| Character Biography |
| Name: Galenaux Alias(es): Age: 31 Summers Gender: Male Height: 6'10ft/210cms (upright) 6.7ft/204cms from slouching Weight: 320~ ponze armoured, 230~ without |
| Voice: Alucard, Castlevania - James Callis Job(s): Academician - (formerly) No Summons Soul Stone(s)?: None Occupation(s): Chirurgeon, Hobbyist Tailor |
| Truly believing his people oppressed and deserving a better lot than what they get, he seeks to leave a telling mark upon Gridania. A reminder that his people will not be forgotten nor buried in the dark in silence. |
The world is his stage, the people his audience. With himself as the voice of reason in a world filled with bloodshed and violence. |
| “I shall heal the wounds of the forgotten, the downtrodden, reviled and misbegotten. Mine is the hand of mercy, in a world that knows none." |
| Glances |
| Damnatio Memoriae |
| He wears a long, silver dropper earring hanging from a steel chain on his right ear, beneath the white cloth hood. Each limping drag of his left leg or tilt of the body causes a delicate and sombre chime like a small church bell against his helmet. The soft chiming reverberates and echoes throughout a room. Its design looks like an ornate, needle like hand of a clock. |
| Steelbound |
| His armour compresses against his frame like a metallic second skin. It lacks seams or gaps in the plating and seems uncannily smooth, as if the armour itself is a single being. The skeletal designed helmet lacks eye slits or holes, with no clear indication it allows for breathing at face value. |
| Buried Below |
| His magical presence appears so weak that he barely seems present at all. As if his very being is forcefully buried or suffocated, much like a ghost that struggles for its right to exist. Less a man and more a lingering presence of nothing. A suggestion manifested. |
| Drag Path |
| The left half of his frame is forced into a delayed and rigid mechanical limp as he drags his heavy left leg forward in a stiffened arc like its dead weight. He tears a persistent sound from floorboards scraping along like a massive iron nail. |
| Testament |
| He carries around a hardback leather tome with a burden like design. It has too many pages than whats required, leading it to be cumbersome and heavy. The gold plating appears akin to painted steel. The ruby gemstone embedded in the spine is shattered, cracked and thoroughly broken. |
| Arid Crucible |
| He emits constant lingering heat that feels dry and suffocating, it feels similar to standing next to an old radiator left running in a dull basement. Touching the plate reveals the armour is sickly hot on contact that bleeds out into the surrounding air. The heat is strong enough to melt ice and frost on his blackened steel shell within moments. |
Roleplaying Hooks
Easy Hooks
Compulsive Collector
He is hardly ever seen without a small collection of hoarded books stuffed into an old leather satchel.
He often collects books relating to Biology and Anatomy, a topic he understands well. Along with Myths of the Realm, oddly enough.
He seems keen to offer medical services in exchange for romance novels, poetry and hero orientated fiction.
Similar to a scholar trying to decipher a foreign language or archaic art, he treats the activity with an odd degree of earnesty as if desperately studying for a last minute exam.
Industrial Advance
Galenaux has never been seen in public without his suit of heavy Darksteel plate. Visually, it appears to crush and squeeze his body akin to a vice, compressing against his rigid frame as if preventing a collapse. Almost as if asking like a second skin and skeleton both.
The sound of clicking and locking of the structural design of articulated joints creates a mix of high-tension creaking and a final, resonant thud with each step. Each movement is graceless, as if he is measuring the reach of every step and motion. It appears as if the joints are rigid,trapping his motions in a stiff cycle.
Helping Hand
Despite his odd presence, he seems eager to join adventuring parties. He usually joins groups as a very awkward and strange healer as he takes a supporting role in the front or side lines. An oddity for a supposed mage. He actively shows hesitation towards striking a spoken. Physically or magically.
Leading to friction with his own It has lead to friction with his own mind and body at points. As if a machine ran into an error. At least, it doesn't seem to be common. He has been known to attempt physically restraining those whom earn his attention.
It's as if he barely functions on a fundamental level.
Archaic Academia
He's rarely seen without a tome on his person. Though he treats his moments of study like a war of attrition rather than a pursuit of wisdom. He has set his goals towards the city state of Sharlayan, where he searches for additional knowledge from their vast collection.
He seems more than willing to barter with individuals with connections towards the city state regarding their collection of data for anatomical and biological resources. With a keen interest in the Sages art, being more than willing to barter for sponsorship when it comes to learning somanoutics or entrance into the city.
Virtue of Charity
The man seems oddly charitable when it comes to his practice of magical healing and standard, non medical triage. To the point he seems to refuse payment in gil nor favors. Stating there are 'no strings attached'.
He doesn't seem particularly fond of stating the ifs or why's about his actions. However onlookers may note he almost seems desperate in how he seeks individuals out. Moving on swiftly from one person to another, and hardly ever lingering for long.
It Takes Two
Galenaux enjoys watching friendly sparring, treating it as a mix of theatre and study. He seems to harvest techniques from battle hardened peers with a curious fixation from the sidelines.
He isn't known to directly participate within the exchange of blows himself. If anything, he isn't actively observed to be overly keen on hostilities at all.
His method of combat is historically poorly documented. To the point where his actual spell craft is a giant question mark. It's assumed he doesn't use any form of attacking magic at all. An oddity for someone carrying such a large grimoire no doubt.
| Roleplaying Hooks |
| Medium Hooks |
Ishgardian Anonymity
Galenaux seems fond of seeking out storied adventurers, skilled craftsmen and even civilians down on their luck. As if trying to trade his knowledge and advice for anchoring into a culture he has only observed from a frosted window on a late night's eve.
He drags himself through the most dilapidated and forgotten corners of the Brume, where people may remember the mans oddly eccentric showman like mannerisms and energetic eagerness to engage in idle conversation with just about anyone.
His tone suggests he doesn't take himself overly seriously despite his heavily armoured appearance.
Open Arms for the Orphans
He has been known to rarely visit orphanages within city states when clad in white, robed plate armour where workers and children have seen his unarmoured face.Those working at such establishments may note often chooses to drop off old books for the youths, which suggest that most of his earnings are spent entirely on them and their future. The books he leaves behind are his fiction and myth books.On the rare occasion he has shown willingness to remain, he has shown a hesitant degree of clinical eagerness to show youths how to repair their stuffed toys and clothes with a needle and thread.
| Misaligned Mirror |
| Galenaux appears to be modelling himself into the kind of man he believes an Ishgardian knight ought to be, or an ideal of how a Knight should be. He's an odd mirror and reflection, maybe even trying to become worthy of the word. Actual knights may note he has a tendency to follow and observe them from a distance, taking notes as if following a case study and then quietly moving on. His performance feels slightly... off. Being rigid, forced and slightly alien as if following a poorly written script. Actual Knights may view his behaviour as a mockery, bastardization or perhaps flattery. |
| Analyst of Anatomy |
| Galenaux treats the body like a complex machine, displaying a surgical familiarity with reconstructing shattered bones and damaged nerves. His triage is flavoured by his heritage, being well versed in creating Duskwight pomanders, being herb-filled vessels used to soothe joints and muscles. He often leaves these fragrant urns behind as a calling card for patients. One of the few lingering traces that proves the man was anywhere in the vicinity. |
| Rejected Reflections |
| Galenaux has a long and storied history of standing against adventurers in the past. To the point he would often block their attempts at claiming bounties. Oddly enough? The man very rarely seemed to be aggressive in his attempts at opposition and obstruction. But rather scolded adventurers akin to a disappointed teacher towards misinformed students. Instead of a sword, the man prefered sharp, scathing critique and debate. |
| "The value of life is more than mere coin. Every action has a cost, one many refuse to see nor pay. What is your life debt, paid for in the blood of the fallen?" |
| The Past is Precious |
| He has been known on occasion to return to the depths of Gelmorran tunnels in a bid to blockade archaeologists, treasure hunters and adventurers from venturing further into the winding Gelmorran depths below the Shroud. The reason he does this isn't known as he doesn’t explain his motivations to offending parties, however he is notoriously persistent when it comes to blockading progress and reclaiming relics and artifacts. When he does guide those not native to the tunnels back outside into the Shroud, the entrance intruders used for entry would be sealed away behind layers of rubble and Gelmorran wards. Never to be used again. |
| Collective Chorus |
| On occasion when Galenaux enters the furthest depths of the Brume, people may hear the voices of a collective of individuals. Some of different accents and backgrounds, ranging from Brume natives, Ishgardian nobles, to Sharlayan scholars each taking turns in deep philosophical debate,. The voices never speak over one another, but rather seem to take turns, transitioning from one to another fluidly. However, when confronted there has seemingly never been a crowd located. Only him, standing entirely alone within the dark corner in the Brume's depths. |
| Roleplaying hooks |
| Hard hooks |
| House of Glass |
| He shows an almost pathological aversion towards philosophers, inquisitors, doctors and even therapists to a degree. As if the poking and prying of questions is akin to a searing hot rod to the mind. The reason he does so doesn't appear very clear at a glance, though he has left more than his fair share of debaters and inquirers with far more questions than actual answers. As if their very existence is a threat to his glass house he desperately tries to maintain. |
| "With such a shattered frame of mind, it's a wonder one functions. What a delicate picture we paint." |
| Shadow of the Symphony |
| Rumours from the Brume suggest the the sluggish man whom remains clad in blackened steel and draped with pristine white cloth is an adherent to an obscure sect or cult. Those who are patient or know the exact words in which to openly utter around his person may overhear him reciting passages of a 'Symphony of Exchange'. The topic of the Symphony is delivered to those willing to listen with the zeal of a holy manifesto from a devotee. Few are willing to undergo the trial of the Symphony, though those willing to forge through the flames may find answers worth their burning curiosity. |
| Measure of Life |
| When out on the field, his over calculating mask occasionally slips into a state of restrained panic. While most healers are trained to carefully measure their aether to close a wound, he tends to over compensate and frantically shove aether into telling wounds or forming protective aetheric barriers. It leads to the man being aetherically exhausted and drained at a quicker pace than others. It's as if his act of mending or protection is akin to that of desperation from being poorly measured and imprecise. Practiced crudeness in the form of flawed math and logistics made form for all to see. |
| "And so the mans shaky hand misguided by hubris, believed he held the power to save his crumbling world." |
| Empire's End |
| Connection Type: Imperial Legion/Frumentarii |
Those whom stood with the Empire and have access to records may note he was stationed within the XIVth Imperial Legion within the 3rd cohort. Members of the Imperial Legion can relatively easily determine the man is classed as an Aquilifier. |
| Subdivision Connection: Werlyt, Imperial Legion/Frumentarii |
| "There was no mourning for the man that burned that day. Instead an ideal was born from the ashes that once was." |
| OOC Information |
| I'm a multi-paragraph/novella-style poster. With an average post size of 2-3 paragraphs. I usually try to mirror and match accordingly. Bigger posts can reach 5+ paragraphs in length on occasion. Please be aware that despite my timezone, I am not English and I am second language English, so I may take slightly longer than expected to post in order to spell and grammar check myself. |
| I am 30+ years old, and will request that characters and players be at least 21 years of age in order to engage. |
| ERP isn't everything in roleplay; I find it dull, boring and unengaging when it's blatantly all that a person cares for. Galenaux isn't designed for sexual advances, with that being but one of the many reasons he's not suited for it. Flirting is fine, however he won't initiate and probably won't understand when a character is actively trying to flirt with him, regardless of race/clan, gender or orientation. (Though a Wildwood doing it might cause a system crash.) He is genuinely that clueless. It's not me OOC shutting attempts down. It's him being an awkward goober knowing only basics from romance novels he's read maybe once or twice. Yes, he can be bullied about this. |
| My character is lore-abiding, and I prefer interacting with characters that are generally so as well. Light lore-bending is fine if it makes sense and doesn't contradict the canon lore of the game, as I value consistency. I am a stickler for lore mostly with myself, I don't hold other people to the same level of expectancy as I do myself. So if you're worrying about me judging concepts? I probably aren't unless it's a very clear, blatant world consistency shattering lore break. I'm actually quite happy to listen to peoples fan theories and headcanons if it makes sense for the setting of XIV. |
| Galenaux is a deeply flawed Gothic Horror character trapped inside a comedy of errors. He's a former secondary antagonist NPC. That's now rebalanced, heavily nerfed and awkwardly wedged into a glitchy, penitent support role as a Living Legacy anti-villain playable character. I am here for the IC drama, tension and potential absurdities caused by his goober like behaviour. Not to “win”. If his calculations overstep and need challenging, please do. His DND5e/PF2e (Remastered) sheets are available on request. |
| As suggested by his hook 'Steelbound', Galenaux cannot see. If a character relies heavily on visuals I'm afraid he simply won't register it. I'll do my best to react to the emote accordingly, but please don't be OOC offended if he doesn't give expected reactions. It's genuinely nothing personal. |
| On the note of Auspice/Kitsune, I have nothing against them on a personal level, the concept is perfectly fine. However they simply don't mesh well with the story I'm trying to write with Galenaux, along with being conceptually far too strong for his world building to cater to. I won't shut down these concepts or snub the character, but I also don't wish to focus on Far Eastern Mysticism on this particular character. |
| I fully know how to separate IC from OOC. If a character is rude/abrasive/cruel/antagonistic, I absolutely will not apply my characters logic to you as a writer. I can handle heavy topics and subjects without attributing them to the person behind the screen. So don't worry. No judgement here. Want to check? Feel free to ask. |
| I know and understand being shy sucks sometimes, so. If people are interested but don't feel comfortable reaching out to my Discord, they can leave a comment in Galenaux's RPhub page and I'll recognise there's an interest and reach out to you. Then proceed to delete the comment. Friend requests on rphub also work if comments are too unnerving. No pressure, no judgement. I get it. Just be aware I don't use social media such as Twitter (Or is it X now? I don't know) or Bluesky for my own mental health. |
| Do I use syncs? Only one. But it's not a requirement, will never be a requirement and my character is completely vanilla friendly. I don't expect people to use tools, nor do I thrust the expectation onto others. Thus, you have to ask for it directly from me in order to be paired. As I will never discuss it myself. |
| Roleplaying hooks |
| Hook index |
| Easy hooks are generally applicable for anyone to know. There's no real restrictions on these ones beyond your own judgement. |
| Medium hooks are slightly more specific, such as passing rumours that may or may not be true, that are also not widely known to the general public. If you want to use one of these, I merely ask it makes sense for your character to know said information. |
| Hard hooks aren't off-limits, but they require your character to have very specific connections and information. They have been labelled with relevant connection information and spoilered to avoid self-spoilers. Feel free to check with me if you wish to use them! |
| Gallery |
| Types of roleplay |
| I'm fairly experienced when it comes to roleplay, with a few years of experience across multiple MMOs and genres across the board. This is especially true in the MMO World of Warcraft and surprisingly Wildstar as well (RIP). |
| The types of roleplay I'm decent at include: Existentialism/Existential Horror Psychodrama Dark/Gothic Horror Gothic Tragedy Identity Theatre inverted Body Horror Communication Ethics/Morality Relational Philosophy/Relationalism Cybernetic Philosophy Comedy/Dark Comedy Occultism/Sects/Archaic Magicks Wholesome/Slice of Life |
| I am very well aware many of these themes can be quite heavy and are absolutely not for everyone. So, if you as a writer would rather avoid certain themes and subjects do let me know and I'll cater to personal preferences. I actually love writing comedy and wholesome moments anyway! It's actually my default state unless I know that someone explicitly opts in for something deeper, and even then? It requires very specific IC circumstances to happen. I will always check with fellow writers before engaging with heavy topics unless it's initiated by those I'm currently writing with who have full understanding of the narriative. |
| If characters want to investigate Galenaux's oddities, they are certainly free to do so and I won't stop them as a writer. I recognise he's 'weird' by most standards! People can even call him out on his distrust of Mages, and I even encourage it! Spicy IC drama can be fun with proper communication. |
| So, if I can handle dark/heavy subjects, why do I not wish to engage with slaves/aan despite them being a theme in Imperial history as a nation? Quite simply? People have OOC glorified and sexualized/fetishized slavery and physical abuse in the past, and I simply don't wish to engage with people who view these topics as a kink. It makes me deeply and horrifically uncomfortable. I can handle slaves as a topic, I just don't trust most people, especially people I do not know to handle the subject well or with the level of nuance it truly deserves. |