Application for Eudio

PLAYER INFORMATION

NAME: Kerry
AGE: 30
CONTACT: halfbloodly
CHARACTERS PLAYED: Rafaello d'Este (mordacita)

CHARACTER INFORMATION

NAME: Nikolai Lantsov. He would use his alias 'Sturmhond' in game if that's okay!
CANON: The Grisha Trilogy and Six of Crows series
AGE: 24
CANON POINT: The end of Crooked Kingdom (released 27 September).

BACKGROUND:

Nikolai is a supporting character in books two and three of The Grisha Trilogy. He does not appear in the first book, though is briefly mentioned. He also appears in the second book of the related Six of Crows series. Relevant links below:

Series wiki
Book 2 - Siege and Storm
Book 3 - Ruin and Rising
Book 2 of the Six of Crows series - Crooked Kingdom

Character wiki

INCENTIVE:

Let him just give you a list of the problems his country is facing today. They've just emerged from a civil war and years of financial mismanagement by his not-forbears. His Grisha army still needs rebuilding and meanwhile the countries on either side of Ravka remain his enemies. To survive, Ravka has borrowed heavily from the Kerch banks and these are loans with sizeable interest that need repaying. So, to help them get back on an even keel, he will ask for his country's Kerch loans to be repaid in full, allowing Ravka to rebuild a stable economy. He'll hug everyone he meets for that!

FIT:

As a general rule, Nikolai presents himself as friendly, flirtatious, and charming. However, that doesn't tell the whole story of his attitude. In practice he is very practical, and struggles to let people past enough of his secrets to form a genuine emotional attachment. His charm tends to be surface-level, though he'll flirt with almost anyone. However it should be noted that he has some reservations around sexual activity. Notably, one of the rules among his crew is that men and women must sleep separately, which seems to be to protect the women from unwanted advances. He additionally spent most of his life hearing rumours that he was a bastard child, and not the true son of the King - rumours that were eventually proven true, when his mother admitted it before leaving for the Southern Colonies. On the surface, Nikolai acts as though he doesn't care about this, but he makes various comments which suggest that he does. In particular, he tells Alina that should she marry him, he would not allow Mal to remain as her guard, since he would not want similar rumours to circulate around their children. However, Eudio's rules around (and enforcement of) consent would reduce any concerns he might have around coercion. His concerns around creating an illegitimate child will remain, but his world does not have the options around birth control that would be available to him here. He is still unlikely to be very sexually promiscuous (though he is likely to talk as though he will be), though he will eventually grow more comfortable with this as he gets familiar with the setting and becomes assured that there are ways to avoid an accidental heir. At first, he'll be more likely to kiss and cuddle his way towards his incentive. Sex will take some development.

CONSENT:

Nikolai has never broken sexual consent in canon, and has expressed strong negative feelings about the idea of coercion. This is shown through his making separate sleeping arrangements for men and women on board his ship, and through his furious reaction to discovering his 'father' had raped Genya Safin while she was his servant. Nikolai orders the King to abdicate, saying that if he does not do so, he will try him for rape and see him hanged. This also indicates that rape is a capital offence in Ravka. Nikolai would naturally abide by Eudio's rules on consent, whether he was ordered to or not.

However, he has broken consent on a smaller scale - in Siege and Storm he kisses Alina without her permission, to fuel rumours that they are a couple. He apologises for this afterwards, though he's certainly not sorry about the rumours. He won't do this in Eudio, however; he won't be motivated to make himself appear to be attached to anyone, since being single and available would be more practical here anyway. Also, he'll be aware that he would get in trouble and risk being sent home without his incentive for this behaviour, and that will keep him in line even if logic does not! He also lies, a lot. He obfuscates, evades, and outright lies when it suits his purposes. This is something that won't change in Eudio - he's secretive by nature. This is likely to make it difficult for people to get emotionally close to him, but he's not here to trick anyone into bed; that kind of behaviour would disgust him.

As Sturmhond, he also has a reputation for violent and mercenary behaviour. He is known to be a ruthless privateer, willing to do what needs to be done to win his battles. He has hurt people, killed people during war, and managed to give at least the appearance of amorality. This has included kidnapping Alina and Mal, although it should be noted he only did so in order to later rescue them from the Darkling. While his heart is more gold than he'd admit, he has still done the deeds to achieve his reputation. For Nikolai, this behaviour was a means to achieving his ends. More than anything else, he is a practical character who has been shown over and over again to be willing to do whatever he must in order to achieve his goals. Due to that trait, he will be willing to behave in a manner that is non-violent in order to achieve his incentive.

SAMPLES:

Test drive threads: Top level | with Simon | with Anna

ANYTHING ELSE?

1. Nikolai has the habit of concealing his identity while he is away from home. He's unlikely to tell anyone his real name or any details about his royal life unless they become highly trusted friends (or they somehow guess/already know). To the majority of characters, he will only ever present himself as Sturmhond.

2. He would want to bring his revolvers (two Zemeni guns, plus ammunition), his longsword, and several knives with him. The blades are all made from Grisha steel. If approved, he would seek appropriate permits for his weapons.

3. Inventory:
♛ Teal frock coat
♛ Leather boots
♛ Shirt and pants; style comparable to 18th Century Russian dress
♛ Small suitcase containing several changes of clothes
♛ Portfolio filled with designs for his ships

4. If possible, could he bring cash equivalent of 10,000 darians to set himself up here? Ravka's coffers need refilling, but that's in the realm of millions, not thousands. He'd see it as a good investment that will help fix their problems in the long run.