okay ive got more thoughts on how crow became. like. that , , , not a lot of people go to the bookshop, in fact most of the town avoids it unless they have something to donate(supernatural texts that curse the owner, of course) and being the only one that works at the bookshop, and the only one accepting donations , crow collects plenty of curses. however because of its job , these curses manifest as not whatever the books actually are supposed to do, but as bird and eye features ☝️. after it notices the first few eyes on its knuckles, crow decides to take a look into the towns history. and conveniently enough a lot of the books on the town are in the bookshop(because the town is also somewhat supernatural as well ig) and then crow does some stupid shit that transform it even more into , , that, ,
They're a loving, close-knit bunch of siblings varying in age from ~23 to ~37. They do not inherit or by any other means acquire or move to The Farm TM, I'm gonna have to shoehorn some other house(s) into the map somewhere in/near town. I'm planning romances with NPCs, but as these OCs are more NPC-coded than, say, a Farmer OC, could be some sort of AU version of each where they're romanceable by a [player character] -- or with a friend's OC, maybe!
Honestly I just always love making OCs for games where they're not restricted to that main player character insert role, and I like choosing real-life faceclaim visual refs for my OCs and found a few who look like they could be related! They siblings are all Hong Konger/white, and the cousin-sibling is Hong Konger/Ashkenazi Jewish.
This rambling got long as hell, oopsie!
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HAZEL (she/her/?) is the eldest, is gonna work out of the Observatory in some sort of meteorology or astronomy field, not actually WITH Wakuu but alongside. They vibe, they assist, they collab unofficially. Probably extends that to hire Macy for astrophotography type stuff, to promote all their work and research at times, and just to have higher quality images to supplement work notes etc. She seems quite firm and stoic, but just takes her work and passion therein seriously, and her role as oldest sibling (and eldest child) the same -- she's got a dry, sarcastic, often dark sense of humour, cares deeply, but at this point in her life, having hit 35yo on her way to 40, she's civil and respectful to new people and gives them a shot, but is a little more passive and observant, giving time for new folks show their true colours before she decides if they're someone worth letting in and opening up around.
Gets along well enough with Chaem, working where she lives; holds some mild disdain for the Duckorns' family overall as a unit and entity on the island but has more patience for Bree then more still for Luke -- not just because he's really helped her out acquiring new equipment; Yuri probably makes the cut as one of her closest friends over time, and Pablo might be up there too.
I think she might romance Aaliyah, but I will be doing some serious headcanons and retconning of some of Aaliyah's military background & affiliation in the present, and maybe altering or at least adding context to why she's so dismissive and fed-up with talk of the town's progress, why she's vaguely pro-Pufferfish, etc). I really want to like Aaliyah more than I do, and with every update that adds or changes her content that seems further out of reach, so I'm taking the core of it and going to keep some of that edge and contrarian-type reactions she has to some things, but hopefully give it more depth and a more understandable link between what's going on her head and what comes out of her mouth, at times. Pablo is probably the next contender if I can't make Aaliyah work.
(Notes abt Aaliyah: It feels like the writers tried to make her Different and Unique and Have Her Own Opinions as a townie, distinct from her family, but they've basically just. Put her on the "wrong" side of a lot of town development and conservation (environmental and cultural) points and it's like...you didn't have to make the ONE buff, short-haired black woman so gruff and grumpy about the main plot, and other townies. I just think it was really poorly implemented and makes a character I already ideologically have issues with (military) even harder to like, and with her being one of 2 dateable women of such athletic build, of only 2 romanceable black women, it's just rough. It wouldn't be such an issue if there were more other characters like her, in design and in writing/personality/approach to progress made in game.)
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JUNIPER (she/her/?) is next, recently single parent to a toddler (3ish, which in Australian education contexts would have them not quite eligible for kindergarten, but yes for some other early childhood parent-led, educator-guided education and social systems). Far more capable than she currently believes she is, kind of going through a rough patch right now and pretty near constantly frazzled. Leaning Theo romance here, and do not have more of an explanation for that at present. Just feels right, for now. Mark or Alice, perhaps, as "back-ups" / alternative options that seem feasible.
I have in my notes that maybe she'd work in some sort of veterinary science or wildlife conservation/management capacity, but that's now feeling like a better fit for one of the younger siblings, actually. I think for her first year, at least, she might just pick up work at the inn or something, or as a cleaner at the different venues & businesses around the island, so there's some flexibility in her schedule. Also means I don't have to know what, or if, she studied and what she was doing before baby and split and move, just yet.
Friendly with the other parents of younger children (canon kid NPCs are all older than hers, but Just You Wait! I have an imagination and headcanon capabilities set on changing that lmao). Would probably be more proactive about meeting up, hanging out, and feeling on their level once she finds her footing and confidence again, but for the moment it's a constant stream of internal comparisons and feeling like they have their shit together in ways she never will -- especially Suki, who has a healthy and amicable relationship with Antonio, unlike June's relationship with her own ex and child's father. Probably finds a lot of peace and comfort spending time with Betty, Sunny & Eleanor, and even Emily, Randy when he's available. Ben would be a calming, grounding companion up to a point, but she'd have days and moods where it'd have the opposite effect, too. Eva, Lily, and Rafael's calmer, quieter, wallflower-leaning tendencies would probably suit her well, and I think the kid would be inexplicably drawn to them, too.
Definitely, like, had her shit together and had a plan and was confident and settled and optimistic for the future, but splitting up with her partner and all the drama involved there (specifics to be determined) and becoming a single parent, picking up the tatters of her life and grand plans and stability and following her older sister to this remote island... She's a bit of a mess, but here to recoup and rebuild herself, and in the meantime...it takes a village!
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WILLOW (they/she) is third of 4 biological siblings, but 3rd of 5 in the family overall. Will is... a sort of chaos incarnate, in her own way. They're interested in everything, for a while, but very few things stick for long. Does gig work and/or freelancing -- of various persuasions -- around the island: Barista at Raj's, works the till at the Beach Shack to give Sunny some time off his feet -- doing the same for Sam took a lot more convincing, tends bar at Fishensips on busy nights or when the Jumas need time off, consistently helps Takeba clean the bathhouse a couple times a week, probably takes a lot of gigs from the errands board (more cooking or forage-based types that are canonically available, but then im thinking of stuff like the Sims 4 Odd Jobs system so like food delivery, the kids demand a judge for their impromptu sandcastle contest and have pooled all the coins they found as payment, etc). Will try anything once -- Scott, Pablo, Kenny, Denali, Zarah and their various flavours of spontaneity and adventurous streaks are all great companions, for good times, and awesome stories. Loves hanging out near wherever Dippa is doing their art and vibing, either talking, joining in alongside, or just observing for a while.
I actually think it would be funny as hell to pair them with Luke. He's so buttoned up, she'd be this (manic pixie dream demigirl ISH, but give it depth and fuller character) quirky, loud, free spirit with more piercings, makeup and wild fashion choices than Leah, Yuri, Erika & Miranjani combined. Walter would HATE her. Bree would think it's a fling. Luke wouldn't hold Will back or drag them down, but would just be a sort of grounding energy, a point of stability and calm and quiet when she needs that reminder, to be held and allowed to slow down, to exist quietly away from the world after burning themselves out a little. There's something in there about opposites attracting, about being the balancing element that fits so well. BUT ALSO Willow might have issues settling down, and/or might be poly, so I will (haha) have to sit with that some more. Denali could be a really sweet additional or alternative option, perhaps?
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ROWAN (she/her) & RIVER (they/them) are about the same age. Rowan is the 4th born to their parents; River is their maternal cousin, who was taken in and effectively became a 5th sibling while they were still young, not sure exactly when or what age but probably in the realm of 4-8yo. I haven't decided who's the older of the 2 yet, and that'll honestly probably come down to whatever happens when I'm building their astrological charts as a character development tool. They call themselves twins, just between the pair of them. Have their own bond, being so close in age, and quite a few years younger than their 3 older siblings. Both a bit more introverted and reserved, Rowan tends to remain that way no matter how close someone gets, but River opens up and shows a lot more confidence and extraversion once trust is built.
They haven't received quite as much thought or attention just yet, but it's in the works. I'm beginning to think Rowan is probably going to go the animal career route, whether that's conservation, veterinary science, not sure yet, but something animal, wildlife focused feels like a better fit for her than it did for June. Probably still studying in some capacity, remotely. River is as much into creative pursuits as they are coding and programming, so there's some overlap, and potential for both competition and collaboration with Lily there.
At the younger end of the romanceable NPC spectrum is probably Chaem, Eva, Kenny, maybe Denali and Miranjani thought the mer-magic thing complicates that somewhat. Macy and Lily I see as maybe 25/26 at most, too, but if Juniper goes Theo I'd feel weird having one of her siblings pair with his sister, an I've already paired Macy with an unrelated OC, Anjali. I think Chaem, Eva and Kenny are all equally possible for Rowan at this stage, and something about River and Miranjani feels really good to me in this moment, but we shall see!
In terms of who Gwen's friends/loose peer group would've been growing up / first becoming an adult in Sandrock...
Logan and Heidi confirmed to be born and raised in Sandrock, and about ~3years older than Gwen, so they would've been close enough to play and bond, but at different times she was probably that little bit too young and annoying and just hanging around. She would've thought Logan's dad and his job were SO COOL. Definitely baffled by all the 'Bandit Logan' stuff, doesn't quite buy it but the news stories paint a damning picture, and ends up mad she can't just zip over to Sandrock in a hurry and figure out wtf he's playing at
Pablo is loosely implied to have been in Sandrock A While, not sure if it's his hometown or not? Given the twang to some of his dialogue I lean towards SOME of his youth spent there, and he's generally accepted to be mid-late 20s, so it sort of depends where I land on whether he was around as a kid/teen or not -- because I think she would grate on him too much as young adults to begin a close friendship then.
Elsie is "confirmed 18" but that's SO young to me so I tend to HC age her up to at least 20, which is still considerably younger than most other NPCs born in Sandrock. And that sets her at ~5years younger than Gwen, so I think they would've gone through phases of being really close and then of Gwen being a bit tired of the Little Girl hanging around all the time, but it's a small town with limited options and they're both pretty rowdy and adventurous, so I think they'd be closer if they spent more time together now both in their 20s but were hampered a bit by how significant a 5-year difference can be for kids and teens.
Burgess is apparently another one who's been in Sandrock always? And people seem to interpret him as early 20s so that probably makes him the closest in age to Gwen. If he's always been that open and gregarious, I think they would've gotten along pretty well growing up! The voice of caution to her tendency to take big risks. And knowing he was aiming to serve/work through the Church of Light, then being met with the VERY different Church vibes in Portia, Minister Lee, and Nora being so quiet/demure in a way? She'd miss Burgess and his energy a LOT, I think!
Actually, Haru may have been born elsewhere, but (whether from canon info or me just headcanon filling in the gaps) Howlett took him in as...idk a pre-teen? When Logan was a pre-teen? I tend to assume Haru is a little younger than Logan idk. So he's probably the other one closest in age, and the connection to Logan and Howlett, and him just being a bit quieter and introverted would've been interesting to her in particular as a teen. Maybe she had a bi of a comphet-crush on him? Or just friendly but was a teen and was like "Damn i wanna try kissing and stuff but there's like No One Here... hey haruuu....!" and like quickly fizzled, idk it JUST popped into my head, she's a lesbian, but like i said small towns and limited options and an adventurous personality and just. wanting to Try A Thing (or having not thought too deeply abt attraction and crushes in adolescence purely bc there WEREN'T those options and there wasn't peer pressure to Be Dating or whatever so it's not until she Does Something with someone that's she goes 'hm no')
I think most other characters who would've been present during her growing up in Sandrock that little bit too much older than her (Owen, Justice) and then most of the others closer to her age didn't actually show up in town until they were all adults (Amira & Arvio, Fang, Grace; maybe Unsuur and Venti? idk how long they're implied to have been there). Obviously she'd still have relationships with any/all of these people (that she had in fact interacted with - so Mi-an, Ernest, Nia, Jane, arrivals during the game or like immediately before for Mi-an), but this is just me focusing on, like, okay. Childhood/teenage friends. Who the sort of core group of age-appropriate peers in her youth would've been.
I think she could've been becoming good pals with Dan-bi, anytime she hears about Jasmine's (and later Andy's) achievements and antics via letters or catching up during a visit she'd be like "damn, these kids are so awesome", I think she'd find Rocky and Krystal pretty cool and fun to chat with. Big Sandy the camel fan
edit/addition: and if im including other OCs, depending on when Tammy-Lou moves (back?) to Sandrock - bc i haven't actually decided on that yet, how long before the game is set that she bought a property and got established there - her son is ~25, same as Gwen. he would've spent time back in the city* (*which city? idk yet) on and off as a teen and then tries to make a go of Independent Young Adult Pursuing A Performance/Creative Career so there wouldn't have been a whole lot of overlapping time together in Sandrock, maybe sort of high school-aged years, a season there then a season in the city w/ his dad? so it would be less that she'd "miss" him but that is another potential connection back in Sandrock, when she's settled in Portia. and he'd actually be a lot more comfortable in Portia himself, tbh....
i mentioned it yesterday but considering giving miss mother's day a devil fruit called the swap-swap fruit where she can basically swap two objects she's touching because i just have this mental image of her holding an apple and walking up to lanselot whose ass she just kicked for leaving her behind in the east blue and she reaches down and touches their abs only for him to start convulsing/choking up blood because she like. switched the apple with a vital organ
