look people can approach characters however they want and so many talk about occtis that i kind of refrain from adding on. but i have to say...so much character analysis re: occtis seems to be built on foundational pieces of characterization that do not exist, and once again only serves to reduce occtis into the least interesting version of himself.
why are we talking about him interacting with other casters, especially other sorcerers, as if he's going to resent every person with innate magic he meets?
occtis has never shown an ounce of bitterness over other people's abilities, and he's only shown wry self deprecation about his own lack of ability, not a deep and abiding bitterness that lashes out at other people.
it just feels like people are taking alex's very messy, nuanced take on occtis (who wants to give his family a chance to prove they're not like primus, who wanted to study wizardry as a way to contribute to that family) and making it tropier than it needs to be. "the nonmagical failson of course resents his sorcerer family and all these lowborn with their innate magic" is tropey and, frankly, is just another way that fandom infantalizes him. maybe he had resentment as a young boy, maybe he was so jealous of ethrand and frons, but he's never shown resentment as a grown man.
is there a chance that those feelings exist within him and just haven't been expressed? yes. but honestly it doesn't track. why is he mad that other people didn't have to do work? he likes the work. his moment of realizing "effortlessness is stupid" was a triumphant moment of pride in his wizardry.
he loves his abilities and that he worked hard for them. he isn't stewing over the fact that people who are his friends and allies didn't have to.
frankly! i think the fact that folks can't conceive of occtis NOT having low self worth just because he was born without magic mildly alarming.
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