Class: Striker
Identity: Bodhidharma
Gender: Male
Source: Historical fact
Origin: China
Alignment: True Neutral
Height: 179 cm
Weight: 93 kg
Parameters:
Strength: B
Endurance: A
Agility: B-
Mana: C
Luck: D
NP: C
SkillsClass skills
Natural Weapon: A-
Confers plus modifiers to checks related to body-to-body combat.
An expert martial artist with a great compatibility with the class container, but meditating for too long can atrophy his limbs and make his moves slower.
Magic Resistance: B
Protects against spells with a chant lower than three verses.
Due to a grudge towards his own weakness, Bodhidharma has become specially resistant against sleep-inducing effects.
Personal skills
Chinese Martial Arts (Shàolínquán): A+++
Mastery on martial arts. A unique case among skills in which one can only be considered to have properly learned it if the rank is A or higher due to the high difficulty of learning.
Bodhidharma is popularly considered to be the creator of Shaolin Kung Fu, one of the most famous martial arts, counting with a history of over 1,500 years, and has access to the oldest and purest form of it.
Battle Continuation: EX
Can keep fighting no matter the severity of his injuries, even at the brink of death.
No matter what, he’ll stand up again. At this point, even if he’s considered dead, he’ll probably just get up without any ceremony and go home.
Eyes of Accomplishment: C
An indicator of the Master’s growth and success in their goals, it’s an effect that appears in Bodhidharma’s eyes.
When summoned, Bodhidharma’s eyes are blank, without any iris or pupil. In the very moment the Master achieves a goal they longed for, or grow up as a person, one of his eyes will return to their original state, independently of whether the Master is aware of their accomplishment or not.
Incidentally, this doesn’t affect Bodhidharma’s sight at all.
Emptiness: A
As per the teachings of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, consciousness is the only reality. Everything is a phenomenon caused by the mind, and therefore, nothing.
By meditating with that thought in mind, the world around one disappears and any threat is dispelled. Only when assuming a battle stance does the effect break.
Noble Phantasm
Dá Mó HónglǜdēngMister Dharma fell down
Type: Anti-Unit
Rank: C
Range: 1
Maximum number of targets: 1 person
A Noble Phantasm that allows to nullify any sort of preemptive strike. With his guard apparently lowered and his back shown to the enemy, he suddenly turns and opens his eyes. The intensity and willpower contained in his stare becomes such that it sends any opponent flying away, as if pushed by an abrupt gust of wind.
Though it seems that Bodhidharma didn’t do anything but turning his face to the enemy, the truth is that he actually delivered a counter strike at such speed that it couldn’t be seen. However, that strike can only hit its mark if the target is still moving at the moment Bodhidharma opens his eyes. Thus, the only way to avoid being hit is to stop at the exact moment, what prevents the attack he was going to receive anyways.
CharacterPersonality
Just like in the legends, Bodhidharma is an ill-mannered old man that is reticent to socializing. Though he replies when asked, he never gives a direct answer, forcing the one who made the question to find out what he meant as if they were solving a sort of riddle.
Even if he’s not in favor of fights, the importance he gives to physical training combined with being summoned as a martial artist makes him a bit less reticent to battling, justifying himself with needing to avoid the atrophy of his limbs again and only putting a foot on the battlefield if he is attacked first. That said, he may get excited to fight from time to time, though he rarely lets that excitement come out to the surface.
Treatment with the Master
Seemingly cold and distant, Bodhidharma is still a preacher of Buddhism, and therefore willing to take the Master as his disciple, though only if he really considers it’s worth doing so. His tendency to speak enigmatically makes his teachings difficult, but he’s kind of supportive in his own way, and will give credit where it’s due as peculiarly as he says many other things.
Dialogue examples
Bond 1: “If you wish to be my apprentice, then you should just stay quiet. That will be faster for both of us.”
Bond 2: “Your body is in such a bad condition. Stand up, I’ll forge those muscles a bit.”
Bond 3: “Have we reached this point already? The pacing is not that bad, you finally achieved an eye.”
Bond 4: “Zzzzz…… Ah! You fool, don’t you interrupt me during my meditation! Sleeping? Clean those ears, can’t you hear I was reciting a sutra?!”
Bond 5: “Now, we’ve been together for enough time. Allow me to ask, what have you learned from me? No response? Excellent. Your silence and my eyes prove that I have nothing else to do for you.”
Likes: “A combination of meditation and physical exercise. If that is present in your lifestyle, you will eventually reach a peak condition, and will be able to have a relaxed and pacific life. Doesn’t that sound good?”
Dislikes: “There is nothing more humiliating than falling asleep during meditation. Even if it’s for years, from the first Oṃ to the last Hūṃ, your mind must never cease reciting sutras. Any pause in between is unforgivable and deserving of having your eyelids cut.”
Wish for the Grail: “A golden begging bowl is only one of the biggest feats of hypocrisy.”
Personal dataHistorical depiction
A Buddhist monk coming from the West that was active for most of his life in China, where he receives the title of Bìyǎnhú (The Blue-Eyed Barbarian). It’s debatable whether he was a historical figure or a fictional character, since almost everything regarding his biography is heavily inspired on legends, but he’s nevertheless an important figure in the Far East. He is the founder of Chán Buddhism, coming from a lineage of Buddhist patriarchs said to extend directly back to the very same Buddha.
Despite being a monk and therefore a pacifist, this time he has been summoned in the extra class of the Body-to-Body Hero, Striker, with one of his many legends as a basis. Said legend explains how, having arrived to the Shàolín Temple, Bodhidharma found out that the monks were in a really poor shape. Considering the training of the body as important as the training of the mind, he taught the 18 Arhat Hands to the monks, a series of basic postures based on the stances of Arhat statues found on temples. From this form of exercise came one of the most known martial arts in the world, the Shàolínquán, commonly known as Shaolin Kung Fu. In other words, Striker Bodhidharma is summoned as the founder of Kung Fu, and therefore an expert martial artist.
Related characters
Shakyamuni
The World-Honored One. Besides being blasphemous, attempting to fight him would be futile, for we both won't attack first.
Xuanzang Sanzang
It’s clearly obvious that she has been summoned in a mental state far from enlightenment. Some training is in order. Furthermore, I should cut her eyelids to ensure she doesn’t take a nap instead of meditating.
Musashi Miyamoto
So the emptiness of Buddhism can be applied to the sword as well… Interesting.
Hōzōin Inshūn
A combination of spearmanship and Buddhism… That’s in a sense similar to the Shàolínquán. Your predecessor was stupid to abandon this lifestyle.
Lǐ Shūwén
Age doesn’t matter. If his fists seek to clash against mine, then so be it.
Yàn Qīng
The skillful star whose fists cast no shadow. I'd like to test the speed of those punches at least once. Would you allow me to spar with you?
Creator's notesWish the FC had a red mantle to make it more like the actual Bodhidharma, but well. I'm the first one to admit that the NP section may be lackluster. I wanted to include the Eighteen Arhat Hands as a NP, but it would overlap with Chinese Martial Arts, so I discarded it.
Regarding his skills, the reasons why he doesn't get Enlightenment of the Sacred Fig are: poor compatibility with the Striker class, being too OP combined with Nothingnes, and Bodhidharma not having fully reached enlightenment yet in this form. His Battle Continuation has a better reason to be EX than Musashi's, so don't call BS on it.
There's a couple of references to Darumas as well. I considered it necessary, since they're based on him.
PS: It seems I can't make a Striker if it isn't a buff old man.