Advanced Character Profile
Character Name: Charles
Gender: Male
Age: 17
Universe: Star Catchers
Canon or Original: Original
Appearance: Keeping an eye on Charles is fairly easy, specially in a small town like Lorham. Standing at 190 cm tall, with shoulders almost twice as broad as his hips, he is hard to miss. In spite of being the youngest son, he's actually the biggest member of his family, with his his well-built physique contributing to this fact. Most of his clothes are new because his parents ran out of hand-me-downs at an alarming rate while he was growing. Adding his bright red hair to the mix, he stands out like a lighthouse. His steely gray eyes and straight posture give him a commanding presente more fit for a general than the son of a farmer, though this is downplayed by the numerous freckles that sprinkle his nose and cheeks, giving him a youthful and cheerful appearance.
Personality: Charles is an assertive and self-assured young man who knows what he wants and isn't afraid of pursuing it. He does not beat around the bush when it comes to telling someone of, but will prefer resolving matters quickly many times over carrying a grudge or, worse, carrying on the quarrel forever.
While organized and good as planning his next moves—a necessity when you work at a farm—he prefers choosing a course of action and acting on it instead of endlessly weighing the possibilities and waiting for a golden chance. He is good at making decisions on the spot and will often choose the more practical and direct approach to solving a problem. However, he doesn't always communicate his decisions and can be quite inflexible when they are questioned.
A man of action, lack of it makes him restless and impatient, impairing his judgement to the point that he may act rashly out of frustration at the slow pace. On the flip side, an excess of action can rile him up and lead him to jumping from task to task without rest. Many times vos brothers and father have had to forcefully drag him away from the fields after the sun had long gone down.
This stems from both confidence on his abilities and the desire to demonstrate that he is the best at whatever he sets himself to achieve. Therefore, he constantly tests his limits and strives to improve his abilities. His favourite trials were those which challenged to develop new skills, instead of using those he already had.
He tends to extend this attitude to other people too, leading to furious competion every time he's had to measure his successes against those of others. And may the stars help you if you are the one to challenge him: he'll never back down nor lose himself to pressure, and he will always find a way to trump every obstacle in the way.
That doesn't mean, of course, that he is mean-spirited, or that he actively antagonizes people. Quite the contrary, in fact. He is always willing to listen to your woes and try to mend them with both words and actions. He is the kind of guy that utterly destroys you at the talent contest and then goes backstage to ask if you are okay. He's conscious that sometimes you have to steel yourself and tell a crying mess to become a productive citizen, but he doesn't believe that being a jerk about it is a requirement. As a result, he is quite good at motivation, and can be really inspiring if he puts his heart into it.
Any Unique Abilities/Skills:
- Great Physical Strength: Which is what you get when you subject a guy as big as him to years of physical labour
- Tool Construction: A result of the combination of the knowledge and acquired from his father and from his Trials with the carpenter and the blacksmith, he can produce many kinds of tools, provided he has the necessary materials.
- Charisma: When he is not trying to prove who's the best, Charles is actually quite good with people, most of the time managing to convince them of what he is saying and getting on their good graces, provided there is no previous antagonism. First exercised at the Inn
- Elemental Affinity: Wood. Plants tend to grow stronger and healthier around him, which becomes more noticeable the longer he stays at a place. He also can notice when plant matter has been disturbed (such as by a passing animal) with an uncanny ease, even if he doesn't always know what he is looking at.
History: Charles was born to Lorham farmers Louis and Caroline DeBoer. Since a short age, his year had revolved around the cycles and whims of wheat, barley, beans and peas. Farmwork is meant to be a communal and continuous effort, and he was trained in every task it comprised of, from ploughing the fields to carting manure to making tools. It was in this struggle with the adversary known as nature that he first understood the importance of always doing the best you could. Since then, he always aimed to demonstrate his worth: first to his siblings, then to his classmates and then to the whole town; and he had plenty of opportunities to do so during the Trials.
Farmwork in general was a piece of cake: Birthplace aside, he had grown up helping the neighbors when they were in need of farmhands. The miller was a family friend, and through him Charles tried his hand at the baker's. His own mother taught him how to brew, weave, and many other useful things; and for a time he was employed in his aunt's inn, even if he had to put up with his cousin Egwene. He then worked with the carpenter, the blacksmith, and the fur tanner; all of them long-time providers of the family farm. And then they all pointed him to friends, clients and acquaintances from whom he could learn new crafts. In a town as small as Lorham, this was a tradition.
By the time his seventeenth solstice approached, something had become evident: he excelled at everything he Tried. No matter the difficulties of the task, he always managed to get a grab of the skillset and knowledge needed to fulfill it proficiently. Of course, he could not match the craft of those who had dedicated their whole lives to it, but everything seemed to indicate that he would surpass them by far given an equal amount of time.
His parents were very proud of him. In their eyes, the future of their youngest son looked bright no matter which path he chose, for anyone in Lorham would gladly give him a job, and women would surely appreciate such a resourceful man. But Charles had very different thoughts. As he grew up, he noticed a compulsion inside of him, something that pushed him to test the boundaries of his world and search for what waited beyond them. For a long time, he hadn't known what to do with those feelings, but now his path was clear: he was going to catch a Star.
Other Noteworthy Facts:
- Hometown: Lorham
- Family: Louis De Boer (father), Caroline DeBoer (mother),
Relationships
- Egwene: He loves his cousin, but they tend to butt heads whenever they meet.
- Katherine:
- Cassandra:
- Samson:
Universe Specific Information: Star Catchers - HC Event
Storyline Specific Information: - Spoiler:
It was nearing their time. They had been through the trials, had learned all they could, and had decided upon their future professions; now all they needed to become full-fledged Adults, equal to any other in Esoria, was to reach the summit of Mount Everlast before midnight two days from now. If they were in place when the Meteor Shower reached its maximum, took in the light, and returned, their adolescence concludes. For most, observing the shooting stars was the final step; upon seeing its majesty after an arduous climb, they could bow out and return home, their trials complete, and take their place as full-fledged members of their community, taking on official apprenticeships or entering journeyman status in some regards, else jumping both feet into their career. But for some, for those young people who wished to make a difference in their world, there was an additional task, one that would automatically set them apart, separating them from whatever their birth, their hometowns, their families, their circumstances were holding them back from attaining, whether it be induction to higher education, to elite facilities, to the audience of a person of Power - this additional trial would put them on the fast path to a life free of glass ceilings.
For these few, the meteor shower is only the beginning. From the mountain top they need to track the path of a falling star and follow it to its landing site, obtain the star fragment, return to the capital and present it to the King. Only then, and for only up to five, and only to those who are present at the ceremony and whose presence throughout the trial is vouched for by the others, will they receive the tattoo, ring, and pendant that will open doors for them for the rest of their lives, and to only those five will the King grant a Wish - a wish that could erase their pasts or open new doors for their future. A wish that could provide funds for their future, could wave fees for entrance to their college or guild of choice, could make or bend the very law of the land, should their argument for such a thing be solid.
The quest is dangerous and difficult. Every year young men and women go forth, and maybe one group in ten returns with the star fragment - one group every ten years. The others return without the star and start their lives as they would have before, else they do not come back at all.
RP Sample:Charles looked at the road that started at the end of the patch of bare soil in front of his house. This was it. This was the beggining of his journey, one that could take him to the highest of glories or the steepest of falls. Either way, only he was going to choose what happened the moment he took the first step. He turned back to look at his family.
Franck, the firstborn and future owner of the farm, waved at him encouragingly, accompanied by his wife and two children. Eloise, whose husband was in a business trip and had left her in charge of the store, joined them enthusiatically. Edmond, a passionate clergyman, nodded solemnly, while masonry guild rookie Justin made a rude gesture behind his head. And, of course, there were his parents, who had managed the farm for almost 30 years, smiling at him proudly with unshed tears in their eyes.
All of them—except for the little Lilian and Madeleine—had happily found their places in Lorham and were content with staying in them for the rest of their lives. But Charles was different.
He could not tell when he realized it. As far as he could remember, the desire to stand out from the rest no matter what had been a constant companion. The thought that sometime he'd return from Mount Everlast and pick up a life prepared for him always filled him with unease.
Then, he learnt of the Star Catchers, of the innumerable perils they faced and sacrifices they made only to start all over again; and decided he had to become one.
He was conscious of the risks: Most returned after having failed, if they returned at all. But for the ones who succeeded, the reward was beyond measure. It's not like he had a wish. If anything, the prospect of facing "dangers untold and hardships unnumbered" to recover a legendary artifact with mysterious powers and present it to the King was was enough of a reward. Only one success in the last ten years? Well, then he was going to be the one to make that a two.
But he could not tell his family that. They would feel excessively worried, or worse, insulted by his decision. But it was his decision to make, and so he chose to remain silent, beam at them for the last time, and take the first step.