Character Survey

[serenityevades]

Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy?

Flow is notably short, though unlike Oberon, whose growth was stunted by poor diet, this is his natural height. He’s leanly muscled and would probably make a decent swimmer.

2. How old is he?

Late teens/early 20s. 19 at the start of his class quests.

3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch?

He puts on good posture as part of his “hero routine” but in private or when totally lost tends to keep defensively hunched shoulders.

4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?

Physically, he’s in excellent shape.

5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?

He’s constantly moving in some way unless he’s perfectly calm - picking at stray threads on his clothing is a common nervous habit. His movement itself can be composed, but lends itself to plenty of such nervous tics or sudden movement if he’s ill at ease, which is often. He usually resorts to a shifting of his weight that could mean about anything.

6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror?

He tends to be perceived as cute, and he sees himself as pretty average looking.

7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?

Gotta love Star Wars and its multicolor population. Flow’s skin is a light, but not pale, green, and has a natural flush in his cheeks. Due to his skin color, he blushes rust-brown. Apparently, everyone bleeds red.

8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style.

His hair is gray, the only hint that he has a Devaronian parent - his hair is the same color as his paternal grandmother’s fur. It’s thick and soft (his boyfriend can’t resist playing with it, it’s adorable), and for all intents and purposes mostly straight. It could be wavy if he grew it out, but he keeps it cut at mid-neck length, and styles it in a swept-back style that avoids being too severe while also keeping it out of the way.

9. What color are his eyes?

Gray-green.

10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?

As a Mirialan, he has facial tattoos meant to symbolize achievements - his are triangular clusters under his eyes. They must denote something quite basic, as he got them at a young age, but he no longer remembers what they mean. He’s never been connected to his roots and is afraid of creating further unfulfilled expectations by asking another Mirialan Jedi and getting an answer he could never attribute to himself.

11. What are his chief tension centers?

Neck and shoulders.

12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does he have six of the same suit?

What is dressing for himself? He essentially picked up a typical Jedi look (armored vest, short robe/jacket, just pants instead of a full flowing robe). He favors earth tones.

13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them?

That is the entire point of wearing clothes, as far as he’s concerned.

14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences?

He does. He has a formal robe for special occasions, and it only sees use then. Otherwise, it’s all the same stuff.

15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?

Boxer briefs like every other male character model stripped to their underclothes of course.



Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?

Flow has a quiet, gentle tenor voice. Very suited to his pacifistic peacekeeper role.

2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate?

His voice is normally soft and gentle, delivered with soothing evenness or - when he’s not putting on the “hero” show - quiet, nervous hesitance. It’s extremely rare to hear him yell, to the point where his voice with a good amount of power behind it is almost unrecognizable. His anger is more often delivered with a slight edge or growl than with sheer volume.

3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?

When he’s caught off guard or forced out of his hero script suddenly there’s a lot of verbal fillers, mostly of the “um...” variety. Otherwise handwavey “Republic accent” descriptor.

4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency?

He has some skills with a lot of languages because he grew up with a very mixed crowd, but the only language he speaks fluently is Basic.

5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations?

Nope.

6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words?

He’s not good with impromptu speech at all. It’s one of the reasons his speaking pace is so slow - not only does it project the air of kindness and peace he wants to, it gives him time to actually put his thoughts into words.

7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?

He has moments of eloquence (mostly he shines when called on to make an inspirational speech, because putting hope into words is easy for him) but for the most part he really has no idea what to say at any given time, and has a tendency to limit himself to a statement or two at a time, because if he doesn’t, his mouth will definitely get ahead of his brain.



Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart?

Book smart, not at all street smart. Any appearance of street smarts is approximated by Force empathy tipping him off to ill intent.

2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate?

I mean...he’d prefer to deliberate, but rarely gets to. Whether or not he’s capable of making snap decisions is largely conditional.

3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?

Intuitive-idealistic. Flow follows his heart in every conceivable way, and while he has some failsafes in logic (using his Force empathy as an anxiety assist wouldn’t work otherwise), for the most part he is ruled by emotion. How’d he get to knighthood again? The only reason he isn’t dark is because the emotions that embody the dark are generally things he’s not prone to feeling, except fear. His anger dies quickly and he cannot bring himself to direct it violently outward. The way his Force empathy is always “listening”, he always comes to regret violence very quickly. He wants to believe in the best in people, and looked up to Master Braga a great deal before his fall. Representatives of the Republic continuously resorting to “ends justify the means” behavior are shaking this core tendency of his to its very foundations, and by the invasion by Zakuul, he is consumed by depression.

4. What kind of education has the character had?

He was born and raised among Jedi, which involves general education, combat training, and spiritual learning. Flow’s mental health was poor as a young child, due to instructors taking the wrong tack with his anxiety, and thus his memory of his youngling education is spotty.

5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about?

He’s a Jedi.

Okay, not enough? Not enough. Specifically he’s very in tune with the impacts others have in the Force, so he very keenly senses death and is calmed by the presence of life. (This leads to an atypical presentation of his anxiety, in that densely populated places are better for him rather than worse.) He is happy when surrounded by happiness and instinctively seeks to soothe worry and sadness and to end violence. If he could focus better, he would have made a spectacular healer. But he can’t, so he just swings some lightsabers around as a sentinel.

He enjoys the thrill of the search and discovery, and, strangely enough for a Jedi, enjoys treasure hunting with his trusty seeker droid. He’s putting together some salvaged speeders for all his friends! He also loves crystals. Careful not to trip in his apartment’s hallways, lots of sharp edges.

6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert?

He’s an introvert who enjoys the presence of other people (not necessarily engaging with them, just being near them).

7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?

While Flow can’t keep a cool head, what he loses it to most often is fear, rational or not, and even so, he’s lived with it long enough (and found the right kind of support) to know how to keep pushing himself through it, and in certain cases (combat), how to harness it, in part - not the raw emotion of a dark side practitioner but using the physical response - his heartbeat - as an extremely fast metronome to wring some focus from his panic. In his day to day life, one might get the impression that Flow used to be a happier person. He has a melancholy air to him now that he never seems to know what to do with, with none of the learned coping mechanisms one sees with his anxiety.

8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?

In general, while his faith in people has taken several hits too many, Flow is optimistic about new encounters, and prefers to try to talk his way out of would-be violent situations and put faith in the other party first. He may on some level distrust Imperials and Sith, but will never assume any intent he cannot feel (or that is not demonstrated) first. New situations are regarded with fear ranging from mild caution to panic, unless he was completely prepared beforehand or is in trusted enough company.

9. Is he more likely to act, or to react?

React. He rarely takes initiative unless it’s a purely peaceful endeavor like cultivating a crystal cutting, caring for his pet orobirds, or looking for buried treasure.

10. Which is his default: fight or flight?

Flight. He’ll only fight if the danger would become a danger to others if he let it go, or if he’s otherwise cornered.

11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?

Sarcasm is a given, considering his game’s developer. His own sense of humor otherwise is underdeveloped and tends to be startlingly immature for his heroic reputation, whenever he’s in the mood to joke. It leans towards dirty jokes more than other immature topics, because he regularly hangs out with a smuggler and also because repressed young adult.

12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them?

He has an anxiety disorder. Not so bad he’s nonfunctional, but still enough that he spent most of his childhood trapped in an awful feedback loop of being afraid of being afraid because the Master who oversaw his instruction decided negative reinforcement (“you’ll be in danger of falling to the dark side through fear”) was the way to go - combined with the all too literal interpretation of the first line of the Jedi Code popular in the era, it made for a very distressing formative stage that probably made it worse than it would have been had he had proper support from the start. He has the best practiced coping mechanisms for this - Force empathy on constant background alert course-corrects the social aspect, his combat workaround to turn what would be blinding panic into something to focus by, etc. He’s lived with it his whole life, he’s familiar with how it works even when he fails to mitigate it.

As of the end of chapter 2 he shows strong signs of PTSD (recurring violent nightmares, massive anxiety spikes when any outside force (particularly dark) attempts to influence his mind or threatens to do so, heightened startle response, uncharacteristically violent reactions (Force pushes away anyone who approaches him in the middle of an attack), a constant feeling of being needed to stave off impending doom as through chapter 3 even when the burden no longer exists or is on someone else’s shoulders), though he hasn’t sought diagnosis or help, except allowing Natirru to at least guide him to the Voss between base and Ilum. It wasn’t very effective, due to the Voss tendency to treat the future as a certainty.

It had been building since about halfway through chapter 1, but Zakuul’s invasion marked a sort of breaking point, at which depression he had been struggling with but self-managing became unbearable. He only begins to overcome it in finding purpose and hope within the Alliance, and with his friend Abric’s return.

13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person?

Being taken under Master Carish’s wing reshaped his entire view of who he was as a Jedi. It gave him hope of not failing, and he followed that hope into success. Carish taught him that being different could be okay, and while he would never fully shake off his insecurities, he would continue to try in spite of them.

Meeting Abric brought him into the little circle that Natirru would unwittingly form, and that led to him meeting and falling in love with the Sith named Oberon. Without Oberon, he would never have recovered from that first psychological blow on Nar Shaddaa, and without him he would have died from his own recklessness in the desert wastes of Tatooine. Oberon represents hope and life and a reason to cling to both, a sense of purpose. He would be lost without him.

The Emperor’s possession at the end of chapter 2 all but destroyed him. Though he had no memory of the possession itself, the not knowing, the what if preyed on his anxieties until it was as bad as it would have been had he remained conscious. Master Orgus’s spirit helped him recall the memories he’d forced himself to forget, and while this mitigated the worst of the pain surrounding this event, there was much more behind his scars than only ignorance.

14. What does he fear?

Losing his loved ones, being reviled, being at fault for something awful happening (especially to someone he knows), possession/mind control, not living up to expectations, failing the Jedi Order...the list goes on and on.

15. What are his hopes or aspirations?

Peace, happiness, the end of the conflict between Republic and Empire (sorry, kid), to do good in the galaxy and to do right by his loved ones. In a less grand, sweeping note, he’d like to be able to stay with Oberon forever, without judgment or war getting in the way. When he told Orgus he wanted to retire, he meant with Oberon.

16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him?

For most of the game, top spot juggles between not wanting anyone to see how insecure he is and how badly he needs help, and not wanting anyone to know about his Sith boyfriend. Then he learns the Council has been quietly looking the other way on Oberon (having kept tabs on him during his rise to Emperor’s Wrath) because there’s little else keeping him afloat and they can see it. And apparently they agree with him about not making it part of the temple gossip. At that point, the only thing he doesn’t want anyone to know about him is how deeply his impostor syndrome runs.



Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents.

Jedi.

Okay, he barely remembers his mother and only recently met his father. He’s a nice guy and all but Flow is having trouble dealing with parental affection and doesn’t know what to make of having family that he knows at all.

2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?

Nope.

3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand?

When he met his father he also met his grandmother, who is just as delighted to see him for being a relative as her son was. He knows that’s how it’s supposed to be, but it’s strange to him.

4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them?

Master Carish was the closest to family he ever had before he met his actual family. He saw Flow’s potential instead of his failings, and saw that potential was being snuffed out. He was the first adult to accept Flow for who he was, and the only Master he’d ever trained under who encouraged him to work with the flaws he couldn’t control instead of ruining himself trying to fix something he couldn’t. Unfortunately, he did not live to see Flow’s training through in its entirety, having taken him on at an advanced age in the first place.

5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?

It’s honestly a close call between her and Abric, but I would have to name his fellow Jedi Kira Carsen as his best friend. She’s stood by him through the lowest of his lows, and while it’s hardly Abric’s fault for simply not having the same experience, Kira has that in common with Flow, too - she was the only one he could confide in about his experience with Vitiate-possession and be understood. ...For then, at least. They met as Padawans on Tython, after Flow had fought off some attacking Flesh Raiders. Kira asked if he’d tried to spare anyone, and Flow, desperate to mask his shame at something he knew he couldn’t help, deflected with a joke. Kira joked right back, much to her Master’s consternation. Flow knew they would be friends. He just didn’t think she’d become nearly as important to him as she did. He misses her dearly for their years of forced separation.

6. Does he have other close friends?

The extremely close runner-up for above, Abric Solari - he met Flow while he was still under Carish’s care, and they caught some muggers together. Abric seemed like the insensitive type on the surface, but showed signs of deeply caring anyway. Abric became Flow’s link to the world outside the order, and a point of reference for dealing with people who aren’t Force sensitive. Though their friendship becomes strained over chapters 1 and 2, Abric puts forth the effort to improve and be a better friend to Flow as he comes under more and more strain.

Even when I exclude other players, I can’t ignore one Valentine Noir, Darth Imperius. He has provided Flow and his allies safety, comfort, and friendship in so many occasions, in game and in RP, that he can’t be detached from the legacy. Congrats on being an honorary Reflections member, Val!

Among his companions, astromech droid T7-01 is another close friend of his. Upbeat and optimistic in spite of everything, Flow often finds Teeseven’s reactions to be a guide to his own flailing psyche, a warning system to tell him when he is in danger of becoming too jaded and a constant pillar of support.

7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people?

He isn’t necessarily hard to get along with, and he’s happy to make friends, he’s just mopey and awkward and has a hard time connecting lately. It’s a trauma thing.

8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends?

Friends, considering family doesn’t mean much to him. (He doesn’t fall into the typical Jedi trap of believing it should mean little to others though - Abric’s friendship helped him develop a sense of what other people prioritize)

9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once?

Single, never married, and never plans to be.

10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?

He isn’t supposed to be. But he is. He fell in love with Sith warrior Oberon Malo over the course of several duels that never held any mortal threat from the start. Oberon has been his beacon in his darkest hours, and while their relationship is mostly supportive and healthy, his deep depression and lack of other support during Zakuul’s takeover saw to Oberon shouldering much of their combined emotional burden.

11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest?

His first crush was named Stesh Nuun, and he was a slightly older boy he studied with, because a young Jedi’s environment is limited. It was nothing more than admiration, a puppy crush - he was only a young child and love and sexuality were concepts he would need more time to wrap his head around. When he tried to articulate what he felt, what he got was, instead of a gentle explanation, a stern lecture when he was already deathly afraid of somehow spontaneously falling to the dark unprovoked. He felt deeply ashamed of every little attraction for a long time after. Thankfully, Master Carish - while he could offer no practical insights, having had no real struggle with that part of the Code himself - managed to convince Flow to stop beating himself up for yet another thing beyond his control. While he did not advocate breaking the Code - Flow would do that on his own as he developed a crush on Oberon - he did manage to convince him that it was not feeling these things that was in itself wrong.

His latest crush is actually a fleeting half-respect half-sympathy thing for Lord Scourge, of all people. He didn’t pursue because isn’t one Wrath lover enough? Also people might get the wrong idea. He doesn’t secretly have a Sith kink. Not his fault the other men on his ship are trash.

12. What does he look for in a romantic partner?

Honestly, he doesn’t “look” for anything, it just kind of happens, and hasn’t happened often enough for him to establish a pattern.

13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any?

Nope, and he doesn’t want them. How much of that is ingrained Jedi orthodoxy and how much is reluctance or fear for other reasons is best left unsaid. Abric and Carish’s influence have left him a better adjusted Jedi than most raised in the Order from birth like he was, but he’s still heavily influenced by their beliefs, even the negative ones that haven’t been challenged.

14. Does he have any rivals or enemies?

Not really, just the goddamn Sith Emperor, who gets stuck in his friend’s head. And is slowly gaining power, probably. And will probably try to possess him. Nothing to worry about here...

15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale?

On the Kinsey scale, Flow is about a 5. He has some attraction to women, but it tends to be entirely in response to unsubtle flirtation. He self-identifies as gay if he’s asked, but if someone insisted “bi with an extreme preference for men” was a better descriptor he wouldn’t complain. The label isn’t terribly important to him, personally.

16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him?

For a long time, he considered it shameful to even consider wanting. When he and Oberon got together, it became a means of escape, and an unexpected source of peace. Without his nights with Oberon to drown out the rest of his emotions for a while, he doubts he would have made it beyond the battle with Malgus.

17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?

Because it’s a kind of emotional cleansing for him, he and Oberon tend to be intense. As in, “psychic feedback loop” intense. There’s a reason his only attraction with any strength so far has been towards other Force users. For that matter, it explains why its only targets have been Sith - for Jedi, it’s taboo, but he asks no wrongdoing of a Sith.



Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type?

Not applicable!

2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life?

Jedi is a religion! He believes in its core function - to defend and aid those who can’t help themselves - but its doctrine leaves something to be desired. He considers himself a Jedi, but doesn’t necessarily bind the servitude aspect of it to the Republic, especially as he stumbles on more and more awful things that came from it.

3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it?

Well, he’s a Jedi and was raised as one from birth. So, protect those who can’t protect themselves, render aid when needed, don’t harm innocents, avoid killing where possible... Honestly, the only thing that seems to break him from the typical pacifist Jedi rails is panic - his one deliberate, dark side point gain kill was when he was effectively cornered. If he’d been better at lying he might have been able to bluff his way out, but he couldn’t. His mind blanked and he panicked and attacked. It was immediately following the Emperor’s control of him and it messed him up pretty badly. Other than that, he’s pretty solid when it comes to sticking to his moral compass.

4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?

Mostly he’s aware that Jedi have a reputation for assuming they have the only right way, and, because the feeling of being hated - both on a normal and Force-empathic level - tends to be fairly upsetting, he does his best to try to approach other beliefs with some respect, particularly if they involve a different approach to the Force. Beliefs that actively encourage harm to innocents, however, are not excused.

5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them?

He tends to be instinctively wary of Sith, but rather than hostility or malice it tends to come off as kind of patronizing or ignorant when he encounters one that doesn’t fit the stereotype, if it gets in the way at all.



Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?

Richer than a Jedi should be, between Abric dumping a ridiculous portion of Nok Drayen’s fortune on him and Valentine and Oberon constantly sending him gifts. Whatever he doesn’t use, he tries to give out or back to his friends and loved ones, but...mostly he has no idea what to do with himself.

2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him?

He went from a promising but otherwise unremarkable Jedi to a galactic hero. The impostor syndrome is strong in this one. He was actually pretty relieved (and guilty for being relieved, since it reinforced the idea he didn’t belong in that role) when Abric began to take the lead on missions.

3. Where does he live? House, apartment, trailer? Is his home his castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does he share it with others?

When he completed his trials on Tython, his friend Abric (once he’d gotten himself un-stranded from Ord Mantell) gave him a nice Coruscant apartment he had once tried to live in, but couldn’t feel at home in. Flow had, and to this day still has, very little idea of what to do with all that space to himself, aside from seating near the windows and lots of plants and water out on the balcony for his orobirds. He’s taken to lining the main hallway with crystals and...putting them everywhere, really. When Zakuul invades, he’ll rotate hideouts with Oberon and Natirru until Abric resurfaces and Lana reaches out to them to form the Alliance. He stays on Odessen for the entirety of relevant content, but once Zakuul’s stranglehold on the galaxy is relaxed, he and Oberon move their animals into a Manaan island Abric was using as a secret stash, and set up furniture to stay there, too. It’s as close to his dream of a peaceful life with him as he’ll ever get, he thinks sometimes. They also have a room set aside for them in the apartment he used to live in (that Abric and Natirru have moved into), and of course they’re often found on Odessen still. The galaxy is a big place. It’s nice to feel at home on more than one world.

4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on?

Things for his friends and loved ones, mostly. Indulging for his own sake is rare, and usually it’s for his seeker droid hobby. Those things can take a beating in the course of normal use.

5. What does he do for a living? Is he good at it? Does he enjoy it, or would he rather be doing something else?

He’s a Jedi. Supernatural warrior-monk who is honestly tired of this whole war thing and wants to live somewhere in peace with the boyfriend his religion says he’s not supposed to have.

6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time?

He raises birds and goes treasure hunting with a seeker droid. He also helps his boyfriend raise his menagerie and tend to the habitats they’ve built for them. He also keeps crystal growths, Force-attuned or not.

7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?

Generally, he’ll eat whatever’s put in front of him. He rarely has enough motivation to cook for himself though even if he had the confidence in his ability, so if he also fails to find the energy to eat out he tends to go hungry for a while until he manages to pick himself up. He compensates for this by keeping a stock of preparation-free rations, at Doc’s suggestion. This has helped keep him in decent physical shape, at least.



Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is his favorite:

1. Color? His favorite color is orange, second bronze. I associate him with earth tones. (Because he prefers to wear it, thinking brighter colors are too loud for him)
2. Smell? When he’s stressed he tends to retreat to places with flowers, if available, so...
3. Time of day? Morning. Specifically, when the local avian wildlife starts singing (if not morning, he tends to like whatever time the world’s birds do start singing.
4. Season? Spring. Cute birds, nice flowers (on most worlds with actual seasons), what else does he need?
5. Book? Don’t really have data on this!
6. Music? Banners’ You Got It In You, Juniper Vale’s Fast, Welshly Arms’ Down To The River
7. Place? Alderaan and Voss have a special place in his heart for key developments in his relationship with Oberon there. Hoth is where he managed to purify the lightsaber Oberon gave him and memorable to him as the first time the entire legacy worked together as a team.
8. Substance? Crystal, favorite/association; rainwater, association only
9. Plant? uh...if it’s living he likes it and if it smells nice he likes it even more. Guy just likes nature.
10. Animal? Birds! His favorites are orobirds.



END
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