Ferrol Blut

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Name: Sir Ferrol Blut
Epithet: "The Little Knight" "Dad"
Age: 45
Gender: Male
Birthplace: East Blue
Species: Human
Orientation: Ambidextrous - Right

Crew: The Merry Misfits
Ship: The Gallant Windfall
Occupation: Marine Captain
Bounty: 0
Allegiance: Marines
Dream(s): 

To become an admiral and reform the corrupt system

To become a symbol of peace and justice 

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Flag:

Appearance: 


Ferrol is a man who has more than enough heart to make up for his short stature and this is plain to see in his bright hazel eyes and near omnipresent smile. He stands at a whopping four foot nothing but all in all is perfectly proportional, less being very short and more as though he were simply scaled down. 
Tanned skin complimented by long and flowing black hair, a well trimmed and close cut beard contrasted by a grand mustache that reaches far beyond the sides of his head.
His manner of dress tends to be a touch grandiose. A very wide brim hat with bright feathers bristling from the sides of the cap. A puffy white silk shirt and embroidered neck kerchief rest beneath an extravagant, deep sky blue captain's longcoat with gold lining, buttons, and a cream white interior. Fingleress black gloves over his well calloused hands ensure grip without loss of dexterity. Olive green pantaloons dive quickly beneath high swordsman boots in black which culminate in a silver lined roll down reaching to mid calf.

Personality: 

Ferrol is, for all intents and purposes, the ultimate boy scout. His sense of right and wrong is incorruptible, moral compass points unfailingly toward right, and he has a powerful sense of justice. Despite this however he does not put on airs nor is he arrogant, a bit more on the worldly side with senses of empathy and sympathy as strong as his desire to do good. He truly wishes to do the right thing, to be and do good for the sake of good.

He is amiable and smiles very often, he is immensely understanding and while he sees the world in a sense of black and white it is not naivete. Instead where situations might arise that others would consider gray Ferrol instead does not see moral murkiness but instead the path that is the 'most right'. In a choice between two evils he is an idealist who will strive to take a third option and still do the right thing but if it is forced he will always choose the lesser evil with the hope that he can ultimately make it right.

Seeing the good in all, wanting to bring out the best in people, a stalwart belief in second chances, and a naturally protective attitude all tend to mesh together to form an attitude that comes across overall as fatherly.

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Background


Far in a seldom visited corner of the East Blue exists an inconsequential kingdom of which few know of purely due to just how unimportant it is. One of the few things of note about the kingdom are that it is one of the few places in the world to have knights. Warriors of exceptional skill and aptitude who perform noteworthy feats within the kingdom are granted a title of minor nobility and lands, as well as the recognition of their prowess. About the only other thing of note about this land is that it produces swordsmen of no small talent, wielding straight blades which tend to be long and slim in a style that focuses on elegance, thrusting techniques, and parries, looking to many outsiders not unlike dancing. There is one other thing about this place and that is that fact that while it's denizens appear to be human they also happen to be quite short, breaking five feet tall is a rarity.

It is in this kingdom that young Ferrol was born, the fifth son of a minor noble family within the kingdom, and though due to his birth he had little chance of any inheritance his parents loved him and his elder brothers looked fondly on their baby sibling. He grew up in a home filled with love, acceptance, and generosity, his parents always willing to give to strangers and harbor travelers, his brothers constantly spending time with one another getting into young boyhood mischief and teaching the youngest the lessons they had learned. Ferrol remained short among his kin, the runt so to speak, and was teased during his schooling years but his nature more often than not tended to win him friends where once there had been bullies. 

With few prospects and no desire from anyone for him to be working for his brothers he joined the military and found the roles there fit him like a glove. He was a natural swordsmen, his size enabling him to be quick even among his people and his sharp mind picked up the lessons quickly, something of a savant with nigh any blade he put his hands on. For years he trained honing his abilities and rising in rank despite the lack of any real threats to his homeland. The occasional spat of brigandry or jungle beast he would handle with expertise and always led his men, he would always though try his very best to resolve conflicts without bloodshed and very often succeeded.

One day a lone pirate ship landed ashore and attacked with a brutality and savagery never before seen in these otherwise peaceful lands. They were captained by a brutal half-giant who quickly began cutting a bloody swatch along the coast until Ferrol and his men were sent after them.

Ferrol set up an ambush, quietly evacuating the citizens and placing traps along the roads of the town that was to be their next destination, in the citizens stead he place his own men and waited. Eventually the pirates landed and stormed from their ship only to be set upon immediately. It was a quick affair, the pirates were ultimately inexperienced and merely trying to make a name for themselves getting experience taking what seemed to be a soft target far from Marine eyes. Ferrol managed to fell the captain of the bandits in single combat.

For his bravery and skill he was summoned before the court and knighted. His family in attendance were very proud. In a shocking move however when the traditional question was asked if the new knight had a request (which was traditionally answered with 'to serve the crown') Ferrol broke tradition and asked to be given leave so that he might take his skill beyond their shores. The pirate attack had opened his eyes that there is a much larger world out there and it is clearly in need of aid. His request was granted.

He traveled for some time as a freelance do-gooder and learned much of the world to rid himself of the naivete inherit in his small kingdom. Years were spent simply attaining knowledge and committing act of goodwill, defending villages, helping old ladies across streets, fetching herbs. No act of kindness was too small and his only requests of payment were food and lodging and somewhere he could learn more about the world.

Once in more notable areas Ferrol sought to join the Marines, having of course heard the tales that all children do about how they are protectors of law and good, bastions against the evils of piracy and dispensers of justice. No longer the ignorant young man he had once been however he knew that these stories were not always the case. The Marines were people and thus flawed like people, some tempted by authority and power to do terrible things. He heard whispers even that the World Government was not always on the up and up. In spite, or perhaps because, of these terrible rumors he still wanted to join. He wanted to bring more truth to the stories, to set an example, and perhaps rise high enough from within that he could change a broken system into what the people believed it to be, what they wanted it to be. 

Eventually he found himself in a recruitment office and made his case. Despite his stature his skill with a blade saw him admitted after a practical demonstration of his skill ceased the laughing at his expense. Once he was recruited that same skill, as well a his unshakable drive to enforce the law saw him advance quickly and even be singled out to learn more advanced techniques until it came to pass that a few Rokushiki abilities were taught to him of which he has made great use. The mindset here being that Ferrol was proving to be a boon to the World Government and they believed giving him more tools with which to do their bidding would be of great benefit, give him the skills to take on greater problems as he was proving to be quite a problem solver

The consequences of his somewhat meteoric rise in rank and his abilities only became apparent later.

Ferrol was a man of absolute unshakable morals, these morals of course did not always align with what the World Government or his superiors wanted or needed. He couldn't be sent to places where slavery was sanctioned, where piracy was allowed to thrive to create needs, where markets were brutally controlled, and he could not be swayed to do anything morally questionable. More than a few times did Ferrol arrive in an area only to dole out absolute moral justice and thoroughly mess up plans that had been in effect for months or years, depose tyrants that had been put in place or undo profitable Marine corruption. This attitude ended up earning Ferrol one more promotion to that of Captain, and he was granted his own ship. This promotion however was one purely of convenience. Now that they were able to move him from place to place as they pleased Ferrol was often given assignments far from any questionable machinations and his ship was often used as something of a dumping ground for other marines who had skill, talent, abilities that could be used, but also possessed of some other quality that made them inconvenient or undesirable for the main forces.

Thus the Gallant Windfall and the Merry Misfits were born with Ferrol at the head.


Abilities:


Expert Swordsman :  Trained from youth and still in his prime the short statured knight has nearly 30 years of day in and day out training to fall back on when it comes to blades. He specialises in his trusty rapier and can fall back to daggers but nearly any blade he can swing he can wield. 

Short Stature :  Most would see his size as a handicap but Ferrol has turned it otherwise into an advantage. He's learned how to close and create distance to make up for reach gaps with larger opponents for purposes of attacking and dodging. Not to mention the obvious advantage in that many would underestimate him not realising the folly until too late. Still has trouble reaching the top shelf though, and of course against a taller foe who can match or counter his speed his height and reach then do became exploitable.

Incorruptible Goodness :  Ferrol is good to his core. He is sincere, heroic, and seeks to do nothing but good for the sake of doing good. He believes that everyone, no matter how vile or evil or monstrous, is deserving of a second chance and will be the first in line to offer someone that chance. He sees the good in everyone and wants nothing more than to bring it out. 

Rokushiki :  Earlier in his career it was thought Ferrol's skill in battle and staunch desire to uphold the law may prove useful and so was given clearance to be instructed in Rokushiki. He gained baseline knowledge of only two techniques before his attitude was deemed troublesome and the training was discontinued. Still the techniques he was taught played to his strengths as a swordsman and he has capitalised on it.

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Weapon: 

Peregrine Dive  -  A rapier that Ferrol is never seen without either in hand or on his hip. It is simple in design, meticulously well cared for, sturdy, and of master craftsmanship but otherwise is an ordinary blade without any supernatural qualities. It was given to him when he attained knighthood and he has carried and cared for it ever since.

Daggers  -  Several daggers line inner loops of his coat weighted and balanced for throwing but also usable as melee weapons, usually one will be used in conjunction with his rapier in order to parry.

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Unarmed Combat:

Soru :  The little knight took to this advanced speed technique like he was born to it. His people are rather adept at quickness of movement and so teaching this ability was much like teaching a dog to bark. 

Rankyaku :  The other technique Ferrol was taught and again took to it naturally. After learning Soru, and again bolstered by the inherit quickness of his people, the ability to slice the air was a skill he came by honestly. 

Weapon Based Combat:



As an expert fencer Ferrol of course has a wide array of standard maneuvers inherit with any martial style; thrusts, parries, dodges, movements, counters. In addition to these more mundane abilities he has developed more specialized skills, most involving his limited rokushiki knowledge.


Air Bullets :  A variation of Rankyaku more suited to Ferrols swordstyle, instead of the large crescent style air blades caused by sweeping motions Ferrol can create air blades by thrusting his sword causing them to become line shaped. These are more precise, have higher penetrative power, and travel more quickly but due to the drastically reduced impact area are much harder to hit with/much easier to dodge.
Steel Wind Strike :  Using Soru Ferrol flits from sight and appears near an enemy to launch a harsh strike augmented by the speed of his approach. He effectively has 5 uses of this ability before it becomes too taxing to use, if he uses more than one 'charge' to strike multiple foes by flashing between them each strike is progressively weaker.
Shooting Stars :  A Rankyaku technique in which Ferrol makes a series of up to five rapid fire thrusts with his sword firing out a hail of Air Bullets
Combo Variation - Falling Stars :  Using Soru to become airborne Ferrol will use the same rapid thrusting to send air bullets down toward foes at an angle instead of along the ground.
Spear of Justice:  A combination technique. Dashing forward with Soru Ferrol uses this speed to augment a Rankyaku thrust at the apex of the dash to devastating and explosive effect. The bullet created is much larger than usual, a cannon shot really, and travels at blinding speeds but the point it leaves the tip of the sword is deadliest, creating a literal boom. This technique is incredibly taxing and leaves Ferrol winded, but moreso it leaves his right arm useless for the rest of the day.

Approved