Application - Songerein

SUBJECT LINE: CHARACTER | CANON | RESERVED OR NOT

Player: Pixle
Age: 39
Contact: Plurk / PM to this journal
Current Characters: N/A

Character: Ichiban Kasuga
Canon: Yakuza - Like a Dragon | End of the game (thinking at the bridge)
Age: 42

Background Information: Wiki Link

Personality:
Warning: The personality section includes heavy spoilers for the game. I suggest reading only the quick overview if you are a fellow player who hasn't played the game if you ever want to experience it in the future.

Quick overview of Ichiban's personality:
- Fiercely loyal, sometimes to a fault
- Charismatic
- Cheerful
- Positive
- Emotional (is not afraid to cry, or become angry if the situation calls for it)
- Takes insanely stupid decisions which somehow turn out to be the right thing to do
- Not afraid of getting his hands dirty if he needs it
- Boundless enthusiasm
- Has wanted to be a hero since he was a kid
- Is kind and truly loves his friends
- Will go berserk if a friend is harmed significantly and go into a much darker personality

Full Personality blurb (includes game spoilers)
With an almost seemingly endless positivity no matter how bad a situation can be, it's sometimes hard to imagine how much Ichiban he was put through. His driving motivation has always been "if you're at the bottom, the only direction you can go is up." Combined with his enthusiasm and wanting to help others, his personality has landed both him and his friends in dangerous situations. He has a tenancy to take some utterly baffling situations that most would want to back off, and somehow emerge victorious, all the while making allusions to RPG mechanics. For your see, Ichiban has wanted to be a hero every since he played the Dragon Quest games as a kid. He is not only an ex-yakuza, but he's also a nerd, someone who isn't afraid of showcasing who he is, including emotions. He had to be reminded at the start of the game that a Yakuza should not be smiling so much as he does.

However, where many would not dare follow due to the insanity that seems to be close to him, Ichiban's care and genuine love and loyalty towards his friends means they have his back no matter what in turn, quite literally ready to take a bullet for him. This means he ends up with quite a diverse cast of friends. His own loyalty towards others is, however, also to a fault, and could be effectively used against him. He has such blind faith in his friends that he is unable to completely dismiss the "young master" after he changed, and wanting him to see the error of his ways (being called emotional mess in the process as if it was a fault). When his friend Namba was proven to have used him to get to the bottom of his own investigation, Ichiban is still ready to protect him no matter what, even fighting him at one point and still accepting him as a friend by the end.

There is also the situation with Masumi Arakawa, the yakuza leader who, as a teenager, had saved him by paying the price of cutting the tip of one of his fingers. This event that showcased how important reputation was to a yakuza (and also "to look cool in front of a kid who knew him", as per Arakawa's own words) was the catalyst of who Ichiban wanted to be and who he was going to model himself after. He proved his new loyalty by staying a hundred days by the entrance door so that he would be accepted into the yakuza family. However this also meant that his blind loyalty for his father-figure caused him to refuse that his mentor had changed after he got out of prison (which he had willingly turned himself in to take the hit for someone else, as he felt he "owed" his fagure figure everything), despite being shot in the chest by him. While it did turn out he was right, it was still quite a leap of faith and trust. However, when Arakawa was killed, it caused Ichiban to bring forth a very dark aspect of himself - the loss of his father-figure made him extremely violent and dangerous, to the point where his friends were genuinely worried about him. It took the aid of the previous protagonist of the earlier games, Kazuma Kiryu, to finally beat some sense into him. So it is easy to assume that should a situation happen with another friend, Ichiban could fall back into that same precipice if he's not careful.

The contrast in himself means he also rolls with situations as they happen. Become the president of a company because it has the same name as himself even if he's never owned one? Why not. It has a chicken mascot? He'll roll with it. This means that no matter how crazy things can get in this world, he'll be too mesmerized that he is doing for-real actual magical hero stuff to think about it too much. Maybe, in the end, it's for the best.

Oh also, for very important battles, as is per Yakyuza tradition, Ichiban will take off his shirt to showcase he is getting serious. The tattoo on his back summarizes who he is as well; a dragonfish, from the legend that if a fish swims up a waterfall, they will be rewarded with being turned into a dragon (this is the same myth that is used in Pokemon for Magikarp and Gyrados)

Abilities & Inventory:
Inventory:
- His canon outfit
- His baseball bat "Legendary Hero’s Bat Ex" which he literally pulled out of the ground, Excaliber-style. It's been enhanced by a friend using her forging abilities. It has a lightning-type attack.
- A bottle of "Phantom Snow Sapphire Wine" which is used for his Host Job
- His phone
- A divine pencil he bought to take his diplomas. It has the strange ability to reveal two of the three wrong answers on a multiple answers quiz, but only once per test.
- His good humor
- Nancy-chan, a crayfish he rescued from being eaten. One assumes she lives in his pockets but he'll make her a proper aquarium or at least a place where she can swim when she's not summoned.

Abilities:
Jobs (Overview)
Like a Dragon has a job system (which are literal jobs). Some of these can be shared between the characters, but as the protagonist, Ichiban also get two classes (listed below) that are unique to him.

Each job has unique skills, some which can be retained when a character switches jobs (called character skills). The ultimate skills of a job class are the "Essence of..." which are flashy displays that deal Area of Effect damage, heavy single target attacks, status effects or healing. Again, because Ichiban is the main character, he has "Tag Team" skills which are also available once he forms a strong bond with someone, along with the unique attack "Essence of Mayhem" in which everyone in his "party" attacks the target together.

Freelancer (Default Job at start of game) -- A class made up of fist attacks, wrestling moves and agility. The most powerful attack is "Essence of Roadside Weapon" where Ichiban will grab whatever is nearby to attack his target. (Full info here)

Hero (Automatically upgraded Job once Ichiban pulls out the bat from the ground) -- A class that uses the bat as the main weapon, hero is also, true to its name, a class that has inspiring status effects and healing. Very close to a Red Mage if we go by more classic jobs. Attacks include Essence of Full Swing where he uses his bat to smash all enemies around, Hero’s Embrace where his love for his friends restores their HP, and Fearless Command where he boosts their attack power (Full info here, note that it wrongly says the Legendary Bat is fire damage, but that is wrong.)

Host (Male Job) -- A class that's like a cross between a dashing rogue and a white mage. Along with healing abilities, the Host job uses an alcohol bottle as its main weapon (which never seems to run out of booze) to charm enemies, or steal rare items. Its two ultimate attacks are "Essence of Rose Typhoon" and "Essence of Champagne Wave" the latter which can leave the target drunk. (Full info here)

Devil Rocker (Male Job) -- A class that takes all the cliche of metal music and turns it into attacks. Think biting at necks to restore health, using electric guitars to harm enemies and death shouts. It's two ultimate attacks are proof if that; "Essence of R.I.P." whereupon a target is trust into a coffin and carried off by pallbearers if it succeeds. (Full info here except it has the Japanese names for the attacks.)

Foreman -- In this case, Ichiban can use a hammer to break weak walls, a skill that he learned just from a few days on this job. I don't know if this will be useful in the game, but I am listing it here.

Tag Team Attacks -- Attacks which can only happen once Ichiban forms a genuine lasting friendship with someone. In the game this would translate as a well-established friendships with a character.

Hyper Focus -- This ability allows Ichiban to focus during a test so much that time almost seems to slow down. Think bullet time - but for exams. Much like the divine pencil, this ability only happens once per test.

Poundmates -- Originally, Poundmates were allies that Ichiban was able to call (summon). As spoken with the mods, the ability will be changed so that Ichiban will be able to call allies he has made significant CR with. Normally they would be shadow-like copies of the original but if he forges a very strong friendship, there is also a change that the person will literally get called (with their player's permission). What effects the pounding will do will be discussed with the players as well and be inspired by their own canon.

Suitability & Plans: So first of all, surprise surprise I'm not playing from Persona Since its been Ichiban's childhood desire to be a hero, Songerein is the type of location that fits him completely. Considering his own imagination even before arriving here, the fact that he gets to play with ~for real~ magic and emotional magic is like a dream (haha get it, I'm sorry) come true. While Ichiban shines with his friends (with Zhao here), he also tends to make them surprisingly quickly - after all his best friends he met in a matter of a few months and these include an ex-cop and ex-gang leader. He just has this type of energy that allows him to fit into a place, no matter how shady characters are and put a positive spin on whatever may happen. He's very much a social butterfly, especially if you consider all of the side quests of the game.

It will be especially fun considering the possible ranks with other players (with player permission), the poundmate idea the mods supplied (which sounds awesome) and in general Ichiban's good mood even when he's at rock bottom. He isn't afraid to have CR with any type of character and he has made friends even with the shadiest of characters if they give him a chance. His own background helps too in understanding the plight of others and he's very much a people person.

Test Drive Sample: Sample

Questions: Nope I'm good, I already asked what I needed.