Whether or not it's an AU: Could be applied to either.
Alright, makes sense.
Era/Time Period: Any (Soveliss is immortal).
Right.
Name: Soveliss (he made the name himself, that's why it's peculiar in contrast to all other dragon names).
Yup.
If it's not the reason already, maybe make the reason why he chose such a peculiar name to be because he didn't know how naming works in Pyrrhia.
Age: Soveliss has lived since the scorching, and because the books aren't specific about when it was, I'll just say 13,000
*puts on WoF nerd glasses on* aCTUALLY, it has been 5,012 YEARS SINCE THE SCORCHING—
(But srsly, tho, he should be, like, 5,010 years old if he has been created during The Scorching)
Gender: As a shapeshifter, Soveliss can be either gender, but prefers to be a male.
*nods*
Sexuality: Due to a fluid gender identity, Soveliss doesn't conform to one idea of sexuality or another. But 85% of the time, if he is in a male form, he is attracted to females, and if he is in a female form, he is attracted to males.
Interesting, but I'm not sure how that works.
From what I understand, if one were to be a shapeshifter who could shift between female/male forms, I think their sexuality would stay the same. (Just to be clear, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with any sexualities or genders or anything — I'm just trying to be logical here.)
So... maybe make their sexuality permanent in both/any forms?
Tribe: As previously stated, Soveliss is not of a tribe. In fact, his normal appearance is a disturbing mix of all the tribes.
Yup.
Queen they Support: Soveliss fundamentally operates with a mercenary mentality. He will serve any individual, be it a queen, or anyone, if they prove that the arrangement can be mutually beneficial. Soveliss (due to a part of his curse) cannot ever knowingly tell a lie; that is why he never specifically swears loyalty to anyone.
Alrighty.
Abilities: Soveliss was a spirit outside of reality before he came into being. Therefore, once given a physical body, he still retained some of these supernatural powers. This is why Soveliss can animate objects, mimicking an animus enchantment. The way it works for Soveliss is that he pours magic into the object, giving it a false semblance of sentience and life, but still binds its will to his.
Alrighty. Maybe make it so, when he pours magic into an object, he pours HIS magic and therefore, along with his own magic, the magic binding him to a physical form as well, which therefore makes him grow quite weak if he uses the ability too much.
If you add that, though, you could also add that because his magic is HIS, the object therefore acts somewhat like him (for example — if Soveliss twitches a lot, then the object twitches a lot too). Additionally, you could add that they have an almost telepathic connection — if Soveliss wishes the object to do a particular act strongly, then the object will sense what Soveliss wants it to do and will do it.
But of course, those are all suggestions.
One more thing is — how does the spirit - thing work? I didn't really question it before, but I should have, so I'm questioning it now.
Was he simply a group of life essence, floating outside reality? And what do you mean "outside reality"? Was he just a soul, somehow detached from a body? Are there more spirits outside of his reality, wherever he is? Where is he outside of reality?
There are lots of questions that need to be answered with that, with how it works and such.
Soveliss' second ability is to be able to teleport short distances (that he can draw a line of sight to) and transform into a strange wisp-like entity. These abilities are two sides of the same coin: Soveliss was a ghost-like creature before being given a physical form by the amulet. But Soveliss can still exit that physical form and re-create it at will. So effectively, the wisp is the true Soveliss. The teleportation is Soveliss literally popping in and out of reality for a second.
Cool. It makes sense, and it works, actually.
Soveliss can also summon pure magical energy to make direct attacks. He can also read minds, and make others see, hear, feel, smell, or taste things that aren't there, or vice versa.
Hmm. Maybe can be the result of the enchantment on the amulet, because it seems a bit OP, and it doesn't really match the other abilities.
Maybe make up a reason for gifting him with these abilities — maybe in order to win The Scorching, they had to make him cast illusions upon the scavengers or something. I don't know.
Rank:
Soveliss' long life has given him many ranks over the years. But he is often found in the service of queens or strong officials. Frequently he is in positions of power, but never as the main ruler.
I see.
Appearance:
Soveliss is short by dragon standards (based on this article: https://rouxzee.deviantart.com/art/Wings-of-Fire-How-Big-are-the-Dragons-UPDATED-471608178 ). He is about the size of an average sandwing (again, based on the article).
I have some... issues with the article, but I'm not about to go on a full-fledge debate on dragon size on an OC Review, so I'll just leave it at "I have issues with it".
With that in mind, Soveliss has the scale coloration of a nightwing, as well as the teardrop scale. He possesses the wings of a skywing, the fins and gills of a seawing, the spikes of an icewing, the tail barb of a sandwing, and the general body structure of a rainwing (can't spit venom though). His eyes are the most disturbing: the pupils are a swirling maelstrom of purple and gold, as if armies of purple and gold were constantly fighting over dominance of his pupils.
This deformed existence came out of an accident. When Soveliss was brought into being, there was a flaw, and he could make his own body. As a spirit of Soveliss' disposition, he had a distorted idea of what Pyrrhia was: he thought that there was only one species of dragon, and tribes meant nothing more than factions. So, in an attempt to fit in, Soveliss ironically made himself even more of a monster.
Fair explanation.
Personality:
(Hold on to your butts, this is a long one to explain).
Soveliss can be fundamentally described as an eccentric. Every action he makes or does just isn't quite right. It's not to say that he's socially awkward, he is the exact opposite. It's just obvious that Soveliss isn't normal. His thought processes don't always make sense unless his actions are looked at in context.
Soveliss is ultimately a good person (or dragon?) but he doesn't always act that way. To better sum up his nature, I think it is best to look at each individual trait and explain what that really means.
1:
Soveliss is a master manipulator, Soveliss would explain it best "Some never say what they do, others never do what they say." Due to his curse, Soveliss cannot tell a lie, therefore he loves to bend and play with words to the extreme so he can get what he wants.
2:
Soveliss isn't cruel. He strongly believes in a Machiavellian approach to cruelty which is "Destroy, and never wound." This means that if Soveliss is your enemy, he will kill you, and do it quick. Soveliss does have trouble holding back sadistic tendencies and occasionally goes overboard.
3:
Soveliss fears animus dragons. Nothing scares him more, and there is nothing he hates more (even though his biggest regret is having killed an animus dragon). If Soveliss discovers another to be an animus dragon, he reverts to one of three tactics, befriend them and manipulate them as best he can, or he tries to kill them as fast as possible (but still staying safely out of harm's way). The third is to hide.
4:
Soveliss hates himself. Soveliss has many regrets for his past actions. He doesn't want to keep on living, and genuinely believes that he is a cancer on the world. But he doesn't have the guts nor ability to end himself. That is the one thing that Soveliss wants to do, and the one thing he can't do. Because he can't touch his own amulet.
5:
Despite the prior wish for death, Soveliss believes that life is the most beautiful of things, despite his long life, Soveliss still worries that he won't be able to see or do enough. Soveliss wants nothing more than to squeeze every last ounce of fun and entertainment as he can out of every day he has. This contributes some to his eccentricity.
6:
Soveliss is brutally honest. He is much like an old and cantankerous grandparent: somewhat stubborn and set in his ways. He will happily tell you to your face that you smell like (censored).
7:
Soveliss loves music and the more fine arts. Soveliss loves writing, and has (under various aliases) made plenty of works of his own. He loves art and music. In fact, he is even fond of comedy. A fun pastime of Soveliss' is to animate instruments and improvise a song out of nothing.
*nods*
Backstory:
Soveliss was created during the Scorching. He was meant to be a weapon, born of animus magic. The dragons responsible for creating Soveliss (whose names are lost to all but Soveliss) captured an animus dragonet and forced him to make the enchantment. The enchantment was placed on an amulet of solid gold. In the center of the amulet was a gemstone that is the color of a pure amethyst, but what it actually is, that is also unknown. The enchantment forced a spirit from ancient myth to take on physical form. The creature named itself "Soveliss."
Soveliss was enslaved to the queens, who shared his amulet. Whoever wore the amulet could control Soveliss. Anyone wearing the amulet would merely have to speak Soveliss' name, and then the command they wanted. And Soveliss would have no choice but to obey (however he quickly became adept at "misinterpreting" commands).
This continued over the course of the Scorching, but at the final battle, Soveliss used a few allies to swap his true amulet for a false one. And Soveliss faked his death then the false amulet shattered during the final battle.
After the Scorching:
Soveliss lay low for centuries, and entrusted his amulet to hide in the depths of the vaults of the night kingdom. Because of the complexity of that place, it blended in with the rest of the treasure.
It was at this point that Soveliss refined his acting skills, taking on multiple faux aliases. He discovered his love for the fine arts and became a writer of philosophical works. After a few centuries of this thing, the Nightwing queen captured the descendants of the ones who had helped fabricate Soveliss' death. They confessed this to her. So began a nationwide frenzy to find Soveliss' amulet, and therefore Soveliss. Soveliss, confident in his ability to act, continued on living under monikers and aliases.
However, under almost comical coincidence, an archeologist in the ancient Nightwing vaults, found the amulet and gave it to the queen. Using the amulet, she forced Soveliss out of hiding. For the next 400 years, Soveliss was the advisor, spy, and slave of the Nightwing dynasty.
Soveliss eventually worked out a loophole in the commands the Nightwing Queens had placed on him, and poisoned the whole family. But he went out of his way to make sure the poison was as quick and painless as possible. With the Nightwing Queen dead, Soveliss convinced the new rulers to give him back his amulet, under the threat that he "would find another loophole and extinguish your lives like the pathetic flame of a candle."
From that, Soveliss was tired of the death and bloodshed he had facilitated and seen during that time serving the Nightwings. So he went to Jade Mountain, and built a grand lair within the caves.
It was there he lived in solitude, rarely leaving. 100 years passed, and Soveliss suddenly had an epiphany, he set out and jumped into the fray of politics as the war between the Icewings and Nightwings was building. He took on the role of advisors and generals. He loved the thrill of manipulating the sides and playing God. All this time, he hid his amulet in a secret compartment in his lair.
But once Darkstalker emerged, Soveliss fled back into his lair of Jade mountain and did not emerge for 50 years. Once he was sure that Darkstalker had left, he returned to the night city to find nothing left.
Soveliss returned to his old habits and began just manipulating politics and generally enjoying the role of puppet master. But once the War of Sandwing Succession began, Blister found Soveliss' lair and amulet. So Soveliss became Blister's personal spy and advisor. But Blister kept Soveliss a complete secret to all others. So nobody ever suspected that Soveliss served her, but well after the fact, that information did become common knowledge, along with rumors of them having a romantic affiliation (which Soveliss never specifically denied).
After the War of Sandwing Succession, Soveliss went incognito. When Darkstalker reappeared, Soveliss fled to Pantala (which he had visited before). While there, and after, he still went by his old ways.
Until the rise of the Empire (which you need to check my book for because this backstory is long enough!)
The backstory's PITCH PERFECT, dude. Change nothing, it's awesome.
Residence:
Soveliss has the lair hidden inside the JMA as well as a bunch of secret tunnels through the academy. He also possesses a home which is another cave he modified, this one is in the Sky Kingdom.
Okay.
Family and Friends:
Soveliss has had many family and friends over the years which I won't bother listing because this form is too damn long!
Lololol ok. Doesn't matter much anyway; not really like he had any blood relatives, hmm?
Mate: Soveliss has had MANY romantic liaisons over the years (to say he's a virgin is just false).
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Crush: Same as above
Okay
Dragonets:
If any of Soveliss' romantic relationships accidentally create offspring, Soveliss flees and never dares go anywhere near the dragonet or old lover, for fear of the dragonet ending up like his father. Any dragonets of Soveliss have a high likelihood of being either animus dragons, being a hybrid, or having some other magical powers.
Hmm. Still, you could at least provide some names?
Other:
Soveliss cannot interact nor touch the amulet that created him. If he tries to, an unseen force flings him away. However, Soveliss always knows exactly where the amulet is. He can also see through the gemstone of the amulet as if it were an eye (if he chooses to).
How does he move it then? Does he like, grab a long pole and push it to where he wants it to go? Lmao
Soveliss' amulet is currently hidden in the depths of the seawing kingdom's treasure hoards (because Soveliss is trying to hide the amulet in plain sight).
*nods*
Soveliss does not fear death, nor is he scared of killing others. This is for a simple reason, and the best way to explain it is to quote Soveliss himself.
"I have been condemned to eternally live, you may see that as beautiful. But it is painful! I have been killed, but I always reform, back to this! But in those moments of my dying breath I see into the world beyond. I see what death truly is. Beyond death, there is only consciousness! The denizens of this realm CHOOSE to live your mortal lives because the idea of pain, suffering, and struggle is so confusing and odd to them. They see struggle and challenge as this great mystery, so they choose to live in your fragile vessels so they may try to understand! But I can never wake up, never understand why they are curious, nor why you are sad. This is my sick, twisted existence!"
"So when I sever that little string keeping you here, I weep, but not because I am sorrowful for killing you, but because I envy you!"
(Keep in mind, Soveliss has to focus and concentrate with great effort in order to use his abilities beyond shapeshifting).
Also, Soveliss defines "Immortality" as a verb.
"Immortality, Verb: the act of watching others die while you continually endure,"
Interesting bits of information.
Soveliss also has many random idiosyncrasies that would make anyone (at least within the first impressions) think he was absolutely insane.
KK.
My Rating:
9.6/10
Originality: 25/25 (This character is completely original)
Realism: 21/25 (.5 points knocked off for the sexuality, 1 point knocked off for the age, 1 point knocked off for the lack of explanation addressed in the abilities, 1 point knocked off for the abilities in general, .5 points knocked off for the dragonets' missing names)
Interest: 25/25 (I'm very interested in this character)
Uniqueness: 25/25 (This character is very unique)
Comments:
Mostly, Soveliss has turned out to be a great character. A few places where you have to explain/change/add a few things, and you're good to go.