Height: 205 cm
Weight: 48 kg
Likes: Riches.
Dislikes: The Rich.
Attribute: Human.
Alignment: Chaotic Good.
Origin: Ancient Greece
Natural Enemies: Gold Mother |
STR |
 |
E |
END |
 |
C |
AGI |
 |
D |
MGI |
 |
C |
LUC |
 |
B |
NP |
 |
B |
At first, it was hard to ascertain Shielder’s true name. She’s certainly not a fighter and does not carry anything resembling a shield, begging the question of what is her qualification for this class.
Similarly, she seems so familiar with the modern world and so comfortable living in it that it’s hard to believe she’s a hero of old.
Of course, this is only a mystery because of the Master. She’s fine with revealing her true name, but if they want to make it into a game, she can’t hold back on teasing them a bit.
“
That said, I think that’s enough playing around. Good job guessing it, babe.
I am Phryne, Aphrodite incarnate. I heard Chaldea pays you well, so feel free to give me call, 'kay?”
Character
Phryne’s ego matches her beauty and wit. She always has to be the one in charge, leading the conversation and having the final say on any decisions. Those who won’t accept that are in for a harsh silent treatment, unless they can prove they’re clever and charismatic enough to talk with her on the same level, or are someone she already admired to begin with.
She’s not receptive to disagreements and criticism, but won’t discard someone’s legitimate opinion either, as long as the other party respects the dynamic that has been established between them.
That’s said, anyone who disagrees with her better make sure they’re ready to back up their arguments, because she certainly is. Well spoken and knowledgeable in an impressive variety of subjects, it’s hard to win an argument against this Shielder.
“
I’ve blocked so many people on TMitter that my phone stutters when I try to open the list.
What? ‘Isn’t this going to impact your income?’ Oh babe, you don’t have to worry.
My real costumers are high profile, okay? They’re not the losers begging in my DMs.”
Phryne was a one of the wealthiest women in Greece. She was a courtesan, and a very successful one at that. These women were paid for their company and sexual favors, but were also expected to hold their own in conversation and etiquette, even when accompanying the most distinguished of clients.
Phryne excelled in all aspects, even being asked by Praxiteles, the most celebrated Greek sculptor, to model for the statue of the platonic ideal of female beauty, Aphrodite.
That same job was also a showcase of her smarts and personality. The courtesan insisted on being paid for her work, but Praxiteles held that modeling for a genius such as he was enough compensation. After much discussion, he relented and agreed to reward her work by giving her one of his sculptures.
However, Phryne knew nothing of sculpting, and thus, didn't know which ones were there most valuable. When asking him, he insisted that he loved them all equally, so she instructed one of her servants to rush in and say that a fire had ignited in his workshop, destroying much of his work.
When Praxiteles wept over the loss of his sculpture of Cupid, she promptly revealed the trick and chose that statue as her payment.
Her cleverness, beauty and ego, qualities typically seen as self-serving, are instead evidences of her remarkable kindness. Phryne doesn’t just worry about her own status. Having the privilege of enjoying a relatively free and comfortable life compared to other women of her time only served to open her eyes, especially when she realized how much she still depended on the faces of the ruling class, as evidenced by the two most famous anecdotes of her life.
First, she offered to pay for the repairs of the city walls of Thebes. Phryne was obscenely rich and the walls had been recently razed by Alexander the Great, leaving the city open to future attacks. She was worried about the wellbeing of the citizens of her hometown and wanted to leave a monument to her success. In return for the repairs, she only asked that the walls received an inscription, reading “Destroyed by Alexander the Great, rebuilt by Phryne the courtesan.”
Offended by the idea of being indebted to a courtesan, the city council rejected her offer and the walls laid ruined for decades still.
Later on, Phryne was accused of impiety, a crime punishable by execution. The exact details of why she was accused were vague even for her. Perhaps because she dared model for the statue of a goddess, equating herself with the divine? No, surely the accusation was a reaction of men who couldn’t deal with a woman being richer and smarter than them.
The arguments of her lawyer fell on preemptively deaf ears, and when she was about to be condemned, she tore open her own robe, exposing her bare breasts to the judges. Arguing that such beauty could only have been shaped by the gods themselves, and that destroying such a gift would be an even greater crime, Phryne was acquitted.
Despite being relieved. Despite being glad that her beauty and quick thinking brought about justice, she could not get over how little these leaders cared about their own duties, and how easily they were swayed by fear, jealousy and lust.
Phryne understands that, even now, the world is ruled by a small group that dictate the destiny of all bellow them, directly or indirectly. Being born poor and rising up on her own terms, she doesn’t feel like stopping even now, as a Servant.
She wants to be even more famous, to have even more money, to awe even more men, all for the sake of herself—and others.
The more she climbs up the social ladder, the more she can do for the people bellow her. Simply put: her wish is to put trickle-down economics in practice.
Trickle-Down Economics is the theory that benefits to the wealthy and the increase of their income promotes economic growth, leading to similarly beneficial effects to all who are economically bellow them.
A self-serving lie disguised as altruism, yet Shielder wants it to be genuine.
“
You’re saying that it just doesn’t work? Of course not, I wasn't invovolved until now! Look, you just can’t trust the men in charge.
I take the money of the powerful and distribute it as I see fit. I’m not climbing to the top of the pyramid, I’m staying in the middle to appease the top and help the bottom.”
Class Skills
Magic Resistance D.

A skill that grants protection against magical effects. Nullifies any magecraft of rank D and below.
Phryne does not have a natural defence against mystics and should only be granted a low rank due to the possible uses of her Noble Phantasm.
However, it has been ranked up due to the nature of her class.
Riding A.

A skill denoting the ability to ride mounts and vehicles. At this rank, there is almost nothing or no one she can't ride.
“
Don't act dense, you know exactly how I got this one.”
Territory Defense EX.

A power manifested to protect allies and ally territory. Applies damage reduction to those within the range.
Phryne has been granted an EX rank at this skill due to its interaction with her NP's area of effect, allowing her to extend the defensive power to
all who can see her. In exchange, the actual buff applied is not of the highest ranks, and she does not possess the ability to affect territories.
Personal Skills
Of Many Epiphets D.
Mnesarete is her birth name, it was later left behind after she received the name
Phryne in reference to her pale, yellowish skin. Not much is known about her life beyond its most notorious episodes, even leading some prosopographists to wrongly conclude that there were actually two Phrynes: One that also went by the names
Clausigelos or
Sestus, and another that went by
Sarpedion or
Thespian.
This skill represents the elusive nature of Phryne, defined by
iconic moments such as convincing a jury that her body was handcrafted by the gods, or when she sidestepped her lack of knowledge on sculptures by tricking Praxiteles.
Phryne can
change herself as she changed names, gaining benefits as long as she is able to trick the onlookers into believing that
she already had them to begin with. For example, Phryne can recover from fatigue simply by acting lively, or acquire fighting capabilities by performing convingly enough fighting moves. These abiltiies are not acquired permanently, so sidestepping the difficulties of convincing enemy Servants by going after a regular person first is not possible.
Yes, she's tried it.
Courtesan of Prosperous Beauty A.

A skill denoting a person possessing a great beauty that will aid, develop and improve a nation.
A special version of
Golden Rule (Wealth & Beauty). The ability to preserve one's beauty, acquire riches, and apply them to improve the livelihood of a community.
The
antithesis of a common occurrence in myth, a woman who uses all of her abilities to seduce and manipulate the rich in order to take control of a nation. Usually, these
ruinous beauties are responsible for taking these leaders down the path of debauchery, leading to the collapse of their society.
Here, her wiles might be the same, but the end result is the protection of the common people from the uncaring actions of the powerful.
Discernment of the Rich C.

The insight to see through a client's character and attribute. The power to grasp their true nature, acquired through careful observation by someone whose livelihood depended on their satisfaction.
Phryne will never be deceived by the excuses and deceptions of those who are "
wealthy enough to afford her". It's an ability that was essential to her survival and eventual success in life. It's true that the men of Greece respected and adored the hetairai — to a degree — but she still had to face much hardship on her way to such a position.
Noble Phantasm
Mnesarete Pandemos
Gleaming Shield of Idealized Beauty
.


Type: Barrier
Rank: C+
Displaying beauty to safeguard herself. Constructing a wall for the sake of protection and her own enduring legacy.
This Noble Phantasm is the crystallization of her legend and her desires, activated by a full display of her natural beauty. Shielder doesn’t need to be naked for it to take effect, but her hair color does go back to its original red color, bringing her closer to the divine appearance of Aphrodite.
That said, Phryne often chooses to undress for it anyway.
“When did Praxiteles see me naked?” That is what Aphrodite herself said upon seeing the statue that Phryne had modelled for. Indeed, Phryne's was a beauty comparable to the goddess on many levels, and as such, this uncanny trait is the cornerstone of her powers as a Servant.
Pandemos is one of the Epiphets of Aphrodite. Aphrodite Urania was the heavenly aspect of the goddess, pure and unreacheable, it represents spiritual love. Meanwhile, Aphrodite Pandemos is the earthly aspect, carnal love — experienced by the body. A goddess often viewed as young and inexperienced, not yet at the level of true spiritual love that transcends the body.
The truth of this aspect is revealed in the meaning of its name, Pandemos—common to all people. While Urania's cult was established by merchants and nobility, secluding the goddess to expensive temples and haughty notions of love, Pandemos is the goddess of the people. Worshipped by the common folk and founded by the hero Theseus by gathering different towns into a single community, it is no surprise that her temple's statue was paid for by the hetairai.
Mnesarete Pandemos is the ultimate display of Phryne's soul. The rejection of the powerful through carnal love that benefits the community.
Halos of light are manifested above the heads of those who can see her, as long as she chooses to protect them. These halos grant two buffs: mental influence immunity and massive damage reduction. The protections are strong enough to make the affected virtually immune to all forms of harm. The magical energy cost of sustaining these buffs is surprisingly minor, allowing her to keep them up indefinitely.
The problem is that they are all reliant on her idealized beauty, meaning that desecrating it — by dirtying or hurting her body, for example — will weaken the buffs. In other words, if one wishes to hurt those Shielder is protecting, they must aim at her rather than them.
If left to fend off for herself against the average Servant, the result is heart-breakingly obvious. Unable to sustain the cost of her own wishes, the protection of the people's goddess of love might prove as fragile as the wall she once failed to restore.
And yet, she'd stand defiant and glamorous, ignoring the shattering halos.
Glowing in a light so divine, yet distinctly human.
Image Sources:
https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/92141093
https://twitter.com/scissorschan/sta...25100483399686