Ooh! Ooh! *raises hand* I'll sign up. I know you said reservations weren't neccessary, but seeing as how you need two more Roleplayers before you can start, I just thought I'd let you know that I am, in fact, working on a sign-up. I just have to think up a decent history for my character and I should be good to go.
EDIT: Well, here's what I have so far. It's missing the History, but I figure I might as well get this posted just so you know that I'm actually making progress:
Name: Dante
Age: 16
Gender: Male
Class and Species: Warrior/Half-Human, Half-Elf
Chii-Device or Similar: Dante’s Chii-Device is a katana that goes by the name of “Slayer.” Handed down to him personally by the Monk who trained him, Slayer is a well-built sword whose blade measures in at 75 centimeters and is constructed of the finest materials available. It is a simplistic yet somehow artistically crafted blade capable of being wielded either with one hand or two. For this reason, it is just as versatile as Dante himself is, allowing for him to adapt to the situation rather easily. This fits well with his speed-oriented, offense-heavy style of fighting.
Appearance: Dante could be considered an attractive youth by most, standing at a respectable five feet eleven inches in stature and bearing a slender yet athletic physique. Though his frame is, overall, a thin one, he possesses well-defined muscles as well as broad shoulders which, in tandem with his build, make for a nice V-shaped torso. While he is clearly in peak physical condition even by the standards set for him by his fellow Warriors, his apparent lack of brute strength in its purest form doesn’t exactly serve to make him appear very imposing, physically speaking. In essence, Dante’s physique could be compared to that of your archetypical samurai, thus serving as a direct contrast to the appearance of your standard medieval warrior. For this reason, his fellow warriors often have a nasty habit of underestimating his skill when left to judge him based solely on his appearance. Some consider him “easy prey” at first glance, and will attempt to flex their muscles in a duel against this “scrawny child.” It is these overconfident braggarts who Dante particularly enjoys flattening with his usually-superior agility and technique.
Of course, it’s perfectly reasonable to assume that Dante isn’t the type to partake in acts of violence. If one were to go by his facial features as well as his frame, they would probably write him off as a kindhearted lad who would never hurt a fly. His expression is generally a serene one, accompanied always by a friendly smile unless he’s already locked in a heated battle. Likely the result of his elven blood mixed with his human blood, Dante’s hair is unnaturally colored. More specifically, it is a surprisingly healthy shade of silver, and somehow only manages to add to his look of youthfulness. Due to personal preference alone, he’s allowed for it to grow in a bit so that it, in the front, nearly covers his deep emerald eyes. That being said, considering he makes a profession out of fighting, Dante is careful to keep it short enough that it doesn’t obscure his vision.
When it comes to clothing, Dante likes to keep it simple. He personally believes that a complex attire is not only unnecessary, but that it also would prove restrictive for him considering his fighting style, which depends just as heavily on agility as it does on hard strikes. For starters, he wears a dark blue shirt with short sleeves most of the time. Reflecting his interest in most things oriental, on the back of the shirt is the Japanese character for “Long Life” printed in black. Otherwise, he simply wears a pair of simplistic black pants with no real distinctive features. Unorthodox as it may seem, Dante chooses not to wear any armor. His philosophy is that if it can’t stop a sword or a spell, then it’s nothing more than extra weight and will only serve to slow him down. Around his neck is worn a golden cross, serving to contradict his lack of enthusiasm when it comes to most things religious. Otherwise, he wears only a belt on which his sword is sheathed edge-down.
Backpack Contents: As you might imagine, Dante prefers to pack light. Kept within his backpack are only the essentials; food- primarily a bit of dried meat and some fruit, water, a bit of money (just enough to restock on food and water in case of emergency), and seven candles just in case he should be caught in the dark unexpectedly. Otherwise, he stores only a black cloak that he will don in the event that he is forced to endure cold climates and needs to shield his body from the elements. To anyone else, perhaps this would seem inadequate. To Dante, however, it’s more than enough. Whatever else he may need can, as far as he’s concerned, simply be picked up at the nearest town.
Personality: Dante is, simply put, a kindhearted soul at his core who hates to see others suffer unjustly. Though his sarcastic wit may be a bit scathing at times, there really is no better person to place your trust in, and it shows in his actions. He is always the first to jump to another’s defense when they are unfairly placed in harm’s way, even when caught vastly outnumbered or outmatched. In particular, Dante’s sense of justice is quite strong when it comes to the abuse of another’s trust. He, personally, hates to be manipulated, thinking it to be a sign of his own weakness and inability to sufficiently protect those he holds close to his heart. This desire to keep himself from becoming manipulated has shaped him into an enviably strong-willed individual. Even so, he’s a loyal friend who would never betray another unless forced to do so.
His general attitude is, as you might imagine, a laid-back one. Dante typically can be found relaxing, if not involving himself in a street fight either for money or for his own enjoyment. Unless distressed or provoked in some way, he often will give off an aura of confidence and certainty in his own abilities. While he may occasionally get a bit uncomfortable in certain situations, Dante is generally confident enough to flirt, fight, and just have fun with life without having to worry about what others think of him. Of course, despite his confidence in such situations, it’s not unheard of for Dante to become a bit flustered when approached by a particularly cute girl. Though he tends to live in a permanent euphoria of sorts, he is not without his grudges. In particular, he seems to harbor a deep hatred for the devoutly religious who think of themselves as being “higher up on the food chain” because of their devotion to their deity. Dante can’t help but laugh at the belief that the lives of humans are governed by fate, and likes to think that we, as individuals, have far more control than we might at first believe.
History: Evidently, Dante wasn’t born a citizen of the village he currently resides in. As is common for most Warriors, though, he was orphaned at a young age. However, the details of his parents’ deaths aren’t known to the general public. Dante is the only one who knows the specifics, and he isn’t willing to share this information with anyone. Despite the village’s efforts to locate their bodies, no corpses were ever found. Evidence- that is to say, hints that Dante dropped inadvertently through words and actions- suggests that it was murder, but the boy’s lips are sealed, so it seems nobody will ever know for sure what exactly happened. But, as Dante himself has put it, “This isn’t a subject worth harping on…” While he was invariably shaken by the death of his parents, it happened so long ago that he has, since then, come to terms with it. No doubt it took a toll on him, but over the years, he’s accepted their fate as well as his own.
What is known is that Dante was brought into the village a shivering wreck of a child. It was on a particularly dreary day that he arrived there quite visibly in a state of shock. According to the ones who had located and took Dante with them, he was found running across a barren landscape as fast as his legs could possibly take him. At the time, he was only five years of age, so naturally, he couldn’t yet comprehend the true magnitude of what had just happened to him. However, although he wasn’t able to completely wrap his head around the subject, he at least had a fundamental understanding of the concept of death. As such, he wasn’t exactly in the best of mental conditions for the next couple of days. Presumably, he had witnessed his parents’ deaths and was in the process of running from their killer when he was picked up by two of his citizens’ villages. This is, of course, mere speculation based on the facts presented to the villagers at the time, as he simply wouldn’t disclose any information pertaining to the event.
Apparently, his parents had informed him of the Monks, and told Dante that, should anything ever happen to them, he was to seek one out and train under him. So, once his thoughts stabilized themselves, the boy showed up on the doorstep of a better-known Monk asking if he would take him up as a student. For the next eleven years, Dante apprenticed under him, gradually honing his skill with the sword. He quickly found that he had an affinity for the katana, in particular, greatly preferring the techniques and stances that went along with it to the “clunky and inefficient” method of fighting adopted by most Western Warriors. Indeed, his skill with the blade was, to say the least, prodigious. Dante advanced at an alarming rate, even developing his own unique fighting style dependant primarily on his lightning fast reflexes and shockingly hard-hitting strikes.
Fighting Style: Dante’s fighting style is, as stated, one that is dependant more upon raw speed and strength than techniques that could be picked up in a textbook. He greatly dislikes taking hits on the battlefield, even when they prove nothing more than glancing blows. This isn’t necessarily because he’s unable to withstand the pain of it, but because he feels that it causes him to lose the momentum that he strives to build up throughout the battle. Of course, this rarely proves to be an issue, as Dante’s natural abilities have been conditioned to the point where they are simply unrivaled by any in his age group. Indeed, through his incredible ability, he’s even able to close the distance between himself and any long-range fighter (such as a mage or an archer) without missing a beat.