Loch Vandral

Name: M. R. Barnes
E-mail:  [email protected]

Character Information

Race: Human

Appearance:  Loch stands roughly six feet tall, with a somewhat slight frame, weighing 155 pounds, though not particularly "puny."  His eyes are a dark storm-gray color, with dark brown hair that has a tendency to (much to his annoyance) fall forward over his eyes in places.  Because of this, a part of his usual attire is a bandanna to keep it pulled back. Generally, his clothing consists of a plain, unadorned sleeveless white tunic and somewhat baggy black trousers, the ends tucked into a pair of tall black boots.  Over the tunic, he wears a sleeveless black vest trimmed at the collar with a white fur rim (a la Squall's jacket from FF8, or perhaps Kilik's vest from SoulCalibur...what can I say?  I thought it looked cool...), and on his hands he wears a pair of fingerless black gloves held in place at the wrists by silvery metallic wristbands.  I'm including a sketch of Loch contributed by a friend of mine in the attachment, but it's only a face-shot.

Equipment:  The only weapon Loch carries is his Guardian Edge, a sentient shortsword called "Fenri".  Fenri serves not only as Loch's weapon, but as a constant companion and advisor; without her advice, he most likely would not have survived as long as he has.  She also possesses the ability to use some limited Magic, but no truly monumental spells.  Also, when a situation calls for an additional pair of hands, Fenri can temporarily assume a human form.

Abilities:  Aside from Fenri's Magic, and his own somewhat impressive swordsmanship, Loch possesses a unique (though nearly impossible to control except in a rage) ability that comes very close to resembling Magic.  Though not particularly powerful unless he is TRULY enraged, it does give him an edge in a world where he would be otherwise powerless.  Basically, he can manipulate a kind of "Magical" energy that his body seems to generate (again, this is based on the book from which Loch originated), and use it in combat.  For instance, blasts of non-elemental force, sometimes explosive but most often simply physical.  However, this is a fairly unreliable ability (for the moment, until he learns in the book to control it), and is rarely used unless he is truly in desperation)

Personality:  Loch's a usually fairly easy-going kinda guy.  Despite the sword he carries, and the "power" he possesses, he hates to fight, and TRULY despises having to kill someone.  In a fight, he would be more likely to strike with a foot, elbow, or the flat of his blade rather than to cut. He's the sort that's very good at making friends...though at times, he has a tendency to speak without thinking, particularly with sarcastic remarks, and he has inherited a FAIRLY sharp tongue and quick wit that don't exactly help that much.  All-in-all, though, Loch is the ORIGINAL "nice guy", and will only draw his sword in self-defense, or when he thinks that someone close to
him is threatened.

History:  Loch Vandral was ORIGINALLY from what we call the "real world"...cities, cars, guns (okay, so some Fantasy worlds have guns, but you know what I mean!), etcetera.  His father worked for a company that dealt in antique swords of various designs, such as the sort one would see in antique shops or in some gun-and-knife-catalogs.  This accounts for his skill with the sword, in spite of his origins.  He had always been fascinated by such things as medieval swordplay, and the like, and from the time he was old enough to lift the lightest blade he could get his hands on, he made it a point to learn the use of as many different types as he was able. Considering the age he lived in, of course, such weapons were never for practical use, so the style he adopted was more for show, consisting of flourish after elaborate flourish designed to show off the sword--as he often did during events such as exibits to display the swords and further sales--or to dazzle the opponent.  Over time, and because of necessity, he has managed to modify this style from an all but useless floorshow into a truly effective means of disarming and incapacitating the opponent (while at the same time showing off to whomever may be watching).  All this, however, was changed dramatically when, through a series of events that will go unmentioned for fear of spoiling the "book" for any potential future readers (please, try to understand...), Loch found himself, and his two closest friends Ian and Claire (along with the obligatory motley crew of Fantasy-type characters) dragged into a world called "Archillos", and a battle against one tortured soul seeking the power to destroy all.  In THIS scenario, Loch has somehow (I'm gonna get to that) been catapulted FROM Archillos, even FURTHER away from home to a world he will come to learn is called "Ileun".  His primary goal, now, is to find a way BACK to Archillos before it is too late to help his friends save it.