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OOC INFORMATION

Name: Grimme
Are you over 18?: Y
Contact: grimmhooke
Other characters: N/A
Permissions & opt-out: both here!

IC INFORMATION

Name: Pom
Canon: Monster Hunter
Age: 30ish (he's 31, but he honestly has no idea)
Gender: M
Species: Human
Appearance: here!
Canon point: Between World and Rise (assuming the games follow a linear timeline - some entries do, others are completely unclear)


History:

Born on the western coast of the Old World,                 and his older brother,                     were "conveniently orphaned" when their parents were killed by brigands while traveling northward. Deciding they had just enough scruples to be above child murder, the brigands took the two kids in, bringing them back to their camp. They were a part of the infamous poaching guild Brand, and while poachers normally wouldn't be interested in raising children, they did see potential in the two young boys to be a part of their pack.

While his brother took to archery,                 had an affinity for the dual blades, with which he showed potential even at a young age. Much like professional hunters, most of the poachers went by titles rather than names. With his fiery orange eyes and the vicious look he got when carving a kill,                 eventually became "the Wild-Eyed."

The Wild-Eyed was a teenager when Brand picked up an unusual Felyne. Ostracized for her vibrant fur color, which was said to be a bad omen among her tribe, the poachers took her in with the intent to sell her later. Rare colors did well with the right kinds of collectors, and until they found such a buyer, they could have her working in the camp as a servant. Nicknamed "Sweet Thing" for her good nature, she and the Wild-Eyed had a near-instant connection, bonding over their circumstances. She stayed in his tent most nights, and her soft demeanor — the gentlest that he could remember, given how young he was when he was taken in by the poachers himself — brought out a kinder side of him.

As the years passed, the Wild-Eyed came to realize that most everything he'd ever known was morally wrong in one way or another, and knowing what might happen to Sweet Thing if they didn't find a buyer — she'd likely be sold to an underground arena to either fight monsters, or be used as bait — he decided he wanted out. He first told the leaders of the gang, the individuals who'd raised him, as he thought he owed them that much; he announced he was leaving, and that he wanted to take Sweet Thing with him. The poachers weren't happy about the idea of losing one of their better hunters, but they were even less thrilled at the idea of him taking a valuable Felyne with him. Assuming he'd back down, they said he could go, but she'd have to stay; the Wild-Eyed indeed backed down... or he seemed to, at least. He went to his brother instead, telling him that he'd be leaving that night, and he was taking Sweet Thing with him, stealing her away under the cover of darkness. His brother tried to convince him to stay, warning him not to be impulsive, but the Wild-Eyed wasn't having it. His brother could come with them or not, but they were leaving, and that was final.

Unfortunately, his brother was right: his impulsiveness did get him into trouble, largely because his brother ratted him out. Caught soon after their departure, the pair were forced to fight - and then flee for their lives.

Though they escaped by the skin of their teeth, their flight came with grievous injuries, including an arrow to the Wild-Eyed's shoulder and a critical break to his right arm. Delirious with pain, he demanded Sweet Thing leave him behind, but she refused: she was property no longer, and if she wanted to stay to help him survive, then she would. Thankfully, her sharpness put some contrition into him, and she got to work on helping drag him somewhere safer. While Sweet Thing knew a fair amount about setting injuries, his wounds would largely have to heal on their own. Infamous poachers on the run from both the law and their former gang couldn't just go marching into town for potions, after all.

They remained in the swamps for some time, trying to hide from Brand while the Wild-Eyed slowly recovered. Once able, they moved further inland, hoping to avoid both the poachers and anyone who would recognize them on sight, particularly from his vibrant, telltale eyes; they sustained themselves with odd jobs, staying out of villages and away from civilization as much as possible. He was in his twenties by the time he could wield a weapon well enough to hunt again, but as his arm hadn't healed quite right, he found he lacked the dexterity for his dual blades. He needed to learn a different weapon. It was better that way — if they wanted to best hide themselves, they could no longer be the Wild-Eyed and Sweet Thing. They had to be completely different people.

And so they were. The Wild-Eyed got some eyewear to cover his up signature feature, cut and dyed his hair to be more outlandish than his Felyne friend's natural coat; they started claiming she was dyed too, his look adding credence to the claim. He took up the hunting horn, and by the time they ran into members of the Hunter's Guild, they were Pom and Purl. Immediately enamored by the Guild’s values and how different they were from the life they came from, the two signed up on the spot. Pom in particular was excited for the chance to do some good for the world he'd wronged for so many years, the guilt of his old life heavy upon him.

Several years with the Hunter's Guild later, they were contacted to join the Research Commission. Known in his district for being one of the only dedicated hunting horn players – and a good one, at that – the Commission wanted him for their Fifth Fleet headed to a continent known as the New World. All the way across an ocean was as far as they could get from Brand, and ever-worried someone would recognize them for who they once were, the pair accepted the call to adventure. For them, the New World was also a new life.

Unfortunately, such dramatic changes – either in the world itself or those who inhabit it – are rarely without growing pains. In their time in the New World, Pom discovered that the Guild wasn’t all he imagined it to be, with a prominent poacher having infiltrated their upper ranks; however, he also managed to make a friend aside from Purl, another hunter he managed to bond with despite their vast differences. He just has to keep her from discovering his former life, lest she turn him in and he end up at the end of a noose - the usual fate for those who endanger the delicate balance of the natural world.

These days, he's just trying to keep his head down, his nose clean, and his past buried. He owes it to Purl to keep her safe, to be a better person – she's the reason he's alive, and he's determined to do whatever it takes to protect both the life they've built and the future they have yet to meet.


Personality answers:

Who in your character's canon influenced the most growth in your character? What do they think about this character?
Though the most obvious answer is Purl, someone equally important to Pom is his hunting partner, Talini. An older hunter and veteran on the field, Talini is the Guiding Sapphire Star, a paragon of what the Guild represents: determined, brave, and duty-bound to the natural world and all who live there. Much like Pom, she doesn’t talk about her past, but she recognizes him as someone running from his own.

It’s Talini’s virtues that have kept Pom within the Guild, despite the fact that not every member of the organization is as dedicated to the cause as she is — and there is equal measure of corruption and zealotry among the ranks, more than he wants to believe. With both of them finding more kinship with monsters than their own kind, Talini and Pom see themselves in each other. She sees a younger version of herself, struggling to navigate society, occasionally blinded by her own convictions; he sees who he could be, who he wants to be, the very embodiment of the ideals of the Hunter’s Guild.

Purl gives him purpose, a reason to absolve himself of his past, but it’s Talini who sets him on the path to said redemption.

What does your character think about physical appearances? Are they the sort to meticulously primp themselves, or could they not care less?
While he’d rather not talk about himself, Pom makes a big show of his vanity, putting it front and center of his personality. He’ll tell anyone that he likes how he looks without an iota of shame, and spends plenty of time primping in public just to get the message across: his facial hair is always trimmed, he avoids water on the field so his hair doesn’t get ruined, and he never takes off his glasses, giving reasons ranging from ‘medical excuse’ to he 'doesn't look cool without them.'

There is some earnestness in his dandy behavior – he has grown into enjoying it over the years – but the truth is that it’s primarily a persona, a mask he wears to hide in plain sight. He makes a big deal of his appearance because he wants others to think that’s what he cares about most: he wants to control what others see of him and, therefore, what they might think of him. If people consider him little more than a peacocking musician, they might not look beyond that - might not suspect what he and Purl are running from, nor that he has more blood than dye on his hands.

What would your character say is their best trait? What is truly their best trait?
Ask Pom, and he’ll tell you it’s his hair, his ability to improvise song lyrics, his uncanny knack for befriending birds – it depends on how he’s feeling that day. In truth, he doesn’t like reflecting for too long on himself; he has changed what he looks like almost entirely, but the mirror keeps showing him someone he doesn’t want to be. When raised to be more tool than a person, it’s hard to see beauty beneath the ugliness, both real and perceived.

His actual best trait is his creativity and the many forms it takes. His ability to improvise has gotten him out of tight situations: quickly parsing what in the environment one can use as a trap is crucial when fighting monsters as large as a building. His inventiveness has taught him a host of new skills, including how to wield the hunting horn, as well as how to make them. A flair for the artistic has helped him tailor outfits and write songs, letting him express himself in ways he once couldn’t imagine.

Creativity has let Pom change craft a life for himself beyond what he was raised to be. The trick is getting him to see that.

What would it take to truly upset your character, enough that they would act upon their feelings? Are they the sort to forgive?
Pom has a temper that naturally runs fast and hot, and while that aggression was useful as a knife-wielding poacher, it doesn’t work nearly as well for a musician presenting a carefree image. He’s learned how to reel it in primarily through Purl, letting her decide if something is upsetting and then acting accordingly; however, when Purl isn’t around, he has to decide for himself, and that’s when he finds he can’t trust his own judgment.

Most of the time, he’s able to let things slide, or at least make it seem so, but Pom is absolutely the type to hold a grudge. His brother who betrayed him? He’d go for the throat without even thinking twice. A fell0w hunter told him Purl was better off left at camp? He’ll sit in a tree and let them deal with the monster. He’s not the sort to forgive or forget – not for others, and not for himself.

The only exception is Purl, who is a darling angel who could never do any wrong. And even in the case she does do wrong, they deserved it or she was doing it for their survival, and it is therefore acceptable in his eyes.


Inventory:
    - The clothes on his back (minus the Clutch Claw on his left arm, the two blades, and the Scoutfly cage on his waist)
    1. Hunting Horn (the Wolf Shamisen)
    2. Toolkit (specifically for tuning and repairing his instruments; includes little things like screwdrivers, files, oils, as well as a few rudimentary lockpicks.)
    3. Purl's stuffed Grimalkyne
    4. Necklace with an Anjanath gem

So that last one might count as "magical," as gems, within the context of the games, actually provide unique properties to the hunters who use them in armor, weapons, etc. When a monster lives long and through enough battles, they become classified as "tempered," with their insides becoming tough to the point of crystallization. Gems are crystallized blood and organs that can be carved from the bodies of these particular monsters.

Pom's gem is from an Anjanath that was somewhat of a rival of his until she met her end at the hands of poachers. He keeps it on a necklace that's usually under his gear; it grants him fire/heat resistance, as well as giving his orange eyes — coincidentally close in color to an Anjanath's — a dim, unnatural glow.


Powers/Abilities:
Pom is human, but he's a Monster Hunter variety of human — and specifically, he's a hunter, who are canonically noted for being tougher than regular people. While some of it can be chalked up to game mechanics, the fact that hunters are basically superhuman is referenced multiple times throughout the series, but there's no explanation as to why that is. A non-comprehensive list of things that are possible in Monster Hunter:

    - falling from incredible heights without injury, even when the hunter lands on their feet
    - focusing "energy" to enhance the dual blades, allowing the hunter to activate "demon mode" (and NPCs call it this)
    - holding their breath for insane amounts of time, even when fighting monsters underwater
    - wielding weapons and wearing armor that would make it nigh impossible to fight against monsters whose hides are too tough to injure with anything but those weapons
    - being lit on fire by a dragon and not having all their skin burned off

Monster Hunter works a lot under the rule of cool, so I'll just say Pom is definitely tougher than the average human by a country mile, but has no actual superpowers. As for things he can do:

Combat: he knows how to wield a hunting horn in combat, as well as dual blades (though he'd prefer no one know about the latter). He's also proficient with his fists, though less trained and more scrappy. He tends to be a dexterous fighter, dodging and weaving rather than going for heavy blows.

Utility: he's a tinkerer by nature, and can make a hunting horn from just about anything (including junk, like the Kulu-Ya-Ku horn of Monster Hunter World). He can also sew well enough to make his own clothes, because the blacksmith keeps telling him that a flashy coat of glittering scales and a feather boa are not appropriate for fighting flame-breathing monsters. As per the game, he spends a lot of time grinding herbs into potions, so he's picked up a thing or two on the medicinal front.

Languages: he speaks Monster Hunter's equivalent of "whatever the common language is," as well as Lynian (the language of Felynes). Despite his illiteracy, he's got a talent for picking up spoken languages.

Miscellany: Pom has what I generally call "animal magnetism," and tends to befriend wildlife (including monsters) easier than most. Though he has been encouraged not to do this by the Hunter's Guild, he does it anyway because he's not good at listening to rules.


Samples: Here & Here

Player Goals:
For Pom, I'm interested in delving into a character who needs to learn to open up to the people around him. He stands out in the Hunter's Guild because he's reluctant to party with anyone but Purl; he's closed himself off emotionally from anyone but her, and tells so many lies that he's not even sure where the real him begins. Basically, he's worn the mask for so long that he can't take it off to see what's underneath, and I really want to explore that. The psychological changes that come from monster transformation might facilitate or hinder that journey — I'm hoping the former, which is one reason I chose a pack-oriented Soul!

For long-term goals, I'd like to see him learn to make decisions on his own without filtering it through the "What would Purl do?" lens, and gain some faith in his own instincts. I'd also love for his habitual lies to get him into trouble that he has to get out of, preferably by having to place his trust in others.

Soul Choice:
Carnivora-type, please! I want to take inspiration for his design and behavior from the Ebony Odogaron, especially with the dual sets of claws and big teeth. The fact he'll be drawn to others is a nice bonus, and I think the element of having to control his aggression — both his own temper and that which comes from his transformation — will be fun. :>