[hr] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/2GwhURM.png[/img][/center] [hider=Stillborn Star] Name: Lauchme Lacrignoia Title(s):Stillborn Star Gender: Mal Age: 66 Previous Alignment(s): Mage Association (Clock Tower) Motivation for the Holy Grail: An accomplish that could be called his own. A special victory that could be called his own and an affirmation of his own [s]life[/s] story. Furthermore it would be a means to advance their craft through the analysis of the grail that can bring forth such a great phenomena of Heroic Spirit Summoning. Yet perhaps there's something more that he desires for the grail unknowningly. Personality: (I expect sufficient exposition. Fundamentally, every master summoned for this Holy Grail War was selected because they were incomplete, flawed existences. Please, try to remember.) A clinical, cold man. A man who does not mince words, or hide behind many lies. One would not expect him to be a proper player in politics or have proper relations... and truth be told one would be for the most part? correct. There is a experienced and knowledgeable despair behind his coldness beyond his natural tendencies, and despite his words switching either from disinterest to some coldness, there is a certain feeling of, if not wisdom, then potential that can be felt that leaves one listening to his words. Perhaps it is empathy to understand a person like him that lingers within the hearts of people? Or perhaps more importantly, it is the fear to avoid being such a person. Passion that rotted away to apathy from a lack of nurturing. His greatest emotion could be called a seething, a cold indignation that lingers subtly. It is hard for most to tell what he appreciates, and he hardly is interested in sharing. However, perhaps as a break from his own works at creation, he prefers to consume the works of others, rather than create his own. The sort who would flip through your diary rather than make one of his own. Perhaps the thing he would delight at the most is to see the fall of something that would not even trip upon even a pebble. [hider=History]A man blessed in position, yet cursed with the inability to carry the weight of such a position. His body was given gifts valuable in the magic world, his blood worth more than its weight in gold. A magus blessed with the resources and lineage, along with such a special talent could forge a path, whether or not their magecraft was compatible. If their home did not provide a path then they could always walk a new path. But Lauchme did not have the wings to let him fly along such paths. Born with a frail constitution, and a talent as poor as health. He could not achieve what most would expect of him, what should be within his grasp. Falling further and further below expectations, his growing understanding as he consumed further and further knowledge to try and find the path that could bring forth his talents. Eventually he however was told what he had long understood himself. “You hold no talent. Yet your abilities are valuable and you are good at understanding. You will not be a great practitioner. Turn your efforts to seeding the future, and you shall become a celebrated heir” To entrust one’s hopes to the future was the path of all humans and magi. But for him perhaps he was not allowed to have that hope in the first place. Too intelligent, too experienced. If anything he was a genius at going through information and experimentation. A talent that only served to further crush any hopes. If one lives in despair, then knowledge and truth serves not as a balm to soothe one’s pain,b ut as a merciless light that extinquishes the hope known as uncertainty. Funny that he could extinguish such for himself, when his own abilities were well suited for manipulating and utilizing that space, that unknown. Ah, but perhaps it was because he was the one who peered into the unknown and carved a possibility out of it that he led such a life? A man who lived according to his origin (alignment). A strength that hungered without sustenance, a pride stubbornness that would not allow him to stop. His fate was to feed and fatten his descendants while he furthered his family as an attractive tool to other families. Normally the Lacrignoia would not be so easily married into, let alone in conditions that were so sweet to a magus. The heir, the one crowned as king within his domain and yet the one without a future or a say into the path of the family. He was one who would put in the work that could be done by anyone, with a greater, but thankless ability. He would reaffirm and reject theorem. He would refine and create patents and prepare more than even he had been born for, for his child… His child… What was the meaning of his life? What was his story? A mere background piece, a convenient deus ex machina meant to forgive and allow a grand story? He grew disillusioned with life. No. His story. His main creation that could be said to be a personal one was a puppet. His Roland, the grand hero, but also himself. A magus that lives only in their workshop, never leaving their territory and study was not an uncommon one. In that case the familiar that represented them would be the magus in a functional way to society and others. Yet his model was both the great hero, and also himself. It was the him of the outside world, that could live among other people, that carried the weight of Lacrignoia. Perhaps it was in a way the true final end of his life as a normal human as well. For what need was there for him if he could have a puppet, a familiar and representative that acted both autonomous and with his direct input at times? For it was an independent puppet. He worked as needed, managed the family relations with political allies and enemies, and friends in the Christian Church, and was eventually given a fiance. The news of a Holy Grail War, a ritual and gathering of heroes was eventually presented to him by a friend. Interested, he decided to participate, utilizing the excuse of it being a ritual firmly relating to the family's path. Truth be told it was not a lie. After all, he was still a magus and scholar. A strong academic interest, the possibility of gain and human desire brought him to Budapest, relic in hand. Here he will be pray for rebirth into the glory of victory. [/hider] [hider=Magical Information] Elemental Affinity: Perspicere Magic Circuit Switch: (We shall grant you this knowledge.) Number of Magic Circuits: (We shall grant you this knowledge.) Quality of Magic Circuits: (We shall grant you this knowledge.) [hider=Magecraft] [b]Sacraments and Heretical Magic of the Hidden Church: [/b] The forgiven miracles of the church that sees what should not exist, and the techniques and thamuaturgy of the church utilized in its war of fighting fire with fire. Spells and formulas shared with the family by their allies in the church. Beyond this there is a vast amount of knowledge of all sorts of things provided by executors, and knights as they share what is taken from those they destroy. It is thanks to this that Lauchme so exhaustively came to explore every option possible to understand that there was no path to greatness. Tricks such as the concept and utilization of Black Keys, Ash Locks and various other things come in handy as well. Theoretically he even knows how to swing a sword... although his physical aptitude leaves it quite wasted out of theory. [b]Heroic Spirit Summoning (Puppets)[/b] Not the forming of Ghost Liners and independent familiars of great power using heroic spirits like servants in the Holy Grail War, but the more typical use of Heroic Spirits utilizing Puppets as a medium. The path and magecraft of the Lacrignoia born from the tradition of puppet theater. To create a great hero who can achieve the possible, to act out a story that would reach the root. Puppets are created both in the guise of heroes, and also as vessels for heroes. Information and abilities based on heroes are imbued into the puppets as they take on their roles. Some puppets can switch, being star actors that shine brilliantly in any situation, yet some are more limited, and yet perhaps more optimized as they are created to be a singular part of a tale as their sole existence. Whether they are the star role or a two bit. Reconfiguration is possible, but to a point it is akin to rebuilding the puppet. The star actors that are able to switch, reconfigure and at times even mix through the mutation of acting and storytelling that transforms the story of heroes are sometimes created with personalities ad egos to allow for independent activity. For Lauchme who does not have great skills of a director, lacking talent as a magus, he finds it easier to create a number of directing actors that are assigned to troupes rather than manage everything by himself in the manner of his grand ancestor who woved completely accounted for epics. For him his ability lies in rather managing to direct the general shape of his goals and intentions. Really, to him it is akin to the difficult task of dealing with humans. [b]Grand Guignol:[/b] Born of his affinity, and his own disposition. Heroes exist, and grand tales have certainly happened even as stories and storytellers transform those events. What a hero was, and what a hero becomes is simply up to the actor and writer. Within the truth of stories are the many maybes that are unspoken. Feelings never said but simply hinted at, conjecture bringing forth all sorts of pains, delights, and darker feelings that complicate and enrichen as a spice the drama upon the stage. The hero is a gloryhound whose deeds rain greatness upon himself even as that splendor hides the darkness and foul bestial baseness that lies within the heart. Lovers speak lies, tragedy claims lives. Where there is room to interpret there is a possibility. Things that could exist but do not take form. All Imaginary Possibilities, Numbers. The Theater is in truth a catbox, filled with ad-lib acting and interpretation. No one actor is the same, and no performance, or even rewrite of the same story by different playwrights the same. Lauchme brings out the darker parts of stories. Alternatives that twist almost maliciously the original tales. The truth at the base empowers the lies, and gives them substance, even as it becomes more and more obscured. Who is to deny these possibilities after all? Weaving in heroism and tragedy, villany and empathy. The abilities are at times twisted, and yet the core of the roles still exist. It certainly adds a sort of flexibility but… Really, to heroes and servants it might seem to be a hobby in bad taste. Yet there is one puppet that as an exception shines brightly as a untainted pure example... [b]Imaginary Number Storage:[/b] While teleportation through conversion of the self to imaginary numbers, or traversal into imaginary numbers space is not something that can be done normally. Utilizing beacons, and proper formulas. Storage in Imaginary Number Space can be possible. Very useful for bringing all sorts of things around without effort, or preserving things without fear of the degradation or effect of time, temperature or anything really. [/hider] [/hider] [hider=Tools/Equipment] Blood-Watered Wood: Aged wood harvested from trees taken from the sites of old battlegrounds. The memory of battle, loss, death and grudges lingering leave it an ideal material for darker villains or bloodthirsty heroes. Puppeteer's Armory: Various sorts of old armor and weapons. While not full on tools made to be magic, there is some degree of mystery from age, and use. While it is technically equipment, it is functionally part of the ingredients that helps construct or reform puppets and roles. They work as a good channel for abilities and mystery. [hider=Mystic Code] [b]Puppeteer’s Phantom: [/b] A macabre shadow floating behind, everwatching its owner. Dressed as a high-class man of the dark nights, with a impersonal mask that only highlights its mechanical existence as a tool as a face. It s A mimic, a shadow. Strings connect a puppet that seem almost as though they control the puppeteer as its movements follow the one it is connected to. It is not a fully autonomous puppet, but rather an echo that echoes and bolsters one’s actions. The Phantom that directs the director of the opera, the shadow underneath the stage. It is in a sense a straightforward combat-augmentation tool that protects the user and serves as an outside source of strength. Prana Strings link the user and the puppet, although to account for the difference in specs and the lack of limitations of being confined to a human body, a supporting rudimentary intelligence is installed into the puppet for supportive, corrective-calculations to moves. Its strength in being an extension and mimic of the user however means that it cannot serve the function of being an automatic and autonomous defense. A rarity in a puppet that takes the distinction of a tool that bolsters your own fighting power and gives you power, rather than a creation that has power and fights in your stead. To match with Lauchme’s fighting style it’s hands are akin to the existence of Ash Locks, while its claws are able to be flung forth like throwing weapons, while also being easily replaceable with new blades. Ah, but really, who is the true puppet master? [b]Logistille’s Bible:[/b] [i]Dedication of Ink[/i] A book that holds the sacred and heretical. The reverse side of the bible. The holy word and the magic that it denies. Created by Lauchme, at its base it is not a typical mystic code, but rather the compilation as a copy of his years of research and study as a one-book library written as the reverse side to a bible. Hundreds upon hundreds of magical formulas and magic circles are made into the profane shadow lingering beneath the holy book. Upon that the concept of the book of Logistille the fairy that embodies wisdom was imbued. Man and God, the miraculous and heretical. Combined with his affinity it in a sense is a book that embodies the possibility of magic, and understanding that rules over it. A bible that contains “all” circles and formulas. While not on the level of course of the book it is modeled after, it has ended up a mystic code of protection, breaking and utilization of all sorts of spells. It is at the least more useful than a typical Magic Resistance Amulet. Of course such possibilities yet include things that are far divorced from the western world’s doctrine and theory, and there are many gaps in more specific and developed foundations. But it is the nightmare of a budding generalist. [b]Frozen Heart of Angelica: [/b] A puppet’s heart to be carried. The indifferent heart of the princess Angelica who in turn is tormented and chased by love (madness). A sane, and yet uncaring and inhuman heart. The core of what should be a puppet that was instead simply abandoned, and repurposed as a supplementary tool. Something that staves away passion, and love (madness). It is a focus that substitutes for one’s heart for things that sway and influence one’s feelings, and tempers one’s feelings. Really, it is nothing special. It’s just a tool to help one focus. [b]Orlando-Lauchme: [/b] Would it not do to spend my efforts on the one that would attend to our various ties Those… efforts that take away from work and value?” Such was his justification when he set upon the treasure of his family, their puppet of Orlando the hero of their theater, to modify it into a mirror of himself and the true representative of the Lacrignoia. While his skills as a magus were not great, and the Lacrignoia are far from reaching the level of making puppets that are indistinguishable from humans, or one’s self, that is both covered up and used to the advantage of the puppet in the case of Roland. Illusions and tricks are used to make it look more human, more and more like Lauchme and yet more… and different. Differences that bring attention, tricks and magic born of the crowning of a star and a hero to make what should be the discomfort of a human being around that which is a pale imitation into the adoration of someone beyond them. In other words, the discomfort of a puppet passing off as human is turned into the recognition of a hero. Uncommon in puppets is the personal taste of Lauchme placing artificial personalities in them. Although usually it is more of an origin and driving impulse, born from the story that they wear and represent rather than a full fledged and complete ego. A simple matter of a puppet that acts out the role of a hero, or villain or side character as they are shaped into. As is natural. Going beyond that is Orlando. Holding an artificial personality utilizing Lauchme himself as the base. One could say it is in fact, a second Lauchme. Yet he possess greater abilities as a puppet, and even more from borrowing the guise of the hero Roland. He is a kinder, more confident and open soul. Perhaps ironically he acts more human, even if it is only a guise indeed. Studying his behavior the purity of a hero and machine can at times become clear even born from a twisted man. Yet perhaps because his creator is such that he acts in ways that suggest a proper ego. A reflection of his master, and a true representative. [b]Right To Rule:[/b] [i](Blessing to the King)[/i] [b]The Three Broken Relics.[/b] Three mystic codes that further empower and support Roland. A prop, a blade corresponding to three relics, and three kingly symbols. Gram, the blade in the tree, shining bright like the sun with the greatest sharpness and biting wrath. Shattered by the king of gods, and reforged, not lost and only brought to new heights quenched in the blood of a dragon. Caliburn, the sword in the stone. The one to choose the great perfect king, broken with the failings of the dragon. Naegling, the blade that failed its owner, its wielder holding greater strength than even it could continue, broken by the hands of a king. Broken by the strength, the wisdom, and the failings of great kings. Yet those broken shards hold meaning. Together they are a crown of broken blades. Together they crown the unbreakable blade, the blade that stands above kings in godliness. Durandal. The relics themselves are three swords that, while above the level of an Azoth Blade, are fine but not exceptional relics. But it is as ingredients that their worth shines through. Three combine to become Durandal, and with that blade in hand a puppet becomes the great hero. As fitting the work of a puppeteer, it is possible for both Roland and Lauchme to divide up the blade into three and control two of them independently. A flurry of legendary blades, the onslaught of the godly king. Although really, one should let the fighting be handled by the familiar… [/hider] [/hider] [/hider]