soldsouls

[soldsouls]

I really should updates pages, answer messages, write, etc etc but for some reason getting my brain to do anything except ramble lately has been a Herculean task

#OOC / HOLLY. #I have so much desire to do all these things #but the second I sit down to do them my brain just refuses to focus on them #it's like YEAH LET'S DO IT but no no no no no we're not going to focus on it let's focus on something else #but yes we should do that thing it sounds fu— well no we're not going to actually do it #we're just going to WANT to do it #ridiculous truly but what can ya do

[soldsouls]

The only way you're gonna know any of Luci's history beyond the barest minimum, though, is via detect thoughts or tadpole. He will consent to neither. Forcing it results in a very nasty bite. The others will give you a firm verbal warning, but not him. You're losing a fucking ear immediately.

#OOC / HOLLY. #I'm trynna think of a moment when he'd conceivably allow tadpole communication and I got nothing #maybe if you were resisting his personal quest #and he got so desperate he had to make you live his memories of Bean + Elfo #make you feel the love he feels for them but can't verbally admit #it's a humiliating moment for him tbh but there's nothing he wouldn't do to save them

[soldsouls]

I'm thinking about casting Fly on Luci . . . He's initially very excited for it. One of the few times he's genuinely, gleefully eager. Like a little kid. But, the moment he takes off, he's just reminded of That Day. He crashes more than he lands, will not allow anyone close enough to touch, but is terrified to be alone. Startled by every small rustling as if it's Asmodium's lackeys coming to drag him off again. His shoulders hurt like the Hells, too, to the point its pressing the limits of his considerable pain tolerance. There's nothing physically wrong, but good luck convincing his brain of that.

#OOC / HOLLY. #ask to tag #Luci: I am totally fine and have no trauma. my life has been perfectly normal for a fiend #being normal doesn't make it not traumatic man

[soldsouls]

I could give Luci wings from birth, but a lack of them is narratively significant for him. He wants wings so badly his shoulders ache where they should be. He wants to fly. The only way to obtain them is through promotion in the Hells. Thus they symbolize a freedom and power he has never had, a rising above his low station and its torments. Asmodium is well aware of this desire and has taunted him with it over the millennia.

But, Luci got those wings. For a few brief moments, he soared. He tricked his way into them and the accompanying promotions for the sole purpose of saving his friends' souls. The wings were integral to getting them away from Asmodium / out of the Hells. Ultimately, he pursued and attained his greatest desire for the sake of others, not himself, and the very moment he obtained them is the same moment he sacrificed them.

The image of an angel losing its wings is a powerful one, but somehow it is worse to imagine a fiend in that position. They are already "fallen"; you don't expect them to sacrifice and crash and burn. But, that's exactly what happened with Luci. When Asmodium's lackeys found him, so exhausted and in such agony he could not move, and dragged him back to the Hells, he was not immediately subjected to demotion. That process, even more torturous than promotion though such seemed impossible, would come quick. Just not quick enough that Asmodium could not get his licks in first.

Luci's wings were shattered bone by bone before being hacked away. His claws were pulled from his nailbeds, his fingers were cut off at the first knuckle, then his hands were shattered too. His horns were not sawed off but bludgeoned repeatedly until, like the rest, they shattered. These were not the only torments, merely the most agonizing barring demotion.

Demotion restored him to his previous form — wingless but with hands and horns intact — yet he still experiences phantom pains from what happened. He can frequently be seen rolling / touching his shoulders and touching each of his fingertips, sometimes mouthing a count as he does. When he reaches up to his head, however, panic enters his eyes. This elven form to which he is bound has no horns; there is always a second of horror before he remembers that.

#META / HC: PRIMARY. #torture tw #Luci looking long and hard at Wyll after devilification and perhaps Karlach too #the assumption is the stare is somehow antagonistic in nature but really it's full of longing #gods what he wouldn't give for his horns and his tail and his claws #and wings . . . oh man when he sees Aylin freed from her prison soaring on those wings . . . he needs a minute #Asmodium had 'practical reasons' for binding him to an elven appearance #but also it was spiteful to withhold horns etc from him. very little in the mirror is familiar

[soldsouls]

Okay. We'll flesh out details on these revisions in the future, but for now we're saying —

The rumor that Graz'zt is the offspring of Asmodeus and Pale Night, although never confirmed, has incited curiosity in many. The sort of curiosity that leads denizens of the Hells to attempt perilous schemes for the chance of advancement. Luci is the product of such a scheme: a devil and demon who came together to produce a child. Luci knows this about himself, but what he doesn't know is who his parents are (or were as the case may be). He didn't immediately prove the unstoppable weapon they'd desired, so he was simply abandoned in the Hells when he was a few years old*.

I don't intend to make up a character sheet right now, but I think we can say that, in an unbound form, he has traits from both parents. Overall difficult to damage in a significant way but not a heavy hitter in a fight. Affinity for fire-based spells [shocker]. Appearance-wise I want to DND-ify his og look. Overall humanoid form, on the smaller side. Entirely pitch-colored, including scelera. Irises red with the Hells' flames, sharp teeth, short horns. Spike-ended tail. He has some odd traits: a total lack of wings and a red glow pulsing within his horns. Nevertheless, he could pass for a cambion and often did to keep from drawing attention.

Anyone who examined him closely enough, however, would realize something was off. Which is exactly what Asmodium did. He put two and two together about Luci's origins, and decided that one man's trash was another man's treasure. He'd pick up what Luci's parents had cast off and see if he couldn't make use of it. This mostly entailed making use of Luci's durability. Often as a messenger / courier of sorts; very dangerous job in the Hells. He was also offered as a summon for certain people Asmodium wished to ensnare; they felt very superior ordering about a "cambion", and Asmodium preyed on their pride. Not to mention he was a more useful pawn to have on-site than a mere imp or quasit or the like.

I think that when he tricked his way into double promotion to save Bean + Elfo, the process was especially agonizing for him. These were devilish promotions. What was demonic in him was either purged or fundamentally altered / repressed. Rescinding the promotions didn't fix this; the damage was permanent. Asmodium took advantage of this to bind him. He is bound to the appearance of an elf, his natural immunities + resistances are removed, and he is "mortal" in the sense that being killed will end his existence permanently. Asmodium has the power to alter his appearance, but Luci cannot alter it or return to his original form. In fact, I'd say all but the most powerful illusion / disguise / glamor magics wouldn't take hold.

*Miscellaneous note that I'm going to say Luci's full name — Lucille Lucifer Jr. DCLXVI — was not given by his parents. They neglected to name him entirely. He was given this name after they abandoned him. It was meant to mock him with the "junior" and the numerics driving home that he had no lineage to claim. How could he be a junior or 666th with no family? He has been unable to change the name and vastly prefers Luci as a result. He will not divulge it when he has a choice and using it is a good way to get clawed. He hates it so much, in fact, he'd almost sooner give his true name lmao

#META / HC: PRIMARY.

[soldsouls]

Sorting these caps and man. I'm really torn on whether to leave the hat on him. I love how it looks, but it would probably be nice to have a clear face for iconing. Won't have to work around the shadow of it.

#OOC / HOLLY. #never thought about him in a hat til I put that one on him #the one you get from the gilded chest near Alfira in the Grove #forgot what it's called #idk it just works for him

[soldsouls]

Alright I'm indecisive. Should I stick with Luci being an imp or go for the "offspring of a devil + demon" route?

#it's neck and neck #we're all torn it seems

[soldsouls]

and the most fitting camp outfit available

#OOC / HOLLY. #idk what it is but it just works so well on him

[soldsouls]

#REFLECTION. #those glasses . . . iconic

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that's more like it

#OOC / HOLLY.

[soldsouls]

Luci in SH's armor is so funny to me for some reason

#OOC / HOLLY. #I got him in the proper armor after this #just had to do the recruitment convo first

[soldsouls]

Alright I'm indecisive. Should I stick with Luci being an imp or go for the "offspring of a devil + demon" route?

#OOC / HOLLY. #I'm gonna go sort some caps from the model swap pt

[soldsouls]

Idk, the biggest potential motivation to translate Luci's history more faithfully is I think it did help him bond with Bean. He doesn't really talk about his past, not in detail. He doesn't tend to talk about himself much in general tbh. But, there's a moment in the like the first or second episode where they're drinking together before her wedding [arranged marriage, she doesn't want it]. It comes up that she doesn't have any bridesmaids or any friends period, only drinking buddies. And, Luci, the demon sent to corrupt her who hardly knows her, feels a pang of sympathy. He tries to comfort her in his own way. "I was raised by a pack of drinking buddies, and I came out perfect."

He very much did not come out perfect, though, even by demonic standards. Despite the air of confidence he projects, we later learn he's as cringefail as Bean and Elfo. It's just that he's cringefail at being a demon. Hell, his go-to methods of torture are shit like cursing someone with a hangnail. And, the evidence was there from the beginning, in how he identified with this girl he was meant to drag to Hell. He looked at her, friendless with a distant father / no real familial relationships, drinking in the backroom of a church trying to forget how shitty her life is, and saw something of himself.

#OOC / HOLLY. #Luci has actually been ready to go to bat for Bean since day one #but he very much did not want to admit it even to himself #the exorcism episode comes to mind. an early one like a few months into them knowing each other #Bean and Elfo risked their lives to save him which was revolutionary #but he was in that situation because he saved Bean's life the day before #wild how from the start Luci was toxic as hell yeah but in fact was protecting Bean at risk to himself #without ever bringing it up / holding it over her head #he acts like it was a normal thing and never brings it up

[soldsouls]

See the questions re: these revisions is whether I wanna make my life easy or difficult. There's not a whole lot of worldbuilding in Disen.chant.ment tbh, especially w/ re: to demons. What we do know doesn't translate perfectly to DND / BG3. Which is fine for me. I can work with what we have. However . . .

I made him an imp because that felt like the best way to translate his status / power level from his og canon + the important part of him seeking promotion, obtaining it, then instantly sacrificing it for those he loves. It's a solid translation.

What it doesn't account for, however, is that Luci was actually born and had a childhood in his og canon. He didn't just spawn into existence like DND devils do. He's specifically the son of Satan in his og canon. I don't consider that important to translate tbh; although it's narratively delicious in the original story, it's not something he even knew about til shortly before he died permanently, and it doesn't really affect him. We don't have many additional details on his childhood aside from that. He was raised by "a pack of drinking buddies", was in the demonic equivalent of Boy Scouts, and Satan evidently abandoned him when he was very young. Nothing else about another parent or demonic procreation in general.

I originally decided not to try translating any of that because it just . . . doesn't translate well. He doesn't work as a cambion or anything half mortal really. However . . . there is evidently a theory that Graz'zt is the offspring of a devil + a demon, specifically Asmodeus and Pale Night. This has never been confirmed, but it at least implies that such a pairing is possible. Not likely, to be sure, but possible.

And that . . . is something that could work for Luci. It's essentially a blank slate possibility for me to do as I see fit, and I could potentially translate more of his history. What I can't decide is whether it's worth the trouble. Much like in his og canon, I don't think it'll factor into interactions / plotlines / etc.

#OOC / HOLLY. #he'd get pretty much dropped off in the Hells to fend for himself as a child #one or both parents probably hoped he'd turn out powerful etc #but he didn't meet expectations so they abandoned him #he's passed himself off as a low level devil and ended up tied to Asmodium #idk maybe I could spin it into an interesting possible outcome for his personal quest #overall though I think I'm just making things harder than they need to be 🤔

[soldsouls]

I am debating some revisions to Luci's history this morning. We'll see what happens.

#OOC / HOLLY.

[soldsouls]

When Gale mentions he once summoned a magma mephit in his youth, says he was lovely and they still keep in touch, I imagine Luci just giving him the weirdest side look, the kind you could not possibly miss. You might assume he's thinking something nasty, but it's largely disbelief and "that's fckn weird". His own experience with mortals has been more in-line with Shovel's: starved, ignored, beaten, tossed around, all-in-all treated like an animal or worse than one. After all, imps and quasits and other such beings are generally considered "not people". He can't quite believe Gale feels differently.

#OOC / HOLLY. #starvation tw #abuse tw #I grant you mephits aren't fiends but the point stands #there are many among the magically inclined who treat familiars like crap #honestly Luci doesn't even consider himself a 'person' because he's an imp #and tis generally only elves / humans / dwarves / etc who are categorized as 'people' #not that he considers himself less than mind you. it doesn't bother him to not fall into the 'people' category #neither do archdevils. neither do angels. neither do gods. y'know? #the key point is the way you get treated when someone doesn't consider you a person #he's extremely shocked and mistrustful when other party members approach him like a person #moreso for the magically inclined like Gale or ppl with history with devils like Wyll and Karlach #at best he considers it a misguided reaction due to him appearing elven [if he LOOKED like an imp would they still treat him this way?] #or false politeness as so many adopt for manipulation #it would take a significant event to get him to believe it's genuine #he thinks he's clear on what his place is in the party and that it depends on him staying useful enough + just shy of overly irritating #[irritating to some degree is fine but there's a reason he won't antagonize Minthara for example #he thinks they'd all smash his head in without an ounce of regret if he pushes the wrong buttons #he's acutely aware some have far less tolerance than others [again Minthara] — that's his opinion on the matter anyway #whether it's true is up to whoever writes them of course]

[soldsouls]

If the party camped in one spot long enough (and they don’t), Luci would start distilling spirits ala M*A*S*H

#OOC / HOLLY. #MOBILE.