Raphael the Brave
The good-natured defender of the Needlebar Dominion, making up in power what he lacks in smarts
Ser Raphael Ambrosius Beaumont (a.k.a. Raph/Raf)
The Godswar was a terrible time for all of us...not exactly a controversial statement, that. But here in the Thicket, we were thankfully shielded from the worst of it - thanks mostly to our resident Lord Dumbass. That boy saved our asses quite a few times over the course of that horrible war, actually - but I'll never forget the first time. Olivia Couvillion - "Saint Olivia", as she called herself then - this was before it came out she was a damned demon, mind you - had led the armies of Draconia down into the southern reaches to conquer the rebelling Lords of the Mountain Citadels in the Barrier Peaks. Along the way, she got the bright idea to try and take Needlebar - this was before we were "The Dominion", mind - while our Illustrious Lords were away on business. Guess the memory of our powerful Lords taking it for themselves was still a tad sore in her mind. I digress, though. We didn't have a snowball's chance in the nine hells of Malefacta, and we knew it - even if we could've messaged our Lords, it wouldn't have stopped a massacre. She'd bewitched just about everyone in town - we had no idea how. No one could think for themselves anymore. 'Course, now we know it was cause she was a damn demon, but still. But that dumbass? Hah. He was too stupid to fall for her tricks. But his instincts were monstrously sharp - always had been, actually - and he figured out pretty quick that she was some kind of monster in human skin. I was lucky enough to see that bastard walk up to the gates of the castle by himself - smiling like a loon, asking to see "The Saint Lady". Said he wanted to chat. 'Course, they did what anyone would do - they tried to kill him. Shot arrows at him. Opened the gates, sent her elite warrior-whores out to stab him. But all that dumb son of a bitch did was laugh. He laughed right in their faces, pure and innocent. And it only got louder as he fought 'em. It was his first real fight, mind - not against beasts, or monsters - and he just laughed, and laughed. Like he had finally found his true calling. Like all the confusion he'd lived with his entire life was finally gone. Guess he finally figured out what was in that empty head of his - turns out, he's a damned fighting supercomputer. Every arrow, he'd parry. Every sword slice, he'd strike aside. It was all instinct - the battlefield was his home, and he could see their moves before they even thought about makin' em. It all just made sense to him. Intuitively. More than anything ever had. Still don't have a damned clue how - somewhere along the way, he even dropped his weapons, just used his fists. Weapons just slowed him down. They couldn't keep up with what his brain was telling him - what he was learning on the fly as he fought. Adapting and Evolving with each strike. He damned near deconstructed every single one of that Saint's troops in the castle until our Lords finally arrived to clean things up, after some of us managed to get a message out during his rampage. Poor dumb bastard - he ended up falling just short of taking the Saint's head, I hear. Guess his body and mind just couldn't keep up with his instincts - that dumbass literally couldn't keep up with his own mind. That's a terrifying sentence, ain't it? His mind was still tickin' away, telling him how to perfectly tear her apart even as the rest of him got too fatigued to follow his own damned instincts. Well, anyway - wasn't the first time he'd save our biscuits. Stopped Aslauge Daenic when she came knocking, later - and somehow, the Doomknight too, afterwards. But none of those were as memorable as the first. All hail Lord Dumbass. Long may he reign.
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Raphael, though he was originally born as a Human, was transformed into a High Human during his mid-to-late 20's by his good friend Etherious Crosner - but even absent this fact, he has always existed at the utter height of the Human physical condition; having spent his entire childhood into adulthood slavering away under his parents' iron fist on their family farm and later joined the Town Guard of Needlebar, his physical condition reached its peak long ago and has showed no signed of degrading anytime soon.
As a man who loves fighting in all forms and engages in it constantly as his one true hobby, he is a man in terrifying physical shape - one of the most athletic, fit, agile, and strong people any could ever meet across the whole of Corexus. He has never known affliction, ailment, or illness - though many of his friends joke that this is a result of his simple mindedness making him "Too stupid to catch anything but a ball".
Body Features
His body utterly chiseled and muscular, Raphael has a body that seems to have had a farmer's tan burned onto it during his teenage years that, despite his best efforts across his newly extended life, has never seemed to go away. Tanned, muscular, and in amazing physical shape, his body is a warrior's through and through.
Facial Features
Though he was rather notorious during his early 20's and 30's for his boyish, almost childlike features such that many of his friends kindly mocked him as 'Babyface Raph', he has lost some of that boyish charm during his latter years - his face blending his early boyish charm with a grizzled, windswept beauty that many liken to a classical sculpture of marble left to erode on the cliffs of the ocean which has, in truth, made him quite handsome.
When he smiles and laughs his signature laugh, however, none can deny his boyish personality returning to cover his face.
Identifying Characteristics
Raphael honestly lacks many defining or identifying features - as a simple man raised as a farmhand, his most identifying feature is perhaps the farmer's tan that seems to have been somehow permanently imprinted upon his skin during his teenage years. Otherwise, his rather handsome yet boyish face is fairly identifying to many who see him.
Physical quirks
Raphael has always been a man who has existed at the peak of the physical condition, and was blessed from a younge age with extraordinary strength - however, this extraordinary strength is just about his only defining physical quirk.
Special abilities
Though he is a mighty warrior, Raphael has no special abilities - save for perhaps his own natural fighter's instincts which has allowed him to become such a terrifying force on the battlefield, often so powerful as to often be likened to a special ability.
Apparel & Accessories
Raphael's apparel and accessories vary wildly depending on when and where he is encountered, but fairly constant is his love of simple and loose clothing on and off the battlefield(though he is also quite at home in heavy armor) and, rather hilariously, a faded name-tag often found pinned to his clothing near the chest or lapel that simply reads "RAF" - a thing that, by his own account, was a tool he once used(And supposedly uses no longer) to help him pronounce his first name.
Specialized Equipment
Though exactly what equipment he brings into battle varies wildly from encounter to encounter, Raphael has no specialized equipment - only a decently large stockpile of magical arms and armor that he has found during his travels and been given as gifts by his many friends.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Born to cantankerous and unhappy farmers outside the then-small town of Needlebar that once served as a distant town of The Empire of Draconia in the waning years of the Age of of Penitence, Raphael was treated as little better than a plow by his parents for much of his childhood and even into Adulthood - it was not until he signed up with the Needlebar Guard when he turned 21 that he escaped this life of near slavery and, in time, met The Travelers when they were granted ownership of Needlebar by The Empire of Draconia for their heroic deeds of the time that he truly came into his own.
Having been gifted powerful arms and armor by his new Lords, Raphael served the town faithfully, even defending it from countless threats during the Age of Troubles such as Olivia Couvillion, Aslauge Daenic, and Van Hawk when they came near the town causing trouble when his Lords had scattered to the winds or proved too busy to return.
Education
Raphael, never afforded an education of any kind, grew up on his parents farm and is a country bumpkin through and through.
Employment
Raphael has worked for the city of needlebar for almost his entire adult life - stopping only here and there to adventure and explore the world in periods of downtime lasting months to years.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Drove back Olivia Couvillion and the armies of The Empire of Draconia from butchering the town.
Fought Aslauge Daenic to a standstill outside the town of Needlebar and befriended her, preventing her from leveling the town on suspicions of harboring allies to Van Hawk during the Age of Troubles.
Dueled Van Hawk and won, forcing him to keep his promise to keep his Infinite Horde out of the Kilnagh Thicket and away from the lands of Needlebar during the Age of Troubles.
Failures & Embarrassments
None known.
Mental Trauma
As a simple man of simple desires, Raphael is surprisingly unburdened by his own past - even his terrible childhood as what basically amounted to slavery at the hands of his parents bothers him little as he prefers to live in the moment and for those around him.
Intellectual Characteristics
Rather famous, Raphael is a simple-minded man of little true intelligence - a creature of instinct and simple-minded joy who is earnest, honest, and pure in many ways that others find quite refreshing. His mental ability is such that he is confused for much of the time when outside the battlefield, and happily lets others do all the intellectual pursuits he is poorly suited for.
Morality & Philosophy
Raphael's morality is simply that of action - he believes in standing up to unfairness and injustice wherever it can be found, and "defeating sadness with his joy" wherever possible.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Raphael, if he were to be asked about his motivations, likely would give a fairly innocuous answer others would likely find boring - such as "To get stronger" or "To explore the world" or "To have fun". In truth, there is little to explain past these simple motivations - he rarely thinks about such things as his own motivations overmuch, and thus has a hard time articulating what is, in truth, plain as day to see looking at him act: He is a natural-born warrior who finds the purest, rawest joy in fighting others such that he enjoys it more than anything else in the world.
This desire for combat drives him almost constantly - though not out of a desire to get stronger per se(Though he does enjoy the idea), but out of a desire to participate in the one hobby he has that he can truly thrive in without his simple mind holding him back as it so often does in all other pursuits in his life. Fighting, to him, is fun - plain and simple. And he, of course, enjoys having fun.
A recent development in his life, however, is his love of adventuring - roaming far afield from his hometown of Needlebar where he serves as its Protector to explore the unexplored corners of the world as an Adventurer; a desire he is believed to have taken up from a dear friend of his who died in Needlebar before he could see his dream of exploring the world fulfilled.
Finally, though, Raphael simply cannot stand to see bad things happen to others - he himself is unable to articulate this, but it is once again clear as crystal to any who know him; As a living being, he has a heart as vast and deep as the oceans, and cannot stand idly by while anything he perceives as Unfairness or Injustice takes place before his eyes, even if that would mean saving or sparing creatures that would be his enemy.
Savvies & Ineptitudes
Savvy at Fighting, Physical Labor, Farming, Sensing how strong others are, Defeating strong foes, being honest, standing up to injustice and unfairness, sensing when something is "off" or "wrong", Getting the most unlikely of people to become friends with him, ???
Inept at just about everything else.
Likes & Dislikes
Likes: Fighting, Helping Others, Traveling, Contests of Strength or Athleticism, Footraces, Laughing, Afternoon Naps, Eating, Meeting new people, ???
Dislikes: Seeing others in pain, Others being treated unfairly or unjustly, ???
Virtues & Personality perks
Raphael is a man of many virtues, some easily seen and others more subtle - first and most obviously is his unimaginable fighting prowess; Though it laid dormant throughout his childhood and younger years laboring away on his parent's farm, Raphael found his talent for all things fighting in his early 20's and has never looked back. To him, fighting is his one and only hobby - the only activity that he can truly enjoy without his simple mind constantly weighing him down with confusion or questions. He understands the ins and outs of combat almost instinctively, in ways he cannot even fully articulate - a savant in every sense of the word, as his greatest strength comes within the battles he fights; While he is not innately mighty or born of legendary power, his greatest strength lies in his unnatural ability to read his foes while he fights them, learning and evolving at a rapid pace to scan their weaknesses and prob their strengths. He is, all told a fighting savant - violence comes naturally to him, and it is among his chiefmost virtues.
Not to be ignored, however, are his plethora of other virtues - he is a patient man, who cannot stand idly by while sadness is wrought onto others; He wields his joy like his greatest weapon, laughing while he helps all those in need of his ferocious power, and cares for all he meets as he would his own nearest and dearest friends. He treats others as equally as he possibly can, and is honest and direct almost to a fault - he is almost incapable of lying and lives in the moment for the world around him.
Vices & Personality flaws
Though he is a wonderfully well-liked man, he is not without his faults - most obvious of all is his rather simple mind that often means he is somewhat out of his element in most all situations throughout his life off the battlefield. Though he himself is aware of this, it nonetheless remains one of his greatest flaws - a constant confusion hangs over him at all times off the battlefield, and he often itches and chafes when forced to do things as keeping him from his duties; a free-spirit that is hard to truly wrangle onto a task or job that does not give him the opportunity to eat, fight, and be free.
Secondly, while many would not think of it as a flaw, his love of fighting is in truth another of his greatest flaws - unable to mentally or emotionally comprehend much of the happenings around him when not engaged in combat, he has a genuinely difficult time truly bonding with others in complex ways that do not involve fighting. This is not to say he is not capable of making friends - far from it, in truth - but that for those he is truly close to, such as family(If he had any to speak of), he would be a truly difficult creature to communicate with in a serious and emotionally complex manner, likely preferring his one true passion over even family or spouses or children in some ways.
Finally, as a truly free spirit, Raphael is a man who enjoys pursuing his own enjoyments - chiefmost among which is eating and napping, which he does almost constantly and with a vigor that can surprise even the most ravenous of giants.
Hygiene
Raphael is rather notorious for his poor hygiene, as a born farmer who prefers fighting to bathing or doing "boring things" - though he has a great deal of friends and allies who have gotten into the habit of forcing him to keep good hygiene habits over the years.
Social
Reign
Though he has not ever been placed in charge of Needlebar nor in any capacity or role in the Needlebar Dominion, he has served as the "Protector" of the country even before its inception some decades before.
Contacts & Relations
Though he is altogether a simple man, Raphael has a great deal of Contacts that have expanded surprisingly far beyond the Kilnagh Thicket where he was born and raised - he was initially found and transformed into a High Human by The Travelers, and has thus served Needlebar(Their home city) and his denizens ever since they granted him power and a handful of weapons and equipment.
Aside from those powerful adventurers, he has become something of a household name across The Needlebar Dominion - and thanks to his numerous defenses of the Dominion, has even become somewhat close friends with several notable figures across the continent such as Aslauge Daenic and even Van Hawk; both figures that he has faced in combat and impressed enough with his strength of body and purity of spirit that they could not help but find him appealing.
He himself, thinks little of the special or impressive nature of these bonds - treating them all with the same happy amiability as a peasant might treat an old friend.
Family Ties
His family ties are almost entirely nonexistent - while his parents were born and raised around the city of Needlebar, they perished of natural causes shortly after his first victory on the battlefield in defense of Needlebar, leaving him without any living relatives.
Religious Views
Raphael's specific religious views are uniquely simplistic - he is by no means an Atheist, but doesn't actively worship any deities all that vigorously; instead, while he respects deities such as Bahamut, the Platinum Dragon and Baldr, The Unbroken for their good natures and tenets that align with his own rather straightforward ideals, he doesn't actively worship them beyond going to church daily and giving offerings as is custom for his homeland - a cultural obligation moreso than a religious desire.
When questioned about the gods, he makes no efforts to hide his love of them - however, as a relatively down-to-earth and simple man who is rather well known for never standing on ceremony for anything in his entire life, he is somewhat anathema to organized religion, as he finds it difficult to hold any other being in the respected esteem that a God would expected to be seen as. As he instead prefers to treat everyone he meets with the simple, frank kindness of a meeting among equals, he sees the gods as respected mentors moreso than actual divine beings deserving of worship - like sages or elders whose wisdom is so ancient as to be law, but whose constant absence mildly confuses him; causing him to wonder aloud many times why the Gods cannot simply "come down and visit".
Social Aptitude
While he is by no means all that intelligent, Raphael is fairly well-known to carry a potent force of personality born of his simple nature - because he treats everyone he meets with the same purity of spirit, meeting them no matter the occasion as equals and potential friends, he carries an unexpectedly powerful social aptitude that often catches those he meets quite off-guard and either evokes strong indignity or respect at his complete lack of decorum and respect; there is seldom a "moderate" reaction given to his kind, equal-minded approach to conversation.
As his simple mind, overwhelming kindness, and purity of spirit mean he is basically entirely immune to social "cues" such as knowing how much respect, fear, decorum, or fealty any given being he meets is owed in favor of simply approaching others and speaking his mind frankly, his social aptitude wins him a surprisingly large number of allies in places both high and low who find his simple, honest approach to conversations and meetings refreshing - although it has also given him a large number of enemies who find his complete and utter lack of decorum utterly offensive.
Mannerisms
Raphael is a man who is honest and happy to an utter fault - he is honest in both his language and his mannerisms, preferring to be direct and straightforward in all his dealings to an almost frustrating degree. He makes no attempt to hide his usual confusion, and often laughs as a matter of course even when he doesn't understand what's going on in the present moment - however, he is also self-aware enough to know when others around him are better suited to doing things than he, and will often happily sit on the sidelines of important conversations, letting his peers discuss tactics or complex things he knows he has little input on, only speaking up to offer good-natured suggestions here and there.
Aside from this, he is incredibly direct in even his physical gestures - he has no qualms about approaching others and patting them on the shoulders, heads, or shaking their hands; often without their consent. He favors physical contact(Including fighting) as a way to truly connect with others as he knows his mind is lacking, and thus can come off as off-puttingly outgoing - approaching strangers and hugging them, embracing them, shaking their hands and patting their shoulders, and so on as if they were old friends.
Relationships
History
A relationship born of their duel during the Age of Troubles outside the town of Needlebar, Raphael's simple honesty and unwavering dedication to his ideals ended up winning over the initially hostile Queen of the Giants - gradually wearing her down until now the two stand as relatively close friends. Aslauge, for her part, is the grumpier of the two who has mostly resigned herself to being a victim of Raphael's unstoppable friendliness while Raphael, having accrued a good impression of Aslauge as a bad person who he knows isn't all that bad in her heart of hearts, enjoys fighting her whenever he has a chance and seeing her progress at "becoming a better person".
History
A relationship that has borne fruit none could have possibly foreseen, Raphael has become surprisingly acquainted with Van Hawk after he dueled the legendary Doomknight on the fields outside the Kilnagh Thicket during the waning years of the Age of Troubles - dueling the Doomknight to prevent his Infinite Horde from using the Thicket as an army base to refuel on lumber and settle Needlebar as his temporary Headquarters in the interim. While the duel that ensued was "won" only due to the specific terms set by both sides rather than a true defeat handed on either side, the two quickly warmed on each other - Raphael, while he despises the villainy The Doomknight has perpetuated, respects him as a man of his word and seeks to one day either redeem him onto the path of good or defeat him once and for all while Van Hawk himself came to see the young fighting savant as an amusing rival, upholding his promise to leave the Thicket in peace at his "loss" with the promise of an eventual rematch with Raphael in the future - naming him "The Doomed Son" and daring him to venture to his lands of Crael Adra far to the north if he dared to approach him in his lair, leaving him with a horrendous scar across his neck and chest as a reminder of their battle.
Wealth & Financial state
A simple man from the very earliest days of his youth, Raphael has never been one for extravagant shows of wealth - he is an incredibly frugal man who barely even understands the value of things, much less even WANTS to have valuable things. He enjoys living a simple life in a simple house, and lives his life for his foremost passion - fighting, and protecting the people who dwell within the Kilnagh Thicket where he was born and raised.
As such, he has little disposal income at any given moment and almost no assets or investments - but inversely has no debts or dependencies of any kind. He is a truly free soul - so free that almost nothing, much less wealth, weighs on him at any given moment.
There is no better weapon to destroy sadness than joy. If only more people learned how to wield it as well as they could a blade, I think this world would be a much better place.
Alignment
Neutral Good
Current Status
Living and Training in Needlebar
Species
Honorary & Occupational Titles
Lord Dumbass, Raf, Lord of The Thicket, The Hero of Kilnagh, The Toppler, The Doomed Son
Year of Birth
2021 AF
99 Years old
Circumstances of Birth
Rather famously, his parents are said to have birthed him solely to have more help around the farm - treating him little better than one might a plow used in the fields.
Birthplace
Needlebar
Spouses
Siblings
Children
Current Residence
Needlebar, Capital of the Needblebar Dominion
Pronouns
He/Him
Sex
Male
Gender
Male
Eyes
Large, Round, Light Blue, Naive
Hair
Short, messy, and blonde
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Overall quite tan. Has a distinct farmer's tan from his youth.
Height
6'7 ft (2.01m)
Weight
230lbs (104.32 kg)
Quotes & Catchphrases
My parents never gave me a middle or last name, so I made up my own. Raphael Ambrosius Beaumont...doesn't it just feel good to say? I think so!
Belief/Deity
He isn't particularly religious - but he is by no means an atheist. He likes many gods, but isn't known to actively worship any one in particular.
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