Training: Seth Gunnells [Suspended]

[Jools Noctru]

Blue is my Game Master (GM) voice. Please consider everything said in blue to be Out-Of-Character (OOC).

Before we start training, I would like you to post your character background story. Go into as much detail as you like. This is very important, because every character in the Combine needs to know where they come from, and what type of person they are. Once you have posted your background, we will proceed with your training.

[Seth Gunnells]

To learn about Seth's past, we start at a remote corner of space where the lonely wreckage of an unidentifiable freighter drifts. The ship was completely torn to shreds. To this day it is a mystery. Pirates wouldn't trash a ship in such a manner. They'd take what they want, but leave it mostly intact. It could've been a government hit or an attack by someone seeking vengeance. Whatever the case, the tiny Givin baby Seth lay in his airtight capsule where his parents presumably placed him before they died. There Devon and Sarah Gunnells found him, human traders who were en route from a remote spice planet to Coruscant. The ID code of the freighter could not be obtained because of the extensive damage, but the Gunnells searched the ship for signs of life and, to their utter surprise, they found Seth tucked away in his pod.

They rescued him immediately and took him in as their son, never having children of their own as Sarah was incapable of pregnancy. They raised him in their home on Coruscant. As he grew older, his intelligence was staggering to them. They had heard of the natural intelligence of the Givin race, but it never really occurred to them until he had already surpassed them in mathematics at the age of five. He graduated from college at the age of nine and by his tenth birthday, he was assisting his parents by predicting sales trends. His family grew to be very wealthy due to his talents and as such, his parents were able to retire early and with enough money to last the multiple lifetimes.

However, all was not always peaceful for the Gunnells family. As they began to prosper due to Seth's mathematical abilities, many rival traders began to accuse Devon and Sarah of taking Seth in just so they could use him to profit. This outraged Seth and his parents, but it planted seeds of doubt in Seth's mind. He began to wonder if it might actually be the truth. Seth began to withdraw from the outside world, spending long hours each day improving his mathematical skills. Devon, furious that the cruelty of his competitors was affecting his son so negatively. He used his new found wealth and power to put his rivals out of business, buying some out, slandering others. This earned Devon many enemies and they had to live in a secure loft to remain safe.

When Seth was fully grown, he decided the life his parents built was not the life he desired for himself. When he attained the age of twenty, he left his home and parents behind and headed for the home planet of the Givin, Yag`Dhul. There, he learned about his culture. It all seemed very natural to him and he enjoyed everything he learned. He was urged to change his name to something more traditional by his peers and for some time he considered it. However, he learned barely a year after he left that his parents were on their deathbeds. He hurried back to Coruscant to be with them in their final hours. When he finally returned almost a month later, he had resolved to keep his name in honor of his parents who had showed so much love and kindness.

Five years of steeping himself in the culture of the Givin felt right to Seth and he enjoyed learning about his people and becoming an accepted member of their society. He was somewhat of an eccentric character in his society, well-liked by many because of his ability to show more emotion than his peers due to being raised by humans. Others saw him as a threat to their culture for those same reasons. He considered competing for a spot on the Body Calculus, the governing body on Yag`Dhul, but there was so much controversy about his running that he decided against it.

After the controversy surrounding his potential candidacy, he decided that permanently living on Yag`Dhul was neither optional nor desirable for him. Thus, he began seeking employment abroad and signed on with Starypan/SunHui Spaceworks as a prominent production member on their team. However, after some time working for them and very closely with Raptor Cardel, Seth fell on a crisis in his life. The strongly conflicting cultures he felt apart of began to war within him. He took a leave of absence for about a year, returning for some time to both Coruscant and Yag`Dhul, visiting old friends, homes, and stomping grounds.

After finally coming to peace with his unique past, he attempted to return to SSS, finding that it had strongly declined since he was last there. Deciding that his future was not with them, he left to look for other employment. While he was searching, he came across the Krath Code, and due to his tumultuous past, found special meaning in it. He decided to apply to Koros Spaceworks, a natural fit due to his aptitude for ships.

He is currently an early recruit, but he is excited to begin a new journey and his hopeful of a bright future with Koros.

[Jools Noctru]

An excellent post, Seth!

I'm unsure if the first sentence is commonly accepted, so I'd not worry about it too much. Try to keep everything in third-person past tense (which everything appears to be, save for the very last bit).

Although your character is Givin - who all may quite look alike - it may still be a good idea to try to work on some of your character's appearance.

The training consists of a number of situations for you to react to. Unless otherwise stated, these situations do not follow on from one to the next. You will be told what are you are expected to focus on in which section.

In Description and Tone, you must focus entirely on the describing the scene set before you and establishing a tone to the area. Do not worry about combat just yet.

You have landed at the spaceport of a planet in the outer rim that reminds you vaguely of home. It is not too special but it has a lot of people, and for the most part they seem friendly enough. You can hear the sounds of an outdoor market from not too far away, and you notice a grouping of large tents off to the south. There is a sign next to the tents but you can't read it from here. You realize you are hungry as the smells of food reach you from the market and you can only conclude that there are the usual array of bars, restaurants and food vendors in the small town around the spaceport.

[Seth Gunnells]

(It is my hope that after I get an appearance worked out, I can get someone to create an avatar for me, but I'll also add it to my biography once I get it worked out. I'll give it my best shot on this section. Thanks for your feedback on the last one.)

Seth took a step off his ship. This spaceport, while not really standing out from most of the ports he'd been to, did differ slightly in that the people here seemed to like the colors orange and blue especially well. Many stalls had tarps, signs, or tablecloths that consisted of those colors. The air felt clean for the most part, but a hint of filth made its presence known in a slight filmy texture barely detectable in the air. Many people of a number of different races moved about the spaceport all clearly with some kind of purpose. A few Wookies, some Jawas, quite a few Humans, and a couple of Bith were the first to catch his attention. Over in the corner a Bothan and a Human were clearly having come kind of heated debate. While he started strolling out towards the middle of the spaceport looking for somewhere to get a drink or some food, a couple of Jawas bumped into him, instantly chattering loudly, seemingly upset at him for getting in their way. Just after that, he had to jump out of the way of a cart being wheeled by. He decided I'd be best to get out of the middle of traffic.

It was at that moment that the smell of food wafted by and he traced to a group of tents and stalls to the south. There was some kind of sign clearly indicating the nature of the place, but he couldn't quite make it out from the distance. He started striding briskly towards the tents, his stomach grumbling. It was hard to keep fed due to the sheer amount of food Givins take in and he was rather driven to get some food. As the sign got ever larger, he could finally make out the words: "The Stranger's Bazaar." As he looked around at the stalls, most of the owners appeared to be in pleasant moods. Business must have been good as travelers looking for food must have been led here first by their noses and there was plenty of food to be had. There were people everywhere. This seemed to be the center of trade for at least this area of town. All kinds of local creatures cooked to near perfection could be found at many of the stalls. Some more foreign delicacies could be found without looking to hard. It didn't seem to matter where you were from; you could find something to suit your tastes here.

The stock wasn't only limited to food though. There were a couple of droid shops right across from each other, the owners eyeing each other with the spark of rivalry in their eyes. There was a vehicle parts stall that seemed to specialize in speeder parts manned by a particularly foul looking Toydarian. There were a couple of small weapons shops for those looking to stock up on ammo or a new pistol, maybe a combat knife or two, but not much of lethality beyond that. There were quite a few clothing shops, most of them run by humans. If one wanted to drop some credits, one might not be able to expect the best quality coming from this place, but you could almost certainly find what you were looking for.

His hunger finally overtaking him, Seth began buying up a bunch of food, some for now and a lot to store up for his travels when he would leave next.

[Jools Noctru]

It's always good to fully describe an area if you're the first one there - it lets other people see the same area you do and helps interaction. It's also an aid to roleplaying in that people can react better to different environments - characters used to fine restaurants can look down their noses at a seedy bar, and people used to the seedy bar might be a little intimidated and out of place in a fine restaurant.

You have shown to be quite apt in describing both your character's background as well as a scene set before you. You have been using the correct tense for your posts, and I have confidence you no longer require training on Tone and Description.

Next will come Player Character (PC) interaction. You are to assume that the Trainers character is an old friend, and react to them accordingly. Remember that you can not control the actions of other PCs. If you prefer, you may weave this next scenario into your current setting, but it is not required for training.

You are at the bar, ordering another drink when your old friend Skritt Zavv, an aging Geonosian, approaches you and attempts to slap you on the back.

"Hey, buddy, I didn't expect to see you here. How have you been?"

[Seth Gunnells]

"Bartender, another round of Coruscant Brandy if you would, sir," Seth asked in his usual polite manner. He had just begun drinking it when he felt a friendly pat on the back. He was quick enough to realize who it was by the shape and impact of the hand before Skritt even finished speaking.

"Hey, buddy, I didn't expect to see you here. How have you been?"

Seth turned in his stool and stood to address his old Geonosian friend. "Skritt! My dear, dear friend!" He embraced Skritt as one would a lost brother. "It is so very good to see you again! Don't worry: I won't shock you with the traditional quadratic greetings of my people." Seth laughed enthusiastically at the thought of the first time he'd greeted Skritt in that manner. "Please, take a seat and allow me to treat you to whatever you want," Seth urged, motioning to the empty stool next to him. "Bartend! Whatever he's having, it's on me," he said. "So what are you doing here, you insect?" Seth asked, teasingly.

[Jools Noctru]

Skritt was warmly welcomed into his favorite place by the familiar Givin. He chuckled at the memories of their introduction a couple of years ago. "Heh, thanks for sparing me, Seth!", Skritt responded jokingly.

Skritt took place on the stool offered to him, and waved at the barkeep. "Good afternoon, Hanz. Ignore what this fella just told you and put everything on my tab."

Hanz grinned and shook his head a little as he poured a pint of Rodian Ale, Skritt's usual.

"Y'know, Seth. I've been getting old, I can feel it in my bones. I think I found the perfect place in the Outer Rim for my retirement."

Skritt pauses for a moment while Hanz puts down their drinks on the table. He nods at his guests and strolls back to his counter.

"As you can see I've already settled in quite nicely here. How are you doing, my friend? Doing the Dynasty's entire finances or something? You Givin are good with numbers aren't you?" Skritt said with a slight puzzled look on his face, as if his memory was failing him once more.

[Seth Gunnells]

Seth smiled as he heard his old friend describe his new home.

"We all get old, my friend. I'm glad you've found a place to do it in," Seth said. He signaled the bartended for another round of Coruscant Brandy.

"I'm doing great, actually. I just signed on with a new group where hopefully I'll be doing some ship development. Koros Spaceworks; you've probably heard of them. And to answer you're question, saying Givin are good with numbers is true, but a gross understatement," he said, laughing and teasingly nudging his friend.

"Yep. I think I've got a pretty bright future there. You doing any thing other being a professional bar patron?" he asked.

[Jools Noctru]

You seem to have player conversation down pretty well. Lets move on.

In NPC Interaction, you will focus primarily on the proper ways to interact and do light combat with NPCs. This first section is unmoderated, and you should control your opponents' actions.

The bar suddenly goes quiet and you ignore it. You've been staring at one of the Twi'lek dancers for a nice amount of time, flirting with your eyes and the like so it didn't seem that important to you. Within moments of silence you are suddenly spun around and two very strong hands are able to grab a hold of your throat.

The very large and angered Wookie begins to shake you in his grip. You know as well as he that within moments you would die. You hear some shouts of agreement from the cowardly supporters nearby. Things to the effect of "You get 'em!" and "Thatta boy!"

You are in a fix.

[Seth Gunnells]

The room grew silent, but Seth was a little too distracted to notice it in time. Just as he started to wonder why the room was so quiet, he felt two large, furry hands grasping his throat. He was no master of hand to hand combat, but he was a master of mathematics and physics. He quickly took notice of the critical points on the Wookie's arms, areas that were vulnerable to debilitating strikes. Quickly, he struck, jabbing the Wookie in both elbows, drawing up his leg and plowing it as hard as he could into the Wookie's diaphragm, and finally kneeing him hard where it counts.

The Wookie fell onto the ground, gasping for breath and in extreme pain due to the blow to his more sensitive area. Seth had his hands on his knees gasping for breath.

"What... the HELL... was that about?!" he demanded.