(no subject)

[trivialpursuit]

▶ PLAYER
HANDLE: Laura
CONTACT: jojoveller
OVER 18? yes
CHARACTERS IN-GAME: Junpei coolerjunpei

▶ CHARACTER
NAME: Noriaki Kakyoin
CANON: Jojo's Bizarre Adventure
CANON POINT: end of part 3
AGE: 17
BACKGROUND: here

PERSONALITY:

Kakyoin is the type of person who's polite and means well, but won't hesitate to hit someone in the face if the situation calls for it. For the most part he's polite and serious, and comes off harsh because of how frank he can be - something that is sort of intentional. A born Stand user, Kakyoin has always felt distant from others because most people don't have Stands and therefore can't relate to him on that basic, fundamental level. Even his parents don't understand why he's so quiet and doesn't socialize, to say nothing of classmates or strangers. While he's not standoffish or cold, Kakyoin is generally polite to new people--but at arm's length. He's accustomed to people not understanding him and so meeting him for the first time gives off the impression that he's polite, orderly, and not much else. He keeps to himself on the surface.

Under his veneer of "no one knows my LIFE," Kakyoin does have more going for him than being the polite honor student on Jotaro's Egypt team. Although he's genuinely polite and kind, he doesn't like people who scheme or lie to get what they want; he can't respect a person who isn't totally honest. The same is true for himself - he can't stand the thought of submitting to another's will. This trait was already there before the trek to Egypt, but was put to the test by Dio's manipulation of Kakyoin into becoming his minion. When Kakyoin is controlled by one of Dio's fleshbuds to target his enemies, a lot of his personal philosophy is revealed during the ensuing fight with Jotaro. The fleshbud doesn't alter the personality of the person it's in, merely makes them do what Dio wants, so what we get from that is a very warped view in which Kakyoin says an awful lot of stuff about how weakness is evil and justice will prevail, i.e. the person who wins becomes the person who is "right." He insists several times that the loser of a given conflict is the one who's bad, who's made a mistake.

While it seems odd for a decently upstanding guy to think this, it's a reflection of his view of himself more than anything else. His encounter with Dio shocked him and his subsequent agreement to join him - to save himself, rather than stand up for himself - left him ashamed and guilty. This shame/guilt combo stays with Kakyoin for a long time; it's not until midway through the story that he regains his confidence and resolves to never succumb to that weakness again. Though this is the greatest shift in Kakyoin's character, it's subtle because of how composed and tight-lipped about himself he is; he goes from tagging along with Jotaro out of repentance to being driven by his own pride and desire to prove himself. It's also subtle because he has this revelation quietly, to himself, while playing video games-- but it's there. He's disgusted by people who live by scheming against others, and decides to prove his worth by outsmarting his enemies without mercy.

Which brings us to: Kakyoin is very intelligent! He's level-headed and clever, capable of looking at all parts of a situation to evaluate what's going on and what to do next. He can strategize and think on his feet in high stress circumstances. While his plan to corner Dio with a big web made of his Stand that would tell him where Dio is at all times sort of backfired, it honestly would have worked if Kakyoin had had all of the necessary information about Dio's abilities at the time - and he was able to piece together the rest and leave a message for his companions to figure out said abilities while dying from a big hole in his stomach, so. Quick thinker, capable, just made of glass.

When he's in his element he's efficient and ruthless in dealing with opposition. Not only smart, but he stays cool under pressure, and once he's in it he gives his all. This doesn't mean he's completely honorable-- he's incredibly sarcastic and easily shuts people down, and does infamously feed a baby its own shit for trying to kill him. Kakyoin doesn't respect an opponent's efforts or take a victory with dignity, because his enemies are the exact type he hates: schemers and liars. He'll use underhanded methods and kick someone when they're down if he hates them enough; coming out on top doesn't require mercy.

But to other people, he's mostly nice! That sarcasm is still there, as it seems that the closer Kakyoin is to someone, the more he'll open up... which means the more he's willing to share his rude comments. The more he likes a person the more he'll bully them, basically, but at the same time he's very open about how he'd lay down his life for his friends without hesitation. Despite knowing said friends for only 50 days, Kakyoin has never been closer to a group of people or felt like he truly belongs - they're the only people he can be himself around. For this reason he'll do anything for them including give his own life, but that doesn't mean they're spared from his tough love. Essentially his loyalty comes with a healthy serving of friendly bullying, when he decides to give it.

So Kakyoin is awkward. He's never had friends until suddenly he has an eclectic bunch and they're being attacked all the time - social situations aren't his forte. As a result, a lot of his quirks make him seem downright eccentric as well: insisting on wearing his school uniform all the time, licking cherries in public, spouting out trivia to make conversation. He can be adept at social situations, but that plays back into Kakyoin and Kakyoin-for-public-consumption. He is polite, but to get into who he is is to get the awkward nerdy video game trivia stuff as a package deal.

POWERS/ABILITIES: As mentioned, Kakyoin is a Stand user, which means he is someone who can manifest a part of his "spirit" to fight. Stands are generally assumed to be related to the user's psyche in terms of abilities and are also generally unique to the user. Kakyoin's Stand is called Hierophant Green and comes with a few special skills:

-Extension: Hierophant Green's body can uncoil itself to stretch pieces over long distances. This allows it to avoid attacks by more or less "unraveling," but also to scout things from afar and detect movements depending on what Kakyoin actually does with it, like making a big net.

-Emerald Splash: A projectile attack that fires energy manifested as (shockingly) huge emeralds. It's considered fairly powerful (although decidedly "average" when compared to the big guns of JoJo Stands) and the amount of emeralds can be varied depending on how much energy is used; this is Hierophant Green's only notable combat skill, as it's less capable in close combat.

-The weird puppet thing: By extending parts of itself as detailed above, Hierophant Green can enter another person's body. This gives Kakyoin control over them, like a marionette (actual puppet prop optional). He never does this after the first time which is when he's mind controlled, so it will probably never come up again, but it would only be used with permission.

Non-Stand skills include:

-A whole lot of cultural trivia.
-From how much he's traveled plus the fact that language barriers don't seem to be a problem in SDC, it's probable he's passably capable in languages besides Japanese (English, at least).
-Quick-thinking and strategizing.
-He's kind of okay at painting...

INVENTORY: Just his clothes, a wallet and a pair of sunglasses.

MOONBLESSING: cordis

▶ SAMPLES

link #1
link #2