- Please provide a brief (at least one short paragraph) backstory for your character.
Following the Galactic Empire's purge of Geonosis, the world was without Geonosian culture for decades. Unbeknownst to the galaxy there was one hive remaining however, one which has isolated itself from the caste system of the greater hives and whos queen instead valued the individuality, adaptability, and creativity of its members - seeking to undo the genetic modifications and selective breeding of the past. Needless to say, this was a violently unpopular with the other hives and they were forced into hiding.
While the nature of the event was deeply harrowing for the Geonosians, it is this hive that effectively, albeit indirectly, won the Geonosian homeworld's culture-war. They slowly emerged from their seclusion in the years following the Battle of Endor, re-exploring and re-populating their tomb world, while also looking outwards towards the galaxy and the new place that their planet might find in this era - much to the discontent of the subserviant Geonosians factory hives that eventually reconnected with their homeworld, who had left prior to the Clone Wars and established themselves on several worlds, such as Hypori, Zaadja, and Xorrn. By birthright, the queen on Geonosia itself was now the monarch of their people, but this would not be readily accepted by every off-world hive that had escaped the Galactic Empire's sights.
Brokkal is one Geonosian from this very hive. Though their queen's efforts to de-industrialise Geonosian reproduction and reinforce their new culture were heavily challenged, Brokka is one of the few offspring who's force sensitivity has emerged completely by accident - and not in a way that the queen can replicate with any measure of reliability. This Geonosian spent their years scavenging underground, using their unnatural abilities to help mend their hive and keen up their limited numbers.
When the hive was courageous enough to step out among the barren seas, highland canyons, and the haunted spires that once thrived across the surface, Brokkal found a recently spawned Stalking Acklay hatching struggling for survival and forced into unforunate cannibalism - what was left of its own mother and siblings resting nearby from starvation. Their meeting was tense, but Brokkal and the Acklay connected in some way over the tense minutes and back-and-forth of clicking tongues. The sand around them picked up and gently blew around them for some moments. The Acklay understood that Brokkal wanted to help - That this Geonosian genuinely cared and wanted the best for it.
In the following years, Brokkal became known as a survivalist and scavenger, guiding their peers across the last and doing what he could to treat the ailments of his kin. When contact with the wider galaxy was established and the isolationist policy, albeit still strong, relaxed for an insight into galactic affairs Brokkal heard of the burgeoning Jedi Order and the mystical abilities they practiced. - Why does your character want to be a jedi? With the blessings of their matriarch, Brokkal left Geonosis with their juvenile Stalking Acklay, named after Karina the Great for her undeniably beauty, and sought the Order to learn about the Force and how it could be used to safeguard life. Brokkal would integrate and become a Jedi in earnest, committing themselves to learning about the force, the traditions of the light and good. Once they had mastered their role and neared the end of their days, Brokkal would return to Geonosis with honour and share the teachings of the Order with their hive - and, hopefully, more force emergent Geonosians. Perhaps, with time, the decline of the barren landscape could be reversed and the ecosystem enriched by new ideas.
Please also refer to my Motivation section for more on this personally. - Are
there aspects of your character’s background (people, events, places)
that were more formative to your character’s current personal
development? I won't go into it in detail, but the most crucial event which I can think of is the enslavement of the planet by the Galactic Empire and the decimation of the Geonosians. Any GM including representatives of the Galactic Empire in a session should be aware of the significant impact that this will have on Brokkal.
- Describe the kinds of personal relationships you might have had in your past? Brokkal's most intimate and personally memoerable relationships will have been with the insects and fauna of Geonosis, particularly their closest friend, Karina the Acklay. Of course, Brokkal also had some unusual rapport with their queen as one of her 'special children'.
- What is most Jedi-like about your character? What is least Jedi-like about your character? Brokkal has a genuine kindness and generosity that they wish to share with all beings. Unfortunately, Brokkal is a natural coward and has a great fear of conflict. They're also ignorant of the force as well as wider galactic society and struggle to see things from other cultures' values and perspectives.
- Does your character have a strong idea of the Force? Do they experience it in a certain way or is it a mystery to them? Brokkal has no idea of the force beyond what is recorded in old, Separatist-Geonosian legends. It is a effectively a mystery to them.
- Some
characters have dark (or great) secrets that they keep locked away from
even their dearest friends. Does your character harbor a great regret
or a secret aspiration that is central to their character? Brokkal doesn't have a dark or great secret, but their secret aspiration and mission is that they wish to learn as much about the Force as they can. They want to, eventually, return to Geonosis when they have learned everything which they can and share their knowledge with other Geonosians. If nothing else, I suppose you could say that, deep down, Brokkal has an unwavering, fierce loyalty to the Geonosis and their queen, likely to a fault.
- What elements of your character are you most excited to explore, whether narrative or mechanical?
I'm interested in exploring how Brokkal learns about the Force, navigates cultures and societies completely alien to their own, and ultimately finding their place in the social order. I'm also excited to develop Brokkal away from their cowardly personality towards a more dauntless personality, effectively transitioning across the line from a harmless non-threat to a harm-capable pacifist - particularly in the defence of others.
- Does your character have a long-term plan, mechanically? Not paticularly. I'm imagining Brokkal as a healer first and foremost, a support'y sort of character that will find ways to enable others and enstrengthen their allies, eventually getting to the point of actively defending them. Alchemist and Protector both come to mind as options!
- The
Dark Side tempts each Jedi differently. How does it prey upon your
character's emotional weakness and what makes them susceptible to it? Under the thumb of the Dark Side, Brokkal experiences much fear and anxiety. It plagues on the Geonosian's feelings of self-worth and natural cowardice. In the one direction, Brokkal might have their nervous system overreact and themselves overact in a situation where they shouldn't, and at the other extreme of the scale might have their nervous system shut down, leaving them trapped in their thoughts and stuck behind inaction.
- Would you rather start your character as an Initiate or as a Padawan? Initiate.
