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application β’ etraya
β΅ player information
name and pronouns: ell (they/them)
age: 34
contact: brutallyamish (plurk/discord)
β΅ character information
name: Viktor, the Machine Herald
canon: League of Legends
age: 37
canon point: Post–self-surgeries
history: (( This is the original lore from before the retcon. I've written up the lore from League because it's easier than finding where it's disappeared to or sharing my collection of screenshots. ))
Viktor was born in Zaun on the border of the Entresol Level, which sits below the Promenade and above the Sump. It was, as far as the lower levels of Zaun goes, relatively habitable, and with his parents being artisans with a storefront on the Promenade, he had a slightly better life than those who lived deeper in the city. They still struggled to make ends meet and still suffered from the clogged atmosphere of the lower levels of the city, but there, Viktor was loved and encouraged by his parents and because of them, he pursued his passion for invention and discovery.
The backrooms of their house were quickly overtaken by his studies and his experiments, though he was forced to temporarily abandon them when a chem spill near their home foced them to evacuate. The frequency of their moves eventually prompted Viktor to look into the mechanical failures and through dedicated research and hours upon hours of building prototypes, Viktor developed machinery and inventions that he offered to the businesses around him to make their working conditions safer. He was turned away by all except for the Fredersen Chem-forge, who took a chance on him and his inventions. Within a month, their accident rate dropped to zero and other establishments started seeking his services and his work became widespread throughout Zaun.
At the age of nineteen, Viktor was surprised by the offer of a place at the prestigious Academy of Techmaturgy in Zaun and he nearly accepted the placement when he was approached by a professor from Piltover, Stanwick, who convinced him to go, instead, to the uppercity, where he was promised access to the most advanced labs and all the resources he could ever hope for.
Leaping at the chance, Viktor left everything behind in Zaun to move to Piltover, where he eventually met and partnered with the most egotistical (his words) but brilliant (also his own words) inventor in the city, Jayce. They balanced each other out and, despite all appearances and assurances otherwise, they were good friends.
In the midst of his studies, however, a major chem-spill devastated huge swathes of Zaun and Viktor returned to assist in the rescue efforts, eventually using all he'd learned to create Blitzcrank, a golem built with advancements to the current technology to develop a level of sentience until then unheard of. Not only did Blitzcrank save countless lives, but he was Viktor's crowning achievement.
Viktor remained in Zaun for a while after, staying with the intention of trying to help those affected by the toxins. He and Blitzcrank attempted to use techmaturgy to reverse the damage caused by the blight, only to ultimately fail. The deaths affected Viktor deeply, and he returned to Piltover with new knowledge and a greater desire to learn how to merge human anatomy with technology but also how people could be enhanced by that same technology.
Upon his return, Viktor was faced with yet another blow: Professor Stanwick, in his absence had claimed credit for the creation of Blizcrank, presenting Viktor's work and research as his own. Despite lodging formal complaints and turning to Jayce for help, his friend refused to speak for him and the matter was decided in Stanwick's favor.
Throwing himself into his work rather than wallow in his bitterness, Viktor determined to continue his studies in using technology to enhance the lives of humanity and to make people's lives better and safer. His bitterness, unfortunately, did inform his work, Viktor seeking to remove human error and weakness, beginning to see humanity and the human element as an aberration and an inefficiency, conflicting with his partner's view that these human elements were needed for invention, namely that they were the human spirit of ingenuity and creativity.
This conflict came to a head, when, while working with Jayce on solving the problem of developing better suits for divers at the docks to assist in their clean up efforts of debris and chemical waste. When divers started reported seeing strange lights and hallucinations, Viktor determined that it was the divers' panic drive causing them to lash out and get their fellow colleagues killed, and he created a chem-shunt that bypassed the fear response, effectively controlling the diver.
Jayce challenged him on the fact that his invention bordered on enslavement, and after a heated fight, Jayce reported Viktor to the board. He was expelled from the college and returned to Zaun, to Emberflit Alley, where he sank into a deep depression. After weeks of trauma, introspection, and wrestling with the ethics of his grand design, Viktor began operating on himself in secret, removing the human parts of him and replacing them with machinery, bit by bit, including a emotional inhibitor that muted almost all of his emotions and therefore "removing" his humanity. With the enhancement of machinery, supplemented by various chems, Viktor, outwardly and as much as he could make others believe, had excised the humanity that he struggled with.
Still, despite his growing obsession with the Glorious Evolution and his desire to free humanity from the parts of itself that hold it back, Viktor used his knowledge and resources to save hundreds lives, built breathing mechanisms, and offered his services to anyone willing to seek him out in Zaun. Viktor believes that if he can fully purge himself from all emotion, he can become the ideal version of himself, but really, all of this comes from a desire, simply, to just stop hurting.
Presently, Viktor finds himself mostly at odds with his former partner, Jayce, whose Hextech and the crystals he obtained from Shuriman, are the last piece (he believes) in his quest to finally push humanity into that Glorious Evolution.
abilities:
INVENTOR + TECHMATURGIST
MEDICAL KNOWLEDGE
personality: Idealistic and passionate (oftentimes bordering and frequently tipping into obsessive), Viktor is caught between seeing the world as it is and wanting to change it. Growing up down in the lower levels of a city choked by greed, disease, and desperation, Viktor was moved from a young age to want to help people, to use his talents to improve the lives of those around him. He's a brilliant man full of ideas to change the future, and he's always been eager to help others, and does, even now, without ever asking for payment. A visionary, Viktor's creative, explosive ideas complete often with his practical, logical nature, a dichotomy that he often struggles with. Viktor is meticulous and particular in most aspects of his life except for his work, where he is often chaotic, attempting things just to see if they would work. Viktor is curious and eager to learn, and more than willing to do so at his own expense without hesitation.
Truthfully, that stems from a deep-rooted self-hatred that is fueled by his fear of failure and inadequacy. This is the "humanity" he desperately wants to cut out of himself, right up to the technology that suppresses his emotions in the hopes that he can escape the human parts of himself that he believes are the cause of all his mistakes. That he's never been able to fully "kill" that part of himself goes a long way to revealing that he doesn't quite believe in his humanity being the weak link, but because he desperately wants to be better, to stop watching everything he loves and wants and cares for be taken away, to just stop hurting, he is willing to throw himself into his "Glorious Evolution" if it means an escape from the limitations he feels are holding him back.
That compassion that initially prompted him to work so hard persists, but years of being beaten down, betrayed, and abandoned has buried it beneath layers of defense mechanisms and emotional inhibitors, and Viktor lashes out, is dismissive or mean, all to protect himself from ever being hurt again. Despite being profoundly lonely, he struggles with letting people in, assuming that they will use him, step over him, and he doesn't trust easily. In fact, it takes a great deal to earn his trust and even more work to keep it. Friendships are difficult for him, as is opening himself up and allowing himself to depend on others, seeing that vulnerability as both weakness and inherently terrifying.
Despite being motivated at times by bitterness and anger, Viktor is not a needlessly cruel man and in fact is never cruel for its own sake, especially not with those in need of help. Viktor can be remarkably gentle and while his words might seem harsh and he might come off as demanding, he means well and does genuinely want to guide anyone who looks to him. Viktor can be impatient, but he had a weak spot for anyone who reminds him of himself. At his core, he does crave connection and his desire to help people comes from a good place, itβs just his jaded outlook that pushes him to be reckless, forceful and willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish his goal.
samples: one, two, three
name and pronouns: ell (they/them)
age: 34
contact: brutallyamish (plurk/discord)
β΅ character information
name: Viktor, the Machine Herald
canon: League of Legends
age: 37
canon point: Post–self-surgeries
history: (( This is the original lore from before the retcon. I've written up the lore from League because it's easier than finding where it's disappeared to or sharing my collection of screenshots. ))
Viktor was born in Zaun on the border of the Entresol Level, which sits below the Promenade and above the Sump. It was, as far as the lower levels of Zaun goes, relatively habitable, and with his parents being artisans with a storefront on the Promenade, he had a slightly better life than those who lived deeper in the city. They still struggled to make ends meet and still suffered from the clogged atmosphere of the lower levels of the city, but there, Viktor was loved and encouraged by his parents and because of them, he pursued his passion for invention and discovery.
The backrooms of their house were quickly overtaken by his studies and his experiments, though he was forced to temporarily abandon them when a chem spill near their home foced them to evacuate. The frequency of their moves eventually prompted Viktor to look into the mechanical failures and through dedicated research and hours upon hours of building prototypes, Viktor developed machinery and inventions that he offered to the businesses around him to make their working conditions safer. He was turned away by all except for the Fredersen Chem-forge, who took a chance on him and his inventions. Within a month, their accident rate dropped to zero and other establishments started seeking his services and his work became widespread throughout Zaun.
At the age of nineteen, Viktor was surprised by the offer of a place at the prestigious Academy of Techmaturgy in Zaun and he nearly accepted the placement when he was approached by a professor from Piltover, Stanwick, who convinced him to go, instead, to the uppercity, where he was promised access to the most advanced labs and all the resources he could ever hope for.
Leaping at the chance, Viktor left everything behind in Zaun to move to Piltover, where he eventually met and partnered with the most egotistical (his words) but brilliant (also his own words) inventor in the city, Jayce. They balanced each other out and, despite all appearances and assurances otherwise, they were good friends.
In the midst of his studies, however, a major chem-spill devastated huge swathes of Zaun and Viktor returned to assist in the rescue efforts, eventually using all he'd learned to create Blitzcrank, a golem built with advancements to the current technology to develop a level of sentience until then unheard of. Not only did Blitzcrank save countless lives, but he was Viktor's crowning achievement.
Viktor remained in Zaun for a while after, staying with the intention of trying to help those affected by the toxins. He and Blitzcrank attempted to use techmaturgy to reverse the damage caused by the blight, only to ultimately fail. The deaths affected Viktor deeply, and he returned to Piltover with new knowledge and a greater desire to learn how to merge human anatomy with technology but also how people could be enhanced by that same technology.
Upon his return, Viktor was faced with yet another blow: Professor Stanwick, in his absence had claimed credit for the creation of Blizcrank, presenting Viktor's work and research as his own. Despite lodging formal complaints and turning to Jayce for help, his friend refused to speak for him and the matter was decided in Stanwick's favor.
Throwing himself into his work rather than wallow in his bitterness, Viktor determined to continue his studies in using technology to enhance the lives of humanity and to make people's lives better and safer. His bitterness, unfortunately, did inform his work, Viktor seeking to remove human error and weakness, beginning to see humanity and the human element as an aberration and an inefficiency, conflicting with his partner's view that these human elements were needed for invention, namely that they were the human spirit of ingenuity and creativity.
This conflict came to a head, when, while working with Jayce on solving the problem of developing better suits for divers at the docks to assist in their clean up efforts of debris and chemical waste. When divers started reported seeing strange lights and hallucinations, Viktor determined that it was the divers' panic drive causing them to lash out and get their fellow colleagues killed, and he created a chem-shunt that bypassed the fear response, effectively controlling the diver.
Jayce challenged him on the fact that his invention bordered on enslavement, and after a heated fight, Jayce reported Viktor to the board. He was expelled from the college and returned to Zaun, to Emberflit Alley, where he sank into a deep depression. After weeks of trauma, introspection, and wrestling with the ethics of his grand design, Viktor began operating on himself in secret, removing the human parts of him and replacing them with machinery, bit by bit, including a emotional inhibitor that muted almost all of his emotions and therefore "removing" his humanity. With the enhancement of machinery, supplemented by various chems, Viktor, outwardly and as much as he could make others believe, had excised the humanity that he struggled with.
Still, despite his growing obsession with the Glorious Evolution and his desire to free humanity from the parts of itself that hold it back, Viktor used his knowledge and resources to save hundreds lives, built breathing mechanisms, and offered his services to anyone willing to seek him out in Zaun. Viktor believes that if he can fully purge himself from all emotion, he can become the ideal version of himself, but really, all of this comes from a desire, simply, to just stop hurting.
Presently, Viktor finds himself mostly at odds with his former partner, Jayce, whose Hextech and the crystals he obtained from Shuriman, are the last piece (he believes) in his quest to finally push humanity into that Glorious Evolution.
abilities:
INVENTOR + TECHMATURGIST
A prodigy in the field of technology, Viktor has a great deal of experience and knowledge in the field, able to create and improve anything he puts his mind to. He's a tinkerer by nature, fond of pulling things apart and turning them into their constituent parts to put it all back together better and more efficiently, with a few bonuses on top. Over the years, he's learned a great deal about chemistry and biology, and how to combine that knowledge his his innovative approach to technology to create new things and meld them together. Aside from augmenting his own body, Viktor has created tech with various uses, including a fulyl sentient golem (Blitzcrank), purifiers for the atmosphere in Zaun, and automation tech for the factories to prevent disasters and injury.
MEDICAL KNOWLEDGE
This is more in the mad scientist way, but Viktor has, over the years, learned a great deal about the body and has performed more than his fair share of surgeries, both on himself and on others and his success rate is very high. His augmented eyes also help him pick up on things, and his quick mind helps him diagnose. His bedside manner does suck though.
personality: Idealistic and passionate (oftentimes bordering and frequently tipping into obsessive), Viktor is caught between seeing the world as it is and wanting to change it. Growing up down in the lower levels of a city choked by greed, disease, and desperation, Viktor was moved from a young age to want to help people, to use his talents to improve the lives of those around him. He's a brilliant man full of ideas to change the future, and he's always been eager to help others, and does, even now, without ever asking for payment. A visionary, Viktor's creative, explosive ideas complete often with his practical, logical nature, a dichotomy that he often struggles with. Viktor is meticulous and particular in most aspects of his life except for his work, where he is often chaotic, attempting things just to see if they would work. Viktor is curious and eager to learn, and more than willing to do so at his own expense without hesitation.
Truthfully, that stems from a deep-rooted self-hatred that is fueled by his fear of failure and inadequacy. This is the "humanity" he desperately wants to cut out of himself, right up to the technology that suppresses his emotions in the hopes that he can escape the human parts of himself that he believes are the cause of all his mistakes. That he's never been able to fully "kill" that part of himself goes a long way to revealing that he doesn't quite believe in his humanity being the weak link, but because he desperately wants to be better, to stop watching everything he loves and wants and cares for be taken away, to just stop hurting, he is willing to throw himself into his "Glorious Evolution" if it means an escape from the limitations he feels are holding him back.
That compassion that initially prompted him to work so hard persists, but years of being beaten down, betrayed, and abandoned has buried it beneath layers of defense mechanisms and emotional inhibitors, and Viktor lashes out, is dismissive or mean, all to protect himself from ever being hurt again. Despite being profoundly lonely, he struggles with letting people in, assuming that they will use him, step over him, and he doesn't trust easily. In fact, it takes a great deal to earn his trust and even more work to keep it. Friendships are difficult for him, as is opening himself up and allowing himself to depend on others, seeing that vulnerability as both weakness and inherently terrifying.
Despite being motivated at times by bitterness and anger, Viktor is not a needlessly cruel man and in fact is never cruel for its own sake, especially not with those in need of help. Viktor can be remarkably gentle and while his words might seem harsh and he might come off as demanding, he means well and does genuinely want to guide anyone who looks to him. Viktor can be impatient, but he had a weak spot for anyone who reminds him of himself. At his core, he does crave connection and his desire to help people comes from a good place, itβs just his jaded outlook that pushes him to be reckless, forceful and willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish his goal.
samples: one, two, three