Round 2, Sort Of.

So in starting the next part of the story, I’m getting back to square one on a multitude of different things.  For one, I’m going back to all my reference books, brushing up on tips and tricks I may have started to overlook, and doing lots of brainstorming about characters.  Of course Jalen, Al, and Antoine are back, along with most everybody else, but since the scale of this chapter of the story is so much larger, there are inevitably going to be a few new additions to the cast of TMC.  We’ll see the Emperor in this one, as he tries to figure out just how to stop the Vurkund horde from crushing Danmer’s walls.  We’ll see more Vurkund, more Imperials, more Magisters, more magic overall.

In bringing the emperor to life, I’m reminded of when I was first doing brainstorms on Al.  He was the especially tricky one.  At first, he started out as a Firasian monk who would spout off vague allusions and observations much to Jalen’s chagrin.  He was meant as a friend and foil all in one.  He would sit idly as Jalen fought off bandits, only to intervene when his life was truly threatened.  Originally, he excelled in hand-to-hand comment and ate nothing but leaves, twigs, and obscure plants that he would produce from a mysterious pouch hidden in his robes.  In retrospect, I can’t believe I thought this would work.  The roles of Antoine and Al had to be individually defined, not smashed into one.  I needed a solid foil, not something muddled (although it certainly seems muddled at first to readers).  When Antoine was ‘born’ I thought of only one thing:  How can I create the complete opposite of Jalen in every way imaginable.  To be honest, it was the easiest brainstorming session I’ve ever had!  I just looked at Jalen’s character sheet, jotted down the opposite of everything on there, and viola!  Al on the other hand…he needed to be complementary.  I still needed that conscience type of character, to keep Jalen’s goodness in check.  I considered three different races before settling on Bastian: Vurkund (that part eventually became Jorrah, Lushanese, and an Imperial smuggler aka Han Solo-ish).  Honestly, once Al finally took shape, I can’t say I’ve had any more fun than when it came to thinking up his background.  I can’t say too much about it obviously, but I can’t wait to tell everybody about Alcin Von Merwon’s past.