BNW Application

[sparkofgenius]

PLAYER INFO

Name: Ax
Contact Information: Plurk@AxiomaticGrue
Time Zone: EST
Characters Played: Rei, Yuuna, Yukiko


CHARACTER INFO

Character Name: Lucca Ashtear
Character Canon: Chrono Trigger

History: Here

AU History: Lucca's history isn't terrifically different from her early life in canon. She grew up in Caldera, the daughter of a noteworthy inventor named Taban. Her mother, Lara, lost her legs in an accident with one of her father's machines when Lucca was quite young but lived. Lucca used that as a springboard into her father's profession: Science! She was absolutely brilliant, truly gifted, and Awakened as an Earthkin fairly early in life. Her motivation for doing so was to help her mother by making life as easy for her as she could, using her skills to create things like a wheelchair that propels itself electrically or other bits and bobs to make things better.

Lucca's early life is mostly study and invention, working alongside her father and his civilian contacts, though it changed to military contacts when the conflict with Gigas began. A protracted conflict like that would have brought Lucca's genius and deviousness to the forefront of experimental Enhanced weapon manufacturing. It ultimately wouldn't have made much of a difference in how things would've played out, but her inventions (primarily defensive in nature save for a few nasty death ray kind of things) gained notice and thrust Lucca into a semi-famous status. The coming on the allies from Union was a breath of fresh air, and allowed her to retreat back into her laboratories, finding some modicum of peace to mull over what she'd done. It wasn't an easy transition, as Lucca never really felt comfortable harming anyone with science, but she did recognize that it was necessary.

It's about that time that she also aligned to her first Pokemon, a Golett that'd seemingly wandered away from Union. Naming it Gato, she doted on the little automaton and used it as the focal point for many future inventions. This too, got the young woman curious about other kinds of Pokemon and got her to gazing at technology outside of her own home. Union in particular piqued her curiosity, making her wonder what new inspirations that city might have for her. The Old City is of particular interest to her, given her skill with machines, and that's ultimately what leads her out into the world.

Canon Personality: Lucca is presented as an extremely intelligent and slightly eccentric young woman with a love of science and technology. She's shown to be absolutely brilliant, with a natural gift for such things. Her father proudly proclaims that she's a lot like him, only smarter, laughing as he does and that intellect permeates every aspect of her personality. She is a little bit awkward around people at times, but not necessarily to the point of being a complete shut-in or even really all that shy. She just doesn't necessarily know when not to speak her mind and doesn't always pick up on social cues (such as how she deals with the various nobles she comes across). It's a kind of genius breeds isolation situation where she doesn't totally get people the same way she gets machines. Once she's been around someone a long enough time to really understand them and have worked out how they tick, she's a bit better, but around strangers she just tries to muddle on through. She is aware of this, and that's actually part of why she has something of a smart mouth. It's to make herself seem more sociably apt than she actually is.

Lucca, despite her somewhat dreadful fashion sense is actually pretty witty, if not exactly charming. She has a bad habit of actually being the mouthy member of the party, and her dialogue is filled with zingers and snappy commentary about the situation. She's not one to stand on formality, insisting adamantly to Robo that she is not a “Madame” but she does good-naturedly accept that. She is a surprisingly accepting, adaptable person, and she's not at all afraid to jump right in and try new things. In that way, she's more an explorer than she is a behind-the-scenes scientist, eventually even coming to terms with magic and learning to use it (thanks to Spekkio).

Lucca's curiosity is a driving force in her life, as she's absolutely fascinated by things she doesn't know. She very clearly wants to learn more, to increase her already staggering knowledge base, and become a wiser and more capable inventor. Added to curiosity is her appreciation of freedom. Lucca never, ever forces anyone to do anything, and that goes for machines too. Her "orders" are almost always phrased as requests, and it's obvious she cares as much for Robo as she does for her human and froggy pals. She also seems to resent when things are presented as removing free will and choice, and her own free spirited attitude towards exploration and SCIENCE is very important to her. It ties into her dislike of formality, and her dislike of anyone who'd push their beliefs or wishes on others. Her reaction to how the inhabitants of Zeal treat people who can't use magic highlights this, and seems to outrage her.

Next comes her sense of morality and penchant for self-deprecation. Lucca is very kind, and very responsible, and always always owns up to her mistakes and does her best to fix them. A great example is the Telepod that accidentally sends Marle and Chrono back in time. She goes with Chrono in a bid to help fix what problems her invention had caused. She blames herself for it, and won't rest until that problem is fixed. Another example of this is her mother. She was present when her mother's legs were crushed by a conveyer belt, and as she was unable to stop it she considers herself to be at fault for that. She states over and over that she dislikes hurting people but she does fight what she considers to be evil or threats to her friends (which...to a teen? Probably seem evil).

Lucca is also the sort of person that wants to bring out the very best in the Things around her. Not necessarily the people, as while she does care for people she recognizes that she has no ability to control them and their development. Machines though...she can do something about. And does. She loves to tinker, and despite her somewhat disorganized state and appearance, Lucca is the very definition of organized chaos. She's a bit mad, and very, very enthusiastic about machinery and new kinds of tech, but not to the point of ignoring her friends. Though, she has very few of those. Likely due to her sarcasm and rather quirky mannerisms, as well as her drive to study and improve.

Lucca's anger is something hot, burning even, and likely the reason behind her elemental alignment to fire in part. She uses that anger productively, gritting her teeth and pushing forward and past the trouble spot, rather than letting it blind her and fester. Her own anger at her own perceived mistakes is a driving force in her life. Which brings up another major point, and that's Lucca's perfectionist streak. She hates being wrong, she hates messing up, and she will do just about anything to prove herself as right or to make up for a mistake. It's a big deal for her, and she'll definitely own up to it if she's wrong, but it's painful for her to admit.

Finally, Lucca is somewhat tunnelvisioned about her own thoughts and beliefs. It takes a lot for her to change her mind, because she's so focused on the things in front of her and her own perspective that she won't always look before she leaps, or consider the consequences, or consider how others might feel or perceive her. She's right and doing what's best, in her mind anyway, and that's what she sees. Even if...it's not always. And that's a source of grief we see play out over and over.

AU Deviation: There aren't many huge differences, though the most major one is her feelings about how the war with Caldera went. She both regrets creating weaponry and wishes at the same time she'd been able to do more. Much of her negative feeling towards Magus, and later Lavos, would simply transfer to Gigas as a whole. In this AU, Lucca is a bit more driven to violence, given that she's experienced a war firsthand rather than just random battles with monsters. That isn't to say she seeks it out, but she's not going to be dancing around the issue if it comes up.

Her views on Pokemon are another thing worth addressing. She'd have a keen interest in them as more than simply animals or battle companions, but as things that are inherently in need of improvement. Why? Because they evolve and grow. Her interest in training a vast number of them is pretty low, but bringing out the best in the handful that she finds particularly intriguing would be an active pursuit for her.

Finally, the war. Canonically, Lucca never had to deal with a war like that. And she never had to deal with the consequences of participating in one. Fundamentally, that alters someone, and I feel that she'd probably begin a little bit more withdrawn than canon. Not to the point of locking herself away, but very much not being quite the outgoing loudmouth around strangers. More, I think, she'd be a bit more wary at first, though the smartass commentary would still come out as it's her front to cope with some of her insecurities about human interaction and guilt over her perceived mistakes.

Canon Abilities: Canonically, the most important ability Lucca possesses is her intelligence. She's smart. Really, really smart. She invents teleportation and time travel with Renaissance era tech, manages to repair a futuristic robot with little apparent effort, and has zero difficulty keeping up with the advanced technobabble thrown at her in the Future portions of the game.

Most of her Techs all involve fire in one form or another, though she has the ability to boost defenses and put enemies to sleep. Offensively, she hurls bombs and fireballs after Spekkio teaches her how to use magic, though prior to this she performs similar attacks through machines and devices. She also comes with a variety of gadgets crafted by her and her father that enhanced her abilities and stats. Curiously enough, she also appears to have some affinity for working with time, as she exhibits an understanding how Time Gates work, enough to create a Gate Key to open them.

Enlightened Abilities: First and foremost Lucca is going to be an Engineer. There's no other ability that fits anywhere near as well.

As for her Earthkin Abilities, Lucca's initial typing is going to be Steel. After her first Evolution Lucca is going to gain the Fire type. This goes along with Spekkio granting her Fire magic after a silly minigame. Throughout all of her evolutions, Lucca will be able to generate small glow-orbs, silver spheres of light that she uses for her work.

Prior to her first evolution Lucca's main ability is a kind of Technoempathy, the capacity to understand and repair machines of all sorts. She can figure out how they work with concentration and make simple repairs instinctively. Move-wise, she'll have access to Wide Guard, Hypnosis, Foresight (to represent her analytic skills) and Iron Defense, and have zero offensive capabilities outside her gadgets.

After her first evolution, Lucca's dragon typing comes into play, and her Technoempathy will improve. Her machine-speak will just be better, enabling more complex repairs and a better instinctive understanding of gadgets. The moves she'll gain are Protect, Magnet Bomb, Fire Spin, Incinerate (fired from her hand), and Mirror Shot (Also from her hand).

During her final evolution, Lucca's Technoempathy becomes even greater. She can understand machines on a whole new level, and repair nearly anything that actively sparks her interest. She still is limited by available parts, but she can sense what she'll need and actually make it herself if necessary. Time is still a factor too, this is all just understanding. Move wise, I'd like for her to gain Shift Gears, Flash Cannon, Blast Burn, and Flamethrower.

I'd also like for Lucca to enter the game with a Fire-typed gun she refers to as her “Plasma Gun” which is a personal gizmo that she'll improve later.

Starter Pokémon: Lucca is starting with a Golett named Gato and no other Pokemon.


Notes/Special Considerations: I don't think so?

SAMPLES

I'll be doing 10 Questions in lieu of samples, and the questions will be addressed to a friend of her father's most likely.

1. What do you feel your role in your city is?

My role is to find ways to make Caldera a brighter place to live, and I do that through my work. [She smiles.] With science, of course. That way it's not limited to just Earthkin or the elite.

2. What do you seek for humanity’s future?

I want to bring back the technology that was lost in the Cataclysm. Not the stuff that was used to enslave Pokemon, but the stuff that was used to make human life better. That's what I want for our future. And for Pokemon's future too, since that can make everything better.

3. What would you say the most important occupation is within your city? Educators.

They're the people that shape the future of kids, and the smarter the kids the better off our future's gonna be. I mean, what did you expect me to say?

4. What aspects and traits do you respect most in your individual fellow man?

Intelligence of course. [She grins.] That's what'll help put the world back on track, and to be honest it's kinda hard to carry on a conversation with stupid people, y'know?

5. What do you look for in the Pokémon with whom you bond?

I look for adaptability, flexibility, and the ability to put up with me. I know I'm not the easiest to get along with sometimes. [She laughs and rubs her head sheepishly.] But I'd like to think that I look for smart Pokemon too.

6. What do you think your Pokémon respect most about you?

My brains, I'd say. It's a partnership, and my brain is how I pull my weight. Yeah, I'm an Earthkin but in a combat situation? I'm more useful as a supporting role than running out in front.

7. You are alone and bereft of your Pokémon allies; upon what strengths do you rely on to see yourself safely home?

I use my brain, silly. [Okay, she can't help but offer up a cheeky grin at that answer.] And my legs. I figure out the best way to get home, and then I go. Nothing crazy.

8. You plunge into the depths of ruins of an ancient civilization. What is it that you seek from the past? Treasure, technology, wisdom?

[Lucca crosses her arms and offers the speaker the most bland, bored look she possibly can muster.] What do you think? Technology. Obviously. Next question.

9. In your eyes, what is absolutely unforgivable?

I think the most unforgivable thing you can possibly do is to enslave someone. That goes for Pokemon and for people. It's like...robbing them of their choice, and that's screwed up. I know I'd rather die than end up a slave in some Gigan mine or something. That's just...[A sigh.]...yeah...

10. What area do you seek to explore? The peaceful forest, in search of new, previously overlooked discoveries; the uncharted caves, in search of the unknown; or the wildest of mountain terrain, in search of danger, adventure, and thrills?

I'd pick the caves. You never know what you're going to find down there, and I've never been much of a mountaineer. Heh, also mountains are cold. And I'm not gonna accidentally walk off a cliff in a cave.