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Name: Miru. Age: OLD. Contact info: databomb or PMs! Character: William Vangeance. Canon: Black Clover. Canon Point: Shortly before chapter 142 (and including the light novels). CRAU, Canon AU: N/A. Character age: 26. Canon Abilities/Powers: In the world of Black Clover, (almost) all people are naturally able to use magic, harnessing the mana that flows through them and throughout the atmosphere in order to cast spells. And as a Grand Magic Knight, the Captain of a squad of Magic Knights, (and an antagonist in a shounen manga), Vangeance is very good at using magic, with a huge capacity of mana and precise control over his magic. In terms of Dumb Anime Power Levels, he's a Stage Zero, the highest level that an individual can reach; he's also classified as an Arcane Stage mage, someone whose magic has unconventional traits. On a basic level, mana can be channeled through or around the body to boost one's physical abilities (though only to a moderate extent) and protect from external threats. All mages also have an innate attribute to their magic (i.e. a theme, they're basically Pokemon, type weaknesses included) that almost all of their spells are restricted to. Though skilled mages can utilize their attribute in various ways (e.g. a mage with a fire attribute can use both offensive and healing fire magic), the overall attribute remains consistent. As Vangeance's magic is World Tree magic, he's able to use his magic to create and control massive trees in various ways; his spells are mostly focused on stealing or channeling energy from other sources to utilize for his own purposes, whether it be for combat or support. On a basic, offensive level, he can fling out a condensed seed of magic; upon making contact with a target, the seed will rapidly sap the energy from the victim and explosively grow into a tree, entangling and trapping them. On a larger scale, Vangeance can spread a web of tree roots to sap the energy from his surroundings (and victims in the area) and use the energy to summon forth an enormous, city-sized tree that will trap and nullify all targets within reach. His world trees can also be summoned to block enemy attacks or heal his allies; in truly desperate situations, he's capable of healing dozens of people's injuries at the same time effectively enough to bring them back from the brink of death. These large-scale spells are incredibly powerful, but are very draining and do require more time to prepare for and cast. On a more mundane level, he's able to casually summon trees, vines and roots that he can control like extra limbs, or use to produce wooden objects (like brooms). The exact details are a little fuzzy, but there's seems to be a distinction between regular tree magic and Vangeance's world tree magic. His trees are stated to be "capable of linking worlds together," which isn't really touched upon except in one unique (and admittedly important) situation in-canon; this feature probably won't be brought up in-game excepting special circumstances. Otherwise, his trees seem to be more lively than normal trees, and they're usually shown low-key attracting songbirds. They're probably a bit sturdier and more full of vitality than regular trees, and people who are sensitive to supernatural matters might sense more magic in them. Of minor note is Vangeance's grimoire. All mages in Black Clover's world are gifted a special book called a grimoire when they reach the age of fifteen. These books are bound to their soul, enhancing their magical abilities and allowing them to learn and cast more powerful spells. When a mage is casting spells, their grimoire will hover open by them, glowing; without their grimoire open, mages can only cast simpler spells. Mages can technically be sabotaged by theft of their grimoire, but it's considered extremely dishonorable in the Clover Kingdom (so it's probably fair game here, yeehaw). A grimoire cannot be used by anyone other than its owner, though, and cannot be destroyed except through the owner's death. Oh yeah and Vangeance, like all other mages, can fly on a broomstick, which is exactly as silly as it sounds. :^) What is their greatest negative emotion towards an object, situation, or person in their past?: Regret and self-loathing for his own indecisiveness. In simple terms, Vangeance is stuck between siding with two people that he cares for most -- a mentor figure that he respects tremendously, who was very kind to him in his youth; and someone like a twin brother that he's protected his entire life (who is planning on doing something Very Very Bad). The two are in direct opposition and are on course for a violent clash in the near future. Vangeance has spent a long time discretely assisting both sides, and though he knows that this indecisiveness has caused a lot of harm to a lot of people, some of whom trust him, he still can't bring himself to choose one to side with. He's ultimately decided that he'll let the two duke it out themselves, and he hates himself for doing something so cowardly. Also he'll probably die in the process, which means he won't be able to take responsibility for his actions, so he regrets that too. How aware are they of this negative emotion, and how do they act on it in canon?: Very aware. The manga/anime are less overt about it, but one of the light novels explores Vangeance's mindset in more depth. The most notable way Vangeance acts upon his regrets is by using the little time he has left to try and provide as much guidance as he can to one of his younger squadmates -- Yuno, a magical prodigy who shows great promise. Of course, Vangeance can't just explain the situation to Yuno, but he does provide as much indirect guidance as he can. He reminds Yuno that serving as a Magic Knight will probably entail making difficult choices in the future, and encourages him to make choices he won't regret, so that he'll be able to take responsibility for any consequences but won't have lingering regrets. Vangeance also orchestrates a situation where Yuno has to make a tough choice; it proves to be a trial for the young man, but as an end result, Yuno emerges more confident and with greater support from the populus. Vangeance isn't at all proud of the fact that he's depending on Yuno to do better than he did, and knows it's selfish to place his hopes of the future on someone else. But he also does genuinely believe in his protégé, and sincerely hopes that Yuno won't ever be in the same position he's in. The other notable manifestation of Vangeance's self-loathing would be the way he seems to have simply accepted his impending death. After supporting both sides of the incoming conflict for so long, Vangeance seems to have given up on finding any sort of peaceful resolution, quietly preparing to disappear. Any thoughts of his end are peppered with self-condemnation and apologies towards the people he's hurt, but not a lot of grief. Other than these two big factors, Vangeance largely keeps his emotions under wraps -- almost nobody seems to cotton onto his issues except a few very keen-eyed people, and only in the vague sense that they know he's hiding something. He does slip a tiny handful of times, showing uncharacteristic moments of melancholy and vulnerability, but they're brief and easily brushed aside by his usual aura of impenetrable calm. What is their greatest virtue?: Devotion and kindness towards others. Vangeance's illustrious career as a Magic Knight has all been in service of the man who first saw value in him, who he admires greatly; he isn't motivated by personal glory, but deep and heartfelt devotion to his mentor. And his strength as a Knight doesn't just lie in power and brute force (though he can do those, too) -- he's worked hard to earn the trust of his squadmates, and that mutual faith has allowed the squad to flourish. And he survived a cruel and abusive upbringing by reminding himself there was someone else he needed to protect, his 'twin' -- he needed to endure for their sake, not just his own. He's always had a gentle and protective nature, though his sad childhood probably plays a factor in his devotion. Having spent so much of his youth being belittled and with nobody to look to, it makes some sense that he'd come to focus his attention outwards, dedicating himself to the two benevolent figures he did eventually find. But even now, as a man so close to the pinnacle and with so much to his name, he's still most driven when he can dedicate himself to others. How aware are they of their virtue, and how do they act on it in canon?: He's probably aware of it on a rational level. His mentor pointed it out to him when they first met, saying his magic suggests he's a very kind and protective person. And he probably considers it his duty as a Knight and a Captain to devote himself to the Kingdom and be kind to its people. However, he probably hasn't fully internalized it, especially because he's grown to detest himself so much. The fact that the reason for his regrets is so deeply intertwined with his 'kindness' also muddies the waters -- does it really count as 'kindness' if he's willing to hurt his allies for so long out of a reluctance to betray his most cherished people? In other words, he knows he's good at treating people in a way that's regarded as kind, but he doesn't think of himself as virtuous because of it. Still, even if he has mixed feelings about it, his kindness towards others is pretty evident on a daily basis. He works hard for the Kingdom, doing his best both in big glorious battles and in the smaller things, like making sure victims are taken care of afterwards and trying to keep the citizens' spirits up during difficult times. He's also highly attentive to his squad members; he treats all members with respect, thanking them for their hard work and doing his best to ensure their safety. Notably, he also respects commoners and peasants, and won't hesitate to praise them when it's deserved, which is a rarity in the Clover Kingdom where it's the norm for the nobility and royals to look down on the lower classes. He's always a steadfast supporter to his allies, despite his reserved nature. And when you're considered a highly charismatic and respected individual despite going around wearing a tacky mask 24/7, it probably says something about how nice you are. Items: Just the clothes on his back (his usual Golden Dawn uniform and his hideous helmet-mask), with his grimoire in its book-pouch strapped to his belt; he has a pouch of coins and a communication device (basically a magic-based screenless cellphone, now useless?) tucked into his pockets. Samples: TDM toplevel! Special notes: Due to plot shenanigans Vangeance's body actually houses a second soul -- that of Patry the elf, his "twin" and closest friend. In canon, Vangeance and Patry periodically trade places, switching who is in control of his body. Patry has way too much personality and agency to be considered an NPC companion; however, he's been present in Vangeance since very early childhood, so Vangeance would be pretty badly affected if Patry just vanished without explanation, and I don't think that'd be fun for other people to have to deal with. So I'd like to say that Patry is still present but in a dormant state, unable to be awakened. (If by some infinitesimal chance a Patry shows up, the soul in Vangeance's body will vanish, of course.) Please let me know if that'd be okay, or if just nuking the whole two-souls deal would be preferable! Also, please let me know if his powers could do with some nerfing! I'm more than happy to handwave and say that his magic has grown weaker in-game because there's not as much mana present in the atmosphere or whatever.