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 Posted: Sun Jan 17, 2010 11:59 am
Name: Robina
Age: 30
I based the age on a guess as to how old she'd have to be to have impressed in a clutch before the trio since she will be a back dated character. But I would be happy to change it if necessary.
Gender: Female
Sexual Orientation: Pansexual
Craft: Drudge/courtesan
Rank: Wingrider
Parents:
Yeman: holder
Stallia: holder
Yeman and Stallia are simple folk who work the land. Most of their time is spent working so they may pay their tithes to the Lord holder. What is left over isn't much for such a large family but they make do. They love their children very much and have encouraged them to follow their dreams despite their meager means.
Siblings:
Frana - [f] Journyman weaver craft
A shy but very loving person who is also quite creative in her endevors.
Janlis - [m] Apprentice baker
A gregarious man who feels the best way to flatter a girl is by making her a pastry.
Nelland - [m] Apprentice Beastcrafter
A socially awkward man who gets along better with animals than people. He loves his family very much, even so.
Kellin - [m] holder like his parents, wants to find ways of improving farming to make things easier on his parents. He is very quiet but sturdy both of limb and mind.
Robina- [f] Dragon rider (Wingrider)
A responsible self assured woman who expects too much of herself and then quits before she has chance to achieve her best.
Sanini - [f] Apprentice weaver craft
Vibrant and Happy Sanini loves making dyes and her disposition is as cheerful as her dyes.
Tabini - [f] Has not chosen a craft yet. Tabini is a bit of a mischief maker. She tends to lead Bagan into a world of trouble. Though he doesn't seem to mind.
Bagan - [m] Has not chosen a craft yet. Bagan is Tabini's loyal minion and tends to follow her lead even if it means they wind up getting punished in the end. At least they are having fun.
History: Robina was born to Yeman and Stallia simple holderfolk who worked at Fort Hold. Family life for Robina was loud, rocuis and happy. The children were expected to work the fields from little on up until the set out to find a craft. As one of the middle children of a large family Robina only ever had hand me downs when it came to clothing or toys. She had to fight for her share of food and attention from her parents since there were never enough hours in the day. She never really had anything that was hers alone and that made her treasure the few things she was given or made herself.
As her elder siblings had gone on to apprentice for crafts one by one and her parents were busy working the land Robina often found herself in charge of her younger siblings. She managed as well as she could for someone who really wasn't cut out for raising children. Oh she loved them dearly, but she didn't have the patience to deal with them day in and day out. Thankfully as they grew some of her siblings were able to take on more and more responsibilities themselves and a little of the pressure was taken off Robina's shoulders. Still the youngest two were a nightmare and probably always would be.
When she was finally freed from looking after the other children enough to begin to look for a path of her own she was already quite old for an apprentice.
Since her older sister Frana was a journeyman weaver she started there. It seemed like an interesting enough craft and she'd always enjoyed watching her sister work, but the more effort she put into it the more fumbled fingered she seemed to get. She tried different areas of specialty in the craft but couldn't seem to get the hang of it. Surely with a Journeyman sister to draw on for knowledge she should have been able to find her feet in no time at all.
Her sister seemed to be happy with her progress, but Robina never was. She was certain that there was no way she'd become a weaver at the rate she was going and so she decided to try something else.
Janlis tried to sweet talk his sister into attempting an apprenticeship at the bakerhall despite her past attempts at poisoning the family. He swore that it was all nerves and that she could be a brilliant baker. She swore that he was mad. But he never got a chance to prove if he was right. It didn't take a generous to see how uncomfortable Robina was in the kitchens and so she didn't even get through the apprentice interview process.
Next she thought she would try her hand at the Harper hall. Her voice wasn't great, but she was good with her hands. Perhaps she could play an instrument or learn to write letters and become an archivist. That would be interesting. She had always been fascinated by record rolls. So why not try? The hall informed her that she was somewhat old to begin an apprenticeship, but should she agree to take extra classes in order to bring her up to speed with her classmates she would be allowed to enter.
Harper hall was not nearly as wonderful as she thought it would be. In fact it was a lot of really hard work. It wasn't that the thought of extra work bothered her, but the extra classes meant that she was tired almost all the time and it caused her performance in other areas to suffer. Emotionally it was very trying for her to know that the masters were not seeing her at her best. It seemed hardly fair that she had to work so hard simply because she had come to the hall later than the others.
Even so she practiced as hard as she could. But she still felt she wasn't preforming to the level she should be preforming to. Instead of being energized and motivated to do better after a Master gave her a devastating critique she became discouraged. Feeling it was only a matter of time before she would be held up as the laughingstock of the hall weather or not it was true she left to find her way elsewhere.
Elsewhere turned out to be working as a drudge. It was hard work for little pay, but she had more free time than she had as an apprentice and her free time was her own. She could do as she liked. And she liked that alot. Robina was able to save up enough to earn herself a few fine things over time.
Knowing she was of humble means and that it was obvious she decided to try and become more cultured. She watched the highborn whenever she had the opportunity to do so. She was a quick study at picking up on manners and mannerisms of the well to do. It couldn't hurt her opportunities for work to be well spoken. Over time Robina became poised and charming. She took great pride in her appearance and despite the menial work she did she was always clean and well dressed.
It was at a gather one day that she had her first gentleman caller. He asked her out for dancing and dining and she had a ball. But she had no interest in husbands or children so when it was obvious he was becoming too serious she left him as gently as she could. There were other young men in an ever increasing stream. She had thought that the interest would die down once it became known that she wasn't interested in marriage or children. The reverse seemed to happen. Apparently there were many men who wished to have love and romance without necessarily getting the added complications of a wife. That was fine by Robina.
Certainly some of the lady folk looked down upon her, but their attitudes didn't bother Robina much. it wasn't as if she was stealing husbands away. She had no need for a husband. The other woman were welcome to them. Looking after a creature daft enough to spread his nasty clothing all over the floor and then expect her to pick it all up was not something she ever wanted, not the least little bit.
Carefully husbanding the marks she was earning from selling off whatever trinkets and baubles her men chose to shower her with Robina was able to build quite a tidy little sum. She was very happy with her life and while she still hadn't found a craft at least she was saving up for the future.
Then it happened that one of her young men had invited her to a hatching and her world changed as a little dragonet landed in her lap.
Appearance: Robina has a heart shaped face fair skin long red hair usually done up and green eyes. She is fine boned and of moderate height.
Personality:
Vertues:
Robina takes responsibility for herself and her actions
Robina has a strong self esteem
Faults:
Robina is impatient with herself and others.
Robina a perfectionist with a strong fear of failure
Warm friendly and sensual Robina chose her own lifestyle and she never plays the victim feeling that you have to take responsibility for your own life. As such she faces life on her own terms. She is flirty and enjoys the company of both male and female partners. She has a strong belief in herself and doesn't really care if people disapprove of her or not. Robina likes the finer things in life and doesn't have a problem using her very real charms to get them. Her attitude is if you've got it why not enjoy it?
Robina tends to get irritable if things don't go her way. If someone isn't listening to her or some task she is doing goes wrong she tends to get very frustrated and does not deal with it very calmly. Additionally, Robina is a perfectionist and doesn't like failing a task or doing things wrong even though learning is often a matter of making mistakes and learning from them.
She has very high expectations for herself. As such she often sets herself up for a fall. If she had been more reasonable about her expectations she would have done fine in either one of the crafts that she tried. But she has such a strong fear of failing that she would rather quit a task she perceives herself to be doing poorly in, rather than finish it only to find that she has failed. She would never admit that she quits when the going gets tough, though, not even to herself. She would simply say that she changed her mind.
Dragon name: Ayath (if it's not taken)
Found using this nifty Pern dragon name generator:
Dragon name generator
Dragon color: Green
Dragon description: Ayath is on the smaller side for a green. (More to come)
Dragon personality: Ayath is the opposite of Robina. Where Robina is self assured, Ayath is shy and insecure needing much reassurance to have confidence in herself. She also has a tenancy to blame anything or anyone but herself for anything bad that might have happened to her.
On the bright side Ayath is very patient even when the going gets rough. Once she has chosen to dedicate herself to something she will see it through to the end. She is persistent and determined.
Ayath chose Robina because she knew the redhead would help to bolster her frail ego when she needed it. Robina also makes her take responsibility for her own errors, while Ayath helps Robina see that her expectations are not realistic and to set more reasonable goals. Also Ayath is able to encourage hers to keep going when the girl becomes discouraged and is afraid to go on. Together they are greater than the two separate halves. They support each other and can reach higher than they could hope to do alone.
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Posted: Sun Jan 17, 2010 2:43 pm
Nice length! I can see you put a lot of thought into this character. <3
There are several things, however, in the history that make the whole thing implausible.
- If she was too young to understand that refusing a man in a position of power would be a bad thing, how was she also old enough to have caught his eye? As far as I understand it, if she was old enough for a Lord Holder's son to be interested in her she should have also known that refusing his intentions would have some kind of consequence. You also don't say why she refused. I would imagine it would be a little boost to the pride to know that the Lord Holder's son liked you. That aside, linking a character to someone that important in a major, canon Hold isn't really kosher. If we ever intended to bring the Fort Holder's son into IC play and we had to take into account every relationship someone's character had had with him it would go down the drain very quickly.
- Why is the Lord Holder's son hiring men to go after a Holder girl just because she refused him? I'm certain there are many, many other girls who would be happy to sleep with him if given the chance, so I can't understand why he'd become so obsessed with her.
- She runs away because she fears for her family? Doesn't she, by running away, only run away from her own punishment and inflict it on her family instead? I know runaways is not on the list of temporary things banned, but that's because it is always a no-no. Running away on Pern is not possible. There's a reason that being Holdless is such a bad thing. If she had no experience living "off the land" as it were, she would have died. Period. There are wild whers, lack of resources, she could have eaten something poisonous, there's the threat of Thread, etc.
Going outside your Hold where thread could fall and kill you would be like going inside a house that has a bomb in it without knowing the duration of the timer and living there. You'd have to be insane, or suicidal, and a dragon wouldn't Impress to someone like that.
- High Reaches Hold doesn't exist anymore. I'm assuming, however, this was meant to be High Telgar Hold? If it is, it is impossible to get from Fort to High Telgar alone and on foot. The two places are half a continent away from each other. Again, she would have died, because she has no experience in that kind of long-term travel. It would be the equivalent of trying to climb Mount Everest and not bringing your backpack of supplies with you.
- We admittedly don't quite understand if it's being implied Robina was involved with prostitution after being taken in by Sanita. If so, Robina, despite the fact that she's only here because she refused to have a fling with a Holder, willingly takes up a job that involves having flings with anyone who pays for it. If you want to keep this part you need to explain the logic behind it. Why would she, after running away from home and risking her life and her family's life because she doesn't want to have sex without love turn around and take up a profession that is all about sex without love?
- A Telgar rider wouldn't come down to High Telgar Hold just to pick up a cheap date. There are women at the Weyr who he could pick up without having to pay them for it. Plus, it's just really unlikely a rider from Telgar (who are extremely conservative / hissy toward Holders / very much about their public image / honor) would look at a woman working at a whorehouse as a "fine lady". Even if the other Weyrfolk didn't know she was a whore, they would know she was a holder and wonder why if he needed a date (which is slightly odd to begin with when the hatching is completely focused on the dragons) he didn't take one of the beautiful women from the Weyr instead.
- Surprise is probably not what everyone was feeling when a green chose a girl from the Stands. Contempt, disgust, shame, and lots of negative emotions would have accompanied such a bonding. Remember that this is Telgar. No gold on the Sands, very few female candidates. They don't go looking for female riders, and having one picked from the stands is not a good thing. But it's also not so uncommon everyone would be shocked and awed. A lot of dragons prefer their riders based on gender. If no gold was on the sands, there would be virtually no female candidates, and so a dragon with a preference to girl would practically have to pick from the stands. Remember, overall, stands Impressions are more common in the shop than the books.
Personality wise, I'm going to need to see more flaws before I can approve it. As it stands, you've created a character who is almost blameless for the things that happened to her in her life. Instead of just revolving around what's wrong with everyone around her, focus more on what's wrong with her. Is she jealous? Not very bright in terms of book smarts? That kind of thing.
I also need dragon information, please, since she's going to be a greenrider. XD
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Posted: Thu Feb 25, 2010 5:00 pm
I revamped Robina's sheet. smile *Crossing fingers*
I hope this one works better.
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Posted: Fri Feb 26, 2010 4:54 pm
- She needs to be from High Telgar Hold or a Hold in that area. If she was born in Fort, she would have gone to Fort Weyr and been a Fort rider.
- 7 kids is a lot of kids to have in a family, especially since they're not even in charge of even a minor Hold. Supporting a family that large is - judging by their family - not within their means. If you want to have a family this big you need to justify it for me, because right now I can't see how they'd manage, especially since neither of the parents are crafters.
- If you want to make her a drudge, then you really need to show me you understand that choice of job. Drudges don't work for pay. Their trade off for their work (which is pretty much menial work) is lodging, food, and shelter from Thread. They have no desire to rise above their station, no dreams, and no initiative. Why on earth would Robina - who you've portrayed as a fairly intelligent, decently motivated individual - sink to doing drudge work instead of just going home and working with her parents? To add to that, she's mimicking the behaviour of a Lady Holder to try and use their mannerisms to what end? To seduce men?
As far as I understand it in Pern, there are enough women who are willing to be free with their bodies (and in much higher stations that drudges) who men would be interested in. Why would any man go for a drudge when he could have, say, a crafter? Or the daughter of a Holder who has lots of land? Sleeping with a drudge is the kind of thing I'd imagine you'd only do if you were desperate, and it would be a one time thing. One certainly wouldn't be giving trinkets to a drudge, who has no status and no ambition. It would be a waste. A charming drudge is still a drudge, and you've created a situation for Robina that is unrealistic. Being free with her body is one thing, but being thought of as more than just a quick (albeit beautiful) lay is unlikely. She'd have no marks, no trinkets, no future, and she'd probably be having more than a few pregnancies living life like that. She also would not have been asked to accompany a man to the Weyr.
Essentially, as charming as you make her or as many high-born behaviours she copies she is ultimately not high born. She's the bottom of the Pern food chain and her history needs to reflect that.
- Why does she have such a negative view of marriage? You haven't indicated that her father was a particularly bad husband, or that he was messy or stupid. What makes her think so badly of men beyond sleeping with them?
- Did she take herbal contraceptives? If so, the success rate is not perfect, and so why hasn't she had a child yet?
- She Impressed a dragon at what age? You need to tell me her history beyond the arrival of her little green. That's a lot of history that's missing. Tell me about her Weyrlinghood, her first years as a Wingrider, how she's reacted to growing up as a Telgar greenrider. That's a difficult situation, and with every difficult situation I need to see evidence in the profile that you understand said situation and it has affected your character in some way, shape, or form.
- I have a hard time understanding how she can be so self-assured and not care about disapproval, but then have her major flaw be that she's so afraid of failure she'd just quit before it happens. You also mentioned in her history that she received a harsh critique from a Master and then left because of it. Why does she care about the critique from her Master, but then not at the harsh words (which I would imagine would be quite nasty) from the Hold women? Wouldn't she see that as failure too in the eyes of her peers?
- Ayath also strikes me as somewhat contrary. If she's so insecure that she blames everything on herself, how can she be secure enough in herself to stick with something? Wouldn't she second-guess herself in the middle of everything?
- How does Ayath help Robina set realistic goals when she's insecure and lacks confidence? The same for encouraging Robina.
I can see where you're really trying to pull these guys together, and I definitely appreciate it. <3 But as she stands right now, I can't accept her.
I think you should focus on trying to create a character with an easier, less complex background which will help you focus on her character rather than her life. Try to make as many direct ties from events in her history to how they've affected who she is today. The fact that the history is five times the word length of your personality is a little worrying for me. XD
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