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APPLICATION FORM
You know the drill – you fill this out in its entirety, proofread it a couple times, upload it to your own webspace, and then send a link to your application to  . If you have any questions, feel free to ask them but please do not expect us to come up with your character for you. Please do not just stick your application in the body of an e-mail, as this sometimes formats weird and is difficult to read, and it just indicates a lack of effort on your part. There are plenty of places to get free webspace, and we do hope you know of some of them by now.
This application should be fairly straightforward, but if something confuses you please do not hesistate to ask for help. Please also include the following information in your e-mail:
 Your name.
Your contact information (e-mail and AIM).
Website (if any).
RP Experience.
All of that out of the way, we will now proceed to the application template. Please note that while everything listed is required, it is not meant to limit you - feel free to add any additional information you would like us to know about your character. (Favourite pizza topping? Most embarrassing moment? Whatever.)
THE INTERVIEW OPTION
For those who do not like to write 30 page novels or prefer to leave some wiggle room to develop their character as they play, we now have a new application option. You merely fill out everything on this page which is NOT marked OPTIONAL, and may feel free to write a shorter personality section than would otherwise be advised. You submit your application as normal, but note at the top that you would like to do the interview instead of turning in a full app. I will then interview you about your character, either live over AIM or by e-mailing you a set of questions.
The "interview" will consist of something like 20-30 questions, and about half will be preset ("Joe finds $20 on the street. What does he do?") while the other half will be drawn from your application (clarifying or detailing certain things mentioned briefly). This is not meant to be at all painful and is just be a way to flesh out the description of the character, not the character himself. It's a way for me to make sure you're comfortable with your character without you having to hand in War & Peace.
STATISTICS
Name: Starting off easy. Names can be just about anything, from real names to made-up. Please do not use a random Azn name for a non Azn character. We don't need or particularly want a bunch of Yukis and Tetsuyas running around.
Meaning: Unless you're just making a name up (which is also fine), you should be able to find this. Try Behind the Name or Homepager's Baby Names for a cool way to find names by meaning instead of the other way around. (If you are making up the name, could you also make up a meaning?)
Nicknames: Does your character go by anything other than his given name? Relevancy/explanations can't hurt either.
Age: We would prefer to avoid any characters younger than, say, 17, and older than perhaps 40. This is for logistical reasons – they're probably not going to be able to keep up, and it's much more difficult to battle with kids and the elderly for pure reasons of guilt. 8D Also, Acacia will need far more convincing to take on a "child" (which is anyone younger than, like, 22).
Birthdate: It'd be a good idea to check up on zodiac signs and birthstones before picking one. For simplicity's sake, we're sticking with the Earth zodiac. (No year is necessary.)
Zodiac Sign: Check for associated personality types before arbitrarily picking one. Astrology.com is as good a place as any other to start looking, although I am also fond of this site. (This one is also good, if you want to sort out ascendants, etc.)
Hometown: You can either chose an already existing city, or make something up. We're going to be very lax about this. You can also change this to "Homeland" or something if the character was born outside Actavia, which is completely possible.
Likes: More than three, please, and we're looking for depth and detail.
Dislikes: Ditto, but with things they don't like.
Quirks: Any pet peeves or unusual habits? Collections? Tastes? OPTIONAL
Hobbies: What does your character do in his spare time?
Strengths: Whatever he excels in - please, no "making friends" or anything like that. Try to show some insight into your character. Strengths are not generally your strong points as a character/good personality traits; those should go under personality below.
Weaknesses: When we say "weaknesses," generally we mean "faults." What are his shortcomings? What does he suck at? If you put "Boys," I swear I will hunt you down and tattoo a cow on your forehead.
Fears: Most people fear more than one or two things. Try to make these relevant, as well, and, if possible, explain them either here or in the history section. Please don't list "death," "pain," or "being alone" unless your character is unusally afraid of these things, because they're pretty generic fears.
Aspirations: What does he want to do with his life?
Occupation: What would he be doing if he hadn't gotten caught up in all this dragon nonsense? What's he trained to do for a living? Is he just a bum?
Other: Any additional stats (favorite food, hated food, favorite books, part-time jobs, religion, a description of his bedroom, his favourite belonging, etc) are not required, but they'll help to beef up your app and impress us. OPTIONAL
APPEARANCE
A couple paragraphs (or, alternatively, a list of each feature with a description) on your character's appearance. Ideally, we'd like body type/build, height, weight, fitness level, skin tone, any markings/blemishes (freckles, a mole, a scar..?), tattoos/piercings, hair style, colour, and length, eye colour and shape, facial details (nose? cheeks? chin? overall effect? etc), proportions, posture/body language, and style of clothing. Also, a description of the character's voice is usually helpful.
Although this section of the application seems tedious and usually has very sparse requirements, I feel that it's as important as personality to get a clear image of your character. (It makes it easier to draw pictures for you, too!) It also gives the reviewers a sense of your descriptive abilities, so try not to glance over this part of the application.
PERSONALITY
There is no length requirement for this section of the application, but bear in mind that it's the most important part of the profile - we just don't want you to BS and repeat yourself for three paragraphs. We want as indepth a look into your character's mind, lifestyle, habits, and behaviour as you can provide. Don't forget to distinguish between his behaviour around friends, family, strangers, "authority figures," etc. Clarity is much more important than length here - if you feel you can adequately describe your character in three (long) paragraphs, go for it. If you need twenty, that's fine too. If you need some help, refer to existing profiles for an idea of how much you should include. (Most of the current profiles are EXTREMELY LONG AND IN-DEPTH, so that's the level of quality you should be aiming for!)
Please also include your character's thoughts on technology, magic, Empire Corp, and his current situation. Does he like fighting? Does he like his dragon? Does he wish life had an Edit > Undo function?
IF you are opting for the "interview" option, this section may be shorter, but it should still probably be at least three paragraphs.
HISTORY
Where's he from? What's he been doing since he was born? What's his family like? What kind of upbringing did he have? Does he have any friends? Any background to his hobbies or things he excels at? Moments of glory? Traumatic experiences? (Since this world is a rather dangerous place at times, and law enforcement in certain areas can be laughable, we're going to be more flexible about angst. That is, you can have as tragic a past as you want as long as you can pull it off and it isn't the entire focus of your character, because.. angst isn't fun. D:) Don't forget to mention how and when he met his dragon and first learned of the Order.
IF you are opting for the "interview" option, this section may be written in bullet points instead of paragraphs. I know actually writing out history is generally the most painful part of an application, so hopefully this will save you some stress.
KNIGHT OF ACACIA
| strength | • |
| defense | • |
| magic | • |
| magic resistance | • |
| dexterity | • |
| evade | • |
| endurance | • |
Okay, here's how the dots work: You get 15 of them. No more, no less. The max you can have in any one category is four. So if your character has excellent defense but no evade skills, they're going to get four points under defense and none under evade and the rest dispersed in accordance with their skills. Not too hard. (Blame Sally for this very video-game-esque system.)
Armour: Do they wear any special gear when they go fighting? This doesn't have to include just armour - they could put on a special outfit, pull their hair back, whatever. In general, we want to know what your knight wears when fighting. (Though bear in mind that there's always the possibility of an ambush. As such, please note how often your knight wears this getup - does he journey in his armour? Does he just wear that breastplate all the time? Or does he only put it on when absolutely necessary? Also, some knights who can use Magic may have the ability to summon armour/weapons, or sort of 'transform' into this outfit. If that's the case, please note as such.)
Weapon: What's his weapon? What's it look like? (Please check out what the other character's have; we don't want a million characters running around with swords. Also, ANYTHING can be a weapon. Try something nonconventional, like jacks, a whiffle bat, something interesting.) Are there any special spells or techniques used with it? Does it raise or lower his agility/speed/strength/etc? If it's an unusual or rare weapon, do you have a picture? Also, please feel free to make things up, just be sure to describe them clearly.
Special Abilities: You could have a totally normal human, and that's fine. But, as this is a fantasy game, your character may also have some special inate abilities, which may or may not have anything to do with their ability to use magic. If your character has any such abilities – unusually strong intuition/sixth sense, unnatural strength or speed, whatever – please list them here. Also, while this is not by any means a requirement, note that in many instances it is these special abilities in addition to certain character qualities that lead to this individual being chosen to become a Knight in the first place.
Magic Abilities: Can he use any magic at all? How advanced is he, if yes? What kind of magic is he best at? What sort of spells does he know? Please be as precise as possible. We don't really want characters running around with unspecified amazing fire-starting abilities, or something.
Fighting Style: What's his style when he fights? Is he better at offense or defense? What kind of defense does he rely on - blocking, dodging, or something else? And what's his offense? Punching, hitting, kicking? How strong is he? How about endurance? Speed? Does he prefer keeping a distance, or does he thrive on hand-to-hand combat?
Strong Against: What types of attacks does he best stand up best to? Mental, physical, magic, tests of endurance or speed, what?
Weak against: Same as above but opposite; you get the picture. Does he fall for every psychic attack known to man? Or does one blow knock him out? Share.
DRAGON INFORMATION
Name: What should you call your dragon? It's entirely up to your knight's fancy. Some names of ancient dragons may be known in popular legend and it is feasible a knight would determine one appropriate for his own steed. Some names of old dragons in legends and such include Euphoris, Aglaia, Diaphane, Eucampse, Ocyte, Kathare, Notis, Malacia, Baryte, and Lycoris. Most knights would probably want a lofty, respectable, or simply "pretty" name for his/her dragon, but it is of course conceivable that one might choose a name like "Bob." This isn't recommended, however, as the dragon likely won't appreciate it much, and you're not going to be terribly intimidating riding a beast named Bob. :x (Please also explain why the knight chose this name.)
Description: What does your dragon look like? Please go beyond saying "SHE IS A BIG PURPLE DRAGON WITH GOLD EYES. 8D" What's her build? Is she bulky, slim, what? Is she more agile or strong? Is she rather large for a dragon, rather small, in the middle? Anything unusual about her proportions? What kind of scales does she have - smooth and sleek, rough, plated? Any horns/spikes/etc? Claws? Teeth? Tongue? Eyes? Colours? Markings? Wings? Don't forget to list weaknesses – soft underbelly, slow at turning, disoriented when upside down, what? (What is she, a crocodile?)
Temperament: What's she like? Generally, though dragons do have distinct personalities, they're not going to be described quite so articulately as a human. Describe her the way you'd talk about a pet dog or a horse or the like. Is she generally agreeable? Outgoing? Friendly? Nasty? Disobedient? Anxious? Unusually intelligent? Unusually stupid? Dragons should not display human levels of intelligence – or at least, if they do, we don't know – but they usually form some sort of understanding with their riders.
Abilities: Should be quite straightforward. What can your dragon do? Can she breathe fire? Bench-press a small car? Does she effect her environment in any way? (Small mammals flee at the scent of her?) What abilities does she have that would help in a battle?
Armour: Optional. Has your knight procured any special armour/saddle/harness/etc for his dragon? These things are essentially warhorses, and it is generally a good idea to try to protect any weak points, but some dragons (or knights) may not stand it (or think of it).
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Anything you want can be included here, but here are some suggestions:
Homeland Information: Tell us anything we need to know about your knight's native culture. This generally applies to knights born outside Actavia, but within the land is a considerably mix of different peoples, so it's probably a good idea to describe the city/area a bit, too. Is it more industrial? More Medieval? Large or small? Etc. OPTIONAL
Character Secrets: Anything your character is (gasp!) hiding from the rest of us. D: This can be removed from the final posted application if you desperately want to surprise people, but the GM needs to know. OPTIONAL
And.. anything else you want to add, really. Please package it all up pretty and then send it off to , with the subject "HEARTS APP: Knights -- CHAR NAME." Thank you!
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