Alleyverse Characters

[Karnatheon he/him]

Do characters need to be from a specific timeframe in Cosmere? Like would it be just as likely for a character to wander into current Alleyverse time from Alethkar the night Gavilar was assassinated as it would be for someone to wander in from when Alethkar was overrun by Fused?

[kenod]

Time in the alleyverse tends to be ... weird. Mostly people don't specify timeframes for their origins, but you can pick any timeframe, just blame it on alleys messing with time, or immortality.

[Karnatheon he/him]

That was my assumption but I just wanted to clarify. Thank you.

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

I mean, don't be as old as Hoid, but you can come from any published time frame.

This is coming from a guy you thinks that Hoid is either the stormfather of Adonalsium, or the actual 17th shard.

[Archer he/him]

20 hours ago, Karnatheon said:

Do characters need to be from a specific timeframe in Cosmere? 

I'd would recommend specifying time-frame if it changes your character dramatically. [Calamity, Mistborn spoilers to follow] 

Spoiler

For example, if you're an Epic mid-way through the Reckoners series, using your powers will make you evil. If you're from after the events of Calamity, they won't. That would be important to note. Same thing for post Sazed-ascension Scadrial etc. 

But there are no restrictions as to when they can come from. 

[Vargo Seldon he/him]

Also, @Archer, here's a secondary character that I've been thinking about for some time now:

Spoiler

Name: Aeodin

Age: 358

Home Planet: Born in Alley city

Apearence: Tall, well over six feet, silvery skin, short luminescent hair

Investiture: Aons

Gear: One tome with only a few Aons within : Aon Aeo, Aon Iir, and Aon Sao. 

Special Skill:  Really good at drawing Aon Sao, and doing so gives him knowledge of all other Aons.  He also was taught well how to fight with hands, or any weapon.

Weakness:  Has no mind for strategy, and often runs in without ever weighing the consequences and risks.

Bio:  His parents were an Arelonish peasant woman and a Fjordish soldier.  They fled Sel, and made their way to the alleyverse.  They had a son and the Fjordish father taught him everything he knew about fighting and surviving.  He grew up in the alleyverse.  The Shoad took him in his teens, (this was after the events in Elantris) and he took to worldhopping, using the Aon of transformation to hide his true nature.  He befriended Valdwen in the recent 5 or 6 years of his life, and followed Valdwen soon after to join the ghostbloods.

I always thought it'd be cool to have an elantrian character.  So, I've been thinking about how his age measures up to Valdwen, and I think I've got an answer.  Valdwen was born when he was 323, and when valdwen made his way to the alleyverse, he befriended him.  Valdwen has a slightly dominant personality, and he, despite his younger age, took the lead of the two.

Edited November 10, 2018 by Kaladin78
Corrections

[little wheel he/him]

1 hour ago, Kaladin78 said:

Lir

Aon Iir, with an "I"

[Vargo Seldon he/him]

1 hour ago, JacobClaessen said:

Aon Iir, with an "I"

Thanks, edited.

[Life&Death]

23 hours ago, Darth Woodrack said:

mean, don't be as old as Hoid, but you can come from any published time frame.

Mr Amber’s official age is: almost as old as Hoid.

[+Ark1002]

20 hours ago, Kaladin78 said:

Also, @Archer, here's a secondary character that I've been thinking about for some time now:

  Reveal hidden contents

Name: Aeodin

Age: 358

Home Planet: Born in Alley city

Apearence: Tall, well over six feet, silvery skin, short luminescent hair

Investiture: Aons

Gear: One tome with only a few Aons within : Aon Aeo, Aon Iir, and Aon Sao. 

Special Skill:  Really good at drawing Aon Sao, and doing so gives him knowledge of all other Aons.  He also was taught well how to fight with hands, or any weapon.

Weakness:  Has no mind for strategy, and often runs in without ever weighing the consequences and risks.

Bio:  His parents were an Arelonish peasant woman and a Fjordish soldier.  They fled Sel, and made their way to the alleyverse.  They had a son and the Fjordish father taught him everything he knew about fighting and surviving.  He grew up in the alleyverse.  The Shoad took him in his teens, (this was after the events in Elantris) and he took to worldhopping, using the Aon of transformation to hide his true nature.  He befriended Valdwen in the recent 5 or 6 years of his life, and followed Valdwen soon after to join the ghostbloods.

I always thought it'd be cool to have an elantrian character.  So, I've been thinking about how his age measures up to Valdwen, and I think I've got an answer.  Valdwen was born when he was 323, and when valdwen made his way to the alleyverse, he befriended him.  Valdwen has a slightly dominant personality, and he, despite his younger age, took the lead of the two.

How are you logically explaining your character being 323? They still age...

[Vargo Seldon he/him]

Elantrians are immortal.  Remember that one hoed that was from before the reod that Raoden killed?

and he's 358, not 323.  

Edited November 11, 2018 by Kaladin78
Adding

[kenod]

There are a fair bunch of different immortality methods available. The one used by the 17th shard should also work on people without investure.

[+Ark1002]

They aren't immortal per se. They heal faster.

My problem white that is there would often be new Elantrians daily, and that city would run out of room.

Also, I'm pretty sure only the 'cursed' of were immortal, the others just aged slower. I'll check my copy of Elantris.

[Archer he/him]

Elantris spoilers to follow.

There's a good thread here that discusses this. We know that Elantrians are only 'chosen', the power can't be inherited (source), so the Shaod has complete control over the rate of the Elantrian population's growth. It must make new Elantrians at a sustainable rate, avoiding over-population issues by not making more Elantrians than can be supported by their available resources. 

Quote

Questioner (paraphrased)

[Something about whether Elantrians are immortal or long-lived] 

Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)

Elantrians have no physical limitations on their lifespan. The power will sustain them, but it's emotionally and mentally exhausting to be an Elantrian, so as far as immortality goes it's actually harder to be an Elantrian than other forms of immortality that exist in the cosmere.

source

 

Based on this WoB, I'd guess that being an Elantrian doesn't give one significantly greater mental ability than other Selish. So, one's accumulated memories, experiences, and stresses build up over time, but your ability to process and deal with them doesn't improve. You know how old people get grumpier with age? Elantrians wouldn't have to worry about injuries and diseases that dramatically decrease their mental ability, like Alzheimer's, but eventually they too will become grumpy, fed up with life, and ready to hop in Devotion's Perpendicularity. Or, something causing instantaneous death will kill them prematurely. This reduces the population, making room for new Elantrians. 

In conclusion, my view is that Elantrians who have good self-control and strong wills could live to be several hundred years old, but they'd have a lot on their mind by then. How that impacts their ability to act normally would be up to the person.

Side note: It would also be fascinating to see where they end up on the political spectrum after several centuries of living, but that's a topic for another time.

 

[Karnatheon he/him]

This is my character. I'm not able to link Archer apparently though because it thinks I'm posting spam.

Spoiler

 

Name: Laonin Kungli

Age: 38

Home Planet: Sel

Apearence: A short stout man, stands about 5 feet tall. He has a long bushy beard which he cares for well. His skin is tanned and leathery, from long times spent at the forge. He wears muted colors, and can often be seen wearing a leather apron.

Investiture: Forgery

Gear: A toolkit filled with soulstamps, and other tools. Carving and inscribing devices used for creating soulstamps. An assortment of soulcasting fabrials.

Special Skill: Very skilled at the art of both smithing and Forgery. Has learned how to integrate magic with the mundane in beneficial ways.

Weakness: Rather close-minded. Thinks people rely too heavily on Investiture to solve their problems, and isn't afraid to tell them how he feels. Stubborn like a mule.

History: Growing up in MaiPon was difficult for Laonin. His parents were poor and struggled to provide for him and his siblings. They did the best they could to get him something of an education. At the age of 8 their family got a lucky break when he received an apprenticeship with the local blacksmith. This meant he was able to help support his family while also learning a valuable trade he could make a future out of. Several years later, once he had become able to run the forge himself, his master entrusted him with knowledge of Forgery. The most common use they had for it was having a single tool, that could be used for multiple purposes, just by changing the bit on the end with a soulstamp. This made for much more efficient storing of tools and minimized the space required for things. Eventually his parents passed away and he cared for his brother and sister himself until they were able to provide for themselves. Several years later as he was in a neighboring village he walked through an alley and ended up in an entirely different place. A few years pass as he resides in the Alleyverse.

 

Also, as far as some of his methods seeming to conflict with his weakness, he realizes the benefits of Investiture and will use it, but tries not to rely on if fully. Also maybe he is just a hypocrite.

Edited November 12, 2018 by Karnatheon

[Archer he/him]

I'll ping him for you. @Archer

[little wheel he/him]

The heck?

[Karnatheon he/him]

4 minutes ago, Archer said:

I'll ping him for you. @Archer

Well thank you for the quick response. And pinging yourself.

[Voidus]

45 minutes ago, Archer said:

I'll ping him for you. @Archer

Thankfully this didn't break the site with an infinite recursion of notifications

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

You have to have at least five posts before you can link stuff.

[I think I am here. he/him]

Hey @Archer, just letting you know you put Mara’s cause of death in Max’s bio.

Thanks!

[Archer he/him]

On 11/13/2018 at 8:25 AM, I think I am here. said:

Hey @Archer, just letting you know you put Mara’s cause of death in Max’s bio.

Thanks!

My apologies. I believe I've fixed that now, let me know if you ever spot anything else that needs fixing. Thanks. 

[+Ark1002]

Got another!

Spoiler

Name: Fred

Appearance: Big, bulky, scar across left cheek

Investiture: Varies depending on spikes, experienced Forger

Age: 31

History: Grew up on Sel, he found out his father was a worldhopper, and a DA member. He begged his father, and his father took him to the Alleyverse. He ran away and grew up there, later joining the DA. All this time he had been practising forgery, but he now realized he had another passion. Hemalurgy. Frank is a dedicated member of the DA, and will do anything they tell him to.

 

[Vargo Seldon he/him]

This is something I've been contemplateing.  I was thinking about making a super powerful character to make my other characters bow down to.  Let me know if I'm being a little too rash, since I'm relatively new to this forum.  

Warning: Major Wheel of Time spoilers to follow:

Spoiler

Name: Galvris Moerevron

Age: 52 (Earth two {I think [is earth two wot?]})

Investiture:  Really, super duper, amazingly powerful channeler.  More powerful than Mazrim Taim, but less powerful than Rand al'thor.  Also, has the Epic power of being able to shift phases, from solid to incorporeal.  Can't go through solid objects with this, but can't be touched.  No prime invincibility, doesn't do it unconsciously.  Also has the epic power of energy blasts.  Like what steelheart had but much weaker.

Skills:  Really good at walking.  Like, whenever people see him, they think he's so good at walking that they want to go and take lessons from him.  Other than that, he's a blade master (from wot) and able to hold his own in hand-to-hand combat.  Also extremely skilled at air and fire, so it is able to kind of balance out his weakness in spirit.  

Weaknesses: Epic weakness is cheese.  Has to be physical contact, but for some reason he can't touch cheese with his channeling.  If it is ingested, he can't access his epic power for as long as it is in his system.  Another weakness of his is flows of spirit.  Really bad at handling flows of spirit, but can do it if he really needs to.  He can block another channeler of about An average Aes Sedai's strength.  But he can blur the edges to keep himself from being gentled.  His strong sense of justice keeps him from using his power to the best advantage.  Multiple atium spikes (like thirty or fourty small ones) down his sides enable a really powerful allomancer to give him commands, but it is really hard to keep control of him.

Appearance: Dark, shoulder-length hair, about five feet tall (Earth) kind of short for a hero of legend.  Carries himself like a warrior, and walks really well.  

Personality: A bit conceited, but likeable and with a strong sense of justice.  Is one of the 'good' characters.  

Personality Quircks:  Again, a bit conceited, and he insists on everyone calling him 'Lord Moerevron'.

Bio:  Grew up in 'Randland' and had a good childhood.  Disaster struck, and his whole village was burned by whitecloaks looking for witches.  Roamed about, and answered the Dragon's amnesty, and trained with Taim.  Became too powerful; as Taim said "Was not as strong before.  Became so powerful that me and ten of the Asha'man had to take him.  Slipped away before we could gentle him, no one knows where he got that kind of power..."  (Not a direct quote).  Rand and Taim never spoke of it, because they didn't want him to set a precedent.  What gave him is strength was a world hopper that gave him fifty or so atium spikes.  He spiked the other channelers and gave himself their powers, and pinned it on them burning themselves out.  They died mysteriously after that.  He never took spirit, so is still kind of weak there.  The worldhopper who gave him the spikes took him away, and made his way to the reckonerverse.  Calamity blessed him with Epic powers, and the combined wieght of Epic darkness and Saidin's taint snapped his mind.  He got stuck in the reckonerverse for twenty so years.  During that time, he just got more and more insane, and finally had control of most of South America.  Even among Epics he was exceptionally powerful and evil.  Rumor had it that he had hemalurgic experiments done to make himself even stronger.  Like with minor energy or phase-shifting epics.  During that time, he had major epic power, but near the end of is riegn, some of his spikes got ripped out, reducing his epic power significantly.  When both Saidin and Epic powers were cleansed, he sought healing power in the alleyverse, but is still a little mad.  He gained his strong sense of justice after that, because of the guilt of all of the atrocities he had committed.  Joined the ghostbloods recently, but his strong sense of justice interfears with carrying out the ghostbloods wishes.

I know, it's super powerful, but like I said, gotta have something good to have people follow.  I feel like it would be interesting to stir trouble in the ranks of the ghostbloods.  Also, I'll use this character marginally, and never to overpower a less powerful character (his sense of justice prohibits that).  Again, tell me if I'm being a little rash, and I won't use this character.

Edited November 17, 2018 by Kaladin78
Nerfing character

[Archer he/him]

I have not read the Wheel of Time series. As such, I can't accurately judge if the character is OP. If someone who has read it could help me out here, I'd appreciate it.

But I suspect the sentiment is in the wrong place. If the goal is to create a powerful character for the purpose of competing with other powerful characters, it may not end well. If people are excited about an idea, I hesitate to say no, but I prefer if RPers develop characters from the bottom up, rather than top down. It makes for funner, fairer RP.