Marco Aberneyth

Name: Marcoisse "Marco" Aberneyth

Age: 19

Group: Survey Corps

Rank: Soldier - Field Tactician

Appearance:



Marco has long, dark brown hair that is usually tied up in a ponytail or a bun. When it is let down, it reaches almost to his knees and is layered. He also has a thick fringe that covers his left eye. He has wide, aqua-colored eyes fringed by long and thick eyelashes. His cheeks are round and his nose is a ski-jump type. His height is around 5' 5" and his body is slender. He doesn't look strong, but he can lift a few boulders if he has to. He seems to have a perpetual smile that shows off a dimple on his left cheek. He has a distinctive orange and blue band, which he never takes off, as it was given to him by someone very important.

Identity: Marco is mostly an introvert. Since he is used to being on his own, he usually does not approach people unless they approach him first. When he does initiate a conversation with anyone, it is because they are doing something that interests him. He is intelligent, but this isn't obvious, as he is flighty and follows his heart more than his brain. He gets frightened of things easily, for instance, he is afraid of the dark (though not of the night) and of snakes. However, he can be brave to the point of being reckless for someone he deeply cares about. He is approachable and sweet, though naive to some extent. He is also very affectionate, which sometimes gets him into trouble, as the line between friendship and romance is blurry for him.

Fear and anxiety are probably Marco’s biggest weaknesses. As mentioned, he is afraid of the dark and of snakes, as well as many other things. These fears paralyze him, making him unable to focus in times of distress. However, having a friend nearby helps with Marco’s anxiety. Kindness is the brunette’s greatest strength. He is always cheerful and compassionate, willing to lend an ear or a hand if it is needed. This makes it super easy to become friends with him.

As a soldier, Marco has pretty good stamina. He can run for hours without needing that much of a break  and he can lift himself up walls and other large obstacles decently. However, he is kind of clumsy when it comes to using gear. To make up for this, Marco has a knack for being able to devise a good plan, when he does get around to being focused.

Marco has been alone for since the fall of Shiganshina. Although he grew up lacking in it (or perhaps because he grew up lacking in it), Marco’s choices are heavily based off love. He does what he thinks will benefit more of the people he is closest to. He is street-smart, but not callused, hoping to become a person that others will be able to trust and seek comfort in.

Preferences:

-Likes:  
Marco is addicted to anything sweet, especially sweet people. He loves the little trinkets people give him, and will treasure greatly. Proof of this is the orange and blue band that he wears at all times. He likes nature, especially animals. He can be found sitting in a tree during his free time, and is prone to fall asleep under the stars. He likes music, and may be caught singing at random times. He also likes all forms of art. He can often be found drawing on random sheets of paper. He likes all animals except for snakes and sharks. His vice is apple juice, and he will not hesitate to down several cups of it in one sitting. Marco likes most forms of physical contact, especially when people hug him or play with his hair. Hugs comfort him in times of distress, and this is what he defaults to when he senses that something is wrong. Playing with his hair brings him down the memory lane of the rare good times in his childhood. Marco greatly values optimism and kindness, as both traits help him get through his anxiety. He automatically likes people who can make him laugh (which is pretty easy to do) and people who don’t judge others. Finally, Marco likes titans and titan shifters, even though he is absolutely terrified of them.

-Dislikes:
He does not dislike a lot of things, but large crowds, the dark and snakes trigger Marco’s anxiety, so he avoids them at all costs. He dislikes the former because he is used to being alone. On the other hand, he dislikes the latter because of childhood trauma. Furthermore, in spite of being in the Survey Corps, Marco hates death, especially when someone close to him dies. Although he is generally tolerant of people, Marco can't stand bullies. He was bullied as a child for being clumsy, so he tends to shy away from people who he thinks are threatening. Finally, he does not enjoy sexual innuendo at all, though he's grown tolerant about it because of his friends.

-Fears:
Most Marco’s fears are simple ones, like being scared of sharks because of the many horror stories he has heard about them, being afraid of titans because they eat people and being afraid of heights because he thinks he will fall and injure himself.  However, some of his fears extreme, anxiety-causing fears that nearly paralyze him. These include snakes, the dark and enclosed spaces. The dark is where he grew up having to watch his back. Not being able to see anything means not being able to see things that may be a potential threat, which frightens Marco. His fear of snakes rises from the fact that they seem to symbolize someone important to him dying. When he heard about Karina’s death, he was reading a book about snakes. Furthermore, the titan who ate Louisa had a long, snake-like tongue. Finally, Marco’s fear of enclosed spaces rises from the fear of being bullied or attacked. Everything seems louder and bigger in a smaller environment, which terrifies the boy.
There is another fear that Marco doesn’t realize he has, but impacts his life greatly, and that is the fear of getting close to someone. While loving the people around him is very important for the boy, he is afraid of becoming as attached to them as everyone he has ever gotten extremely close to has left his life. While this does not stop him from being friendly, it does hinder Marco from forming an extremely close bond with anyone.


-Goal(s): Marco’s number one goal is to get past his fears. This is the reason why he joined the survey corps, in spite of being afraid of titans, death, and well, almost everything. However, he also wants to make the people he loves happy, and he secretly wants to learn to love somebody as much as he loved his family and Louisa, who were very close to him when they were alive.  

Backstory: Marco was born in the underground village to a rogue mother. His father left long before he was born, so he is unknown to  the boy. His mother raised him until she got caught by the Military Police for stealing from a pawn shop when Marco was five. From that point, he lived with his sister, Karina, in Shiganshina. He hasn’t heard from his mom since that day.

Karina was part of the Survey Corps and taught him some of the things she learned as a soldier. She also gave Marco a good education, though the boy’s natural interest in reading led him to learn quickly on his own. He often visited the librarian in the nearby library and quickly became good friends with her. He also loved to help Karina out in small ways, including lifting things, which helped with his strengths. Unfortunately, Karina died tragically during the fall of Shiganshina, leaving Marco alone.

The frightened teen went back to The Underground, bringing Karina’s gear with him. He built a small shack and lived there for a while until some rogues broke into his house. Not being much of a fighter, he used the 3D Maneuver Gear to escape. Unfortunately, he was not very good at using the Maneuver Gear and ended up getting caught by the Military.

Commander Erwin visited him during his time in prison. The commander was impressed that Marco knew how to use Maneuver Gear and asked how he learned. The boy explained his story, which led to Commander Erwin suggesting that he join the Survey Corps. Marco did not agree right away, being afraid of death and titans.

When he was released from prison, the boy chose to live in a small shack in the Trost district. He worked an assortment of jobs and lived a normal, slightly impoverished life. One day, however, titans began pouring through the breach. The frightened boy ran, but tripped and fell, narrowly avoiding getting eaten by the titan. He was saved by one of the cadets, blonde-haired and green-eyed Louisa Tangue.

Louisa began visiting Marco in Trost since the incident, as she was worried about Marco’s welfare. They got to know each other, and the girl eventually became Marco’s first close friend. She is rumored to be Marco’s first romantic interest, though no one can confirm this. After all, as previously mentioned, the line between romance and friendship is blurred for the boy.  Unfortunately, she died during an expedition, which devastated Marco. However, this also motivated the boy to join the Survey Corps. The only thing that remains of her memory is the blue and orange band that Marco always wears.

Marco began the long and gruelling road to training at the age of sixteen. He excelled at combat and written tests, but kept on having trouble with his maneuver gear. In spite of his struggles, Marco managed to graduate with a decent score.

Present-day Marco is now a soldier in the support branch of the Survey Corps. He gets along with most of his teammates, but still prefers solitude. He uses Karina’s maneuver gear, which Commander Erwin gave him on graduation day. He is still afraid of titans, but is slowly overcoming this fear, as he fights for the ones he cares about. He is a strong and intelligent soldier -- if a little bit clumsy -- but he still holds his family dear. In fact,  their memory is the reason why he keeps fighting.

Marco still goes back to his home in the Underground when he is not in battle. However, he can be mostly seen wandering the Stohess and the underground, his thoughts everywhere and nowhere.

Stats:

Strength: 6
Agility: 5
Intellect: 12

//Note: Hi guys, here's my character. Please let me know if there's anything I need to edit or if you have any suggestions for him. Thanks

//Another note: Edits complete!

Heya! The admins (Cornix and Herdir) are away at the moment, so I'll be acting as substitute moderator until they return

First of all, great app! The character really feels fleshed out, and the word count shows.
Still, there are a few nitpicks I have that I have to bring up before approval:

-Rank
You wrote your rank as 'Soldier (Support)'. That's fine, of course - as the official plot page states, soldiers of various ranks can choose their specific field of profession/expertise. Still, 'support' is a bit generic. Would you like to describe what you have in mind in the 'Backstory' section? You're equally welcome to change it to something else or more specific, if you'd preffer.

-Fears
A great part of your character are his fears. However, you don't actually mention a lot of his fears throughout the app, save for his fear of snakes, crowds/closed spaces and the dark. Feel free to bring up any other fear you can think of - fear of losing someone dear again, fear of rejection, etc.
Oh, and you're just as likely to elaborate on his current fears, especially the snake one, if you want.

-Stats
As you probably realized, your character has 24 points at the moment, while the default limit is 22. That's fine, but I don't feel your character's backstory really justifies the extra stats. Take Cornix's character, Cora, who was trained for combat since age 4 and has 3 bonus points as a result.
You went really in-depth about Marco's learning habits during his childhood, so you may have an extra point for that.
Bottom line is - you may either elaborate in the Backstory more as to why Marco gets the extra point (Maybe his physical labour was REALLY intense), or just lower a point from one of your current stats.

Again, these are just tiny changes you need to make. Your character is great, so as soon as you finish editing I'll approve it

Alright, thanks for the tips! Do I just edit the post or do I make a new one?

Edit: Is field tactician appropriate for someone who mostly just plans out strategies, but occasionally helps with fighting?

Just edit the post.

And Field Tactitua should be ok. I believe I have it on my character sheet.