Name: Green Rivers Age: 38 Contact:GreenRivers Other Characters: N/A Interests: Trite but true: anything and everything. Mostly looking for more adventure and mission-type plots with Vlast than political intrigue (though tossing him at the stuffiest nobility could make for some hilarious hijinks as well).
CHARACTER
Name: Vlast / Gleam Canon/OC: Guild Wars 2 Canon Point: Path of Fire Journal: allthatgleamsisgold Age: 250+
Canon World
Tyria is not a world dissimilar to Thedas. There's a variety of races, there's magic, there's a parallel realm of dreams and demons separated by a veil, and there are dragons with hordes of hiveminded minions hellbent on wreaking havoc.
And oh boy are the dragons a problem.
As of PoF, the main story is focused on the Elder Dragon plot; the many dissonant factions of Tyria coming together to face world ending foes in the six Elder Dragons (draconic embodiments of various spectrums of magic, each of them, to a one, hostile in some fashion). Presently, two are down, with four left to go.
Unfortunately, two wrenches have been thrown into the Pact's dragon-killing escapades. One; the dragons are part of a cycle that keeps the world intact, even if it causes cataclysmic decimation to the inhabitants of said world. Killing any more without anything to take their place would potentially tear reality apart.
The other problem is that the God of War, Balthazar, freshly freed from the Mists, has made a beeline to Elona so that he can slay Elder Dragon #3; Kralkatorrik.
There is one sliver of hope in this whole debacle; Glint's Legacy. She was Kralkatorrik's first child, freed from his hivemind long ago and bonded with the mortal races. She has had two offspring of her own, potential candidates to replace the Elder Dragons who will circulate and share magic rather than the devastating ten thousand year cycles of feast and famine.
Vlast is one such candidate for the role of Crystal Dragon Jesus. Or he was. He sort of died. History
Vlast was born, roughly, circa 1075 - 1077 A.E. in Kesho where he spent the majority of his life
He briefly accompanies adventurers escorting him to his mother's lair in Guild Wars who protect him from Primordus's minions.
Vlast, at some point, returns to Kesho where he is raised by his Exalted attendants, led by Sadizi. They try their best, but there aren't exactly manuals on how to socialize a dragon. He is generally regarded as reluctant in the role chosen for him.
For a time he traveled between Kesho and his mother's lair, though in 1320 A.E. Glint sent him back to Kesho which would become his permanent home after her death in the novel Edge of Destiny.
Vlast spends the next decade fighting Kralkatorrik's branded, and lending some assistance against the lich ruler, Palawa Joko. A third front is added to that particular fight when Balthazar joins the fray with his army of Forged.
In 1330 A.E., Balthazar forms an alliance with Palawa Joko and the two break into Kesho to 'study' the Exalted to find out how they bound their souls to metal constructs. Vlast is forced to flee, and only Sadizi survives by locking himself away.
In 1330 A.E. Vlast is killed after a protracted fight with Balthazar. He leaves behind one last message for his sister Aurene.
Personality
Vlast: Some advice: if you grow weary of your caretakers, offer a hiss or a swat of your tail and watch them scatter. Do not let them—or yourself—forget what you are.
Vlast is rather old by human standards and very young by the standards of Elder Dragons. Thus he is an ornery mix of crotchety old man and rebellious teenager acting out in whatever ways you'd expect from a 250 year old young adult.
His ill-tempered nature is not completely unjustified; he has been raised from a hatchling to fulfill his mother's prophecy and put an end to the cataclysmic dragon cycles by replacing the Elder Dragons with less predatory counterparts. It's a weighty destiny to place on a fledgling, and while Vlast was committed to his duty, he saw it as only that; a job that needed doing and only he could do.
He overall sees his mother's plan as a sound one that would, ultimately, be beneficial to all. His resentment and frustration stems from how he feels trapped in his role and has let himself be shaped and molded to fit into it, as more tool than a thinking and feeling person. He struggles with the responsibility left for him to shoulder in the decade since Glint was slain by her own sire.
Vlast's existence has been a painfully isolated one. His main caretaker, Sadizi, admits the dragon was never properly socialized and spent whatever free time he had soaring the desert skies alone. By the time the Exalted realized Vlast needed to bond with mortal races, it was past the point of no return. He either no longer could - or cared to - and they were left with a restless, impatient dragon who viewed them as insignificant.
The birth of his younger sister offered a rare glimmer of hope for Vlast - perhaps he wouldn't have to endure alone. Despite the distance between them, Vlast and Aurene shared an empathic bond, and Vlast cared deeply for his younger sister.
So much so that he was willing to give his life to protect her champion without ever having had the opportunity to meet her.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Vlast was raised to be a pawn in his mother's long, long game. However he grumbles, he can obey orders, though he will lash out and challenge any perceived weaknesses where he sees them - especially as he grows more used to the idea that he's no longer beholden to his mother's plans.
His pragmatism and blunt personality combined with his proactive and independent nature, makes him a reliable ally in small groups. Though on the flipside, he becomes restless if there is no task immediately on hand. He can also be petulant and irritable.
Vlast is well-educated, given his access to insights many mortals would (and did) kill for. He especially has a vast array of magical expertise. While his knowledge largely pertains to Tyria, Vlast is clever and adaptable, and could offer a fresh perspective.
There are, of course, gaps in that education. The Exalted didn't exactly go over manuals of social etiquette with him, and he certainly wasn't attending soirees where he could pick it up as he went. He will struggle with social mores, especially as he lacks emotional maturity.
He also has a tendency to bite.
Physically speaking, he's a typical Qunari that's on the leaner side. He's mostly healthy, though there's external and internal issues in the right side of his torso where he sports a nasty scar - the lingering evidence of a large puncture surrounded by a webbing of burn scars. He may have gotten a new life in Thedas, but when the god of fire and war stabs you, you stay stabbed. The wound that ended his first life will trouble him for the remainder of his days.
Powers
Humanized:
When we first meet baby Vlast in GW1, he's categorized under the Mesmer profession, so that will be his skillset when he falls out the Rift.
Mesmers are magical duelists that utilize illusion and trickery to warp their opponents perception of reality. They create clones and phantasms and use the confusion to strike quickly with the considerable arsenal (laser-greatsword) they have access to.
Mesmer can also cast boons on their allies and conditions on their enemies, and create reflective domes, short-range portals and teleportation, speeding up and slowing down time, invisibility, and transformation.
Draconic Vlast is a dragon. Or was. Whatever the case, that presents its own host of issues, and may leave some residual weirdness when coming to Thedas. In Tyria, dragons are big, they are scaly, they can typically fly, and breathe magical energy that manifests in one form or another (fire, ice, death, magic crystals, whatever). Vlast is not an Elder Dragon, though he is of that lineage.
Consuming and Circulating Magic In addition to their regular diet, dragons also consume magical energy. They're a bit like shoals of shellfish and other filter-feeders; they consume and circulate magic, filtering out pollutants, including Void energies making them vital to the ecosystem.
Consuming too much magic, or hoarding large quantities within themselves without circulating it back into the world leaves them prone to corruption, becoming increasingly hostile and malicious. On the other hand, if they consume enough of a certain type of magic, they can also learn new skills from it.
Brandstone, Connection vs Corruption
Brandstone is the manifestation of a crystal dragon's magic.
GW2 lore plays pretty fast and loose with what Brandstone is and can do. To start, it's a byproduct of dragon magic. It releases a sort of electric energy that, in large concentrations, can create a perpetual storm. It also hums; in the words of Josso Essher, the crystals "share a fundamental resonance that connects them [...] and makes them vulnerable to each other". Vlast and Glint use it to record their memories. Vlast and Aurene are able to use their own Brandstone to contain the spread of their grandfather's corruption. After Vlast's death, there are Elonian's collecting shards of his crystals to turn into weapons to combat Kralkatorrik's minions
Branding is also the vehicle through which Kralkatorrik and his descendants can corrupt or connect with other living things.
It is something all Elder Dragons and their scions can do; it is their most distinctive trait. Whether it's the former or the latter depends on the dragon's intent and the willingness of their target. Corruption is generally done against the target's will, and their mind is subsumed into the dragon's. Connection is made with a willing participant and their faculties remain intact. The latter creates an empathic link between the dragon and the person, able to share thoughts, emotions, and visions. The recipient is also able to draw from the dragon's powers, such as the Bond of Faith and Bond of Vigor the Commander shares with Aurene.
It's a plot-point than Vlast never formed such a bond, though he is physically capable.
If any of this remains in Vlast after coming Thedas, it may mean he will have a very high tolerance for raw lyrium, and some resistance to Blight (likely forming thick cysts as other dragons do or forming a Brandstone encasing to isolate and contain the infection for a time).
Prophecy
Another distinctive property of the crystal dragons is their ability to foresee possible futures.
Unlike his mother, however, it seems Vlast is not particularly gifted on that front. As far as we can tell, he only ever foresaw his possible death at the hands of Balthazar.
Suggested Nerfs
Most, if not all, Mesmer spells already follow similar rules of line of sight, time and distance. For the clones, I'd stick to the in-game limitations of only being able to have three active at any given time, and that they'd be very limited in functionality.
The only skills that might be iffy are the teleportation skills like Blink and Portal Entre/Exuant and Time Warp so maybe either heavily limit access to them or just nerf those entirely.
I want him to retain his innate need to consume, filter, and circulate magic, and create small quantities of Brandstone as a byproduct of his spellcasting. He will be as reliant on Lyrium potions as he is on food and water to keep himself hale and whole. As he adjusts to the ambient magic in Thedas, he will become less dependent, but he will still need to consume them fairly regularly.
As for his other draconic powers, if they aren't completely nerfed, I'd like for him to regain some (heavily) limited form of them through activity rewards.
Dragon form: if he is ever able to regain this form I would suggest it requires
Several months of research and practice at least.
Serious shrinkage to about the average size of a Skyscale
Only able to be maintained for a few hours tops (much shorter depending on how much his magic reserves he burns through).
While he'd be able to create larger quantities of Brandstone with his magic breath, it probably shouldn't be more than a streak of twenty meters long by one meter high.
Post-transformation recovery could take a few days - a week to fully recover from depending on his access to food, water, Lyrium and rest.
Corruption/Connection would require both player and mod permission and input.
Prophecy should be used at mod's discretion. If you guys want to put it to use, have at it. If not, it will not be missed.
Arrival Inventory
Nuthin.
Humanization
A Qunari would fit him best, both physically and thematically. Naturally they have ties to dragon blood, and while he may not follow the Qun, he does struggle with duty vs freedom, depersonalization, and purpose and connection to it.
Fit
A dragon should fit just fine in the Dragon Age setting.
Vlast would be an interesting fit in the DA setting, largely because Tyria is, in many respects, very similar to Thedas, while the social mores and values are wildly different. Detached as he is, Vlast has been at war for a long time so he's well used to being stuck in conflicts he has no personal investment in. Whether that latter part will change or not would be interesting to explore - especially now that he's been forced into a mortal body. Maybe the connection and purpose he felt he was lacking can be found in Thedas and her many conflicts? Or maybe he'll be driven deeper into his jaded cynicism?
Vlast / Gleam | Guild Wars 2 | Rifter
Name: Green Rivers
Age: 38
Contact:
Other Characters: N/A
Interests: Trite but true: anything and everything. Mostly looking for more adventure and mission-type plots with Vlast than political intrigue (though tossing him at the stuffiest nobility could make for some hilarious hijinks as well).
Name: Vlast / Gleam
Canon/OC: Guild Wars 2
Canon Point: Path of Fire
Journal: allthatgleamsisgold
Age: 250+
Canon World
Tyria is not a world dissimilar to Thedas. There's a variety of races, there's magic, there's a parallel realm of dreams and demons separated by a veil, and there are dragons with hordes of hiveminded minions hellbent on wreaking havoc.
And oh boy are the dragons a problem.
As of PoF, the main story is focused on the Elder Dragon plot; the many dissonant factions of Tyria coming together to face world ending foes in the six Elder Dragons (draconic embodiments of various spectrums of magic, each of them, to a one, hostile in some fashion).
Presently, two are down, with four left to go.
Unfortunately, two wrenches have been thrown into the Pact's dragon-killing escapades. One; the dragons are part of a cycle that keeps the world intact, even if it causes cataclysmic decimation to the inhabitants of said world. Killing any more without anything to take their place would potentially tear reality apart.
The other problem is that the God of War, Balthazar, freshly freed from the Mists, has made a beeline to Elona so that he can slay Elder Dragon #3; Kralkatorrik.
There is one sliver of hope in this whole debacle; Glint's Legacy. She was Kralkatorrik's first child, freed from his hivemind long ago and bonded with the mortal races. She has had two offspring of her own, potential candidates to replace the Elder Dragons who will circulate and share magic rather than the devastating ten thousand year cycles of feast and famine.
Vlast is one such candidate for the role of Crystal Dragon Jesus. Or he was. He sort of died.
History
GW1 Wiki
GW2 Wiki
Personality
Vlast is rather old by human standards and very young by the standards of Elder Dragons. Thus he is an ornery mix of crotchety old man and rebellious teenager acting out in whatever ways you'd expect from a 250 year old young adult.
His ill-tempered nature is not completely unjustified; he has been raised from a hatchling to fulfill his mother's prophecy and put an end to the cataclysmic dragon cycles by replacing the Elder Dragons with less predatory counterparts. It's a weighty destiny to place on a fledgling, and while Vlast was committed to his duty, he saw it as only that; a job that needed doing and only he could do.
He overall sees his mother's plan as a sound one that would, ultimately, be beneficial to all. His resentment and frustration stems from how he feels trapped in his role and has let himself be shaped and molded to fit into it, as more tool than a thinking and feeling person. He struggles with the responsibility left for him to shoulder in the decade since Glint was slain by her own sire.
Vlast's existence has been a painfully isolated one. His main caretaker, Sadizi, admits the dragon was never properly socialized and spent whatever free time he had soaring the desert skies alone. By the time the Exalted realized Vlast needed to bond with mortal races, it was past the point of no return. He either no longer could - or cared to - and they were left with a restless, impatient dragon who viewed them as insignificant.
The birth of his younger sister offered a rare glimmer of hope for Vlast - perhaps he wouldn't have to endure alone. Despite the distance between them, Vlast and Aurene shared an empathic bond, and Vlast cared deeply for his younger sister.
So much so that he was willing to give his life to protect her champion without ever having had the opportunity to meet her.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Vlast was raised to be a pawn in his mother's long, long game. However he grumbles, he can obey orders, though he will lash out and challenge any perceived weaknesses where he sees them - especially as he grows more used to the idea that he's no longer beholden to his mother's plans.
His pragmatism and blunt personality combined with his proactive and independent nature, makes him a reliable ally in small groups. Though on the flipside, he becomes restless if there is no task immediately on hand. He can also be petulant and irritable.
Vlast is well-educated, given his access to insights many mortals would (and did) kill for. He especially has a vast array of magical expertise. While his knowledge largely pertains to Tyria, Vlast is clever and adaptable, and could offer a fresh perspective.
There are, of course, gaps in that education. The Exalted didn't exactly go over manuals of social etiquette with him, and he certainly wasn't attending soirees where he could pick it up as he went. He will struggle with social mores, especially as he lacks emotional maturity.
He also has a tendency to bite.
Physically speaking, he's a typical Qunari that's on the leaner side. He's mostly healthy, though there's external and internal issues in the right side of his torso where he sports a nasty scar - the lingering evidence of a large puncture surrounded by a webbing of burn scars. He may have gotten a new life in Thedas, but when the god of fire and war stabs you, you stay stabbed. The wound that ended his first life will trouble him for the remainder of his days.
Powers
Humanized:
Draconic
Vlast is a dragon. Or was. Whatever the case, that presents its own host of issues, and may leave some residual weirdness when coming to Thedas. In Tyria, dragons are big, they are scaly, they can typically fly, and breathe magical energy that manifests in one form or another (fire, ice, death, magic crystals, whatever). Vlast is not an Elder Dragon, though he is of that lineage.
Suggested Nerfs
Most, if not all, Mesmer spells already follow similar rules of line of sight, time and distance. For the clones, I'd stick to the in-game limitations of only being able to have three active at any given time, and that they'd be very limited in functionality.
The only skills that might be iffy are the teleportation skills like Blink and Portal Entre/Exuant and Time Warp so maybe either heavily limit access to them or just nerf those entirely.
I want him to retain his innate need to consume, filter, and circulate magic, and create small quantities of Brandstone as a byproduct of his spellcasting. He will be as reliant on Lyrium potions as he is on food and water to keep himself hale and whole. As he adjusts to the ambient magic in Thedas, he will become less dependent, but he will still need to consume them fairly regularly.
As for his other draconic powers, if they aren't completely nerfed, I'd like for him to regain some (heavily) limited form of them through activity rewards.
Dragon form: if he is ever able to regain this form I would suggest it requires
Corruption/Connection would require both player and mod permission and input.
Prophecy should be used at mod's discretion. If you guys want to put it to use, have at it. If not, it will not be missed.
Arrival Inventory
Nuthin.
Humanization
A Qunari would fit him best, both physically and thematically. Naturally they have ties to dragon blood, and while he may not follow the Qun, he does struggle with duty vs freedom, depersonalization, and purpose and connection to it.
Fit
A dragon should fit just fine in the Dragon Age setting.Vlast would be an interesting fit in the DA setting, largely because Tyria is, in many respects, very similar to Thedas, while the social mores and values are wildly different. Detached as he is, Vlast has been at war for a long time so he's well used to being stuck in conflicts he has no personal investment in. Whether that latter part will change or not would be interesting to explore - especially now that he's been forced into a mortal body. Maybe the connection and purpose he felt he was lacking can be found in Thedas and her many conflicts? Or maybe he'll be driven deeper into his jaded cynicism?
1 & 2