This is a bit of a weird one, while yes it is technically part of my "Dietrich Cycle" project (hence its T.S faceclaim), the fact that it is based entirely in pure history as opposed to the mythology surrounding Dietrich makes this lean in the Karl der Große direction in comparison to Dietrich's Charlemagne...
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Lancer
"This modern era sure is convenient, it may even be a paradise - but it is not enough for you, correct? Humans feel the most happiness when they overcome adversity and what greater joy could you find then by staking your greedy little wish on the deaths of six strangers - that is why I agreed to be summoned, to meet the one who can prove my little hypothesis."
https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/ty...Lancercard.jpghttps://assets.rpgsite.net/images/im...h-Aesfrost.jpg
True Name: Flavius Odoacer
Epithet: "The Founder King of Italy"
Region:HungaryItaly (5th Century A.D)
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Likes: Conflict, Strategy
Dislikes: Barbarians, Blasphemy
Talents: Hastilude, Nine Men’s Morris
Natural Enemy: Theodoric the Great
Parameters
STR: (C) END: (C) AGI: (B) MGI: (D) LCK: (D) NP: (C)
Character
“Maybe I am insane, or perhaps it’s the entire world - but either way I know one thing for sure, the person who wins in the end is the one in the right. Besides, my hands are already stained with so much blood, I see little reason to stay them now…”
Lancer takes the form of Flavius Odoacer, the man who dissolved the Western Roman Empire and became the First King of Italy.
Even at a mere glance, Odoacer is a man who radiates the quiet nobility of a man who does not need to announce himself as royalty when he walks into the room. Speaking in a quiet and calm voice no matter the situation, he is polite to both allies and enemies alike, addressing everyone as “Sir” or “Madam” regardless of their status with only the occasional dry witty remark raised against people who do not show the same courtesy. Needless to say, this soft spoken gentleman is hiding a cold-blooded Machiavellian mind. In his life, Odoacer deeply admired the Roman Empire and its Patricians who stood at the top of society - a mindset born from his father instilling in him the belief that all humans start their lives equally at “zero” no matter their origin and they can only obtain happiness by working hard to reach a higher status than where they started. Despite claiming to be a Christian, Odoacer says that this ravenous ambition can override cultural norms, legality and even morality as the strong will always devour the weak. Odoacer will encourage this mentality in his Master, seeing it as something everyone should strive for and would uplift society as people wouldn’t mire themselves in mediocrity. Nevertheless, although ruthless Odoacer was not a brute as both allies and foes alike acknowledged him as a skilled politician and administrator as his reign over Italy was marked by gaining the cooperation of the Senate as well as lenient policies on things like taxes and religion which prevented any fresh uprisings throughout his entire rule. He was also not above showing mercy such as when he not only allowed the child Emperor Augustulus to peacefully abdicate, but gave him some money to travel to Campania to live quietly with his relatives. Perhaps it is a fondness for his wife Sunigilda and son Thela that causes him to “go soft” in such moments as he would say.
However, though he tries his best to be stoic, it was not possible for Odoacer to completely suppress the “distractions” he called emotions. They rattle around inside, building up and so when Odoacer’s composure is finally broken they have a tendency to burst out violently. The easiest way to do so would be the presence of anything connected to his detested rival, Theodoric the Great - the man who assassinated Odoacer under the guise of signing a treaty, then had his wife stoned to death and his son chased out of the country then hunted down and killed. Even worse would be the fact that the Mediæval literature romanticized Theodoric as the hero of legend, “Dietrich von Bern” whilst demonizing Odoacer as a pretender king. As a result, encountering anyone connected to Theodoric will cause Odoacer’s rage to boil up and dangerously start to tunnel-vision him into destroying them. Another point of contention would be how Odoacer spent his entire life trying to cultivate the image of a perfect Roman Patrician and so if someone were to take notice of his “shameful” origins and were to deride him that he is a fraud and nothing more than a Barbarian, that would cause his ire to rise immensely.
Having been summoned to the modern era, Odoacer is impressed to see that Italy still survives in some form after so many centuries, although he isn’t pleased at the dominance of Catholicism which seems to have completely eradicated his own native Arianism. In regards to the Holy Grail War, Odoacer prefers to treat it more like one of his military campaigns rather than a slugfest. To that end, he tries to quickly position himself as a strategic advisor to his Master, rather than their familiar to command so that he can more easily control their actions and curb any irrational/emotional moves. The plan would be to take it slow, avoiding drawn out battles and gaining as much intelligence as possible before trying to play off the opponents against one another to wear them down. Anyone who rushes at Odoacer thinking he’s just some dandy will be in for a rude awakening as underneath those fancy clothes are the muscles of a career soldier and Odoacer is in fact no slouch in direct combat. Although he protests, Odoacer does secretly enjoy the adrenaline rush of battle but tries to temper it as it often interferes with his strategic thinking as well as him being self-conscious about being seen as too barbaric.
His wish upon the Grail?
“I’m sure you’ve heard the saying before: If I had been one second faster or slower, I would have been a victim of that accident. Things where the end result depended on good or bad luck - but there’s no such thing. It’s just a societal misapprehension caused by a cognitive bias that refuses to take responsibility for themselves. The truth is that once you remove everything extraneous and view things objectively, what you find is that those with power can survive any supposed misfortune whilst those too weak are crushed. I’ll admit it, I lacked the strength to oppose that wretched Theodoric once he had united the Barbarian tribes against me. That’s why if I had the Grail’s power, I could not only destroy him but finally sate this hunger. After all, the world only needs one King - isn’t that right, Zeno?”
SkillsClass Skills
Magic Resistance - (C)
The protection granted against magical effects. Differing from the Resistance effect that merely rejects Magical Energy, this ability cancels the spells altogether. Despite the fact that Odoacer was a normal human who could not use magecraft, his time as a military commander during the days of antiquity meant that he often saw it used openly on the battlefield and as such has built up a decent amount of immunity to its effects. Now incarnated as a Servant, Odoacer automatically will cancel out spells with a chant of two verses or below. However he cannot defend against magecraft on the level of Greater Rituals.
Riding - (C)
A Class Skill denoting the ability to ride mounts and vehicles. Rider-Class Servants will typically possess the highest Rank. It is said that dragon type mounts are an exception, requiring a different ability other than Riding. Being the leader of the Foederati which were often in charge of supplying cavalrymen to the Roman Empire, Odoacer has plenty of experience in horse-riding and was said to be skilled at the martial game of hastilude. As a result, he can handle most vehicles and animals with above average skill, even vehicles that did not exist in the time period he was alive in, for they are no exception. However, he cannot ride the likes of Phantasmal Species such as Monstrous Beasts.
Personal Skills
Blessing of the Saint - (C)
A blessing from a certain Holy Man that grants the ability to raise one’s luck in certain circumstances. Born from an anecdote of the life of Saint Severinus where he met a group of young barbarians on their way to Italy and they listened to his preaching. Taking note of the youngest boy in rags, Severinus showed pity and predicted his fortune, seeing a bright future as the King of Italy. This of course was young Odoacer and his dedication to Christianity through both his life and beyond has earned him the Saint’s blessing to where in battle Odoacer is able to initiate a Push Roll in situations where his normal Luck Stat wouldn’t be able to clear it. Thus to the untrained observer, it will seem miraculous how a projectile might suddenly swerve at the last second to avoid Odoacer, or how his Master’s pocket watch that was entrusted to him took the blow from a sword stab that was aimed at Odoacer’s heart.
Howl of the Barbarian - (B)
A state of uncontrolled frenzy, not dissimilar to the Mad Enhancement of the Berserker Class. It was the long standing tradition amongst the Huns that man exists only for battle and their culture imposed that their warriors give into their primal emotions in order to become an avatar of destruction like their leader, Attila. Normally Odoacer’s rational nature suppresses these “barbaric” base urges, but once damage is received a Luck Check is performed and should he fail then this Skill activates, causing Odoacer to become much more violent and aggressive in combat than normal. The finesse of his fighting technique is lost, but in return mental interference is negated and his melee damage increases until combat has ended and the Skill resets. The major difference between this state and that of a Berserker is that Odoacer is still capable of some limited thought and speech.
Incitement of the Demagogue - (C)
A mental attack caused by the words and gestures designed to arouse the negative emotions in other people to control them. In his attempts to rise through the ranks of the Roman Empire, Odoacer often appealed to the Germanic tribes to revolt against their Patricians and even the occasional Emperor such as Anthemius or Orestes in order to get them out of the way so that Odoacer could usurp their positions and eventually rise to the status of King. By invoking this tactic as a Servant, it can be used in a variety of ways, the most cynical being to stir up a mob of civilians into attacking either an enemy Servant or Master and using them as cover for Odoacer’s real attack. Other applications include but are not limited to using it as a Taunt in order to direct all attacks on Odoacer, or to disrupt an opponent’s focus when reciting verses in order to cast Magecraft.
Noble Phantasm
Danse Macabre
Ego Sum Ossum Hastae Meae
[Type: Anti-Unit], [Rank: C], [Maximum Range: 1~2], [Maximum Number of Targets: 1]
Upon being summoned, an astute Master may notice that at Odoacer’s hip lies a standard-issue Roman Spatha sword strapped to his belt. Even when going into battle, there is still no sign of a spear or any kind of polearm that would justify his place in the Lancer Class. It seems that only when Odoacer is back against the wall will he finally use that detested Noble Phantasm…
It seems that sometime after Odoacer’s death, Theodoric’s followers mythologized their conflict so that instead of a simple assassination, Odoacer and “Dietrich” engaged in a fierce jousting match in which after Odoacer was slain, Dietrich examined the body and exclaimed that “this man has no bones!” This bizarre retelling of Odoacer’s final battle became immortalized in mediæval art and literature and as a result has affected Odoacer’s body in grotesque ways. As a Servant, Odoacer has remarkable control over his skeletal anatomy through the usage of osteoblasts, allowing him to increase the density of his bones to tank hits or to hollow them out like a bird’s in order to greatly improve his agility. He can even temporarily break down his bone tissue to change its malleability so that Odoacer can bend and rotate his body in unnatural and horrifying ways to dodge attacks or get out of binds.
But the true combat application is the ability to go one step beyond and use the osteoblasts to siphon off calcium and form skeletal structures outside of Odoacer’s body. The most common application would be the “Rib Blades” technique where if an unsuspecting enemy tries to engage in close-quarters combat, Odoacer can reform his ribs from the skin of his torso, lunging towards the enemy in an attempt to impale them. More importantly would be the real reason for Odoacer’s designation to the Lancer Class. By siphoning off as much calcium as possible, Odoacer creates a bone lance growing out of and spiraling around his right arm. Because of the sheer density, this lance is harder than steel allowing it to easily clash with swords or block arrows. Furthermore whilst his ability to manipulate calcium decreases once it is outside of his body, it is still possible for Odoacer to subtly modify the bone lance such as thinning it to increase its length in order to adjust to the situation in combat. However whilst a formidable weapon, if the bone lance is destroyed whilst in use it will be devastating since obviously it contained most of Odoacer’s bone material and without it he will be left defenseless, like a fish on dry land.
As an aside, the reason why Odoacer dislikes this Noble Phantasm is twofold. Firstly it represents the fictional battle he lost against Theodoric which Odoacer protests he wouldn’t have lost if it happened in reality and he hadn’t been assassinated. The other reason is that it has a tendency to rip and tear his expensive clothes which he finds annoying.
LoreLong ago there existed an ancient group of Germanic Barbarians known as "the Pure Ones" - the Scirians. During the late 4th Century A.D they were conquered by the Huns and incorporated into their Empire, primarily as disposable infantry as they tried to encroach on the Roman Empire. But everything started to change with the meteoric rise of Altera to the position of their King, as following her wherever she went was the weaselly man Edeko who advised her on everything as her deputy and ambassador. It was during one such diplomatic mission that Edeko by chance was in Constantinople negotiating with the Eastern Roman Emperor, that the tragedy of the Nibelungenlied happened that severely weakened the Huns and Edeko saw his chance to unite the Scirian people and revolt, creating a Kingdom for them in their homelands of the Great Hungarian Plains.
Witnessing all this was young Odoacer, the son of Edeko and his Scirian wife who was the prince of this new kingdom. But such happiness could not last and both the Scirians and Ostrogoths were competing for dominance in the region, which led to the death of Edeko at the hands of King Theodemir. With their newborn kingdom already collapsing, Odoacer fled with his brother Onoulphus to seek sanctuary in Rome. On their way there, the Scirians came across a holy man on the road and decided to stop and pay their respects. Unbeknownst to Odoacer, this was Saint Severinus who upon shaking the young man's hand, said that despite the boy's ragged clothes, he would go on to do amazing things.
Arriving in Rome, Odoacer and his brother enlisted in the Roman army. Together they made their way through the ranks with Onoulphus becoming Magister Militum of the Balkan forces whilst Odoacer became the leader of the Foederati or the Germanic Barbarian mercenaries. By the year 475, the unpopular Julius Nepos was ruling as Western Roman Emperor when his right hand man and general, Orestes started a rebellion and drove Nepos out of Italy...but refused to pay the mercenaries for their services. Seeing his chance, Odoacer roused up the Foederati and under the ruse of restoring Nepos launched a series of attacks on the usurper Orestes. But after capturing the capital and executing Orestes, Odoacer realized that the general had made his own son Augustulus the new Emperor instead. Although convention demanded that Odoacer kill the child, he was moved by the boy's innocence and convinced him to abdicate and sent him off to live with his family outside the Empire.
Although the army was cheering for Odoacer as the new "King of Italy", he was still cautious as news had arrived that Zeno had recently ascended to the throne of Eastern Roman Emperor. Odoacer decided to gift him the Western Imperial Insignia with the message that "one monarch sufficed to rule the world" and in return, Zeno granted Odoacer the title of Patrician and granted him legal authority to govern Italy in the name of the Empire. Now having become a Roman Aristocrat, "Flavius Odoacer" proceeded to completely ignore Zeno's request to restore Nepos as puppet king of Italy and instead chose to rule it himself, all while paying cheap lip service to Zeno to deter any opposition. Through political maneuvering, Odoacer gained the cooperation of the Senate and was able to rule Italy with an iron fist.
Odoacer's power increased as he started to conquer the surrounding territories, thus Zeno naturally started to see him as a threat. He bargained with Odoacer's rival, King Theodoric of the Ostrogoths and promised them the Italian Peninsula if they removed Odoacer. So began the fierce battle of the Germanic tribes, not just Odoacer and Theodoric's men, but also the Burgundians, Vandals and the Visigoths jumped into the fray, vying for supremacy. Amongst this chaotic melee, Odoacer was slowly losing as his enemies approached from all sides. Eventually the Bishop of Ravenna was able to negotiate a treaty between Odoacer and Theodoric but it was an obvious ruse by the latter for an assassination attempt. Nevertheless, Odoacer decided to acquiesce to the request and together the two kings dined in the imperial palace of Honorius. But once they finished their meal, Theodoric stood up and drawing his sword, struck down his host where he sat. As he lay dying, Odoacer asked where God was in all this, to which Theodoric responded that his avenging of his fallen comrades was divine retribution. But that wasn't enough for Theodoric as he had Odoacer's wife stoned to death, his brother shot down by archers as he sought sanctuary in a church, and his son chased to Gaul and eventually slain as well. Yet despite his inglorious end, Odoacer had laid the foundations for a great kingdom in Italy in the centuries to come.
RelationshipsAltera - "I keep telling myself I shed my ties to my birthplace. Yet nevertheless it is frustrating to see Hungary itself promote the fiction that they are the descendants of your Empire."
Beowulf - "Ah, did you just call your sword ‘Nagelring’? A successor of Theodoric, I’m afraid your life is now forfeit."
Brynhildr - "Ah, Lady Brünhilde. My congratulations on how your petty rivalry with Kriemhild managed to destroy two entire kingdoms in one."
Constantine XI Palaiologos - "I must say, compared to Zeno you seem like a much more amiable fellow. But I am still not sad to see the end of the so-called Eastern Roman Empire."
Julius Caesar - “If it isn’t the ‘Dictator Perpetuo’. Some say you are the greatest Roman statesman to have ever lived. I know I have often considered you a mirror in which to contemplate my own life.”
Kriemhild - “It is often strange how one’s actions can cause ripples and affect another. Believe me, I had no idea that my driving Hildebrand into exile would cause a chain of events that led to him beheading you.”
Romulus - "It is my great honour to meet the creator of our esteemed Empire."
Siegfried - "That sword, Balmung. Indeed, I do recongise it, after all it once belonged to that wretched Hildebrand."
Creator's NotesContinuing on my trudge through the Dietrich mythos, although things get a bit complicated when it comes to Odoacer as he's firmly rooted in actual history as opposed to Dietrich who has one foot in mythology and the other in history as "Theodoric". Thus this is more of an entry in the Dietrich Cycle on a technicality.
There is actually some fascinating discourse over the nature of Odoacer’s parentage, with some suggesting that he may have even been the great nephew of Attila which obviously wouldn’t have worked with Altera. Still, for the sake of simplicity I went with the most commonly accepted explanation which was that Odoacer was the son of the Hun named Edeko who took a Scirian wife. Speaking of the Huns, I was going to make more of the fact that the Nasuverse definitively states that they are descended from the Xiongnu peoples but I couldn’t think of a relevant Servant for Odoacer to mention that to in the Relationship section.
The Faceclaim is Gustadolph Aesfrost from you know it, you love it - "Triangle Strategy". Although Odoacer takes his personality more so from Vayne Solidor from “Final Fantasy XII”. Also shoutout to Kimimaro from Naruto since by reading the explanation for his Kekkai Genkai it allowed me to put into words the scientific process behind Odoacer’s Noble Phantasm.
All comments are criticisms are welcome of course~ :umu:
