Maskormenace Application

[thepattern]

PLAYER INFORMATION

PLAYER NAME: Chris she/her
PLAYER CONTACT: @millennialfalcon.plurk / Chris_#9103
CURRENT CHARACTERS: Momo Yaoyorozu, Jin Zixuan
RETURNING CHARACTER?: No, this character is brand new

CHARACTER INFORMATION

CHARACTER NAME: Corwin (no surname, but you could use "of Amber")
JOURNAL: thepattern
CANON: The Chronicles of Amber
CANON POINT: Book 4: The Hand of Oberon, Chapter 11
AGE: appears 30s-40s, is in actuality many, many centuries old
ALIAS: Carl Corey (not a supervillain/hero name, it's just what he goes by on worlds like Earth)

SYNOPSIS:

Corwin is a Prince of a land called Amber. Amber sits on one end of the spectrum of the universe. One might ask what roads lead to Amber, and the answer is all of them. Everything else in possibility can be found in Shadow, which are different universes radiating out from Amber's center point. Those who an traverse Shadow do so by manifesting changes, willing them into existence. Ride through a forest, will the road to take a rise, then on the other side there will be a desert. Our modern Earth can be found in Shadow. Corwin, having received trauma which led to a severe case of retrograde amnesia, spent several hundred years in the Shadow of our Earth, working as a sword, and later gun, for hire.

At the start of the story, Corwin regains his memories of his true life as a Prince of Amber, learns that their father, the King Oberon, is missing, presumed dead, and then rediscovers the life mission of any Prince of Amber: To obtain the throne for himself. He leads several coup attempts, alternately allying with and fighting against various of his siblings. But, by the time he succeeds in killing his brother Eric who had crowned himself king and imprisoned Corwin (don't worry, he escaped), Amber faces an even greater threat-- an enemy with the potential power to destroy Amber itself (and, by extension, all of reality). Now he must determine who among his relatives is responsible for leading the Courts of Chaos to Amber's doorstep, and face the disturbing truth that one of those to blame may be himself.

ADAPTATION:

Having lived on Earth before, as well as many other Shadow worlds, Corwin adapts easily. He'll likely start off by being incredibly secretive about himself, going by his alias Carl Corey, and use the same vague backstory he had been using on Earth before. He's likely to assume he's simply been transported to another Shadow world, similar to the Earth he knows, but different in enough ways to count. The first thing he would try to do would be to Shadow walk back to Amber. Upon that failing, he would attempt to contact one of his siblings via the use of his deck of Trump cards. But of course, that won't work, either. Only after exhausting all possible escape options, will he come to accept that he may not be in the universe he knows.

He wouldn't even consider becoming a "hero" of any kind, nor a "villain." Not unless the problems he was fighting back home were to suddenly appear here. But, considering this universe has no Amber and no Courts of Chaos, he finds it unlikely that they ever will. He will be frustrated at being stolen away during such a crucial time in the fight against the Black Road, and uncovering the mystery of what happened to certain members of their family. That frustration will lead him to want to get involved in something. He does not sit idle easily.

PRESENTATION:

How Corwin presents himself publically changes drastically depending on where he is.

In Amber, Prince Corwin is known to be strong, cunning, a master strategist, and the third best swordsman in the universe (after only his older brothers, Benedict, and Eric). He's known as a passionate lover, and a bit of a jokester. Ballads and poems he wrote are sung throughout Amber and its neighboring Shadows. He knows all the names of the castle staff, and asks them how their hobbies are going. He associates with his siblings most of all, though he has so many of them that obviously there are some he prefers, and others he can't stand.

On Earth, Carl Corey is known as an aloof, mysterious guy who keeps to himself, favors his privacy, and enjoys some of the finer things in life. He travels for work a lot, dealing arms and doing mercenary work, but when he settles down, he buys a house in a remote area of Upstate New York, and even joins the local country club. He's known as someone with an encyclopedic knowledge of military history (what they don't know is that's because he actually lived it, fighting alongside the likes of Napoleon and MacArthur). He doesn't make many friends, but the ones he does make, will go to extreme lengths to help him.

PSYCHOLOGY:

At one point in the fourth book, Corwin's sister in law asks him what motivated him to stage a coup against his brother Eric, and try to take Amber for himself. His answer was two fold: hatred of Eric, and a desire for the throne. However, by the end of the second book, when Eric is dead and rule of Amber is all but Corwin's, he isn't so sure anymore. More than either of those two motivators, he wants to solve the mystery of what happened to him on the Shadow Earth when he had amnesia, and to stop the forces of Chaos from threatening Amber.

Mentally, Corwin is in a better position now than he was at the start of the books, having regained his memories of his true self. He still plays his cards close to the chest, finding it hard to trust even those closest to him, considering how many times he's been hurt or betrayed. But, this is just the way of things in Amber. When you have over a dozen siblings, and nearly all of them want the throne, family politics are dangerous waters to navigate. That distrusting nature carries over to Corwin's interactions with the people he meets in Shadow, too. Knowing that they wouldn't believe him if he told them the truth about the nature of Shadow and its relation to Amber, he opens up to very few people about who he is or where he comes from. To those who are loyal to him, he promises to someday tell them the truth, maybe even give them a guided tour of Amber, but he does not truly intend to follow through on those promises.

POWERS:

• POWER #1: Blood of Amber

  DESCRIPTION:

  Being an Amberite, descended from the Unicorn herself, Corwin ages and heals differently than a human born in Shadow. He was born and had a childhood, yes, but once he reached adulthood, that is where he stayed, looking exactly the same as he does now. You might explain that by pointing out the time dilation between Amber and various Shadow worlds, but even staying on Earth for centuries, Corwin did not age a day. He can, however, heal from injuries and illnesses that would debilitate or kill normal men. He survived the Black Plague, and later was able to regrow new eyeballs after his were burned out of his head. (This regrowth took about five years, but it is still remarkable.) This is not to say he is immortal, as many of Corwin's own siblings have died. If an injury is grave enough, they will not be able to regenerate in time.
  
  Another benefit of being of Amber's royal blood is that Corwin is capable of walking The Pattern, a living symbol which represents the epitome of Order in the universe. Based on a Primal Pattern which exists in a layer even beyond the Amber where Corwin grew up (called the True Amber), it was inscribed in a cavern below the royal castle by Dworkin: a large twisting labyrinth led out like a spiderweb. Only those of royal blood may step foot on the Pattern. All others will be destroyed. What's more, once a child of Amber has started walking the Pattern, they must finish. If they stop moving, or step off the Pattern, they too will be destroyed. Upon reaching the center of the Pattern, a walker is able to teleport themselves to any location they choose. Any child of Amber who is particularly attuned to the Pattern is able to recreate it, or a version of it. Corwin is shown to have done so once in the books.
  
  Once a child of Amber has walked the Pattern, they gain the ability to walk through Shadows. This allows them to traverse through alternate levels of reality within the larger universe that is bookended by Amber on the side of Order, and the Courts of Chaos on the opposite end of the spectrum. Traveling long distances through Shadow can be a lengthy trip, though it can be sped up by going on what's called a "Hellride," a feat which takes all of a Shadow walker's concentration and mental energy, leaving them exhausted afterwards.
  
  

  WEAKNESS:

  Healing will be limited by its usual slowness. The nanites will likely regenerate any damaged tissue faster than Corwin's innate abilities.
  Pattern Walking will be limited in that there is no Pattern in this universe, unless he creates one. He will only be able to create one, if he decides that is something he will want to do. And only he (or any other castmates of his family who may app in) will be able to walk it. Once reaching the center, the teleportation ability will be limited to anywhere within this world. This is a one-time (per walk), one-way teleportation. If he is going to teleport straight into a character's private area (their house, their office, etc.), I must obtain OOC permission first.
  Shadow Walking will be limited to places that can be found on this world. He can walk from New York to Los Angeles by manipulating the scenery in between, but he cannot leave this reality. Traveling long distances, or trying to travel quickly, will take a lot of energy and exhaust the traveler.
  
  

  POWER #2: Kingly Armaments

  DESCRIPTION:

  This power basically describes Corwin's special loot. Namely, two items in particular: the Jewel of Judgement, and his sword, Grayswandir. A third item will be described under its own power umbrella.

  • The Jewel of Judgement was originally an eye of the Serpent of Chaos, plucked out by the Unicorn of Order in a long forgotten age, and given to Dworkin so that he may use it to inscribe the Primal Pattern. The jewel looks like a ruby, and if one is attuned to it, they may notice an image of the Pattern inside its depths. It comes with the following abilities: (nerfed slightly from canon)
    • Weather Control - Used by Corwin's brother Eric to call storms to bear down on would-be invaders, decimating them with floods, blizzards, fires, and lightning.
    • Time Distortion - With prolonged use of the Jewel, the wearer may find that their movements and reactions are faster, and/or that the world around them is moving more slowly.
    • Automatic Teleportation - An involuntary reaction from the perspective of the wearer; the Jewel will act automatically to save the wearer's life if they are in a life-threatening state, by teleporting them to a "safe place" of the Jewel's choosing, pulled from the wearer's memories.
    • Molecular Control - The wearer can use the Jewel to remotely shut down an opponent's body at the molecular level, causing them to be immobilized. Alternately, the wearer can speed up the molecules in a body, causing it to overheat.
    • Stamina Boost - The Jewel has the ability to lend its wearer more energy and bolster their stamina, giving them a second wind.
  • Grayswandir is a blade forged on the steps of the ghostly city Tir-na Nog'th, inscribed with pieces of the Pattern. It is particularly dangerous against apparitions (ghosts) and creatures of Chaos. In addition, it allows Corwin to be able to speak with ghosts who might not otherwise see or hear him. If lost, Corwin can call it to him by walking through Shadow to a place where it exists. (Essentially manifesting it in this new place.)

  WEAKNESS:

  • Jewel of Judgement:
    • Weather Control: The storms called by the Jewel only last as long as the user is concentrating on them, for a maximum of one hour. They cannot suddenly appear out of nowhere; a sufficiently sized storm will take time to build.
    • Time Distortion: The wearer cannot control this ability. The longer one wears the Jewel, the more time will distort for them, draining their life force until wounds that would not normally be fatal are enough to kill the wearer.
    • Automatic Teleportation: The Jewel will only be able to teleport the wearer to somewhere they have been before, that their mind would associate as a "safe place." This is a one-time (per life-threatening injury), one-way teleportation. The wearer does not get to choose when, where, or even if they will teleport. Again, I must obtain OOC permission before teleporting him into a character's private area.
    • Molecular Control - The wearer must be within ten feet of their target in order for this ability to work, and it can only work on one target at a time. Also, if the target is strong or persistent enough, the control be overpowered.
    • Stamina Boost - The more that the wearer draws energy from the Jewel, the less effective it will be, boosting their stamina for shorter and shorter spans of time.
  • Grayswandir: Aside from the abilities already listed, Grayswandir is a normal sword, able to be lost, stolen, or broken. If it breaks and Corwin tries to call it back to him via manipulating Shadow, it will return to him in the same broken state. When he manifests Grayswandir in Shadow, the sword disappears from wherever it used to be; this is not a way to create multiple Grayswandirs.

  POWER #3: Trump Artist

  DESCRIPTION:

  The third special item belonging to Corwin is a magical deck of cards, resembling a Tarot deck, called "Trumps." The various cards of the Trumps contain scenes of Amber, and the people who dwell there-- namely, the royal family. There is a card for Corwin, his father, and each of his (living) brothers and sisters. The Trumps can be used to communicate or travel over long distances by withdrawing a person's card from the deck, concentrating on their image until it begins to look lifelike, and contact is made. You can then speak to the other person as though they were standing right in front of you. If you step forward, and take the hand of the person in the card, you will find yourself transported to wherever they are.
  
  The deck of Trumps that Corwin has in MaskorMenace contain all the usual cards for his family members-- though none of them will be functioning (unless one of those family members should app into the game down the line). But it also contains several blank cards. Corwin, though visual art has never been his specialty, will find himself able to draw the likeness of a person in game, and imbue it with the magic necessary to turn it into a functional Trump. Conversely, Corwin can draw his own likeness on one of the blank cards, and give it to someone else, so they will have a way to contact him in such a manner.
  
  

  WEAKNESS:

  As previously stated, the Trumps for his family members will not work for as long as they remain out of game. Any Trump that Corwin makes for an in-game character will revert to being blank when/if that character drops. There is a maximum of 24 blank cards for which Corwin to use to make new Trumps.

SKILLS:

As previously stated, Corwin is an extremely skilled swordsman, fighter, and tactician. Only his older brothers Eric and Benedict are better than him, and yet Corwin is still able to think creatively enough in a fight to use his environment to get the upper hand against them. He is skilled with modern weapons as well, having lived on Earth through centuries and fought in many wars. (His knowledge of modern technology is limited to the mid-late 1970s, however, as that is when he was last on Earth.)

SAMPLES

THREAD SAMPLE:

TDM sample

VOICE SAMPLE:

1. "Why do you want to return to your world of origin? What did you leave behind?"
   "I can't give you the details, but suffice it to say that the business I left behind is more important than anything you can think of, more important than any event this world has faced, for it concerns the continued existence of this and all possible worlds."
2. "Have you ever served in the military? What is your experience with armed combat?"
   "I have both served in, and led, more armed forces than you can count. Combat is an unpleasant, yet necessary, facet of life. And I suppose I must say, if you are going to have to fight, you had better fight to win."
3. "Is there anyone who holds a grudge against you? What will you do if they're here?"
   At this question, Corwin's expression sours. "There are many who hold grudges against me, and I them. If they were to make their way here, then I suppose those grudges would have to come to a head, and we would have to face one another." He holds up a placating hand, reassuring smile on his face. "Don't worry, though. I am sure we would do our best to avoid any nasty collateral damage."
4. "Have you ever done something that you regret? What would you do differently?"
   Corwin hesitates, looking askance and frowning, as if recalling a particularly painful or shameful memory. "There is one thing. Of course, I thought I was dying at the time. So, you couldn't exactly blame me for issuing my death curse. But, as you can see, I did not die that day, and so it is that the curse has cursed the curser as well. If I could do things differently..." He laughs sardonically. "Ah, hell, all circumstances being as they were, I probably would have acted the same, if I'm honest. That's just the kind of man I am."
5. "What do you need from this world in order to consider it your home?"
   "Believe me, there is nothing that could do this trick. No matter how many months, years, or even decades I spend living in any given place, I have but one home, and it is to that place that I must return."