Rook as a companion - Hardened vs. Inspired - Cara de Riva edition
Thank you for the tags @rooks-dagger @bronzieinthedas and @dudewheresmynug
I'm riding the wave today and I miss my girl Cara so much, so have here my thoughts to this interesting questions. Gentle invitations to play and questions template under the cut. If you already played, just shoot me a link so I can read about your dolls.
Rules: What would your OC’s hardened vs. inspired companion arc look like? What’s the turning point? Are they still romanceable? Do their abilities change? Share as many (or as little) of your thoughts as you’d like and then tag some friends to play along!
What event (in game or made up) would determine whether your OC becomes hardened or inspired? The fastest way to instantly harden Cara de Riva, is to choose Minrathous over Treviso. Basically the same thing that happens with Lucanis, when Treviso gets destroyed and blighted. Any possible romance is instantly shut down and if there was blossoming anything at the point the decision is made, she'll break up with Rook with no chance of a comeback. Later in the game, even when Treviso was saved, she'll also harden and even end a locked-in relationship if Illario is not saved and given the chance for redemption. In order to get her approval and bring out the inspired Cara, there might be a personal quest. It could evolve around her and her brother's (Viago) relationship. There could have been tensions between them as she gets older and more and more confident as her own person, and Viago the ever so paranoid nerd that he is, pushing her away in order to protect her by not raising suspicion of nepotism or something of that nature. She may have run away after a fight and both being too proud to make the first step. Getting the siblings back on talking (or even hugging) terms, helping the both idiots make peace with each other, would make Cara feel very much grateful and inspired towards Rook. An inspired and maybe romanced Cara would perhaps having a little extra personal quest that evolves around the Pit and her secret wrestling persona. Like a fun little easter egg.
Would there be any dialogue differences? (Greeting, observational comments, banter, etc. As a hardened companion, Cara would very much fall back on strictly business terms of interaction. Neutral and not letting on any personal connections. But still loyal until the contract is fulfilled. As an inspired companion she's letting out her funny, easy going side. Letting show that sometimes she's just a giant awkward nerd. She's open to conversations that have nothing to do with the contract and she will laugh and make the team laugh being pretty much the glue of the gang.
How does their personality change? (e.g., body language, facial expressions, etc.) Her hardened expressions would not be as “glowing” as her inspired self. More sorrows, no smiles. Stiff and reserved probably. Serious. Strictly business. I imagine her hardened self a bit like the blighted Warden AU Cara, all in all showing more roughness around the edges.
How do their abilities change? What’s the give and take? (e.g., no healing but more damage output, less combos, but more aggressive play style, etc.) Tank's gonna tank no matter what... Contract is contract. The changes are more subtle in anything not fight related. The inspired Cara will letting herself be more engaged and more helpful in terms of offering her talents (aside being a good fighter and of course a top notch assassin) to help the cause. Negotiations or her expertise in reading people for example.
Are they still romanceable if they’re hardened? Can their approval be earned again? Why or why not? This goes pretty much the same path as Lucanis' when hardened. There is no way to make a comeback after Treviso is destroyed and/or Illario comes to serious harm. To Cara, Illario is like an annoying but still loved older brother. She may butt heads with him every time they meet, but if anyone from the outside is coming for him, she'll go into lioness mode. Anything else than the possibility for redemption is off the table for her when it comes to Illario. Something else that will occur, even though it's possibly a bit unfair to any other Rook, might happen, when Rook and Lucanis get together: Having this shared puppy love experience with each other, when they were teenagers will probably result in some kind of jealousy on Cara's side. Nothing toxic and she'll probably get over it with time, but there will be some awkwardness that leads to a more distant behavior between Cara, Rook and Lucanis (OR... they may just end up in a polycule where they all 3 (or more?) be happy and in love with each other) In case Rook and Lucanis or Rook and Cara won't get into a romantic relationship, I'll just take the freedom and let Cara and Luc get together, probably especially while going through the trauma of a destroyed Treviso together.
