Character survey of doom!

[electricvamp]

Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy? Nikola is relatively tall (approx 6'), and is thin, often described as skinny, but deceptively strong.

2. How old is he? 156

3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch? Nikola never does anything except carry himself well. The only time he ever comes close to slouching is when he is truly despondent. Otherwise he holds himself very upright.

4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities? Health wise, Nikola is in tip top shape. As a vampire, he heals from anything, even in a matter of minutes, including heart-piercing wounds. The only time he is seen taking a long time to heal is when John Druitt teleported through him – he took a while to heal from that but he fully recovered.

5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid? He moves exceptionally gracefully. Every move he makes is precise and careful, no more than he needs to move.

6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror? Nikola knows he is an attractive man, and he does play on it. He will always make a joke about how people shouldn’t see him when he looks hideous.

7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred? Pale skin mostly through lack of sunlight (not because he can’t stand it, but because he tends to get consumed in his work indoors), no blemishes.

8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style. He has had many hairstyles throughout the decades, but lately his hair is dark brown, thick, and spiky.

9. What color are his eyes? Grey/blue

10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features? Every day, no, he doesn’t. When he allows himself to transform into a vampire, his eyes become black, his teeth becoming more prominent, his fingernails extend and his voice drops.

11. What are his chief tension centers? Mostly, his neck area. Whenever he gets injured, you can guarantee he will have to stretch out his neck, partly to put his spine back in place, but generally in order to release tension in his body.

12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does he have six of the same suit? Classic. He is fond of suits, three piece ones especially. You will never catch him wearing jeans. Casual for him involves not wearing his suit jacket inside. Colors tend to be once again, classic. Blues, greys, blacks, the very occasional flash of color. Anything more would be crass.

13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them? Bespoke tailoring is a wonderful thing. His clothes fit him perfectly, and are always in the most tasteful style.

14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences? The only time he doesn't dress quite as elegantly is if he is on a mission, when he will drop to something slightly more utilitarian.

15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando? These days, he's a boxer-briefs man, though commando is not unknown.



Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse? A relatively deep, smooth voice.

2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate? Nikola talks very easily - too much at times. His speech isn't loud, unless he has to be, and he can speak fast, though he prefers not to.

3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics? No, he's lost his original accent, he sounds Canadian these days, and no real quirks of pronunciation.

4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency? Nikola is a polygot, with Serbo-Croatian is his native language, but he also speaks Latin, Italian, French, German, English, Czech, Hungarian, a little Russian and the language of the vampires, plus a smattering of others. Fluent in all of them, and these days, English is his first language.

5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations? When he has to, he can easily switch languages, with perfect dialects. Mostly when he is making a joke, or a point he can do it.

6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words? Nikola is a fantastic impromptu speaker, and never thinks about his words in advance, which can cause him trouble, but he always manages to somehow say the right thing

7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change? Extremely eloquent, and it's one thing that never changes with him; there are very few times in his long lifespan that he has been left speechless.



Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart? Nikola is an off-the-charts genius. He is possibly the most influential scientist/inventor of all time – a lot of what you use today is thanks to him. Not only is he book-smart, but he’s street-smart as well – it comes from a hundred and fifty years of looking after number one.

2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate? He’s amazing at thinking on his feet, often as a way to get out of situations of his own making.

3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical? A combination of all of it. His thought process when working on anything scientific is amazingly intuitive - he is one of those amazing people who can visualise something, then make it after that. However, logic is a strong point of his, and he will work through problems diligently, sometimes for days at a time, trying to find the solution. He is remarkably idealistic, though his ideas rarely cross with anyone else's, but he is practical about how he finds solutions, and how he deals with the world.

4. What kind of education has the character had? University education up to doctorate level.

5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about? Areas of expertise are electrical and mechanical engineering. He is responsible for the type of electricity current we use today, he is the father of radio, and his knowledge of electricity is rivalled by no one. As for things he wants to learn about - everything. His main aim is find out more about the ancient vampire race, to piece together his ancestry, but he truly wants to learn everything he can.

6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert? A complete extrovert. You can’t help being caught up in his schemes.

7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven? Quixotic. He can be urbane, sophisticated, and with the flick of a switch he can be angry and dangerous. He is petulant, annoying, egotistical, cheerful, brave, loyal, unless it all goes wrong then he sinks into a deep depression, he is totally driven in all that he does... Complex, is the best way of describing it.

8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic? New people he automatically dislikes until they can prove themselves to him. Unless he can use them of course. New situations he relishes - it's a chance to expand his mind.

9. Is he more likely to act, or to react? Both. He plans carefully, acting when he sees fit, but he reacts to situations effortlessly.

10. Which is his default: fight or flight? Fight. The vampire blood in him gives him an automatic advantage over pretty much everyone.

11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks? He appreciates wit. Puns are good, but bathroom humor and jokes? Not really his scene.

12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them? He has vague hints of OCD that were worse when he was younger. Living in catacombs for decades will change your attitudes to dirt.

13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person? Meeting the rest of the Five at Oxford. Before he was alone, with no intellectual equal, and suddenly here were four other people who were his equal, and it was a heady time for him, and the decisions they made as a group impacted the rest of is life.

14. What does he fear? The only thing that really scares Nikola is being normal – he has been different for so long, and despises much of the human race, that being part of them is something he really doesn’t want to face.

15. What are his hopes or aspirations? His aspirations generally run to ruling the world, and creating the next race of human slaves – but he could be persuaded to postpone it for a decent wine.

16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him? His weakness – Helen Magnus. Nikola is the heir to the greatest civilisation on Earth, and not afraid to shove that in the face of anyone who annoys him (which is the entire human population), but his relationship with Helen Magnus is the one thing that can and does reign him in.



Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents. He had a good relationship with his parents, from all accounts, they encouraged him when they realised that he had such a brilliant mind.

2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like? He had four siblings, one of whom died when he was young, but he was never exceptionally close to them, and after he took the serum, he never had any contact with them. They grew old and died, and he didn’t.

3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand? Living, no. He is the last of his family.

4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them? The closest he has to a family is his relationships with the Five, the group of scientists who gathered at Oxford, expanding their knowledge of the world. James Watson, who was better known as Sherlock Holmes (persuading Conan Doyle to write the stories with him as the flunky), Nigel Griffin, the Invisible Man, John Druitt, who became Jack the Ripper, and Helen Magnus, the woman who could keep them all together.

5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet? His best and closest friend was Helen Magnus, meeting in Oxford as the Five gathered together. Helen was the one who understood him the most, could get through to him when no one else could.

6. Does he have other close friends? The other members of the Five, and is actually learning to like Henry Foss – he is certainly learning to respect Wolf-boy.

7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people? Nikola is an arrogant ass who looks down on most people – he has terrible trouble making friends.

8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends? Friends. They are the only ones you can trust.

9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once? Single. His reputation was that he was celibate, but that was something he deliberately spread around in gossip form. Truth was, he was anything but celibate.

10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse? Canonically, he is in love with Helen Magnus, and would jump at the chance of a relationship with her – in hearts_andminds he is in that relationship.

11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest? His first crush, his last crush, his only true crush – Helen.

12. What does he look for in a romantic partner? He is attracted to good looking women, but his ideal romantic partner is someone who fascinates him, who challenges his mind.

13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any? No, he doesn’t have any children. They are simply not anything he is concerned with.

14. Does he have any rivals or enemies? His biggest rival is John Druitt. Not only does their love for Helen make them rivals for her affection, but when John began his killing spree as Jack the Ripper, Nikola, with his burgeoning blood lust as a vampire, would be the natural target for blame.

15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale? On the Kinsey scale, 1. He is primarily heterosexual, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t experimented at points in his long life.

16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him? Nikola will happily go without sex for decades if he is working on something, but when it is an option for him, he does enjoy taking full advantage of female company

17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits? Contrary to his vampiric nature, he’s actually considerate in the bedroom. His heightened senses mean a lot of his enjoyment comes from his partner’s pleasure rather than his own – feeling how she is reacting to him in how her heart beats, and everything else... He is adventurous. He’s travelled extensively, and has picked up all different kinds of knowledge along the way. Add in vampiric stamina, and you don’t really need any weird bedroom habits.

Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type? Cancer – Intuitive, imaginative, shrewd, mostly cautious, changeable, moody, overemotional, touchy, unable to let go... Nikola to a tee. Chinese zodiac he was born in the year of the rabbit; Keen, Wise, Fragile, Fashionable, Sneaky, Obsessive – again, all pretty much Nikola.

2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life? Neither. His religion was science, and what it could do for him. Traditional spiritual beliefs mean nothing to him.

3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it? His personal code of morals is ‘I am better than everyone else’, and his main aim has always been the reintroduction of the halcyon days of the vampire race (after their destruction, the world plunged into the Dark Ages). Compromising it? Most likely Helen, as ever.

4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent? He is intolerant of anyone who isn’t him, not specifically beliefs.

5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them? That he is superior to everyone else, that no one else can come close to him intellectually, that non-vampires are somehow lesser. He does have good reason for them – he is intellectually superior to nearly every he has come across, but they are irrational.



Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt? Nikola is, contrary to reports that were circulated when he faked his death, rich. He holds the patents to a number of important items that are in use still (he has been described as the man who invented the twentieth century), and he has done strategic work for governments over the years and been paid handsomely for them.

2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him? He started out in a small Serb community, and is now the heir to the greatest race that ever lived on Earth... but it hasn’t really changed him. Other factors did that.

3. Where does he live? House, apartment, trailer? Is his home his castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does he share it with others? He actually pretty much lives wherever he feels like it. The closest thing he has to a home is when he lives at the Sanctuary.

4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on? Generally, things for his work, or for when he is preparing to sett a plan in motion, wine, and tailored clothes.

5. What does he do for a living? Is he good at it? Does he enjoy it, or would he rather be doing something else? He’s an electrical engineer, and inventor, and frankly, is the best in the world at it. It is his passion, what drives him. He has been known to work for days at a time, consumed by a problem, forgoing basics as eating and bathing (though these days, Helen is normally around to tell him to go and shower when he gets ripe enough).

6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time? His hobbies tend to crash into his work. He’s not the kind of person to sit and watch mindless television, though he does manage to keep up with pop culture extremely well. He adores reading, and tends to go through phases of authors and genres.

7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods? He skips meals all the time, especially when consumed with work. Alcohol, specifically wine is vice, and as he is a vampire, he can’t actually get drunk from wine. While at work, he will always have a bottle close by. He also drinks animal blood, with proteins in it to counter his blood lust. He promised decades ago never to feed on humans, and he has stuck to that without fail.



Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is his favorite:

1. Color? Blue
2. Smell? Wine
3. Time of day? Night
4. Season? Autumn
5. Book? Leaves of Grass, Walt Whitman
6. Music? Rachmaninov, Isle of the Dead
7. Place? Oxford
8. Substance? Blood
9. Plant? Taraxacum
10. Animal? Panther



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