Burning Passion

Burning Passion
Gender	Male
Race	Roegadyn
Clan	Hellsguard
Citizenship	Radz-at-Han

Character

General

Burning Passion is a skilled machinist originally hailing from the eastern city-state of Radz-at-Han. A citizen of the Garlemald, Burning was once fiercely loyal to the Empire. However, his faith in the Empire was greatly shaken after the events of the Calamity. While he has great love for Thavnair, Radz-at-Han, and Garlemald, he also acknowledges that the Empire has put too much stock in trying to be the greatest superpower the world has ever known, and for that reason he fights. He wishes to see the Empire focus on peace rather than war, and it is his hope that, through his actions in helping Eorzea resist Garlean rule, the Empire will adopt more diplomatic solutions.

Appearance

Burning is a Roegadyn and, as such is a very large, very stocky individual. He has darkly tanned skin and vibrant red hair with golden highlights, looking as if to resemble fire itself. He has four parallel scars over his left eye and nose, shaped like they came from a set of claws. He is shorter than most Roegadyn, but also lighter on his feet.

Behavior

Burning is a kind and compassionate soul, though rather quiet. He is very shy around those who do not share his interests and it takes a long time for him to warm up to people. But for those he is close to, he is a beacon of good spirits and optimism. He does not handle verbal conflict well, preferring to shy away from such arguments, and instead preferring to be in the company of people who are, at the very least, visibly happy.

He is a perfectionist and is stubborn to a fault, seeing giving up as the ultimate failure, and seeing any failure at all--even in areas he has weaknesses in--as a reflection of his own self-worth. Constant failure can cause Burning's once bright demeanor to grow dark and depressive, especially if the failure is his own. Despite his lack of patience with himself, he has plenty of it when aiding others with their endeavors, filling the role of the teacher quite well.

Combat

General

Burning's combat skills stem directly from basic training he learned from his time with the Philosophi Argentum and his intricate knowledge of magitek. While not a complete pacifist, he often prefers to aid others from the sidelines rather than attack an enemy directly. However, when push comes to shove, Burning can unleash great amounts of firepower.

Tendencies

Likes

• Lassi, a kind of Thavnairian drink created with milk infused with various flavors, such as mint and rolanberry.
• Magitek, or really any form of advanced technology. Burning is obsessed with how such things work.
• Aiding Others. Burning loves any opportunity to help someone in need.

Dislikes

• Negativity. Being sensitive to emotion, Burning is vulnerable to feelings of negativity and attempts to avoid such vibes whenever possible.
• Insects/Insectoids. Burning does not like nature very much, but can tolerate it to an extent. However, he gets anxious and irrationally fearful around anything that even looks like an insect.
• Onions. As a young child, he once ate a raw Thavnairian Onion on a dare. Ever since, he has despised the taste of onions.

Talents

• Technologically Savvy
• Empathic
• Quick Study

Other

• Absent-minded
• Rambles when excited
• Quiet around people he doesn't know.

Relationships

Family

Burning used to be on very good terms with both of his parents. However, after the events of the Calamity, Burning and his parents don't see eye to eye as well as they used to, and Burning's joining of the Philosophi Argentum didn't help matters in the least. Both of his parents remain proud, staunch imperial loyalists.

Friends

(To be Added)

Enemies

(To be Added)

Rumors

Common Rumors

• "Did you hear? That guy's from the East, but he's not like those Domans."
• "That Burning Passion guy? They say he's got a knack for making the most exquisite jewelry!"

Moderate Rumors

• "Burning Passion? He's from Radz-at-Han. Same as that Jalzahn fellow."
• "I once saw Burning Passion fooling around with the insides of one of those Garlean machines!"

Rare Rumors

• "That Burning Passion's a Garlean loyalist. Don't believe a word he says!"

History/Timeline

Burning was born and raised in an imperial-controlled Radz-at-Han and, along with his parents, was an imperial loyalist, believing that the Garlean occupation of Thavnair was necessary and any attempts to fight the rule were foolish. That all changed during the Calamity. Upon hearing of the resulting destruction of the Meteor Project, Burning’s faith in the empire had become shaken. Was the empire truly so determined to conquer a country that they would set out to destroy it? He brought his concerns to his parents. Regrettably, after having lived so long under imperial rule, Burning’s parents still placed their full trust in the empire, and they would butt heads more and more with each passing day.

It was no secret that there were many splintered resistance factions amongst the populace. Burning joined one of the smaller factions, the Philosophi Argentum, an order of philosophers and scientists from Thavnair and of Garlemald alike who share their adoration for the empire, but feel it has become misguided. It was they who taught Burning basic combat, rudimentary magic, and the basics of the art of the machinist.

Five years had passed before it was announced that the alchemist prodigy Jalzahn, an icon amongst the Philosophi Argentum for his work on the Thavnairian Mist, would be making the journey to Eorzea, having heard of the unearthing of the legendary weapons of the Zodiac Braves. Burning, wanting to put his newly found expertise to good use, stowed away onto Jalzahn’s ship in order to see for himself the wrath of the Calamity.

Arriving in Vesper Bay, Burning used the last of his savings to hitch a ride to Ul’dah. As he arrived, he saw the countless refugees forced to live as second-class citizens amongst the Ul’dahn elite. It was not unbelievable that Eorzean culture would be like this from the imperial propaganda he had been exposed to at a young age, and he knew he had to be more than some mere refugee. In order to help Eorzea heal and, by proxy, help the empire see reason, He would have to find work, and find work he did.

Having pre-existing experience with craftsmanship, he set his sights on the goldsmith’s guild in hopes of earning enough money to find the legendary Garlean defector Cid Garlond and continue his studies in the art of the machinist. It took a few months, but his ability to grasp concepts quickly enabled him to become adept at the art of goldsmithing.

During his time in Ul’dah, he developed an odd fondness for it, despite its faults. It was much like his own home, if he were being honest. He had heard the Immortal Flames were hiring adventurers and sellswords to help them with freelance work, and happily signed himself up for the extra work. By day, he would hone his skills and earn money from the Flames, by night he would focus on the intricate details of a piece of jewelry.

Months had passed, but Burning successfully managed to acquire a fair bit of money. One day while working on a tiara for some powerful monetarist’s spoiled daughter, he came across some interesting reading: The grand opening of Garlond Ironworks in Mor Dhona. The next day, he used what money he had saved up to travel to Revenant’s Toll. It was… discomforting being so close to a Garlean Castrum, but he did not waver. He entered Garlond Ironworks and requested employment. After showing some of the engineers the skill he possessed with machinery, he was hired. Since then, he has been honing his craft in the art of machinery, but he has not forgotten the intricate detail work he learned while working as a goldsmith.