Eltesla / Hanami Matsuyama

For discussing your character's creation.

Alright! Going through the character build guidelines one by one...

Concept
Aspiring Doctor Witch (that is somewhat of a tsundere)

Name: Hanami Matsuyama

Abilities
Healer +4 (Affinity: Magical)
Barrier +4 (Affinity: Magical)
Gear +4 (Doctor's Magic Bag - Dimensional Pocket +4)
Smart +4
Knowledge +1 (Medicine 2)
Inventor +2 (Closest ability I could find for making medicines and alchemic potions)
Iron Willed +2
Magic, Arcane +3
Magic, Witchcraft +3
Vigorous +2
Resistance +1 (Magical)

+30

Weaknesses
Obsession -2 (Become a doctor for monsterkind and humans too)
Compulsion -2 (Heal the injured and sick)
Guardian -2 (Those in need)
Kind-hearted -3
Rude -1
Short-Tempered -1
Sensitivity -1 (Being called 'nice', 'kind', 'soft', etc.)
Pacifist -1
Soft Spot -2 (Sweets)
Ineptitude -3 (Sports -6)
Focus -3 (Magic requires wand)
Unique Weakness -3 (Addictive Blood, which makes her complete vampire bait. The detailed effect of this is up to you, but I imagine it'd be similar to Love Magnet but vampire-specific, in addition to her life potentially being at risk if she bleeds around a hungry enough vampire)
Quirk -1 (Always wears scarves)

-25

Total: +5

Health: 40
Endurance: 60

Finishing Touches and Fluffing
Background: Hanami was born and raised in Misty Village, a witch settlement that lies in the middle of a magical veil that keeps those with ill intent from finding it. Those accepted by the veil will find their path through the woods clear, while others will get lost within a thick fog and somehow end up wandering out. One of the first things that the youth of Misty Village are taught is that they must not wander too far or the veil wouldn't be able to protect them. However, on one fateful day, a young Hanami wandered out of the veil's range. Delicious fruit grew on the trees and shrubbery just outside the veil, and the children would often play games to determine who would leave to bring back a whole basketful for the group. The loser that day was Hanami, and though she didn't really want to go, peer pressure won out in the end.

While she was picking fruit, Hanami was too late to notice a rogue vampire lurking in the shade, falling under their hypnosis before she could think to run, not that she would've gotten far. The vampire initially only intended to have just a sip, but the plan immediately changed upon their first taste of Hanami's blood. It was like nothing they'd ever had, as if ambrosia was pumping through her veins. So they kept drinking far beyond any reasonable amount, till Hanami's cheeks started to hollow. She would've been killed if Misty Village's doctor, Shizuka Mori, hadn't been returning from a supply run. The doctor was a standoffish, unassuming old lady, but she shifted into a capable witch in the blink of an eye and drove off the vampire. Though the haze of Hanami's anemic state kept her from remembering much of the intense battle or any distinguishing features about the vampire who attacked her. What she did remember was the healing spell that Shizuka casted as everything went dark. Above all else, she could not forget how gentle it felt as warmth was breathed back into her cold body.

The next thing she knew, Hanami woke up in her bed after being unconscious for days. Shizuka's treatment had kept her from immediately dying, but it had been up to fate and her own will from that moment on, and she just barely managed to come back from the brink. However, waking up was just the start. The experience had left her bedridden and prone to illness for a large chunk of her childhood. It wasn't as simple as recovering from anemia, because her yōki had been damaged as well. It would take years to recover, assuming she'd recover at all. Despite the grim prognosis, Shizuka visited her regularly for check-ups and treatment, even rejecting payment from her parents, stating it was her apology for not fighting off the vampire faster and healing their daughter sooner. This confused Hanami. It wasn't the old lady's fault that the vampire showed up, so why was she making it her own responsibility? Hanami tried to ask, but the doctor didn't elaborate due to being a rather private person. Still, Shizuka begrudgingly entertained Hanami's curiosities about her work and the tools of her trade. The doctor didn't like kids (or so she claimed), but this one was surprisingly bright and reminded her a bit of herself.

After three years, Hanami had made an incredible recovery, so she no longer needed Shizuka's treatment. She was overjoyed to be healthy again, but she couldn't help but feel disappointed that the regular check-ups would stop. She sought out Shizuka, and after an entire month of appearing at her door, managed to become the old doctor's pupil and part-time assistant. Shizuka didn't hold back, making it clear she'd end the lessons at any point if Hanami proved to be a waste of her time, but Hanami soaked up everything like a sponge and quickly became a useful presence in her work. Accompanying Shizuka on supply runs out of the veil made Hanami less sheltered than the average witch in her village. Seeing the doctor work and having the opportunity to have a hand in it solidified Hanami's desire to be a doctor.

Four more years passed and Hanami was finally fifteen years old. Soon, she and a handful of other witch girls would be leaving for Yokai Academy, but before she could leave, Shizuka bestowed her doctor's bag upon her as a parting gift. The bag had served the old doctor well, seemingly holding everything she needed to respond to nearly any situation, to the point of being nonsensical at times. And now it would serve Hanami on her journey. The two of them found it hard to be openly warm at the best of times, but they shared a small hug that spoke volumes. She thanked the woman who had become a grandmother-like figure to her over the years and set out for the academy, determined to do her best.

Appearance:
She is rather tall, standing at 5'10". The side of her neck boasts fang scars that she prefers to hide with her scarves. With her uniform, she uses a scarlet scarf instead of the standard lace for girls.

---

Phew, I think that's good for now. I'll have to add the last touches later. Any thoughts or concerns?

10/14/2024 edit: I am using new art for her, but I'll leave the old one for posterity.

Hey, I just counted +28 in your total abilities, on the other hand, the addictive blood weakness doesn't sound like it would be radical enough to merit a -3, specially so as it seems no other PC will be a vampire. You could lower it to -1 and it would be all set!

Everything else is great! I commend you, really good character.

Thanks! That's fair, but I think you missed something in my abilities, because I recounted it and got +30 again. With Addictive Blood reduced to -1, I'll make up the difference with Impulsive -1 and Nosebleeder -1 so the overall abilities + weaknesses total stays at +5.

Hey, er... uh- I consulted some specialists and it indeed adds up to 30, no way what was going on my head.

Anyway, those are fair exchanges.

I've submitted my character. Though I changed her height since I figured it'd make more sense for her to be somewhat stunted

Your character has been accepted! Well done. By the way, I figure I should point out that maybe you should pick area effect for your healing breeze instead of multiple targets, as it's much more effective (you can pick 3 targets per level, instead of the 1+level in the perk) and it better matches the name (a breeze).

I chose Multiple Targets so I could heal only allies without the risk of catching enemies in it as well. But you do have a point about the name, so I'll use Area Effect for Healing Breeze, and build another heal move with Multiple Targets so I have a precision option when needed.

That reminds me, now that we have Matsui Aono, would it be appropriate to bump Addictive Blood up to -2 and claim an extra point? Or is it too late for that?

edit: typo

hmm... Let's see how much that plays out in the game alright? If it goes away form the realm of funny comical relief to something more serious, we could bump that up.

Alright, fair.

Upon request, I lowered Hanami's Smarts from +4 to +2, mainly because she was rolling a couple too many dice to cast (at least for a character that's only starting out) and it was an easier option than lowering her Magic abilities. I'm also giving her a -1 Lecherous weakness.

That's three points to spend, which I'll use for a +3 Passion for learning. I think it's a good substitute for the lowered Smarts.

Great!

Just to clarify, the maximum of +5 on any single roll is just a limitation for starting characters, not overall.

Considering her current phone situation, I have an invention in mind for Hanami when she has time to attempt to create it. It's a magic item, so I assume the roll would go Inventor + Smart + Arcane (or Witchcraft) Magic? I'd like input on the unique abilities and the unique weakness.

Gear +3 (Athena the Magic Mirror - Companion +3)

Abilities +12 (Unique Ability (Calling) +3, Unique Ability (Scrying) +3, Iron-Willed +2, Sixth Sense +4)

Weaknesses -9 (Servitude (Hanami) -2, Lecherous -2, Unique Weakness (Object) -3, Arrogant -1, Compulsion (Perverted Scrying) -1)

Total +3

With the Calling ability, Athena could contact cell phones or similar communication devices without a roll if she has the number, as well as receive communications. She could also directly contact a specific person, rolling against the Teleport ability's chart depending on how far away they are.

With the Scrying ability, Athena could scry on a target and display them on her surface. The target would roll against her Scrying to resist. Iron-Willed/Weak-Willed would apply. Wards, barriers, etc. would make it more difficult to scry or even prevent it entirely. It synergizes with Calling to allow calls where Hanami can see the person she is calling and vice versa.

Both unique abilities would have bonuses/penalties depending on how well Hanami knows the target. +1 if Hanami is on good terms with them, +0 if she has at least met them before, -1 if she only has a name and description to go off of, and -2 if she only knows their name and nothing else.

The unique weakness (Object) represents that Athena is just a sentient mirror, so she can't move under her own power at all. She, of course, can't Attack, and if attacked, will have no Defense Roll.


edit: AI art I generated for a visual

Ok, cool idea!

Just some rule clarifications: The gear ability already implies that it is an object, so that unique weakness is redundant; the other being the servitude one, being that it doesn't give Hanami any disadvantage, quite to the contrary, it couldn't be considered a weakness that would impair her. Even if it is sentient, it would still act on her benefit (whenever rolling, at least.)

The Magic ability wouldn't be used, just Smart and Inventor. Though of course, she could feasibly use her magic to improve any of these, and even seek bonuses to her roll from other sources.

Now, the table of DNs for creating items based on their difficulty goes like this:


I could consider ruling that even stronger items could be built with higher rolls in the future, but even then, one with a +5 bonus (abilities - weaknesses) is already considered a Legendary Invention; so yeah, maybe tone down those abilities and bump up those weaknesses.

I'll think of some cool ways to implement this desire of hers in the game!

You're right about the unique weakness being redundant with Gear, so I'll use the base Companion ability for the Invention instead. Servitude is also a weakness for the companion rather than Hanami. I also thought it might not be much of a Weakness, but I was going off Arasuni from the book, who has Servitude despite being a companion.

Companion +3 (Athena the Magic Mirror)

Oh, ok, that looks better!