Zarp Draken
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| |
| If you think you've won, you never saw me change the game that we have been playing. | |
| Zarp Drken | |
| Player: @Zarp Draken | |
| Origin: | Magic |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Tanker |
| Security Level: | 50 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Zarp Draken |
| Known Aliases: | None |
| Species: | Draconian |
| Age: | 128 |
| Height: | 6'5" |
| Weight: | 243lbs |
| Eye Color: | Brown |
| Hair Color: | Black |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | It's complicated |
| Occupation: | Even more complicated |
| Place of Birth: | Pax Draconis, Kel'sheeria |
| Base of Operations: | Paragon City |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Known Relatives: | None living |
| Known Powers | |
| Able to outwardly channel arcane ernergy as kinetic force, able to project some fire, near-immunity to heat/fire | |
| Known Abilities | |
| Weapon master and martial arts expert | |
| Equipment | |
| Armor, and a pocket-dimension full of miscellaneous | |
| Not from this world | |
Contents |
Personality
Zarp's personality is like an onion. Or perhaps a complicated puzzle box. At the very least it's like a giant tower made out of legos, but the creator decided to leave a coded message in his tower via different colored blocks, so the end result is a giant tower that starts off one color on the top, but turns into different colors on the way down and has little pockets of weird colors all along... Yeah. We'll go with the last one.
It's hard to peg Zarp as one thing or another. Some people call him a joker, others call him a hero. Things might be a little less confusing if he tried to disuade any of the titles he's been given, but he seems content to take it all in stride. Generally approachable, your best bet to figure out Zarp's personality would be to hear him tell it... then hear others tell it... then figure it out for yourself.
For Those Trying to Keep Up
All done in the form of an internal monologue!
I have an extensive history with Paragon City. Let me give you the Cliff Notes version.
- I got dragged out of my home world and was forced to stay here.
- I joined up with a group called The Zenvious Foundation and did good work with them.
- I got married to an awesome chick named Blue
- I moved to Dubai with Blue for like a year or two.
- We came back to Paragon City
- I got dragged BACK to my home world and was forced to stay.
- I lost my motivation to do good while I was stuck there.
- I came back to Earth
- Blue left me while I was gone -- but in a totally okay way.
So now I'm back... But why? I'm certainly not going to roll over and die, THAT'S for damn sure... Let's see where life takes me this time.
No drive, no one I gotta prove myself, and nothing to lose.
Soul Searching
Lately I've been trying to find myself figure out what the hells it's all about. Who I am and where I'm going.
HOLY DAMN AM I ONE DEPRESSING SON OF A BITCH.
No, SERIOUSLY! These days if I'm not bitching over Blue, I'm bitching over having my lost motivation back home. Why in all hells I'm meeting fantastic people during this time is beyond me.
So first, I've hit it off with Nessa Dark. I have no friggin' idea why. She's hot and funny, and... Maybe that's enough? Maybe I don't need to be looking further than the surface anymore. Maybe I can just enjoy someone's company, 'cause it makes me smile. Simple.
I think that's pretty much what her and Max have been trying to tell me. They - huh? Oh, right, Max. He's some new guy that managed to say the right words at the right time. Deece guy. They're both tryin' to get me to do what I LIKE, instead of what I'm duty bound to do, seeing as-... well... I lost that duty on my last trip home. 128 years of sworn servitude to a greater good, gone... Damn.
I talked to an old pseudo-mentor about the whole problem. He didn't really have any advice I could act on, but it was INCREDIBLY relieving to talk to him again. He's diein' in about a year, which is kinda cool. He deserves that rest.
I'm still finding my feet, but I'm getting there. Blue... helped, but she didn't mean to. She's had no powers now... and I got to talking to her about why she isn't training to be stronger. She's just so damn indecisive, so full of fear. No use looking over my shoulder at her now. She may be happy, but that's not the woman I married. She's gone.
And Then, From Out of Left Field...
The weeks have been dragging on. I've just been drifting, doing as I see fit. That constitutes a lot of violence in case you were wondering. And a relationship with Nessa which... is actually going pretty good, current situation considered.
I made good friends with Victoria over this time... Like, REALLY good friends. Best friend now, no doubt. She's been talking a lot of philosophy with me. It's nice having someone to muse the past with. She keeps comin' at me like a can opener, getting me to spill all my secrets... Got me wondering if, when I was a hero was I really seeking good, or just seeking attention? Dunno why she can get so close to me when I try 'n keep people from doing that, but she's helped a lot..
She also helped me realize that what I don't need is right or wrong, what I need is duty. Work. Just because I lost everything back home, doesn't mean there's no challenges here I can't best... but the problem is finding work that suits me.
AND THEN OUT OF NO WHERE COMES THE GODS DAMNED ILLUMINATI. YEP. "Hey Zarp, want to work for us in exchange for all this bitchin' secret stuff and and access to our swag?" Uh... 'kay?
... WHAT THE FU-?!
Opinions
What does YOUR character think of Zarp? Don't be shy! Post!
"Though we're no longer married I'd have to say the man changed my life in more ways than one. He's deeper than most people think. Don't ever underestimate him." - Blue
"He's been my Hero but I'm not sure anymore if he still is cause I haven't seen him for a long time. But he's still one of my bestest friends EVER! He's awesome and fun and his wings can fold me up like a cocoon. Not many people can say that, huh?" - Vagary
"He's touched our lives in so many ways. We've done the same to him both positively and negatively but life is what it is. I pray for him every day and am thankful for his friendship." - Jade
"I really enjoy talking to him, though he seems a shade melancholy. He better not EVER write poetry, or I shall mock him til the end of time. And he's earned a place on my short list of folks I'd go to Hell for." - Nessa
"I think I'm kind of crazy about the guy. He's a real sweetheart. I want to spend more time with him, but he sort of intimidates me. I think he's a good guy, though. Good for a laugh. Good for a listen. Good for a talk. Good for everything, really." - Agenla
"The wings. Are purple. He is for good talkings. *pauses* ...Purple. Scales." - Mister Muppy
Trivia
- Has an emotional tie to the color blue... unrelated to Blue.
- Has a thing for cowboys. The first movie he ever saw was The Magnificient Seven. It stuck
- Loves music, and often sings when fighting.
- Seriously intends to create Extreme Payback 3.
- Really likes ducks.
- Might be played by Ryan Reynolds in a movie... if both DC and Marvel are cool with it.
- One of his good friends is himself.
Gags
The Pink Stranger
Zarp can be confusing, as he switches from a dead-serious hero to a aloof goon suprisingly quickly. As if TRYING to throw people off, he is occasionally seen in an extremely pink cowboy outfit. Yeah, you heard me.
This is The Pink Stranger. It started with Little Miss Vagary and Saint Helen. When Zarp was new to Earth, he befriended these two. How this came up is not important, but he struck a deal with them: he would wear bright pink for an entire weekend, so long as they continued to smile. Later that night, the group watched The Magnificent Seven. An obsession with cowboys quickly formed.
Even though that one weekend has passed, Zarp keeps his all-pink costume. The cowboy style is to entertain himself, and the pink is to entertain Vagary. Him and Vagary even have a running story behind it! The Pink Stranger and his sidekick, Little Green Foot (Vagary), are a crime fighting duo in the Old West. They have no idea how to get to this Old West... but it would make a TV series, don't you think?
Astro-Bride
Atro-Bride is an ongoing joke(?).
It must be made clear that Zarp is scared of zombies. Not in a trembling sort of way, but in the way that the nuclear family was afraid of the commies. He's prepared for the upcoming "zompacalypse". Now Astro-Bride comes into play.
After a few encounters with the undead on Stirga Island, Zarp was becoming uneasy. Upon waking up on his second day there, he found he had three curious items in his possession: a wedding band, a consecrated shotgun, and a jetpack. The "detective" work that followed, with the help of a few coalition members, would be unforgettable.
The consecrated shotgun was obvious to help him fend off zombies. A helpful gift, but from who? The same person that gave him the ring. Zarp's friends suggested that the ring was a romantic gesture; something that he would give his bride-to-be. But who would that be? At this point in his career, Zarp did not even know any women. Luckily the jetpack "solved" that problem. She was a woman that he had yet to meet. Someone watching him from the stars. When the time was right, he would fend off the zompacalypse with his consecrated weapon, use the jetpack to fly to this mysterious guardian, and propose. Thus, Astro-Bride was born.
A few days later Zarp remembered that he had been asked to retrieve a stolen wedding ring and forgot to return it. Also, a contact had given him the shotgun to help deal with the Banished Pantheon.
The truth left Zarp looking a little foolish, and it probably did not help that he asked Selfless Shield to be his Astro-Bride within minutes of meeting her. While the world may laugh, he still believes. That jetpack found its way to him SOMEHOW. Salvage? Stolen equipment? Forgotten loot? Say what you want, but he believes.
The Awesome Hat
By this point in the story, you should realize that Zarp is awesome. One day his awesomeness became so intense, it created a hat. From then on, it was referred to as The Awesome Hat.
Zarp and the Awesome Hat went around fighting crime, being a hero, and radiating greatness. Despite the fact that the hat technically didn't match, it's sheer greatness made it inseperable from Zarp.
Unfortunately, this was not meant to last. Although The Awesome Hat and Zarp were a seemingly inseperable duo, the hat eventually caught wind of the half-cyborg last-of-his-clan ninja that killed his father. Despite Zarp's protests, the hat said that he must fight this robot ninja alone. The Awesome Hat went with Zarp's prayers, and never returned.
At least, that's how Zarp tells it.
Clint Hardcastle
"Yeah, that's me. Clint Hardcastle. I've got eight slugs in me. One's lead and the rest are bourbon. The drinks pack a wallop, and I pack a revolver. I'm a private eye."
While Max was describing how he was concerned about a suspicion he had, Zarp game to the realization that hardboiled detective were pretty rad. One suit and a viewing of The Maltese Falcon later, he adopted the persona of Clint Hardcastle.
Clint Hardcastle is a hardboiled ex-cop who was a little too judge his superiors... and a little to vocal. Now he's doing things his way, takes no guff, and calls no man "Mister."
Zarp hasn't actually solved any MYSTERIES, per se, or had anyone who takes his spontanious persona seriously... but he has mastered the subtle art of calling people "dame" and "rube." In the end, isn't that what being a detective is all about? ... The answer is no. How to be a real detective promises to be Clint's most challanging case yet.
The OOC Section
Zarp
Zarp Draken was a character created for fun, somewhere around 1997 or so. He wasn't made for any particular game, he was just my first major step into the realm of imagination and creativity. Over the years he's changed drastically into what he has become.
He's come a long way from his days of a simple woodsman that could shoot fireballs (Seriously. That was his shtick.) The fully fleshed out and stupfyingly complex character has stayed more or less the same over the past few years. I don't expect people to ever understand him entirely or even see the deepest layers (trust me, there's lots) to the character, but it makes me proud that they're there.
Backstory
Zarp was originally an 8-bit character in a fantasy-RPG. Used in many many different settings, I always keep his (lengthy) backstory the same, so gameplay always begins at a certain point in his career. This time around, he finds himself in a strange new world in an even stranger city.
The enormous backstory that follows him from Kel'sheeria will not be posted here. I'd like to keep certain information dispensed on a purely IC level.
Music
Music has always played an important roll in Zarp's creation. It will never come up in-character, but I will post here a few songs that I think are key.
You Know My Name - He's a multi-layered character that wears masks on top of masks... C'mon.
Goldfinger - Superman - The closest he can come to having a theme. Fits perfectly for his "casual/playful" side. (Coincidently, I think the character in that video has the same "feigning stupidity" thing on the go! I swear to God Zarp's an original character... but they're similar!)
Loudmouth - Fly - For slightly serious, fight-type moments.
Breath of Fire 4 Intro - This has always reminded me that there's something deep beneath his surface.
Art!
A dear friend completely suprised me with this. They know Zarp, pre-CoH. Boy was I suprised to hear somebody ELSE got a commision for one of my characters. This is what he would have looked like in his earlier years! I'll stick it on virtueverse for now.
.JPG)
And Oougel's player, because she's awesome, drew a bunch of people from the Codex! This is an INCREDIBLY accurate picture of what get's Zarp's rear into gear, even on the darkest of days.
