App | Folkmore

[saisdoesmatter]

❥ Character Information

Character Name: Raphael Hamato
Character Age: 18
Character Species: Mutant turtle
Current Health: Alive
Outfit: Red bandanna, brown belt, brown knee and elbow pads, cloth wrapping around hands and feet | Visual

Character Canon: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012 version)
Link to History: Turtlepedia
Canon Point: End of Season 4
Canon Iteration: Original canon but slightly aged up
Canon Iteration Explanation: The 2012 series had MANY seasons in events that happened to Raphael wouldn't be simply be every day life, thus time passed so he'd have aged with his brothers during their adventures. He isn't the same pure rage filled turtle as he was when younger, though his temper is still a trouble spot as he's all instinct.

❥ Folkmore Roles & Attributes

Skills:

🐢 Ninjistu
🐢 Drawing/Painting
🐢 Fighting/Brawling
🐢 Proficient with both normal and improvised weapons, especially sai

Canon Abilities: Since he's a mutant, Raphael has enhanced abilities beyond what a human would - this mainly pertains to his strength, as he's the strongest of his brothers, but also has enhanced speed, reflexes, stamina and healing. He can take a beating and still get up to get the job done if needed. With his ninja training from his father, he's also good at stealth and slipping into the darkness around him.
Role: Familiar
Role Qualities/Attributes: In canon, Raphael is really good with animals, especially birds and cats. He'd default to one of these depending on situation - either a pigeon, wren, or a ginger tabby cat. If not changing to a different animal form, Raph will gain slitted cat eyes when agitated.
Role Reasoning: Familiar suits Raph better because he threads that line when it comes to being a good or bad guy. He likes to think that he doesn't need people in his life, which putting him into the Familiar role would help teach him to have those needed bonds. I'd love to explore this with his learning of becoming a Familiar and any potential draw to a Legend or Myth to solidify that.

One of the main draws for selecting Familiar over Legend or Myth is that this could be one of the ways that that Raphael can grow himself by seeking to make connections with people, either with a Legend or Myth character, and strengthen both himself and his companion with his loyalty. Once he cares about someone, he's exceptionally loyal to them, and this lends well to the idea of Familiar in my opinion. He's tried to be a loner in the past but this doesn't help him grow, needing others to help him learn to be true to himself, while helping assist with common goals and ultimately generate Lore. While he COULD potentially be a Legend, he doesn't fully embody it, with a bad temper that rises up when he's stressed out - usually to those he is trying to protect. This doesn't put him in a Myth position either, which leaves him kind of in the middle of the road, thus I see him as a Familiar rather than either of those two. Familiar just feels right for the way I see him - not fully positive but not fully negative either. He's mischievous and likes joking around, which could bring out both negative or positive lore from others, depending on how they perceive him.

❥ Personality

❥ What was the most traumatic experience your character endured? How did this change them?

Despite fighting for their lives, Raphael had to personally witness his father's death right in front of him, during the time that Splinter was fighting the Super Shredder. He feels extreme guilt for this since he was hurt during the fight prior to this, in which his father was trying to protect him.

Since his father was trying to protect him in the fight with Super Shredder, Raphael was injured severely in the middle of it all, but witnessing his father die right in front of him caused a lot of guilt as previously mentioned. Going through this made him more closed off from others emotionally, as he deems himself responsible for not being strong enough to defeat their enemy and contributing to his father's death. This results in him not being upfront with others when it comes to his pain, especially if he thinks it shows him as weak. While it wasn't his fault, he blames himself and it only spurns him forward to get stronger so it won't happen again to anyone else that he cares about. In doing so, he's not processed the guilt and internalized it, leaving him closed off and hellbent on making sure to protect others so their deaths aren't on his hands either. I feel that this is one of the reasons why the Fox would pick him to Folkmore - to help him go through his grief and make connections with people instead of being alone, because he'd be actually be stronger by letting himself be able to grieve and find solace in relying on others for actual help.

❥ What is a headcanon (or two) you feel strongly about and that you prefer playing your character with? How is this supported in canon and why do you think it benefits the character's story?

I personally play Raphael a few years older than canon (as it always states he's 15 in media, which doesn't make sense) because throughout the series, there's notable time passing between all of their adventures, which they speak of in terms of years or months passing. Given everything that he goes through, he would have aged throughout this, even if this isn't shown or stated in the show.

I also prefer Raphael not being just nothing but anger. He is shown to have a softer side, which he hides, but is actually extremely caring for those who he considers close to him. A lot of people think he's one dimensional with being a pure rage monger but that's further than the truth in my experience. He's fiery, yes, but that fuels him to fierce loyalty and compassion.

❥ What does your character feel like they struggle with still? Where could they improve? This could be physically, mentally, emotionally, or otherwise.

Raph struggles with his anger and it becoming his sole defining feature. His emotions run high and he's quick to anger and react, which he has to actively fight in terms of stress. He could improve on this through connections with others, as he's aware of his fallacies, and the need to be better would strengthen this quest to be a better, more stable person.

As stated, Raphael struggles with his anger and urges to lash out when stressed. He struggles with the idea of this being a weakness, as his father told him that he needed to control it to be able to be a better person. Yet his father has ALSO told him that utilizing his anger would make him stronger - thus giving him conflicting reasoning of how to control this both emotionally and physically. With the lost of his father's guidance through his death, this struggle has become more internalized, as he isn't sure how to overcome it without burning up from the inside out. He doesn't do well with expressing himself and how he actually feels outside of angry outbursts, as he believes it shows how weak he actually is, which goes against ever self affirming belief he has.

He could improve in terms of temperance and learning that it's alright to be angry and express his emotions in healthy ways - and that it is alright to BE emotional, since he bottles most of it up until it becomes a ticking time bomb. Without his actual family members here in Folkmore, he would need to rely on the others that are here to not be alone (something he actually hates) and possibly learn how to be more compassionate to himself by experiencing the trials that the Fox sets out for him, as they require connections to others to finish the trials. His rage isn't healthy for him and learning to let it go and allow himself to be kinder would improve his life a lot.

❥ Is your character capable of forgiveness or will they hold a grudge until they die? Would anything ever make them change their mind?

While Raph is capable of forgiveness, it often will take work to get him from holding a grudge. He is compassionate but he has to believe that it is genuine from the other person who might have slighted him. He is the type to hold grudges if harm comes to him or others he cares about, as he's protective to a fault, but is willing to listen if you can get through his stubbornness. Typically he needs some sort of proof that it isn't a trick or a ploy to let him drop his guard and harm comes again, but he can be convinced.

❥ What is a time where your character failed drastically at something and how did it impact them, what did they do about it?

Early on, Raphael wanted to be the leader of the team of turtles, and got an opportunity to do so when he was younger. He was not prepared and his bad calls ended up with his younger brother getting really hurt, which scared the hell out of him. He realized that he was not cut out for this and that his brother Leonardo was the better leader after all. It became something that he had to come to terms with, but also gave him the opportunity to learn from his brother rather than fight him on everything. This helped him grow to have leadership qualities for the team later on in life, as Leo was not able to lead them, and Raphael stepped up.

❥ Permissions

OOC opt-outs: The only real thing that I can't handle is actual visual pictures of needles or eye trauma. Written things don't bother me the same way.
IC opt-outs: None that I can think of!
Content warnings related to the character: This boy is super afraid of bugs so that might crop up from time to time. Death of family members. References to body horror. Kidnapping/Being kidnapped. Forced transformations. Feelings of guilt and loneliness.
Sensitive subjects related to the character: BUGS. Horror aspects like body horror/transformations/mind control. Familial death. Raised voices, arguments, anger. Teenage angst and sulking. Outbursts and physical fighting.

❥ Player Information

Player Name: Indilee or Indi
Pronouns: Any are fine with me!
Are you over 18?: Yes *waggles cane*
Contact(s): PM or Indilee at Plurk
Link to invitation: Invite from Sora!
Current Characters: N/A
Permissions: Permissions are here!
Writing Samples: Folkmeme's June/July TDM