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[hearher]

PLAYER

Name: Mel
Age: 29 + 3
Contact: theangstmonkey
Other Characters: Cyril Ashara
Interests: Honestly, I'm hoping to play from a stand point I don't often explore in the world of Thedas - a pro-Circle mage.

CHARACTER

Name: Carolus DiAble - goes by Carlos or Car to people he considers friends. Note: In his canon his name is Carlos DeVil. I tried to fit it more with Thedosian naming conventions but I'm not sure if using "diable" (the french word for 'devil') is too on-the-nose. I'm flexible with his name if I need to change it!
Canon/OC: Disney's Descendants
Journal: hearher
Race: Human
Nationality: His mother was Orlesian but he was raised in the Free Marches and does not have the Orlesian accent.
Occupation: Healer/Medic
Division: Research
Mage or Not: Yep
Age: 18

History

9:25 - Carolus is born. His mother is an Orlesian noble turned apostate who changed her name and fled her home country when she was found out. His father is a very wealthy Free Marches merchant who died under "mysterious circumstances" shortly after his mother found out she was pregnant.

9:25 - 9:35 - Carolus suffers under his mother's care as she treats him as a slave while being extremely emotionally and physically abusive. Despite living in his father's very impressive estate, he is only allowed to sleep in one small closet with no proper bed. He is witness to countless horrors as she practices blood magic at home. She is still the head of her late-husband's lands, estate, and businesses which gives her control of the local economy. She hides under that wealth and influence. However, her reputation for vicious business dealings and general creepiness earns her the name "Cruella" which she loves and enthusiastically embraces. The blood magic goes unproven and she gets away with most of her terribleness by targeting those who have no ability to fight back such as animals, elves, and her own son.

9:36 - Cruella is finally caught as a blood mage (insert obligatory "she was trying to make a coat out of 101 mabari puppies and that's just too far!" joke here). Carolus is placed in the Ostwick Circle.

9:36 - 9:40 - Carolus thrives at the Circle at Ostwick. It's the first time he's lived without constant abuse, the first time he has a real bed, the first time he receives any positive reinforcement. At first he's terrified at the idea of using his own magic ability (too scared he'll end up like her) but through the gentle tutoring of the enchanters and watchful protection of the templars at Ostwick he thrives and passes his Harrowing. He is able to learn defensive and healing magic - something he prefers to more destructive spells - and finds real joy in magical research and theory as well as discussing scientific advancements. Turns out, he's actually really smart when given the right tools and attention.

9:40 - The Accords are annulled, the mages rebel, everything goes to shit. Carolus sticks with mages who are more powerful than he is to survive the war, helping out as a healer whenever needed. He's terrified the entire time and pretty much just focuses on surviving until the Circles are reformed - as he fully believes one day they will be.

9:41 - Present - The Conclave is called, he thinks things are finally going to get back to normal. That doesn't happen. Instead, he joins the Inquisition with the other mages and serves as a healer and support to their forces.

Present - He discovers that James Norrington has been stationed at Kirkwall and requests to be moved there.

Personality

Carolus comes across as extremely nervous and cautious, but when someone gets to know him he is actually very bright and caring. He tends to put others needs ahead of his and tries his best to help out. Sometimes he feels very lost and scared and isn’t sure what he should do but given some direction and focus and he can really thrive.

This does mean he tends to be a "follower" and he allows his opinions and thoughts be overshadowed by those he is following. For example, even though he was very against the mage rebellion, he still fought in it because the mages he was hanging out with were. He also wasn't very vocal with his distaste because it was safer to go with the flow.

That said, he's not a total weakling. His magic is much stronger than most give him credit for. He is also slowly learning how to stand up for himself, even against people he really respects - coming to Kirkwall because that's what he wants is a sign of that.

In a lot of ways he is still deeply scarred by his mother, but finds strength in structure and the support of his peers. Once you are his friend you are basically his friend for life and he will always have your back. He is a very strong believer that "found family" is your "real family."

Carolus also has a lot of affection for animals - especially dogs. While growing up, his mother had convinced him that all animals were vicious and were going to hurt him. She would tell him that she was such a good mother by killing them and draining them of their blood - that she did it all to protect him. As he unpacked a lot of the things she taught him, the idea that animals could actually be very good companions was one of the first lessons he learned. Since then, he has been extremely attached to animals and tries to go out of his way to befriend any he meets who might be friendly. He secretly wishes that one day he'll have a dog of his own.

Finally, another important thing to point out is that when it's said that Carlos is smart, it means that he's actually very smart. While he knows that magic has important place in the world, he is also a fan of science and technological advancement. He's the type of character who would hang around the surgeon in Skyhold and just listen to her talk about splints all day. He believes the way forward for Thedas is a combination of magic and science and that both forces can be used for good. This makes him a prime candidate for the Research division of the Inquisition.

Opinions & Affiliations

The Chantry - Carlos doesn't really have strong opinions on the Chantry as a religion. He knows his mother ranted about how inept it was and the Circle Templars were members, but it's too far removed from his every day life to have a strong opinion either way. He could be converted easily though, if given proper guidance. Right now he goes through the motions of the faith without having strong convictions about it. He does, however, fully believe that the Chantry is right when it says that mages need some kind of structure and oversight.

The Mage/Templar War - Terrifying. He's so glad it’s over.

Templars - He has positive feelings towards Templars because he felt protected by them in the Circle - especially James. That said, during the war he heard a lot of horror stories of abusive Templars. Given his own history of abuse he would never, ever want to put someone in a situation where they were going to be harmed like that. He still thinks the Templars can offer something of value, but hopes they do so with more oversight and protection for their charges in the future.

Circle Mages - The only time that Carlos felt safe in his entire life was when he was in the Circle. He believes the Circle does have good things to give, as he has seen the horrors of a blood mage unchecked. He belongs to the Aequitarian fraternity which means he believes magic should be used to help others. He also believes that mages need some kind of oversight. He favors the return of the Circles with more oversight to stop the Templars who would take advantage.

Adaptation Notes

In the world of Descendants all of the Disney stories happened around the same time in different kingdoms within the same world. Once all of the villains were defeated, the disparate kingdoms came under one rule with Belle and Beast as their central leaders. Beast declared that all of the villains would be banished to the Isle of the Lost. Once there, many had children. Carlos’s mother is Cruella DeVil.

Blood mages are the closest we can get to Disney villains so it makes a lot of sense to make Cruella a blood mage. If we ever get any of the other VKs (Villain Kids) in the game I would be willing to incorporate the other villains into that history as if they were fraternity of influential blood mages - depending on what the other VKs want, of course.

Carlos is only saved from his mother’s abuse when he is transferred to Auradon Prep and allowed to participate in a program to rehabilitate VKs. The best way to incorporate this is to make Carlos a mage himself and have him go to a Circle that was not horribly abusive. Low and behold, we have one in Fade Rift’s canon thanks to Wren’s established background for Norrington.

This does mean that previously not-magic Disney characters get to have magic here, but having Carlos as the son of an incredibly infamous blood mage is the only way to have him have the level of abuse and mistrust that he has in canon. People are free to give him the side eye once they discover what his mother did. Having that as his history also allows him to adopt some pro-Circle opinions because he has seen what an unchecked blood mage can do first hand.


Strengths & Weaknesses

Creation/Defensive Magic: Carlos has a talent for creation and defensive magic. He is pretty terrified of performing any kind of offensive or destructive spells under normal circumstances, but he absolutely thrives at creating wards and barriers and as a healer. He likes taking a support role in general and finds that using magic to aid people helps to heal the many, many scars left by his mother.


SCIENCE!: A lot of people in Thedas believe that science and magic are too separate things. Carlos sees them as two sides of the same coin. Sort of like how a lot of his fashion choices incorporate black and white, he tries to live his life by both magical and scientific principles. There was an enchanter in the Circle who taught him a lot about "modern" scientific findings as he was one of the only people to listen to those lectures, and his time as a support mage in the Inquisition has put him in touch with a lot of the newest non-magical methods for treating wounds. Think of the surgeon who hangs out at the infirmary in Skyhold and how she talks about non-magical methods for healing, that’s the kind of stuff that Carlos would eat up. He'd also love things like new inventions to make carriages safer, indoor plumbing, and basically anything that made life better for the average person. Just as a note, medically speaking, most of Thedas currently believes in Humorism so for Carlos to learn more, he'd need a Rifter to take him under his wing.

Empathy and Compassion: Carlos is also known for his empathy and compassion. He really does want to help others to the best of his ability. He saw a lot of really terrible things when he was with his mother and he never, ever wants to end up like her. Instead, he is desperate to be a force for good in the world and wants to do his part to make others have the best possible lives. His past gives him the ability to relate to people during their worst moments and makes him perfect for helping those who have been traumatized in the past.

Issues with Dissent: Carlos grows very attached to people he is close to. This means that he will sometimes let them steam roll his own opinions and thoughts. He never spoke up about not wanting to fight in the Rebellion because he was relying on other mages he considered his friends. It's very hard for him to put his foot down and stand up for himself. He is working on that though. Coming to Kirkwall is part of that healing, as he is finally doing something for himself.

Social Awkwardness: He does have a habit of not fully understanding social norms. Sometimes that can be good - like he doesn't have any strict adherence to gender norms because of a lack effort to instill them in him at a young age - but this means that he forgets things like table manners and sometimes doesn't realize subtlety in social interaction. He can be pretty good at reading people when they are angry - a skill he honed while dealing with his mothers temper - but he has trouble trusting happiness. He is getting a lot better at it and revels in happiness when he finds and recognizes it, but it's a healing process.

Childhood Scars: Carlos is pretty much always going to be recovering from what his mother did to him. That process will be life long for him and while during his day-to-day he is able to function without dwelling, he will almost always have her in the back of his mind. He needs help from others to continue the healing process.


Inventory
- Set of robes that incorporate black and white in the design.
- Some potions and other healing materials
- Some books about "new" healing methods
- A common staff with basic low level fire damage, like a Brilliant Staff but which incorporates a black and white cross bones design in the handle

Motivation

Carlos joined the Inquisition when the mages did. He stuck with them as a means of survival even though his heart was never in the rebellion. He works with the Inquisition with pride though because he believes they do good things. Recently, he discovered that James Norrington was stationed in Kirkwall and requested to go there to be near him again. James helped him feel safe, something he hasn't had since the rebellion started, and he's hoping that being near James again will help regain some that feeling.

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