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Pronunciation: (LOO-see-ehn TEE-bol dray-CON)
Age: 32 (Act III)
Race: Human
Sex: Male
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Height: 6’4”
Class: Warrior, through and through.
Build: Well, chances are if you need a body to carry heavy object X, Lucien has you covered, and then some. He’s optimized his structure for the fairest balance of brute strength and mobility, or at least his version thereof. As a tower of a guy to begin with, it only made sense to take advantage. Still, he can run long distances even in armor and jump over things if he has to, so he’s not just an immobile statue-warrior. Really, at the base of it, he's just incredibly fit.
Appearance: Anyone with decent observation skills can read Lucien’s history just by watching him for a while. The stature and build lead most people correctly to the assumption that the man is either a fighter or a laborer, but the flawlessness of his posture could only belong to a nobleman of considerable standing, so it isn’t hard to place which.
He must be a disinherited or poor nobleman though, because his clothing and equipment, while in good repair and of excellent quality, is far from rich or ostentatious as the Orlesians are known for being, and he must be Orlesian, for certainly nobody else’s honey-rich baritone would carry quite that accent. He’s no stranger to battle, as the scars on his arms (and less-visible portions of his body) and the patch over his right eye would attest. Underneath the patch, his eye is still there, still the same flinty silvery grey as his good one, but his vision with it is rather poor, so he finds it more useful to just cover both it and the unsightly scar that bisects it, as apparently the appearance of someone with actual battle-wounds has been known to induce fainting in delicate nobles. He isn't bothered much by it, and though his manner is unassuming, the fact that he walks around in armor basically all the time, and doesn't seem to be even the slightest bit conscious of just how tall and imposing and scarred he is provides a unique sort of intimidation all its own.
His medium brown hair, worn shaggy and shot through with bits of caramel-color here and there, also has a thick silver streak at his right temple. This is because his scar starts there, and the surrounding hair grew back grey for some reason. His face is sun-darkened, as he spent much more of his time outdoors than his mother would perhaps have liked as a boy, and has always tanned easily if not particularly darkly. His facial structure is mostly comprised of squarish angles, and a friend once joked that you could cut things on his cheekbones or aquiline nose. His body language betrays an easy confidence, a level of comfort in and control of his own skin that most people do not obtain. It's his body, and he knows its every nuance and movement and tendon with the old familiarity of repeated use.
Act Two:
Act Three: Anyone who has ever seen his father will likely be unsurprised by how little Lucien’s physical appearance has changed over his time in Kirkwall. His new profession, as a more official sort of mercenary, has necessitated a few changes to his wardrobe, and he now wears a little less plate and a little more leather and chain, as well as a burgundy hooded cloak with the insignia of the Argent Lions on its back. He is also generally always impeccably groomed these days, though that may have more to do with the fact that he’s courting than the fact that he feels the need to look especially neat for his clients.
He no longer wears the patch over his bad eye, and has been working on his depth perception. While the scarred eye will never work as well as the other one, it is certainly no longer to his detriment to look out of it, thanks in part to some long-term work by Nostariel.
be interpreted from their appearance, but… there are some things
that are telling, and I have never minded that.”
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One can imagine how well he fit in at the Orlesian court.
Here, we have the sort of fellow who actively goes out of his way to help others, refuses to judge anyone on any criterion that is not personal merit, and while unfailingly polite, also finds himself feeling a bit awkward around those of the female persuasion (at least until they've got a weapon in-hand, because his world makes more sense when battle is involved). Though he was once stupid enough to believe that women should be protected rather than put at risk, a few very skilled female Chevaliers put him in his place about that, and though he still dislikes putting anyone else in positions of danger, he never judges a person's skill on the basis of their gender (or race, for that matter, a lesson taught him even more harshly than the first). He wasn’t raised in the Chantry or anything, and he knows how the world works, he just… doesn’t always get it. Why are people cruel to each other? What possible personal gain is so desirable as to be worth the oppression of someone else? The answer, to both his credit and his detriment, eludes him entirely.
He has social graces in spades, but he also does not hesitate to express an unpopular opinion, believing as he always has that knights are supposed to speak for the voiceless and defend the helpless, though his understanding of just who they are has grown considerably in scope within the last few years or so. He has suffered for this viewpoint, but continues to maintain it. He is familiar with the extravagant courtly mannerisms of Orlais, and can execute each and every one of them to a studied kind of perfection. For all that, though, he often chooses not to. The comfort of the people around him is something he considers important, and he knows that especially many of the people he knows these days would be made uneasy by such displays.
Act Two: Honestly, not much about him has changed in three years. Perhaps that says something important in and of itself. He has met a wide array of people, and perhaps now he is a bit more comfortable with his own history than he was previously, but he has largely avoided really opening up much to anyone, save perhaps Rilien. Granted, both Sophia and Aurora know a bit more of him than he usually shares, but even this is perhaps not much, all things considered.
Act Three: There is a perceptible difference in Lucien these days. Where he has always carried himself with a certain dignity, confidence implied, it is now more relaxed, and the self-assurance more evident, though certainly not overdone even now. He seems more comfortable and at-ease, less at-odds with his environment, whatever it might be. To put it another way, Lucien seems, at last, to be a man fully at peace with who and what he is. Traces of doubt, things that may happen in the future, still weigh heavily upon him, and there is no mistaking that his duty is as important to him as it has always been. But he has allowed himself to open up to others, to let them in and commit himself to being a presence in their lives, and it has done him a great deal of good.
Fears: Losing them. Failing them most of all. Who 'they' are has proven to be a rather broad category. While it is true that he still holds his homeland and his blood and his oldest friends in high regard, he has another kind of family now, people for whom he would happily give everything he had if only they were to need it, or ask. Not all of them are the kinds, perhaps, to return such a sentiment, but they are dear to him all the same. Less abstractly... he fears that the fundamental divide in himself, between the prince and the mercenary, will one day separate him from them, but most of all from her. From Sophia.
Opinions:
- The Chantry:It is perhaps not uncommon for the Orlesian nobility to have a fair degree of darkened cynicism regarding the Chantry, but Lucien has also seen faith be of great benefit and comfort to people. It is difficult to view especially negatively something that has done that much good for some of the people he cares about the most, but he is also aware that it has done others among them great harm. As an institution, he is not especially fond, but individual practitioners, are, like everyone else, to be considered on an individual basis.
- Mages: Systematic oppression is something he does not understand. Mages can kill with little effort, yes, but so can he (arguably, it's easier for him). So why is he allowed to walk about as he chooses while they are kept behind bars? Certainly, some mages are wicked, just as some warriors are wicked, but he’s a big believer in taking individuals as separate entities.
- Templars: Some are worthy of respect, some are not. This is just like everything else. He is fairly certain he isn't fond of Meredith, but as he can't quite articulate his reasons for this, he doesn't express it to anyone else.
- Elves: Yet more categorical oppression, and this makes even less sense to him. He can understand on some level why people fear mages as a group, but elves? They are just people who are small and have pointed ears, perhaps with some interesting cultural differences, but that’s really it.
- Dwarves: He thinks deciding merit by birth is very misguided, but of course any dwarf he meets on the surface is likely to think the same anyway.
- Humans: They come in all flavors. Unfortunately, many tend to leave a bad taste in his mouth.
- Qunari: An immensely complex people. He would consider Amalia a friend of his, though she is perhaps not exactly Qunari anymore. One soldier to another, he respects their military discipline and culture, and knows that their occupation of Kirkwall could have been much worse if they were as reactionary as the radical elements of the city had been towards them. They took the high road on a consistent basis... until the incident in the Keep. That, he believes was wholly unnecessary, and if he had to put a name to the failing, he would say the blame lay in large part with the Arishok, who finally allowed his patience to fail him in a way that had disastrous consequences. Even so... he has not lost that basic respect for them, though he would not particularly want to be one.
- Kirkwall: It is not home. It will never be home, but... it is a dwelling, and to say that it isn't home is to unfairly imply that he does not care for it. Kirkwall has endeared itself to him somewhat as he has acquainted himself with its people. Not only its warriors and mages, but its shopkeepers and carpenters and bakers and refugee elves and even its rowdy bar patrons. The city has color, and while the shades are often dark and bloody, they have their moments of utter incandescence as well, and those make slogging through the rest worth it for him.
I suppose that may be true, but I have always found the
question of why we leave those things to be too
important to ignore so thoroughly.”
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Act Two: He's still a fair hand with just about anything, and over the last three years, he's used his scythe, a shield alone, and one of Rilien's daggers, among other things. Currently, his main weapon is a two-handed axe he had commissioned from the Viscount's armorers. It's solid steel and good craftsmanship, but nothing extraordinary, and he feels no particular attachment to it.
Act Three: Having, as he sees it, regained his honor, Lucien is now once more comfortable carrying and using swords. The largest one on his person is a larger-than-average claymore, probably not even liftable for an extended period of time by someone of lesser strength than he. The weapon is clearly ancient, but not because of its condition. Rather, the design, and the runes etched into the blade, are very old, whereas it is still in almost perfectly-maintained shape. Formally, it is sometimes called the Sword of the Crown, due to being a relic of Kordillus Drakon I, but more colloquially, it is sometimes just referred to as Everburn, for the enchantment on it, which heats the blade to a bright, cherry-red when in use. Lucien, being the modest sort, usually just refers to it as my sword.
Armor/Apparel: He’s got an interesting mix going on: the traditional color of Orlesian Chevaliers' armor is red, and he still has the gauntlets and greaves, though anything with the royal crest on it was taken from him, including his chestplate. So, over his red steel chain vest, he has a rather ordinary black-and silver torso covering instead. It’s all of good make, but he looks slightly cobbled together. Tied around his upper left arm is a dark green cloth which acts as an armband now, but was apparently once torn from something.
Act Two: While the armband remains, his armor has been replaced, by a more utilitarian dark grey set of plate and chain.
Act Three: Lucien’s armor reflects a change in his combat strategy. Rather than being fully suited in plate and chain whenever he ventures out of his house, he has adapted to his new lifestyle by amalgamating chain or scale, studded leather, and the more essential plates of his old set. Most of it is a bright silver, though he maintains a spare set in darker colors for more clandestine operations. It’s overall quite a bit lighter than full plate, without sacrificing too much by way of protection. It also reflects an excellent understanding of his own technique, strengths, and weaknesses. His arms, for example, are asymmetrically protected, with a much heavier gauntlet on the hand he would use to block had he the need to do so, and a larger pauldron on his dominant shoulder, for the occasional body-check, and to protect the side of his less-reliable eye.
Combat Overview: Lucien was made for war, and it shows. Well-trained in both cavalry tactics and the gentleman’s duel, it is nevertheless the case that he’s most at home fighting multiple foes at once, keeping them at bay with his medium-range weapons and an attack style that is so defensive that it works strangely well for offense as well. Due to his proficiency with defender-style abilities, most hits, magical or mundane, are likely to glance off him, but he’s no layabout either, and if he had a traditional specialization, it would be closest to Champion. Strange as it sounds, his primary weakness in battle is the tendency to overexert even his impressive stamina by trying to be everywhere at once, and defend everyone: it leads him to actions that could be considered overly risky and certainly reckless, opening him up for attacks by sneaky rogues, for example.
Act Two: A few years have just made Lucien a few years better at what he does. Oddly, he's exchanged combat tips with Amalia of all people, and hence picked up a few nice tricks for very close-quarters situations. Other than that, he's worked on closing holes in his guard and maintaining his general levels of fitness.
Act Three: Lucien has slipped quite effectively into his role as mercenary captain, and this has included adapting more elements into his previously very knightly repertoire. He is more mobile now, helped along by the necessity of adapting to various terrain features, close quarters, and the like, and now more fully utilizes the greater speed and flexibility that has always been available to him as a result of his unique training. Having a more thorough skills exchange with Amalia, as well as having worked closely with Rilien, Ashton, and other more roguelike types, has given him a better range of applicability than the average warrior, though it would still be a gross mistake to characterize him as anything but.
to fight effectively, and knowing as many as possible can
only do one good.”
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Place of Birth, Nation of Origin: Val Royeaux, Orlais
Social Status: Exiled Nobleman, nephew of the Empress Celéne. Now he’s a lowtown merc, mostly.
Personal History: One might think that being the last scion of the House Drakon, a lineage from the most glorious age of Orlais, would make a person largely immune to criticism and ridicule.
One would be sorely mistaken.
The family, once the mightiest in the world, is now largely a relic in Orlais. They’re frightfully old-fashioned, stubborn in their refusal to play the great game (a conviction for which many have paid with their lives over the years), and unerringly dedicated to the protection of their homeland. They’re also related to the current ruling line, and through the marriage of Lord Guy Drakon to the Lady Veronique, sister to the Empress, they’re once again nearly royal. Not that any of that really matters.
The union produced only one son before the untimely death of Veronique to a Bard’s poison, and the attempts on Lucien’s life grew more and more frequent as he aged. Since Celéne was not married, Lucien was as close to a direct successor as she had, and frankly there were a number of social climbers less-than-pleased with this development. Particularly so since the heir was a Drakon of all things, son of a man who took no bribes, employed no bards, played no foolish games, and who would doubtless teach his boy the same.
Guy, himself Lord-General of the Orlesian army, taught his son how to check his chambers for poisons and fight off assassins from a very early age, instilling in him that these tactics were not how honorable men fight their battles and that he must always strive to be better than his countrymen in this respect, but never put himself above even the lowest servant. It was a harsh set of lessons, but one brought to fruition with Lucien’s own entry into the Knights Chevalier.
Unfortunately, such unyielding dedication to personal honor does not generally mesh well with command structure, and after a few years, in an incident that Lucien usually refuses to discuss, he was insubordinate to a superior officer, lost much of the use of his right eye, and was banished from Orlais indefinitely. He was also present at the battle of Denerim, as his exile coincided with the Blight in Ferelden, and he'd been traveling through that country with the intention of visiting a childhood friend of his, Elissa Cousland. Given everything that had happened to her over the same year, his own worries were rather trivial. Though he was no longer a solider, he took up arms for her in the fight, and stayed for a little while after it was done, before moving on to Kirkwall.
He still keeps in contact with his father, through letters sent by secret couriers.
For reference, the Code of Chivalry, as Lucien was taught by his father, is below. Lucien himself doesn't always follow every tenet exactly, because honor can be situational, but it's a pretty solid guide to how he'll act at basically any time.
(Thanks to Kiku for having this laying around, apparently!)
Kurokiku wrote:1. Never harm he who is guilty of no crime.
2. Never attack anyone unless he attacks first. Even if he does, do no more harm than necessary to neutralize the threat he represents.
3. Treat others with respect and courtesy, even if they cannot be bothered to do the same.
4. Defend those who cannot defend themselves.
5. Women and children are to be accorded a special level of respect and deference. This is not because they are weaker, but because the consequences of not doing so are quite often common and vulgar.
6. Protect your liege with your life and all the strength you have to give, but do not use your loyalty as an excuse to forget your other obligations.
7. Be well-read, well-spoken, and knowledgeable in as many areas as possible.
8. Refrain from using foul language.
9. Do not tell falsehoods, and use omissions or half-truths only when they are necessary to protect lives.
10. If you may use your wit or knowledge or skill to gain material advantage over someone, do not. Be fair and just in your dealings with others.
11. Strive towards mastery of everything you do; half-measures are as shameful as half-truths.
12. Live in a way that is modest and without ostentation. Refrain from unnecessary adornment in clothing, weaponry, or quarter.
13. Exhibit humility in all things. Be honest about your faults, and quiet about your virtues.
14. Do not allow others to anger you with words alone. He who controls your temper controls you.
Act Two: Since his exile from Orlais, Lucien has travelled across Ferelden, spent a bit of time with a family friend of his, and taken a boat to the Free Marches. He wound up in Kirkwall simply because it was a port city, and he has stayed largely because employment is plentiful and the place could use a bit of cleaning up. He can never seem to leave well enough alone, so he stays. That's not to say that he has no other reasons at all, only that they aren't necessarily the operative ones.
Act Three: To call Lucien’s most recent years in Kirkwall arduous is to underestimate things a bit. But though they have indeed been especially trying, both physically and mentally, they have also given him the chance to grow as a person, to form lasting friendships with people he would never otherwise have met, and to fall in love, or at least to admit to himself that he already was. (Fortunately, he was also able to admit it to the other party involved).
He was happy to provide his assistance to Sophia and the others as they dealt with the increasing threat of the Qunari presence in the city, as well as the equally-troubling threat posed by the fanatical Chantry adherents who would attempt to incite the population against them. But no less important, he feels, was the time he spent helping his friends with their own troubles, something he was able to do on many occasions. Those shared experiences, pieces of their history both in the past and in the making, have given him a deep sympathy for those people he is closest to, one more meaningful for the fact that he now understands, at least a little, what they have been through. Nostariel, Ashton, Aurora, Rilien, Sophia… he has learned a great deal more about each of them, and they in turn of him. These bonds are not the same as those he shared previously with comrades, but they are just as important to him, some more important than he ever could have imagined they would become.
Though his recent exoneration from his alleged crimes in Orlais has once again placed him in the position of being heir to the most powerful country in the world, he has returned to a city-state in the Free Marches. His mercenary company is up and running on official charter from the Viscount’s office, and doing good business despite their small numbers and very recent entrance into the market. He knows his homeland will call him back eventually, but for now, his home is not Orlais, but the City of Chains.
It was a foolish thought—we never stop changing, no matter
the circumstances. And we never should.”
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To say that Amalia is an unusual woman is perhaps to make quite the grievous understatement. Her mannerisms are blunt, but also strangely obscure. He’s not sure if he has any sort of accurate read on her, but what he knows of her has led him to believe that, at the very least, her heart is in the right place. Whether she’ll choose to let the cool logic of her head overrule that isn’t something he knows, or would ever ask. Their occasional conversations are always enlightening, and leave him with the sense that there is much he still doesn’t know about the world. He welcomes the challenge to his way of thinking. Of late, he’s been speaking to and interacting with her more regularly, and unlikely as it may seem, she is his favorite sparring partner, when she will consent to a match. Even he can still bruise, and she has frequently reminded him of this.
Take Out the Gunman
The revelation that Ashton used to be a smuggler isn’t really all that surprising, but Lucien takes it in stride. Regardless of who the man was, it’s who he is that’s important, and Lucien’s willing to go a long way to help a friend. He’s noticed how much the archer and Nostariel care for one another, and approves—not that he thought it was ever his business to begin with. Still, the association, and the proclivity that all three of them share for finding themselves in dangerous situations, means that they’ll likely only become better friends as time goes on.
Hero
In the time that Lucien has known her, Aurora has managed to grow and change for the better without losing her essential self. It’s quite admirable, in his opinion, the way she has mastered her more immature inclinations and put herself to better use, attempting to better her lot and those of the people around her with a minimum of violence. They’re certainly friends, and he values her opinion—he only hopes that the continuing tensions between mages and Templars do not bait her into taking a more extreme stance than she is comfortable with, or is truly necessary. But this, he knows, is a matter for her judgement, and not his.
Hey Brother
Lucien still can’t say he knows much of anything about Ithilian. The elf doesn’t seem terribly social, and Lucien’s not really the sort to push the point, save in circumstances that haven’t ever come up. His abilities as a warrior are nothing to be taken lightly, and a few conversational mentions have clued him into the fact that the man spends quite a bit of time with Amalia, and he did learn a few things of interest during their brief time as a team in the Deep Roads, but Luce is smart enough to understand that there is much more complexity to the other man than he has even skimmed the surface of. That’s certainly fine, and the mercenary captain would not mind sharing a drink or two with the Alienage’s protector, were he ever so inclined.
Believer
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Lucien’s rarely been happier for another person than he is for Nostariel. She seems to finally be embracing the things she still has and makes for herself rather than only mourning what is lost, and it has done her great good. She seems genuinely happy, and he couldn’t be more pleased to see it. He’s often to be found at her clinic, delivering supplies he’s goaded Rilien into providing or those which Amalia volunteers, and he’ll help out with any of the more backbreaking physical labor she needs done as well. She’s still one of his closest friends, even if they aren’t moping around in the bar on a daily basis, and for that, he’s thankful.
I'll Follow You
It’s a bit strange to watch someone else change, particularly when you weren’t sure they were capable of it. Rilien reminds Lucien that there is always more he can do, always greater lengths he can strive to in order to protect what he holds dear. The Tranquil, given the opportunity to regain everything that he had lost, chose to give it up again, all for the sake of the person he loved more dearly than all of it. It was quite something, especially for Lucien, who knows very well what Rilien thinks of sacrifice and sentiment. A less humble man might suppose that to be his own influence at work, but Lucien does not see it so. Rilien, he thinks, just does what must be done, without hesitation, every time. Even returned to his Tranquility, there is something about the Bard that seems to have softened from his days in Orlais. Lucien welcomes the change as surely as he would have welcomed his friend’s unerring lack of it. That’s what being a friend is all about.
War
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Desperately in love—those were his words. He hadn’t precisely intended to say them, but that does not make them untrue. How Lucien feels about Sophia has all the facets: the adrenaline-inducing, breath-quickening raw affection, the tender sympathy, the deep, enduring friendship founded not only on the things of immediate concern to them, but the things deep in the fabric of their personalities. The desire to do better, to be better, in order to feel even a little bit worthy of what she is to him. And indeed, the crippling fear of losing it all to the whims of fate, his own weakness, or the demands of their stations. But more than anything, it is that desperation—the knowledge that the risks are worth it, even if they can only have each other for a moment. Because surely, that moment would be the best one of his life, for she is without a doubt the best thing in it. Whether it ends for good or ill, Lucien will never in his life love another in this way, and he knows it.
[url]Song[/url]
Freed now of the demon that plagued her for years, Lucien has yet to really talk much with Sparrow. He understands, however, that she seems to be beginning a path to recovery and redemption that it may well take the majority of her life to walk. That’s a daunting prospect for anyone, probably most for someone who lived a primarily self-interested life until that choice faced them down. He would know as much quite well. He’s always there to help or to talk if she decides he would serve the purpose well, but he knows she’s always been a bit uncomfortable around him, and so if she is best helped by him retaining a certain amount of distance, he’s perfectly willing to do so.
Beautiful Times
and little of men, but I can say this: no blessing could be
greater than having good people at your side.”