career as an artificer and crafter. However, while the small things might change daily, she actually has a dedicated bit of storage space in her mechanical arm for tiny bits and bobs, as well as her smaller tools and minor gadgets that she always insists on keeping on her person. All of that is so that if she needed to reconfigure something on her arm or pull something out in a pinch, she can have the options to do so.

17. What was your character’s favorite toy as a child?

An old enchanted music box that used to belong to her mother. Unfortunately it ended up getting broken at some point when she was still a young child. Ledo tried to fix it herself, afraid of her mother's reaction, but she ended up making it worse. She did, however, figure out how music boxes work in the process and that fascinated her. After admitting defeat, her father did end up fixing it instead and Ledo got to watch the process, enthralled the entire time. She still never told her mother what happened.

34. Is your character more likely to keep trying a solution/method that didn’t work the first time, or immediately move on to a different solution/method?

Somewhere in the middle, but leans towards trying the idea a couple of times before moving on to something different, especially if it was at least partially successful. Though, she would specifically try making small adjustments to the original method until all options were ruled out. This is both the result of her own stubbornness and her desire to not have to backtrack if they realize later on the original solution could have worked if they had done something just slightly different.

--------------------------

Wisteria —

35. How does your character behave around people they like?

Unfortunately for every poor traumatized adventuring party that she might come across, Wisteria's a hugger. Her love language is absolutely physical touch, and if she likes someone enough, she has no hesitation in getting physically close to them, touching them, braiding their hair, etc. It doesn't help that she comes from a completely different plane where social norms, particularly for someone in her position as a court entertainer, are vastly different and she has to learn new norms as she goes. Thankfully, she does understand boundaries and if someone voices their discomfort, she does respect their wishes, though she will be a bit disappointed.

36. How does your character behave around people they dislike?

To their face? As polite and charming as a performer and bard could ever be, though she may be a bit pointed in conversation. When their back is turned? They just look like prank targets at that point.

--------------------------

Oriana —

11. In what situation was your character the most afraid they’ve ever been?

At the risk of sounding like a predictable sap. The most recent and impactful one would be this exact moment:

"This one's you're favorite, isn't it?"

Hearing those words from the Prince, not only because of what happened immediately after where he nearly kills Ranna, but also the realization that this was her weakness. That she cared a lot for Ranna and she could not bear the thought of something happening to her. Then the same thing happened in the fight that followed with Cobalt, and that fear both grew and fueled a new sense of determination.

Prior to meeting Ranna, though, she would have definitely said the moments in her adolescence when her magic started to get stronger and she had an extremely hard time controlling them. Teenage emotions and weird divine powers? A really bad mix, man. There was a good few months before Ori went to the Sun Soul Order that she was constantly on edge about it, and that just made everything worse. It wasn't one really bad event, but rather a series of smaller ones that made her anxiety skyrocket during that period of time.

12. In what situation was your character the most calm they’ve ever been?

If you asked her, she would say the moment they went in to face the Frost Prince. At that point she had accepted whatever fate awaited her, and she had a very specific goal to keep the Prince's attention long enough to keep the rest of the group safe. At the very least she was there to make a statement, and that determination gave her this odd sense of calm, even as she walked directly into what she assumed would be her death.

[sycamorre]

Tell me about Ledo and Riven. There's a roguish pirate energy there. You know? Also if I would trust Vaela to be safe and feel peace around anyone it might be Tala. Oriana and Cook sparring ehehehe

I definitely see what you mean. If any pair of characters would sign up for swashbuckling adventures, or at least semi-legal ones, I could see Riv and Ledo being that pair. Ledo does tend to be a bit more on the serious side compared to Riven, but even she likes to let loose every once in a while and I think she'd get a kick out of Riv's antics and would definitely make her cool things that would range from actually useful for things like sneaking or distracting, or just something she thinks would help Riven pull off something funny.

Tala would absolutely, 100% decide that Vaela deserved to chill out and feel protected, and would make it a goal to be sure that she did. Especially now that I'd have her as an Oath of Ancients paladin rather than a fighter. In fact, besides being a literal gentle giant Firbolg full of calm vibes, she would probably be able to bond a good bit with Vaela since they both would have some connections to nature between her oath and Vaela's ranger skills. Chill forest buddies.

man do I still want to play Tala one day in a longer campaign

I don't know what Oriana's initial reaction would be to seeing Cook trying to fight with a knife and cleaver, even in a spar, but I could very much see her more curious than anything else. Definitely asking a lot of questions mid-fight that miiiight annoy Cook. But also for your consideration: Oriana and Cook fighting together in a bar brawl. Now that would be spectacular.

@soartfullydone @zacksfairest @oxforddrama

[sycamorre]

18, 13, 14, aaaand 50 for OCs

-OC Questions-

18. Any OC crackships?

I mean, you know I love Ori and the Frost Prince AU just as much as you do. You could probably suggest half a dozen characters from that campaign and I'd be on board to consider the possibilities for giggles. The only other OC that I think has really had "crackships" is Indes, mostly because she was my most well-known ones from my TES RP days. I've definitely had a few suggested for giggles, and have plenty that I would have been interested in exploring in like an AU way, but the other characters in those ships are no longer active or I have no idea how to explain them if you don't know the characters.

There was a halfling paladin that our Waterdeep party was introduced to and ended up being familiar to Jayni as a way to introduce her to the party when I joined. I did like the idea of shipping them a tiny bit even though it was still very early in the campaign (which is why I consider it a bit of a crackship), but I cannot remember his name for the life of me and definitely seemed to be someone the DM came up with rather than him being a character from the module. He lent her his mastiff to ride for a while. It was sweet. And I'm a sap.

13. Do you have any troublemaker OCs?

Wisteria's entire backstory is literally summed up with "she got kicked out of the Feywild for causing trouble and doing something stupid" even if I don't know what that exact stupid thing is yet, she easily earns the "most likely to make trouble for trouble's sake" title.

Other troublemakers include my Skyrim RP character Vialgo, mentioned before, who was more sassy and sarcastic than anything else but I imagine tried to pull off as many pranks as he could while he was working with the Dawnguard. My archfey Quelyn is also a bit of one, but less in the "doing it for the lols" type and more of the "causing trouble because it helps my agenda" type.

14. Introduce an OC with a tragic backstory.

I'll be honest, I don't do a lot of particularly tragic backstories. Some troubled pasts? Sure. Complications that may come back to haunt them? Love 'em! Maybe one impactful death here or there, but the real tragic ones are few and far between. For example, I think the only characters I have that have lost both parents are Tala and Ledo, but for Tala they passed when she was a literal baby (due to a plague) so she was raised by her grandparents instead. Their deaths were not something she actually remembers and have little effect on her as a character. And for the few older characters I made back during my first few years writing/RPing, the ones who did have somewhat tragic backstories often ended up getting rewritten as I matured and decided they were more cringe than provoking.

Of my current, active characters, Ledo would probably have the most tragic one, even though she also has come to terms with about half of it at this point. However, to avoid possible spoilers for you and the rest of our little dnd gang snooping around here, I'm gonna actually briefly describe her old backstory, which got a complete rework in Sam's world so this won't really be spoiling anything major if stuff does come up.

This would have been the basic bullet points if something had happened to Ori in the last campaign since Ledo was the backup for it. Originally, Ledo was gonna be in a similar situation to Tala where she didn't really get to know her parents before they passed. Unlike Tala, she would not know who they were at all and would not be aware of any other immediate family. All she would know is that she was given to an orphanage at a young age. She would eventually run away for reasons, and find herself taking shelter in the workshop of a dwarf tinker. The tinker and his wife would take pity on her and give her a place to stay for a while as they tried to decide what to do, but since they had never been able to have children of their own, they take her in and eventually adopt her. She would grow up and eventually take up an apprenticeship with her adoptive father and found that she had a bit of a natural talent with working in the forge and with tinkering. But the real tragedy would strike when a large explosion goes off in the workshop, killing the tinker and seriously injuring Ledo. In the aftermath, she would have found hints that the explosion was not an accident, but a planned sabotage. She would not know who the culprit was, though she may have had suspicions (in the case of the last campaign, I probably would have used her suspecting Cobalt or someone he worked with as a catalyst to get her to join up with the party). Obviously the current backstory is a lot different considering she comes from a Tiefling culture instead, but there's still a couple of nods to the original version.

50. Give me the good ol’ OC talk here. Talk about anything you want.

The problem with this question is that I simultaneously want to talk about all the things but I'm also really bad when I'm put on the spot and asked to just talk about something. SO... I'm gonna talk about Aubrey so I'm not just talking about more dnd stuff.

Aubrey is an innkeeper, a witch, and an informant. She's currently set in a low-fantasy world that is heavily based on the 1300s medieval period so it's been a fun exercise in making more subtle fantasy looks and finding appropriate design and referenced art-wise. But she's such a fun character to play and think about, even if I have not gotten to do too many exciting things with her just yet (unfortunately the arpg she was made for has been pretty low with activity the last couple of years). Her magic is limited in the current setting because it's low fantasy, but her main thing is divination and getting visions from spirits. I also want her to have a magpie familiar eventually that she can use as her little scout but that may or may not happen depending on what eventually happens with the setting. One of the things I would love, love, love to do with her eventually is come up with some sort of plot that would take her away from the inn because of either some information she has found through her usual channels, or from a vision that is more intense than usual, and get her tangled up with more secretive organizations outside of the city she lives in.

And for a fun note, if I ever brought her to dnd (because that would probably be the first system I would try to adapt her for) I would absolutely make her a raven queen warlock because the idea of getting not only a raven familiar (likely adjusted to be a magpie for Aubrey's theming), but also getting to merge with that familiar as a utility thing would be so, so much fun.

[sycamorre]

“Mind taking a break and coming to get a drink with the rest of us? You’re supposed to be off-duty, you know.”

I’ve been having an exhausting couple of weeks due to work and I already know this week is gonna be more of the same. So this is a purposefully-loose, lazy, semi-vent doodle. As a treat. For me.

[sycamorre]

Chewing on the bars of my cage to ask about 💖, 🍒, 🌳, and 💚 for Ledo, even if I know I can't have all the answers.

[jumbo ask game] Let me see what I can do without giving away too much~

💖 Has your OC ever been in love, be it romantic or platonic or otherwise? Who with and did they ever express their feelings or keep it private? How long did these feelings persist / do they still feel this way?

Yes, definitely romantic. Feelings were definitely expressed and reciprocated. And these feelings definitely persist to current day. Ledo's relationship with [redacted] was one that developed over a good handful of years. Started as crewmates, but after some time, feelings developed. Ledo tried very hard to poker face her way through most of it and pretend otherwise. Affairs among sailors isn't against the rules, legally speaking (Twalan houses sometimes like to benefit from such arrangements), but it's a bit taboo and can get the two of you purposely put on different ships if word gets out. It was especially worrying since Ledo was a member of a house and looking to get recognition while [redacted] was a commoner. But eventually, both of them crack and the feelings come out. There was no turning back, and they made it work for years.

Ledo had plans for the future, but unfortunately circumstances have separated them, and being stuck in limbo where she knows she is not able to reach him is doing... a number on her mentally right now. She will claw her way out of this hell one way or another to get back to him.

🍒 What kind of things do they expect from their relationships? Does this differ between platonic relationships and romantic ones? Is your OC “demanding” or a door mat? What kinds of things do people expect from them in a relationship?

When it comes to relationships in general, both platonic and other types, Ledo really doesn't fall into either extreme. She is very independent by nature, so she makes a point to rarely ask for anything from others, even family or close friends. The only thing she might really "demand" is that she knows she can depend on them to keep any commitments that they make together. Being in the Navy, any civilian friends she had would not see her for months, and sometimes other sailors she became close to might end up assigned to another ship with their shore leave not overlapping enough to easily keep a friendship alive. But if there's a mutual understanding of this between her and the other person, she's loyal enough to make a point to check in when she can and make time for them if they will do the same for her.

However, she does have a bit more expectations with romantic relationships. Ledo is from a house after all and her partner would need to understand that this is still important to her, even if they are not familiar with the kind of expectations this comes with. Her partner would need to make a point to learn and understand what this means for their relationship, especially long-term. Outside of that, though, this would be the only kind of relationship that Ledo would be looking to be vulnerable in, if only in very private moments, and would want to do the same for them in return.

While each friendship is different, when it comes to what others expect from her, Ledo specifically has a lot of expectations and pressures from her family. Not necessarily her immediate family (she's fortunate that her parents were not too crazy about house politics and her uncle openly let her make her own decisions when she moved in with him), but extended family and other house acquaintances have definitely had their eye on her and she wants to make a good impression. She's had her share of "so when are they predicting you will get another rank?", "are you going to settle down?", "I think you should meet X from House Y, you are both the same age and eligible...", etc. at holidays and other family gatherings.

🌳 Compare your OC to themself from 10 years ago. How has their mental state changed since then, how have they aged and grown up? Would they say they’re in a better place than they were back then or do they need help? What advice would they give their younger self? What advice would their younger self give to them now?

More mature, more wise, but definitely not in a better place, either mentally or physically. A decade prior to the start of the campaign, Ledo would have been a young, bright-eyed engineer who would have likely just gotten their second or third deployment on a ship. She would be getting her footing so to speak in her career and at this point would have a lot of good things going for her. She would be healthy and fit, and making some of her biggest personal connections for the first time. Time would see her not only working her way up the ladder to getting a higher rank and figuring out her plans for the future, but the last two years have taken a heavy toll on her. In the end, at the start of the campaign, she has been separated from those connections, frustrated at her situation, and not at all in a good physical or mental state compared to back then (lost a horn, weakened body, additional scars, likely some form of ptsd, etc.)

If current Ledo could give advice to her younger self, it would likely be to make sure she kept the right kind of company, to be on the lookout for whisperings of unrest among the crew, never let your guard down, and maybe to tell [redacted] about her feelings earlier, just because. If young Ledo could give advice to her current self, it would probably simply be to stay strong, and keep her eyes on their goals.

💚 Talk about some of the traumatic events in your OC’s life. These events can be ones that have happened to them or a loved one. These events can be minor or major.

Unfortunately, this is the one I'm gonna have to hold back on. I thought about doing little sketches of the major events to hint at things, and I might still do that, but we'll see.

But to just kinda throw out a couple of things for fun... There have been two major traumatic events in Ledo's life. One resulted in her getting the burn scars that cover a large part of her body and took her arm. This one happened a good while back, and she's mostly come to terms with it, though it still saddens her to think about it. The other is much more recent, resulted in her losing a horn, and forced her to escape to Orianth alone. This one she has not come to terms with, and is still furious over. More so now that there's the added complexity of not even being sure that they can get back to their world. You can't get your revenge if the target of your ire is not even on the same plane as you!

[sycamorre]

🎨 for Verena. 🔥 for Ledo. 🏆 for Treasure Planet Maudi

[mini oc memory snippets]

🎨 — A nostalgic memory — Verena

Fwip!

"Shit!"

Verena could not help but chuckle at the timing. A violet blade of psychic energy was now stuck in the doorway inches away from the face of the man that just walked in, who shot the drow a very pronounced frown as the blade faded away. "That wasn't intentional, I promise," she said, leaning forward from where she was previously lounging.

"Liar," the man responded, grumbling, before crossing the room to sit at the table next to her, laying out a spread of parchment across the surface, what seemed to be a selection of letters and dossiers. Curious, Verena rose from the chair and came to stand behind him, looking over his shoulder as he tried to organize the pages. A few seconds of silence passed before he finally paused, then huffed lightly before answering her unasked question, "It's information on some key targets we are being asked to infiltrate. Or rather, that they are asking you to infiltrate."

The drow's eyebrows shot up, and she stepped around to his side for a better look. "Really, now? I thought the big boss wanted me to keep a low profile, considering I only just started some of the bigger jobs. Did she have some kind of change of heart?"

"Something like that," he responded, pushing one of the pages aside. "We can only pick one, but we have the pick of the lot before we have to pass the rest on to the others. But if we play our hand well..." He finally smiled, a corner of his lips tugging upward. "We might start to make a name for ourselves around here."

🔥 — An angry memory — Ledo

It could have been a very nice, quiet evening. The setting sun was creating a wonderful array of colors above the town and the temperature was just right as crickets came out to sing. But even as Nuzur tried to enjoy the evening, winding down from the day's work, the sound of hammering at the forge beside his house was hard to ignore. The half-orc grunted, briefly staring down at the bottle he had just started, before standing up and slowly walking in the direction of the noise.

"Ledo," he called out between hammer swings, leaning against the entrance to the covered area, "You know sunset usually means we are finished working, right? Not starting again."

The tiefling did not answer him at first, only sparing him a glance over her shoulder before she continued hammering away for a moment longer. Nuzur knew this look, and waited, arms crossed, for her to finish and put the piece back into the forge itself "I wanted to finish something," she half-mumbled while the metal was heating back up, her hand reaching up to pull on the bellows. "Had no time to earlier."

"And it couldn't wait until tomorrow?"

"No."

Nuzur did not respond, letting the moment stretch out a few seconds longer. He knew what she was working on, and his gaze briefly settled on the tiny draconic homunculus watching from the rafters above. She had only started working for him a couple of months prior after wandering into town, but at this point he could read her mood well enough. Normally, she would start explaining things to him, regardless of if he had asked, and the little creature would be right up in the forge to lend a hand as well under normal circumstances. Something was off.

"Alright, talk." Nuzur took a few steps further in, finding a stool to sit on. "You're either pissed about something, or one of the pieces you worked on earlier came out wrong. Either way, I want to know."

At the mention of something coming out wrong, Ledo almost opened her mouth to speak, but quickly shut it again. Instead, she frowned at Nuzur's unyielding stare before turning back toward the forge. "Nothing came out wrong. This is a personal thing. I... I guess I am just pissed." She yanked the metal out again, placing it back on the anvil to continue her hammering with renewed vigor. "That piece of shit at the tavern again. I just wanted to eat a meal but he was already drunk and had to make a comment about me again. Accused me of being a thief this time, tried to claim I had taken Drache from someone else despite the fact I have said on multiple occasions that I made him myself years ago and—"

She stopped hammering suddenly, realizing a bit too late that she had gone too far and the metal was now thinner than she needed it to be.. With an infernal curse, she threw the metal into the water beside the forge, crossing her arms while the steam rose from it. Ledo turned to finally look at Nuzur with a tired look, though her jaw still seemed clenched.

"He shouted that I should go back to Twalan. I know I should have ignored him, but I yelled back. Said that I would if I could so I would not have to listen to him, but in a... less-polite way." She took a deep breath, trying to keep a straight face. "And I know that you are going to say you understand. I do not doubt that. But dammit, it's frustrating! I had rank! I earned the respect of those around me in Twalan. Only for me to end up here, in a place where it feels like I have to fight for basic decency, just because—"

It was at this point that Drache seemingly could not take watching from the rafters anymore as his master's voice was rising in volume, and he glided down to perch on her, clicking and nudging her cheek. Ledo groaned in acceptance as she reached up to pet him, head turning down as she tried to calm down again.

Nuzur, strangely enough, couldn't help but grin a bit at the display, pointing to Drache. "I think if anyone else doubts that you made that little one, they ought to see how in tune he is with you. But you know, I think the last thing you need is to be in here working while your mind is wandering. Did you finish your meal at the tavern?"

"No, not really." Ledo replied softly. "I left before I got angrier. I didn't want people thinking you had hired someone who could not control their temper."

"Ah, then you need to eat. Come, I think I still have enough left to share. The old ladies down the road still comment to me that you need more meat on your bones anyway, so I can't let you skip meals just because someone wants to be an ass."

🏆 — A proud memory — TP AU Maudi

"Easy on the angle there. You sure you've got it?"

"Aye, taking it slow."

It had been some time since Maudi had actually driven a solar longboat, but she was more than happy to re-learn it now that they were in need of extra hands around the ship. They were supposed to be focusing on the creatures they were commissioned to study, but she had to admit that some days, doing things like steering the boats and helping them track things down were becoming much, much more interesting. It was at least a little less dull.

Two of the other passengers in the longboat - the other astrobiologist, and one of the younger crew members - were watching the jungle around them as they passed through the trees, wary of any movement that might be out there. The younger boy was noticeably nervous at this point.

"Are you sure you know where we're going? I don't think the captain wants us out here after dark, and we have no camp supp—"

"Relax lad," came a rougher voice from the floor of the boat. One of the senior officers had accompanied them, and he was the reason they were already going back. He had been unfortunately stung by one of the creatures in the jungle, one that they had not identified, so rather than risk the reaction getting worse by lingering, Maudi and her own colleague had made the call to cut their studies short. But even now, the initial bad reaction the officer was having seemed to be improving. Though he could barely keep his head up, he could at least look up at the boy to reassure him. "I've worked with Maudi before. She learned how to navigate from the best. You'd do well to trust her, because I do. Now stop whimpering and keep an eye out for more of those blasted bugs."

Though she kept her own eyes ahead and purposely did not look at the boy's reaction, a corner of Maudi's lips came up in a proud, silent smile at the reassurance. She knew it was not just for him, but also an encouragement for her. She would have to make sure to thank him once they were all safely on the ship.

[sycamorre]

playing around in hero forge with the new face/decal tools to see if I can make a more accurate Ledo and for some reason I really like this expression

the pistol isn't canon... yet

[sycamorre]

Ledo 💋 🍑 🥝. Remind me who the healer was who was dating Tural in the shipyard? 💙 💜. AND my beloved Oriana, 🌸 🌷 📀

[ Jumbo OC Asks ]

Yeeee thank you (. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)

Ledo —

💋 How affectionate are they with their friends? Their family? Their romantic partner(s) (if they have any)? Are they more physical or emotional when it comes to displaying their affection? Why?

Ledo, despite being a bit rough around the edges, is plenty affectionate to those closest to her. She genuinely tries to put effort into showing that she cares to family and good friends, as well as crew that she's on good terms with. Her affection does tend to be on the emotional side rather than the physical, though mostly because she knows metal arm hugs are not exactly the most... comforting. Most physical affection is minimal at best (a hand on the shoulder, fixing something that's out of place on the person's clothes, etc.). But she's generally honest with her words and she goes out of her way to show she cares in whatever way she is able to, whether it be a small gesture like sitting with them just to provide company, offering to fix some of their equipment, or even making entirely new things for them.

Her old crew on the ships were a bit different, just because there was a level of professionalism expected of her in the navy, especially once she reached senior officer status. But in the last few years of her service before she ended up on Orianth, she was definitely putting effort into learning how to become an effective leader. Perhaps not perfect, but her efforts were genuine.

Romantic partners... well let's just say her hesitation toward physical affection does go away once she's content in a relationship like that. Unfortunately she was not in a position to be publicly affectionate in this way (gotta try to keep rumors down to a minimum, because nobility/navy politics), but she makes up for it when alone.

🍑 Where is your OC’s favourite place to relax or calm down? Recount a story of their time spent in this place! What makes it so special to them?

Back in Twalan, this would easily be her small workshop at her uncle's manor (though it's more a large shed that was converted into one when she moved in with him). It was the one place she could feel somewhat normal again after losing her arm, and it was the place she felt that she didn't have to be "proper" in order to win approval from the other nobles. It was also the one place the housekeeper wouldn't touch so she could organize it the way she wanted to, or let it be messy while she worked on things. And it served as a great spot for privacy when she wanted someone over without having others hovering around them.

It was a different situation when she was having to spend months at sea. On the ships, her usual favorite spot was either down on the lower decks where the only noise she would have to deal with were the hums of the arcane engines, or on deck after dark when most of the other sailors were asleep. One of her favorite memories is standing on the deck on a clear night, watching the moon reflecting against the crashing waves while she and her closest friend, Killian, talked well into the night.

🥝 What does a bad mental health day look like for your OC? Walk us through it with them. What kind of things can help them out of this slump and what kinds of things comfort them when they start to feel like this?

The biggest sign of Ledo having a Really Bad Day in general is if you ask her something and she either doesn't answer, or she answers in a gruff, monosyllabic way. She is pretty good about keeping a straight face when she is struggling either mentally or emotionally (life on a ship where duty and the safety of the crew often comes before self care can do that do you), but she is certainly not immune. Normally she counters it by minimizing her interactions with others to give herself a chance to recharge or straighten herself out first, as she knows good and well that trying to talk while her mind is racing with negative thoughts almost always ends with her putting her foot in her mouth. Easier to deal with someone grumpy about you being a bit unsocial for a few hours than having to apologize for a miscommunication.

Drache is also a comfort for her when she's having a rough time. He is very much in tune with her (quite literally through arcane means since her magic is basically his source of power), and can recognize when something isn't right. If she's getting tired but stubbornly trying to finish something, he will come over and put his head right over what she is looking at to tell her she needs to go rest. Or if she's upset about something, he finds a way to get her attention so she is no longer thinking about it.

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Nidhel (aka that healer fretting over Tural) —

💙 What did your OC want to be when they grew up and why? Did they have any lifelong dreams or ambitions they never got to work on or are they currently working to achieve this dream? Has their life taken a very unexpected turn and put all these plans on hold for a while or have they given up on any dreams?

If you asked this of anyone in her family, they would say her dreams as a child changed like the wind: constantly shifting and never really settling on one thing for a long time. She was apprenticing under her mother as a healer from the time she was old enough to, but the main thing she had even more desire to do was to grow her skill with other types of magic, though she had little resources to do so.

Fortunately, this is a case where she was able to pursue this eventually! After the Great War between the Dominion and the Empire ended, Indes was able to talk to a retired enchanter she was familiar with to take Nidhel on as an apprentice, giving the sisters a chance to be closer again and to give Nidhel a chance to not only expand her horizons with magic, but also see a bit of the world outside Valenwood.

Her current ambitions at this point in their story, however, are a bit murky at best. She wants to find a new goal, but that is becoming a bit more complicated between trying to stay close to her sister, her relationship with Tural, and wanting to pursue even more magical studies. She's sort of feeling things out for now, seeing where things go, and she's okay with that. Thankfully, she has plenty of patience.

💜 Music or Silence? Swords or Spells? Cities or Nature?

The first two are easily music and spells respectively. While Nidhel isn't much of a singer, she loves to dance for fun and genuine silence makes her feel uneasy (probably a side effect of being raised in Valenwood, where the jungles were always noisy unless there was something very wrong). And the spells are because that is absolutely her strength between the two. She wouldn't know what to do with a sword if her life depended on it.

She would probably feel bad saying it, but at this point in her life she definitely prefers the cities to pure nature. She is a wood elf, and she still holds an appreciation for nature, but she is so used to being in cities where everything is much more convenient and all of her people are close by, so going back to the villages of Valenwood or any other place that doesn't have a city near it would probably not be as enjoyable for her compared to how it would be for others in her family.

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Oriana —

🌸 What does your OC’s voice sound like? Their laugh? Are they good at singing? Do they have an accent?

Oriana's voice is generally pleasant to hear, she speaks gently and rarely raises her voice unless she has a good reason to. She definitely has a noticeable Tyadosan accent, which absolutely gets stronger when she's around her family, Ranna, or specifically when she's having a sibling argument. Years of practicing in both the temple and the monastery have made her a good speaker in formal environments, though she still falters if put on the spot in front of too many people.

When she's nervous, she practically stops talking altogether. If she laughs, it's either a soft chuckle or this light, airy, sometimes almost nasally laugh that she thinks sounds silly so she gets self-conscious and will often try to cover her mouth to hide it a little. And despite not having any true formal training, years of attending temple services have made her into a pretty decent mezzo-soprano singer! She struggles with high notes and doesn't have the lung capacity for drawn-out notes, but she can hold a tune at least.

🌷 In what ways would your OC alter their body if they could? How would they do it using mundane means (hair dye, surgery, make-up?). What is their ideal look for themself?

If you asked Oriana this before the campaign, she would want to change absolutely everything that made her stand out. She would have made her hair darker, made her eyes look normal, possibly a shade of blue like her father's... Anything that would make her look like she fit in, at least with her family. She has actually tried hair dye in the past back when she was a teenager, but that attempt went horribly and almost made her self-consciousness worse. Thankfully, she is trying to be more accepting of herself after all that has happened, but some days are easier than others. She does occasionally use the thaumaturgy spell now that she has access to it to change her eyes. Sometimes just to see how they would look if they were normal. Other times just to make it so she doesn't have to deal with questions when she is meeting certain new people.

I don't think Oriana at this point has an "ideal" look for herself. She is not against using the occasional bit of makeup to enhance her features that she does like, especially when a certain bard is around, but otherwise she is rather fine with herself at this point and getting better as time goes on in that regard.

📀 How easy is it to shock your OC? To confuse them? To lie to them, to manipulate them? How are they with feelings of trust? Can your OC be trusted?

Oriana has a fairly healthy wariness about her. She is certainly not going to trust most folks at face value for the most part, but she's not rude about it. A lot of this is the result of hearing stories from the clergy at the temple and from the warnings of other Sun Soul monks when she first started doing outside work after finishing her training. I would say that overall, she is good about not being manipulated by those she does not know well. Tricking her would require spending a lot of time building up the trust first. It would definitely be easier to show or confuse her in a general sense, but she would still be wary from the get go.

Trust is something that is actually very precious to Ori in a sense. She has a lot of weirdness going on, and absolutely does not want to give the details to someone she does not trust. Her magic and appearance has earned her a lot of strife over the years, and it makes it hard to share those struggles with anyone who has not earned her full trust. Feeling like she can trust someone with that kind of information is one of the greatest reliefs she can have. And she certainly hopes those same people feel that they can trust her as well.