Uther Skystrider

DON'T BE ALARMED: Uther Skystrider is now Elezen! Do not attempt to adjust your monitor settings!

Still waiting on my Phial of Fantasia, so bear with me ICly.

Uther Skystrider
Of the Sky, From the Sky, For the Sky
The Wandering Knight
Gender	Male
Race	Elezen
Clan	Wildwood
Citizenship	Ishgard
Nameday	11th Sun of the Second Astral Moon, 1546 (31 cycles old)
Deity	Halone, the Fury
Affiliations	House Fortemps, Misericorde, Order of the Twin Adder

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Basic Info

Birth Name: Uther Fortemps

Nicknames/Aliases: Uther (the) Skystrider

Place of Birth: Ishgard

Place of Residence: Lancer's Guild, Old Gridania. Otherwise nomadic.

Height: 6 fulms, 4 ilms

Weight: ~200 ponze

Hair Color: Brown

Eye Color: Brown

Occupation: Lancer's Guild instructor, Crew member of the Misericorde, Ishgard Dragoon (former)

Skills: Uther is extremely skilled in the use of lances, spears, and polearms as weapons, as well as the acrobatic skills consistent with Dragoon training. He is the quintessential Dragoon right down to his core. He is also a highly capable chocobo handler and mounted combatant. His minor, non-combative skills include fishing, tracking, hunting, and conversing. He is very charismatic. He has a great knowledge of large monsters throughout Eorzea, most notably dragons. He is also literate and quite intelligent.

Flaws: Uther has no skill for magic or firearms. Being a true knight, he does not have a knack for modern weaponry or the occult.

History

Early Life

Uther Fortemps was born into nobility, as a member of the Fortemps High House. His father, Ector Fortemps, trained Uther, his elder brother Arthur, and his elder sister Guinnevere, in lance combat from the moment they could walk. By the age of fifteen, Uther was already heading to battle for the first time as a full-fledged Dragoon, chosen by the Eye. Aside from his combat training, he was taught to act as any knight of noble blood should. He was well educated in history, mathematics, and religion. Uther, like the rest of Ishgard's citizens, was raised to worship Halone with extreme conviction.

Life and Romance as a Dragoon

Uther Fortemps was sent to battle at the age of fifteen alongside his siblings and father. Being neither as experienced or athletic as his family members, he was quickly and abruptly injured by a wyvern and taken to the infirmary. During his time in recovery, Uther met a young healer named Igraine, a noble from the Durendaire House. The two quickly fell in love. Igraine and Uther were both well-educated and enjoyed conversing with passing adventurers during their downtime. Uther became increasingly interested in the outside world, and his chivalry bound him to feel sympathetic for their many plights. Despite his empathy, Uther always felt that his place was in Ishgard, fighting the Holy War. By the age of nineteen, Uther had mastered the art of Dragoon combat to such a point that he was given the honorary surname "Skystrider" for the way he manipulated his natural aerial abilities to move across the battlefield in a quick and deadly fashion.

At the age of twenty-one, Uther and Igraine married. Life was hard with both of them being constantly called off to perform their duties to their nation, but that is life in Ishgard. The next year, the couple had a son whom they named Bedevere. For two years, the young Elezen family managed to scrape all of the joy they could from their simple life, and they were truly happy. Finally, Uther was sent away to battle once again, leaving Igraine and Bedevere behind the gates of a fortress on the opposite side of Coerthas. While Uther was away, the fortress was attacked by a wyvern bombardment. Igraine, who was not a fighter, coated her robes in poison and allowed herself to be eaten alive in an attempt to buy time for the residents to flee. Upon Uther's return, he learned of the death of his wife and son, and in his grief he began to question the Holy War and even his faith in Halone.

The Swelling of Dalamud

As the months went on and Uther began to question everything he had been taught, Dalamud grew large and red. Grand Companies began sending emissaries to Ishgard's gates in request for military aid in the coming battle. All were turned away. Uther was stationed at Camp Dragonhead at the time, and partook in frequent discussions with these messengers to learn what horrible fate was awaiting them. Finally, after weeks of losing sleep, Uther decided there was nothing left in Ishgard for him and left in the night to help Eorzea in her war. On his way past the Observatorium, he was confronted by his brother Arthur who pleaded with him not to leave. Arthur warned that if he left Ishgard, he would be disgraced, lose his nobility, and never be allowed to return. After failing to reason with Uther, Arthur charged at him and the two battled. Evenly matched, they both grew exhausted and Arthur had no choice but to let his brother go. Uther has not returned to Ishgard in five years, nor has he made contact with any of his former friends and family. Within the city, Uther Skystrider is known as a heretic and a traitor, despite his noble intentions. If he ever returns, he feels he will be cast out as an unbeliever.

Five Years in Exile

Uther journeyed through the Black Shroud on his way to Carteneau with nothing but out-dated maps as his guide. Getting lost many times along the way, he had not even managed to reach Gridania before Dalamud fell and Bahamut released his fury upon Eorzea. Escaping the heavy bombardment with minor scrapes and bruises, Uther reached Gridania to find it in ruins. He decided the chivalrous thing to do was to stay and help rebuild. During his time rebuilding the city, he learned a great deal about carpentry and woodwork, and became a trusted face among the locals. Uther did so much work fighting off bandits, looters, and the Lambs of Dalamud, that he was given an instructor's job at the Lancer's Guild once Gridania was operational again. Uther lived happily in his exile, performing manual labor, and spending his days under the shade of the Black Shroud. His drachenmail armor gathered dust and remained untouched, and he was content to live a life of pacifism. After five years of this peaceful bliss, however, the Warriors of Light began to reappear and the reality of present circumstances was thrust upon Uther once again.

The War Goes On

As Uther was returning to reality and wondering how he could help with the Garlean threat, he saw a flyer for a group known as Misericorde. Unlike the run-of-the-mill adventuring leagues that were rampant in Gridania, these people seemed to have a grip on reality. Underneath their flyer was an empty bowl of linkpearls. Apparently Uther had already missed the Captain's grand speech, but decided to find him nonetheless. Making a three-week journey to Limsa Lominsa via chocobo and boat, he found the man he was looking for and the two had a long discussion as he was simultaneously introduced to the existing crew and the Misericorde hopefuls. Since this time, Uther has been adventuring alongside this motley group of ruffians from all corners of Eorzea as they attempt to wage war on the Garlean Empire. To further their military and political needs, Uther began working with the Order of the Twin Adder as well.

Personality

Social: Uther Skystrider is a true white knight at heart. He is always willing to help out anyone who he feels truly needs it. Though he is both courteous and generous, one should not assume that he is a pushover or a goody-two-shoes. Depending on the situation, Uther will be the first to stand up for himself or crack a joke. He thoroughly enjoys stories, music, and humor. He can be exceedingly clever and witty when he puts his mind to it, and he has a great deal of charisma. While some would go as far as to say he is a natural leader, he tends to stick to supporting roles. His greatest social weaknesses are his stubbornness and his occasional cynicism when the mood catches.

Combat: In combat, Uther continues his white knight approach. He is valorous and brave, furious and fearsome. Uther is a seasoned fighter and will not hesitate to strike first and strike true. He will always stand up for what he believes in, even in the face of death. Unfortunately, this can be seen as headstrong and idealist, and it can sometimes put him against foes he can not always best.

Religion: Growing up in Ishgard, Uther was taught to worship Halone the Fury. This is a tradition that he continues to this day. It is worth noting, however, that he very much despises the zealous worshiping to his deity that is law in his homeland. His time in Gridania has opened Uther's eyes to other belief systems and he has great respect for all forms of worship and lack-there-of.

Speech: Uther Skystrider speaks more-or-less the same as everyone else. His few quirks consist of calling elders or authority figures "sire" and "madam" by habit, even when he has little or no respect for them. In social situations he has been found to talk more and more frequently as he gets to know someone. This can be confusing for some because of how much it varies. While in groups that he is unfamiliar with, he tends to be the strong and silent type, and inversely, with groups that he has known for some time he is a humorous chatterbox. He has a few Ishgardian phrases that he tends to mutter at times. Examples of these are "What in Halone's Fury?" "Sea of Clouds!" and "Fury's trident!"

Appearance

Physical

Uther is very short for an Elezen. Standing at only six fulms four ilms, he is only about the height of the average Highlander or even an exceptionally tall Midlander. Uther sees his short stature as a strength, and uses his long Elezen limbs and light weight to jump farther and be more agile. His eyes and hair are a dull brown and his skin has the fair tone of an Ishgardian, as opposed to the more tan Forestborn of Gridania. His ears are medium length and he chooses to not decorate them with ceremonial clasps, as many of his race have. He has a large scar on the left side of his face from an unknown injury. He has a generally dirty and beaten appearance, though appears to have the features of a classically handsome man under all of the dirt and soot. His hair is neck-length and is usually matted down and pushed back to keep from irritating his face while wearing a helmet. Even when not wearing a helmet, he prefers his hair this way.

Clothing and Armor

Unlike other nobles, Uther tends to wear whatever he can find at the time. He has a great knowledge of fashion, though he chooses to ignore it and is apathetic to the state of people's clothing. As far as armor is concerned, Uther prefers leather, chain, or scale armor as it is protective yet flexible. He has a full set of drachenmail in his residence at Gridania, though he refuses to wear it out of a deep-rooted sense of failure as a Dragoon.

Affiliations

Ector Fortemps: Uther's father, and retired Dragoon.

Morgause Fortemps: Uther's mother.

Arthur Fortemps: Uther's older brother and role model. Current Dragoon.

Guinnevere Fortemps: Uther's older sister. Current Dragoon.

Igraine Durendaire: Uther's wife, and healer. Deceased.

Bedevere Windborne: Uther's son. Believed to be deceased, but is currently being raised by Halone radicals, unbeknownst to Uther.

Merlin: Uther's chocobo, and his only remaining friend from Ishgard.

Misericorde: An organization in which Uther is a crew member. They are currently his only friends and allies in Eorzea, despite a rocky start with their Captain.

Other Notes

Common Rumors

Moderate Rumors

Rare Rumors

Player Rumors

OOC Inspirations

When creating Uther Skystrider, I took a lot of inspiration from Robin Hood, King Arthur, and Wilfred of Ivanhoe.