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snowblindmods) wrote2015-04-06 10:43 pm
snowblindmods) wrote2015-04-06 10:43 pm
Application
| Application | |||
Applications are closed permanently. Thank you to everyone who has applied over the years! Before applying for a character, make sure you've read the rules and FAQ. You should also refer to the application guide to see what we're looking for in our applications. You may apply for one character per application cycle and three characters total. Please put your character's name and canon in the subject line of your application comment. Applications must be posted directly to this post and cannot be links. We will screen your application if you request it of us after we review it. Application challenges are allowed, but someone who did not place a reserve challenge cannot challenge a reserved application. Once reservations expire, an application challenge can only be placed before we process the character application of the applicant you would like to challenge. In the event of us nearing our application cap and having more applications than slots, we will attempt to choose the most well-written applications. First-time applicants will be processed first, then applications for second characters, and finally applications for third characters. We may allow more applications to be submitted than we have slots for in the name of greater selection. We will clarify in our response if an application is not being allowed into the game because of the cap or because of issues with the application not meeting the standards of the game. Original Character Application | |||
no subject
White button-down dress shirt
Black and gray standard SHIELD-issue uniform
Black cotton socks
Black uniform dress shoes
Gold undersuit (stored inside his body, but either confiscated or simply inaccessible without abilities)
Personality:
Tony is driven first and foremost by the future. It's how he defines himself, being a self-proclaimed "futurist" and acting with that in mind. He's pushed by both the potential the future has for good and the fear he has of the negative consequences that can come when it isn't put in check. He's always trying to think forward, to make new things and build new opportunities for those around him while protecting them from threats and potential threats headed their way. He's a visionary, both inspired and plagued by what he can imagine.
Like the future he sees, Tony is a man made up of contradictions. Raised by Howard and Maria Stark, Tony was brought up with an affluent lifestyle and groomed young in business and the cost of war. From Howard he learned to be an industrialist and excels at most things related to weapon design, making him a capable professional with a sharp wit and drive for success. Used to comfort, he often has expensive tastes and prefers convenience where he can get it. After all, why take the harder route if the easy one is just as efficient? This mindset leads him to habits common to the corporate culture he's used to. Because he is often dealing with so much disposable income and large amounts of resources, Tony tends to take a businesslike approach to issues that can appear callous or clinical to those around him. When something breaks down or doesn't work, he often believes it is better to just upgrade and replace it, assuming that the shortest distance between two points is probably the best answer to any problem. Of course, when the problems involve people and complications arise, his "simplest solution" is not always the best solution, or even if it is, it is best in a technical sense. He can also be indulgent. Although this is not always true to form, a good deal of Tony's life is built on a softer, privileged experience. He likes his creature comforts and has a history of being a free-spirited playboy in his younger adult years, further adding to his image as a superficial, if clever, elite.
Beneath the layer of a smooth-talking suit is still another mask, because the one thing Tony Stark can't be is simple. In addition to being the Faceman charming the public, Tony is his own enforcer. Iron Man is his tough guy act, who doesn't break a sweat when confronted with danger, who always has a quip and a punch to back it up, and who balances out the charisma with brawn. He's a hero and protector, defending what he feels is right and answering to no one else--somewhat an ideal of what Tony personally wants. Although he was raised by a rich family, Howard was, in Tony's words, "a hard man to live with." A pressured weapons manufacturer with a high competitive drive and a strict hand, Howard taught Tony from an early age that toughness was the way to success. Iron Man, in a way, is Tony's answer to that: the strength he wants to have to fulfill or escape the expectations of his past.
But, as their descriptions indicate, they are just roles. Being a corporate leader or a superhero are jobs with uniforms and personas he puts on to fill a need. They aren't entirely fake as each is still part of him, but much of the time the jobs he fills are just pieces of him just as any job only shows part of who a person is. The unique part about Tony is that although he puts on a variety of masks, at the heart of his actions, he is more himself than just a hero or a leader, whether good or bad. Despite the fronts he constantly puts on, Tony is at his core very emotional. He reacts to his feelings as often as he does logic and reason, balancing his pragmatic approach with a sensitive heart. He's pushed forward by what he wants, and what he wants more than anything is a good future, a positive outcome for everyone. Yes, he is a bit of a bleeding heart. He's repeatedly given criminals, including those who have tried to kill him, second chances and even hired them on to give them a new start. This may seem to contradict the image of the arrogant, self-absorbed executive, and in fact his emotional side does come in odds with his professional role fairly often. It's a delicate balancing act that does not always work in his favor. In the past, he's become self-destructive due to stress and tragedy, losing control to anger and alcoholism that still hangs over him. On the other hand, Tony's humanity is really where he shines. He leads with his heart, being sincere in a way that comes through even with the masks he wears. A good indication of this is how personal his relationships are to those around him. He isn't just a faceless corporate entity indifferent to the destruction of others. Most of the people who know him, heroes and villains alike, call him Tony over Iron Man, and that is telling of how they see beyond the roles. He's been Secretary of Defense for the United States government and Director of SHIELD, but he's Tony Stark, a normal man, above any of those titles.
Naturally, with all of those conflicting roles and feelings and responsibilities filling his life, Tony seeks out stability. And his stability, his primary lifeline, is the future. Tony is dedicated to creating a better world. He is an inventor, after all. He's fascinated by potential and always looking for ways to improve. This desire, and perhaps obsession, is reflected in the way he lives his life. He's a man who has made arguably more mistakes than anyone else, yet he continues to learn from them. Each loss he takes is followed by a change in his plans and style, each time with a promise to himself as well as others, "I'll never do that again." And that remains pretty true. Despite making many mistakes, he doesn't tend to repeat the same errors twice, again, perhaps because he's too hyper-sensitive and obsessive about improvement. He's gone from being a frivolous youth with a cynical but careless attitude toward his life to a man who carries a lot of self-doubt and spends a good deal of time seriously reflecting on all of his choices.
He takes each lesson he learns as a step toward the future he wants to see. This not only shows in how he improves his own life, but how he treats others. He's extremely loyal to his friends, giving to the point of self-sacrifice, and still pragmatic. He knows when to cut his losses, and although his strategic plays run more toward the reckless maverick style, they almost always succeed. He's generous and protective, which comes from having too much material wealth and not enough emotional support to give it meaning. If he has something within his power to give, he'll give it, hoping that expresses how he feels toward those around him. He's also one of the more open-minded heroes when it comes to gray lines and forgiveness. Tony understands that there are different points of view and the hard truth that all humans are flawed. As an alcoholic and the weapons designer who's been branded with every slur people can come up with, Tony doesn’t usually judge others with a black-and-white outlook. He stands up to enemies and has no problem telling someone when he thinks they are wrong, but he doesn't equate actions with someone's worth. What you do does not necessarily make you evil, at least in his perspective. He tries to reason with people and talk them down from violence rather than the "shoot first, negotiate afterwards" approach. He's often analyzing others' reactions just as much as he does his own, trying to understand their situations and feelings.
That doesn't mean he's perfected himself, either. He has a notably sharp wit -- he's an engineering genius with the ability to adapt to impossible situations, such as building and then improving upon a metal chest plate to keep his heart from stopping (that is totally how medical science works) -- and an equally sharp mouth. “Don't be so aggressive,” Steve tells him in one issue. And Tony, dryly, answers, “I only do that when I'm tired, hungry, or frustrated. Or any combination of the three.”
When he's got no other ammunition left, Tony Stark will always have a quip to fire. Even though he's gotten better at tempering his sarcasm and knee-jerk reactions to others, Tony is still more playful and reckless than most of the other Avengers. He blurts out his thoughts at inappropriate times, still acts smug, still cracks sarcastic jokes in the face of danger, and gets wrapped up in his own life so much that he tends to screw up those of others as a result. He's always been impossibly stubborn when he believed he was right and snapped back at people for passive-aggressive or accusatory comments, and that still hasn't changed. Even when the stakes are high, Tony Stark can't help but get his own word in.
Despite a lot of his bad impulses, Tony does have his good traits. He asks for help; defers to others knowing he doesn't always have the answers. He's willing to set aside his pride and is self-aware enough to figure out (eventually) when his pride is in the way. Tony is a hero, and he takes the idea of being a hero seriously. He wants to protect those around him, friends and strangers alike, and has a strong desire to do good in spite of his own shortcomings. He's learned to recognize his weaknesses even when he can't completely control them, and he always tries to maintain the good and improve upon the bad. After all, he's a builder of the future and that is what progress is about.