Jon Snow
Mar 10, 2013 4:10:56 GMT
Post by Jon Snow on Mar 10, 2013 4:10:56 GMT
Name: Jon Snow
Age: Twenty-Three (23)
Place of Birth: Unconfirmed
Current Place of Residence: Castle Black, The North
House: House Stark
Family:
Eddard ‘Ned’ Stark (‘Father’, deceased)
Catelyn Tully-Stark (Step-Mother)
Robb Stark (Younger Half-Brother)
Arya Stark (Younger Half-Sister)
Sansa Stark (Younger Half-Sister)
Bran Stark (Younger Half-Brother)
Rickon Stark (Younger Half-Brother)
Brandon Stark (Paternal Uncle, deceased)
Lyanna Stark (‘Paternal Aunt’, deceased)
Benjen Stark (paternal Uncle)
Mother – (Unconfirmed, possibly Ashara Dayne or Wylla)
Appearance:
Garb: For the most part, Jon wears dark leather tunics and furs, and anything that will keep him relatively warm on the Wall. He is usually seen wearing the long black cloak traditionally associated with the members of the Night’s Watch, and will generally wear a black pelt of fur across his shoulders to keep him extra warm. Not one for the finer things in life, Jon generally avoids silk and other such fabrics and will instead wear tougher, woolen materials.
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 170 lbs.
Personality:
An observer more than a doer, Jon is always watching the world around him with an analytical eye. He silently reflects upon what he has seen and judges the world around him with an unbiased eye. To some he may seem to be a bit morbid, and they would be rather correct in that assumption, as he is highly introspective and self-reflective, and will usually walk around with a sullen expression on his face. Generally a rather pragmatic individual, Jon tries to find compromises to all problems that he faces, rather than just jumping in head first, and has been known to back down from his stance on occasion for the greater good. He has been known for emotional and rash decisions in the past however.
He is rather melancholy at times and rather pensive, focusing excessively inwards and closes himself off to the outside world. His past has colored his outlook on life, and he will remain mostly stoic and at a distance with most of the people that he is around, only let those he truly knows to see his inner feelings. To many, he appears to have a dark outlook on life and seems to be a rather cynical individual with a rather sarcastic wit too him. However, at his core, Jon is a truly confused and conflicted being; he wishes to do what is right, but is unable to successfully find said path to righteousness.
It should also be noted that Jon is an honorable man and extremely loyal individual, not only to the House of Stark, but to his Brothers of the Night’s Watch as well. However, he knows that since his taking of the black, his duties to the Night’s Watch take precedence over all other things, and has had to watch helplessly as his family has marched off to war without him. He is fiercely loyal to those that he trusts and doesn’t like to disappoint those that have put their faith in him, and is steadfastly determined to see all of his goals reached, even if the path is fraught with multiple dangers. He is realistic enough, however, to know when he is up against impossible odds, and that he does have to let people down sometimes.
One of the greatest things that has shaped his life however, has been that fact that he has always been an outsider looking in. ‘The Bastard of Winterfell’, he has always had a soft spot for those who don’t fit the molds of society, very much like himself, and views many of them as kindred spirits. He has fought all his life to escape the stigma of being ‘The Bastard’, and has worked hard to be better than anyone else to do so. For many years, he always despised being known by that title, but as time passed, the title’s sting became less and less obvious. It has become even easier now that he is a grown man, and around individuals that view him, along with everyone else for that matter, with the same amount of distinction, whether they be a Lord or not.
Upon certain occasions, another side of Jon can be seen, and it is a side of himself that he does not like to see. Partly due to his upbringing, and partly due to the resentment for his trueborn siblings, Jon has always secretly desired to take Winterfell for himself, at least in the very back of his subconscious. Ashamed of these thoughts, Jon can become a rather angry individual, and will at times explode into uncharacteristic rage at people who he would never think of doing otherwise. This part of himself scares him to no end, but he really can’t help the way he feels. It’s just a part of himself that he has come to learn to accept.
Likes:
Dislikes:
Weapons:
Jon’s weapon of choice is the Valyrian bastard sword of House Mormont, Longclaw, given to him by Lord Commander Jeor Mormont of the Night’s Watch after Jon saved the Commander’s life in a wight attack. As a bastard sword, Longclaw is longer than a long sword and is generally supposed to be worn on the back, though Jon generally wears it at his left hip. The traditional bear-headed pommel representing House Mormont has been replaced by a stone wolf’s head made in the likeness of Ghost, to reflect Jon’s Stark heritage.
In and of itself, Jon’s direwolf, the albino Ghost, can be considered a weapon in and of itself. More in tune with nature, Ghost has an almost nature sixth sense about danger and has warned Jon on multiple occasions about impending threats. He has been seen to take down several human opponents, and even fought a wight as well.
Armour:
Jon does not usually tend to wear armour of any sort really, but on occasion will adorn himself with a chainmail shirt and a suit of black plate armor underneath his standard leather tunic and long black cloak. He does not wear a helmet of any kind, and will not normally wear his armor, as he is not a traditional soldier, and only keeps his armor, as it was a gift from his father before they departed from Winterfell.
Skills:
Wielding Longclaw: Having been gifted with the famous Valyrian bastard sword, Jon would have to have the skills necessary to wield it, right? Well, all things considered Jon’s not too terrible a hand at the blade. Not quite at the level of the Kingslayer yet, Jon can still give his brother, Robb, a run for his money. Owning a rather unique class of sword, a bastard for a bastard and all that, Jon has had to adapt his fighting style to adjust to the longer reach that his new blade affords him, and has become a rather steady hand with the sword in the few months since it has entered his ownership. As an extension of this, Jon has at least the basic knowledge of most of the forms of combat taught in the North, having been taught alongside his half-brother by their father when they were younger.
Insurmountable Courage: Above all things, Jon is defined by his courageous intentions. He has always been known for rushing head first into danger since a young age, but he has always done so of the best intentions; a defender of the weak and those who cannot fight for themselves, Jon has always fought for others who he viewed as weaker than himself, and perhaps it’s because he’s a bastard, but he has always viewed other bastards with almost a familial bond, having viewed them as brothers and sisters of a shared situation that they have no control over. Furthermore, Jon has become known as a rather fearless individual on the Wall, one who always seems to want to tackle the most difficult jobs.
Passion: Jon is a rather passionate individual, and will fight fiercely for what he believes in. When he truly desires to do something, he can and will persuade those around him to support his ideas and even help him. However, this is usually counterbalanced by his habit of rushing into things head long without any planning or inkling of what he is doing. As an extension of this, Jon has a rather easy time of making friends, when he wants to and when he doesn’t let his arrogance get in the way.
Weaknesses:
A Bastard named Snow: As Jon has been quoted to say himself, being a bastard named Snow is not an easy life to live, especially when his father his the High Lord of Winterfell. Although Jon has had an easier life than most other bastards, having been ‘recognized’ by his father, he might say that it was even worse. Unlike other bastards he grew up with what he could never have; growing-up with his trueborn siblings, he was like an outside looking in. He was never truly discriminated against by his siblings, but he knew he never really belonged there, and that weighed heavily on his mind. It also didn’t really help that his step-mother, Catelyn subtly implied her absolute hatred of his existence, seeing him as a blight on her husband’s honor and oath of marriage. It was the general air of the entirety of Winterfell however that really made his early life unbearable, having a shadow cast over him and whispers said about him behind his back. It would never be a normal like for a bastard; especially not for a bastard named Snow.
Cynicism: Jon is a rather cynical individual, his outlook on life having been colored from his experiences at an early age, and always feels as if nothing will ever go right in his life. In his own mind, Jon feels as if there is no real place for him within society, being the outcast of his family, the Bastard of Winterfell, and this is perhaps the reason why he joined the Night’s Watch, to find a place where he truly belonged. As such, he does not see his own worth at times, and when he views others as better than him, he will place them on an unreachable pedestal. (He’s the Westeros version of an Emo!)
Rash Behavior: At times, Jon can come off as a rather arrogant individual, and as a person who only cares about himself. He is overconfident in his abilities at times, and will lord his skills over others while claiming that they are jealous of him. He leaps before he thinks and that usually lands him in situations that he would much rather avoid, and at times can be self-righteous to the point where he believes that he is correct by default. He doesn’t think things through, and at times that will cost him; he will rush headlong into things without thinking of all the angles of the situation and will more often than not get in over his head.
History:
Born under mysterious circumstances, the bastard son of Eddard Stark, with a whole host of possible mothers, ranging from Ashara Dayne to a lowly Milkmaid named Wylla to even a fisherman’s daughter; the most outlandish of these rumors however, is that Eddard Stark isn’t even his father at all, that in fact he is the son of deceased Rhaegar Targaryen with his mother being Lyanna Stark, the sister of Eddard.
Though any of these instances may in fact be true, he is wholly recognized as the bastard-born son of Eddard Stark, one of his only two children to attribute the classic stark features, a lean build and a long face with dark black hair and grey eyes. The rest of Eddard’s true-born children, aside from the youngest daughter, had strong Tully features in them.
He was brought into this world during a time of great turmoil, near the very end of Robert’s Rebellion, and from the moment he was born, it seemed as if fate was against him. Though his father, Eddard, did recognize him as his son and raised him alongside his true-born siblings, his step-mother, Catelyn always resented his presence inside of her home, serving as a constant reminder of her husband’s infidelity.
Though the oldest of Lord Stark’s children, Jon was not in the line of succession for his father’s title, being bastard-born, and was skipped over for the current heir, his younger brother Robb. That weighed slightly in the back of his mind, and that in combination with his step-mother’s outright hatred for him would shape his outlook on life for years to come.
However, over all, life was not overly harsh for Jon; he had a top rate education alongside his brother, Robb, and learned all the things that would have been required of him if he had in fact been chosen as his father’s heir. He learned such things as archery, horseback riding, hunting, tactics and diplomacy, however, above all things; he was a prodigy of the sword. Spending many hours practicing and perfecting his technique, Jon made sure that he could outmatch anyone his age, or within a ten year age range. Perhaps, in another life, he could have made an excellent knight.
As the stream of time moved steadily forward, Jon grew older and, watching as several more true-born Stark children entered into the world, his perception of the world became steadily darker and darker. Though he had always known he was the bastard son of Lord Eddard ‘Ned’ Stark of Winterfell, as if his step-mother would ever let him forget, his father had always shielded the brunt of the scorn from ever truly reaching him. But, as he got older, and as his father’s time got separated between all of his children, as well as his major duties as the Lord of Winterfell, Jon began to feel more and more separated from the rest of his family; for the first time in his life he realized just how completely he didn’t fit in with the rest of the castle. It would be these realizations that would further color his outlook on the world, and form the basis of his dry, sarcastic and brooding personality that he would use for years to come.
In fact, out of all of his family, outside of his father, he only had any real feelings for his younger brother, Robb, his youngest sister, Arya, and his Uncle, Benjen. The closest to him in age, Jon and Robb grew up learning from their father together, and though they didn’t have the perfect brother relationship that they should have had, would of had if he was a true-born son, Jon truly does care about Robb, and would be willing to risk many a thing to help him out. Arya, on the other hand, is the one sibling that Jon has been able to be able to bond with most; a strange thought, the two of them can sort of understand each other, feeling out of place within their family for their own reasons, with Jon being a bastard, and Arya wishing to pursue ‘un-lady-like’ activities, such as sword-fighting and archery. It is due to these differences that the two were able to connect so well. Benjen, the mostly absent uncle, was Jon’s idol growing up, traipsing around the countryside north of the wall on Ranger duties; it is he who inspires Jon to eventually join the Night’s Watch, having been intrigued by the Watch. After all, being a bastard on the Wall makes no difference than being the heir to a prominent family in the Watch; all the men become equals once they don the black.
Eventually, when he entered his nineteenth year of life, Jon would get his chance to follow his dream. It all started with the execution of a deserter of the Night’s Watch by his Lord Father, making his brothers Robb, Bran and him watch as he drew his last breathes, most so as to toughen up the young Bran in the ways of death. From there, they had encountered a group of six direwolf pups in the roots of an ancient tree, the mother dead. Taken as a sign, as the direwolf was the symbol of the House Stark, each child was a able to receive one of the pups, with Jon taking the Albino runt, the outcast of the litter, and named him Ghost.
Eventually, Winterfell played host to Lord Robert Baratheon, King of the Seven Kingdoms, who wanted Ned to be his new Hand of the King, after the previous one passed away. It is during this time that he meets ‘The Imp’, Tyrion Lannister, a fellow noble outcast, having been born a dwarf, who he struck up a friendship with, due to their similar lives.
During the festivities that accompanied the King’s arrival and further stay, Benjen returned from the wall for the duration of the King’s stay, and invites Jon to join the Night’s Watch on his return trip. Before he departs, he says goodbye to Bran, who has been paralyzed from the waist down in a fall, and who was in a coma at the time, while he also gives Arya a sword, which she named Needle, that he had made especially for her, advising her to "Stick them with the pointy end."
Departing with the King’s precession, Jon and Benjen eventually break away to head to their destination in the north, Castle Black on the Wall. At their parting, Eddard vows to tell Jon the truth about his mother the next time they meet. As he travels towards the wall with his Uncle, Tyrion joins them, stating that he wished to see the Wall before he died.
At Castle Black, Jon's expectations of the Night's Watch are thrown for a major loop. Instead of finding a brotherhood of noble warriors sworn to defend the realm from wildlings and White Walkers, he realizes that the Watch is a dumping ground for criminals and wastrels, very much like his own circumstances in fact. It is also here, during training, that he earns the enmity of Ser Alliser Thorne, the Master-at-Arms in charge of training new recruits. Jon proceeds to humiliate his fellow recruits with his superior fighting skills, learned from Winterfell's Master-at-Arms over the course of many years, skills that he had worked hard to perfect.
Benjen stands with Jon on his first watch on the Wall, telling him that he is going ranging to the North. Jon is keen to accompany him, but Benjen insists that he complete his training first and get his assignment. It is with Tyrion’s help that Jon is able to see that he is no better than the recruits, but he has been afforded more advantages than them over the years. Jon offers to train some of his new brothers in the sword, with two of them accepting.
Jon also befriends Samwell Tarly when he arrives at Castle Black, helping to protect him from the cruelty of Thorne, who seemed fixated on humiliating the boy. In response, Thorne angrily told Jon that going easy on Sam won't help him, and will risk getting him killed during the next winter. But eventually the new recruits complete their training and swear their oaths, with Jon swearing his to the Old Gods at a weirwood tree:
“Night gathers, and now my watch begins. It shall not end until my death. I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children. I shall wear no crowns and win no glory. I shall live and die at my post. I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls. I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards the realms of men. I pledge my life and honor to the Night's Watch, for this night and all nights to come.”
Unlike his predicted assignment to the Rangers, Jon is assigned to the stewards, most likely due to his ongoing feud with Ser Alliser Thorne. Sam points out that Lord Commander Jeor Mormont had asked for Jon as his personal steward, which he speculated as an attempt to groom him for future command.
Weeks later, Jon grows concerned when his Uncle Benjen's horse returns to the Wall rider-less. Later, Ghost finds the corpses of two of the rangers that were assigned to Benjen, further cementing his worry. Later, one of the corpses becomes a wight and attacks Commander Mormont. Jon saves Mormont's life by burning the wight. It is because of this, that Mormont gives Jon his Valyrian steel sword, Longclaw, which Jon notes on the appropriateness of a bastard wielding a bastard sword.
Jon continues on with his duties, remaining ever vigilant on the Wall, ready to defend the Seven Kingdoms at a moment’s notice alongside his brethren of the Watch. It’s not a pretty existence, but at least here no one cared if he was the bastard son of a Noble Lord. Here, he was just another member of the Watch.
Several weeks later, Jon rides out with Mormont and an expedition to investigate condition beyond the Wall. They ride out to the Fist of the First Men, exploring abandoned Wildling civilizations along the way. Arriving at the Fist, they are brutally defeated by an army of the White Walkers. Jon, Mormont, and fifty lone survivors flee the Fist, retreating to the Wall.
RP Sample:
Jon ran his gloved hand over the wolfshead hilt of his sword, longclaw, and paced silently atop the Wall. Ghost bounded along behind him, the white direwolf's feet padding along behind him. Snow fell from the murky grey heavens above, and the bitter cold wind blew into Jon's hair, the wind that seemed to be getting colder and colder as the days passed and the words of his father's House came to pass.
Winter is coming.
His long, black cloak bellowed in the wind as he paced, Ghost trailing along beside him. He wore black leather and fur, and his hands were protected by black gloves. Jon turned to peer out over the vast wilderness, staring out upon the trees and the icy wastes in the far distance, all covered by an icy fog. As he turned to scratch Ghost's ears, he remembered that Mormont would need him soon. The duties of a Steward were never complete. With a parting glance at the land beyond the Wall, he walked away, the cold wind still snapping at his face, and the grey, pale light of the sun, far, far away, beginning to shine dimly as morning came upon the Wall, and the brothers of the black.
Player: Silent Watcher
Other characters played: N/A
Any plans in mind for the character? Sort of.
Do you agree to the rules: Yes
Who invited you to the site? No one, save google.
Age: Twenty-Three (23)
Place of Birth: Unconfirmed
Current Place of Residence: Castle Black, The North
House: House Stark
Family:
Eddard ‘Ned’ Stark (‘Father’, deceased)
Catelyn Tully-Stark (Step-Mother)
Robb Stark (Younger Half-Brother)
Arya Stark (Younger Half-Sister)
Sansa Stark (Younger Half-Sister)
Bran Stark (Younger Half-Brother)
Rickon Stark (Younger Half-Brother)
Brandon Stark (Paternal Uncle, deceased)
Lyanna Stark (‘Paternal Aunt’, deceased)
Benjen Stark (paternal Uncle)
Mother – (Unconfirmed, possibly Ashara Dayne or Wylla)
Appearance:
Garb: For the most part, Jon wears dark leather tunics and furs, and anything that will keep him relatively warm on the Wall. He is usually seen wearing the long black cloak traditionally associated with the members of the Night’s Watch, and will generally wear a black pelt of fur across his shoulders to keep him extra warm. Not one for the finer things in life, Jon generally avoids silk and other such fabrics and will instead wear tougher, woolen materials.
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 170 lbs.
Personality:
An observer more than a doer, Jon is always watching the world around him with an analytical eye. He silently reflects upon what he has seen and judges the world around him with an unbiased eye. To some he may seem to be a bit morbid, and they would be rather correct in that assumption, as he is highly introspective and self-reflective, and will usually walk around with a sullen expression on his face. Generally a rather pragmatic individual, Jon tries to find compromises to all problems that he faces, rather than just jumping in head first, and has been known to back down from his stance on occasion for the greater good. He has been known for emotional and rash decisions in the past however.
He is rather melancholy at times and rather pensive, focusing excessively inwards and closes himself off to the outside world. His past has colored his outlook on life, and he will remain mostly stoic and at a distance with most of the people that he is around, only let those he truly knows to see his inner feelings. To many, he appears to have a dark outlook on life and seems to be a rather cynical individual with a rather sarcastic wit too him. However, at his core, Jon is a truly confused and conflicted being; he wishes to do what is right, but is unable to successfully find said path to righteousness.
It should also be noted that Jon is an honorable man and extremely loyal individual, not only to the House of Stark, but to his Brothers of the Night’s Watch as well. However, he knows that since his taking of the black, his duties to the Night’s Watch take precedence over all other things, and has had to watch helplessly as his family has marched off to war without him. He is fiercely loyal to those that he trusts and doesn’t like to disappoint those that have put their faith in him, and is steadfastly determined to see all of his goals reached, even if the path is fraught with multiple dangers. He is realistic enough, however, to know when he is up against impossible odds, and that he does have to let people down sometimes.
One of the greatest things that has shaped his life however, has been that fact that he has always been an outsider looking in. ‘The Bastard of Winterfell’, he has always had a soft spot for those who don’t fit the molds of society, very much like himself, and views many of them as kindred spirits. He has fought all his life to escape the stigma of being ‘The Bastard’, and has worked hard to be better than anyone else to do so. For many years, he always despised being known by that title, but as time passed, the title’s sting became less and less obvious. It has become even easier now that he is a grown man, and around individuals that view him, along with everyone else for that matter, with the same amount of distinction, whether they be a Lord or not.
Upon certain occasions, another side of Jon can be seen, and it is a side of himself that he does not like to see. Partly due to his upbringing, and partly due to the resentment for his trueborn siblings, Jon has always secretly desired to take Winterfell for himself, at least in the very back of his subconscious. Ashamed of these thoughts, Jon can become a rather angry individual, and will at times explode into uncharacteristic rage at people who he would never think of doing otherwise. This part of himself scares him to no end, but he really can’t help the way he feels. It’s just a part of himself that he has come to learn to accept.
Likes:
- His Family
- The Brothers of the Night’s Watch
- His pet Direwolf, Ghost
Dislikes:
- Being called a bastard
- King Joffery Baratheon
- Those who look down on others
Weapons:
Jon’s weapon of choice is the Valyrian bastard sword of House Mormont, Longclaw, given to him by Lord Commander Jeor Mormont of the Night’s Watch after Jon saved the Commander’s life in a wight attack. As a bastard sword, Longclaw is longer than a long sword and is generally supposed to be worn on the back, though Jon generally wears it at his left hip. The traditional bear-headed pommel representing House Mormont has been replaced by a stone wolf’s head made in the likeness of Ghost, to reflect Jon’s Stark heritage.
In and of itself, Jon’s direwolf, the albino Ghost, can be considered a weapon in and of itself. More in tune with nature, Ghost has an almost nature sixth sense about danger and has warned Jon on multiple occasions about impending threats. He has been seen to take down several human opponents, and even fought a wight as well.
Armour:
Jon does not usually tend to wear armour of any sort really, but on occasion will adorn himself with a chainmail shirt and a suit of black plate armor underneath his standard leather tunic and long black cloak. He does not wear a helmet of any kind, and will not normally wear his armor, as he is not a traditional soldier, and only keeps his armor, as it was a gift from his father before they departed from Winterfell.
Skills:
Wielding Longclaw: Having been gifted with the famous Valyrian bastard sword, Jon would have to have the skills necessary to wield it, right? Well, all things considered Jon’s not too terrible a hand at the blade. Not quite at the level of the Kingslayer yet, Jon can still give his brother, Robb, a run for his money. Owning a rather unique class of sword, a bastard for a bastard and all that, Jon has had to adapt his fighting style to adjust to the longer reach that his new blade affords him, and has become a rather steady hand with the sword in the few months since it has entered his ownership. As an extension of this, Jon has at least the basic knowledge of most of the forms of combat taught in the North, having been taught alongside his half-brother by their father when they were younger.
Insurmountable Courage: Above all things, Jon is defined by his courageous intentions. He has always been known for rushing head first into danger since a young age, but he has always done so of the best intentions; a defender of the weak and those who cannot fight for themselves, Jon has always fought for others who he viewed as weaker than himself, and perhaps it’s because he’s a bastard, but he has always viewed other bastards with almost a familial bond, having viewed them as brothers and sisters of a shared situation that they have no control over. Furthermore, Jon has become known as a rather fearless individual on the Wall, one who always seems to want to tackle the most difficult jobs.
Passion: Jon is a rather passionate individual, and will fight fiercely for what he believes in. When he truly desires to do something, he can and will persuade those around him to support his ideas and even help him. However, this is usually counterbalanced by his habit of rushing into things head long without any planning or inkling of what he is doing. As an extension of this, Jon has a rather easy time of making friends, when he wants to and when he doesn’t let his arrogance get in the way.
Weaknesses:
A Bastard named Snow: As Jon has been quoted to say himself, being a bastard named Snow is not an easy life to live, especially when his father his the High Lord of Winterfell. Although Jon has had an easier life than most other bastards, having been ‘recognized’ by his father, he might say that it was even worse. Unlike other bastards he grew up with what he could never have; growing-up with his trueborn siblings, he was like an outside looking in. He was never truly discriminated against by his siblings, but he knew he never really belonged there, and that weighed heavily on his mind. It also didn’t really help that his step-mother, Catelyn subtly implied her absolute hatred of his existence, seeing him as a blight on her husband’s honor and oath of marriage. It was the general air of the entirety of Winterfell however that really made his early life unbearable, having a shadow cast over him and whispers said about him behind his back. It would never be a normal like for a bastard; especially not for a bastard named Snow.
Cynicism: Jon is a rather cynical individual, his outlook on life having been colored from his experiences at an early age, and always feels as if nothing will ever go right in his life. In his own mind, Jon feels as if there is no real place for him within society, being the outcast of his family, the Bastard of Winterfell, and this is perhaps the reason why he joined the Night’s Watch, to find a place where he truly belonged. As such, he does not see his own worth at times, and when he views others as better than him, he will place them on an unreachable pedestal. (He’s the Westeros version of an Emo!)
Rash Behavior: At times, Jon can come off as a rather arrogant individual, and as a person who only cares about himself. He is overconfident in his abilities at times, and will lord his skills over others while claiming that they are jealous of him. He leaps before he thinks and that usually lands him in situations that he would much rather avoid, and at times can be self-righteous to the point where he believes that he is correct by default. He doesn’t think things through, and at times that will cost him; he will rush headlong into things without thinking of all the angles of the situation and will more often than not get in over his head.
History:
Born under mysterious circumstances, the bastard son of Eddard Stark, with a whole host of possible mothers, ranging from Ashara Dayne to a lowly Milkmaid named Wylla to even a fisherman’s daughter; the most outlandish of these rumors however, is that Eddard Stark isn’t even his father at all, that in fact he is the son of deceased Rhaegar Targaryen with his mother being Lyanna Stark, the sister of Eddard.
Though any of these instances may in fact be true, he is wholly recognized as the bastard-born son of Eddard Stark, one of his only two children to attribute the classic stark features, a lean build and a long face with dark black hair and grey eyes. The rest of Eddard’s true-born children, aside from the youngest daughter, had strong Tully features in them.
He was brought into this world during a time of great turmoil, near the very end of Robert’s Rebellion, and from the moment he was born, it seemed as if fate was against him. Though his father, Eddard, did recognize him as his son and raised him alongside his true-born siblings, his step-mother, Catelyn always resented his presence inside of her home, serving as a constant reminder of her husband’s infidelity.
Though the oldest of Lord Stark’s children, Jon was not in the line of succession for his father’s title, being bastard-born, and was skipped over for the current heir, his younger brother Robb. That weighed slightly in the back of his mind, and that in combination with his step-mother’s outright hatred for him would shape his outlook on life for years to come.
However, over all, life was not overly harsh for Jon; he had a top rate education alongside his brother, Robb, and learned all the things that would have been required of him if he had in fact been chosen as his father’s heir. He learned such things as archery, horseback riding, hunting, tactics and diplomacy, however, above all things; he was a prodigy of the sword. Spending many hours practicing and perfecting his technique, Jon made sure that he could outmatch anyone his age, or within a ten year age range. Perhaps, in another life, he could have made an excellent knight.
As the stream of time moved steadily forward, Jon grew older and, watching as several more true-born Stark children entered into the world, his perception of the world became steadily darker and darker. Though he had always known he was the bastard son of Lord Eddard ‘Ned’ Stark of Winterfell, as if his step-mother would ever let him forget, his father had always shielded the brunt of the scorn from ever truly reaching him. But, as he got older, and as his father’s time got separated between all of his children, as well as his major duties as the Lord of Winterfell, Jon began to feel more and more separated from the rest of his family; for the first time in his life he realized just how completely he didn’t fit in with the rest of the castle. It would be these realizations that would further color his outlook on the world, and form the basis of his dry, sarcastic and brooding personality that he would use for years to come.
In fact, out of all of his family, outside of his father, he only had any real feelings for his younger brother, Robb, his youngest sister, Arya, and his Uncle, Benjen. The closest to him in age, Jon and Robb grew up learning from their father together, and though they didn’t have the perfect brother relationship that they should have had, would of had if he was a true-born son, Jon truly does care about Robb, and would be willing to risk many a thing to help him out. Arya, on the other hand, is the one sibling that Jon has been able to be able to bond with most; a strange thought, the two of them can sort of understand each other, feeling out of place within their family for their own reasons, with Jon being a bastard, and Arya wishing to pursue ‘un-lady-like’ activities, such as sword-fighting and archery. It is due to these differences that the two were able to connect so well. Benjen, the mostly absent uncle, was Jon’s idol growing up, traipsing around the countryside north of the wall on Ranger duties; it is he who inspires Jon to eventually join the Night’s Watch, having been intrigued by the Watch. After all, being a bastard on the Wall makes no difference than being the heir to a prominent family in the Watch; all the men become equals once they don the black.
Eventually, when he entered his nineteenth year of life, Jon would get his chance to follow his dream. It all started with the execution of a deserter of the Night’s Watch by his Lord Father, making his brothers Robb, Bran and him watch as he drew his last breathes, most so as to toughen up the young Bran in the ways of death. From there, they had encountered a group of six direwolf pups in the roots of an ancient tree, the mother dead. Taken as a sign, as the direwolf was the symbol of the House Stark, each child was a able to receive one of the pups, with Jon taking the Albino runt, the outcast of the litter, and named him Ghost.
Eventually, Winterfell played host to Lord Robert Baratheon, King of the Seven Kingdoms, who wanted Ned to be his new Hand of the King, after the previous one passed away. It is during this time that he meets ‘The Imp’, Tyrion Lannister, a fellow noble outcast, having been born a dwarf, who he struck up a friendship with, due to their similar lives.
During the festivities that accompanied the King’s arrival and further stay, Benjen returned from the wall for the duration of the King’s stay, and invites Jon to join the Night’s Watch on his return trip. Before he departs, he says goodbye to Bran, who has been paralyzed from the waist down in a fall, and who was in a coma at the time, while he also gives Arya a sword, which she named Needle, that he had made especially for her, advising her to "Stick them with the pointy end."
Departing with the King’s precession, Jon and Benjen eventually break away to head to their destination in the north, Castle Black on the Wall. At their parting, Eddard vows to tell Jon the truth about his mother the next time they meet. As he travels towards the wall with his Uncle, Tyrion joins them, stating that he wished to see the Wall before he died.
At Castle Black, Jon's expectations of the Night's Watch are thrown for a major loop. Instead of finding a brotherhood of noble warriors sworn to defend the realm from wildlings and White Walkers, he realizes that the Watch is a dumping ground for criminals and wastrels, very much like his own circumstances in fact. It is also here, during training, that he earns the enmity of Ser Alliser Thorne, the Master-at-Arms in charge of training new recruits. Jon proceeds to humiliate his fellow recruits with his superior fighting skills, learned from Winterfell's Master-at-Arms over the course of many years, skills that he had worked hard to perfect.
Benjen stands with Jon on his first watch on the Wall, telling him that he is going ranging to the North. Jon is keen to accompany him, but Benjen insists that he complete his training first and get his assignment. It is with Tyrion’s help that Jon is able to see that he is no better than the recruits, but he has been afforded more advantages than them over the years. Jon offers to train some of his new brothers in the sword, with two of them accepting.
Jon also befriends Samwell Tarly when he arrives at Castle Black, helping to protect him from the cruelty of Thorne, who seemed fixated on humiliating the boy. In response, Thorne angrily told Jon that going easy on Sam won't help him, and will risk getting him killed during the next winter. But eventually the new recruits complete their training and swear their oaths, with Jon swearing his to the Old Gods at a weirwood tree:
“Night gathers, and now my watch begins. It shall not end until my death. I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children. I shall wear no crowns and win no glory. I shall live and die at my post. I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls. I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards the realms of men. I pledge my life and honor to the Night's Watch, for this night and all nights to come.”
Unlike his predicted assignment to the Rangers, Jon is assigned to the stewards, most likely due to his ongoing feud with Ser Alliser Thorne. Sam points out that Lord Commander Jeor Mormont had asked for Jon as his personal steward, which he speculated as an attempt to groom him for future command.
Weeks later, Jon grows concerned when his Uncle Benjen's horse returns to the Wall rider-less. Later, Ghost finds the corpses of two of the rangers that were assigned to Benjen, further cementing his worry. Later, one of the corpses becomes a wight and attacks Commander Mormont. Jon saves Mormont's life by burning the wight. It is because of this, that Mormont gives Jon his Valyrian steel sword, Longclaw, which Jon notes on the appropriateness of a bastard wielding a bastard sword.
Jon continues on with his duties, remaining ever vigilant on the Wall, ready to defend the Seven Kingdoms at a moment’s notice alongside his brethren of the Watch. It’s not a pretty existence, but at least here no one cared if he was the bastard son of a Noble Lord. Here, he was just another member of the Watch.
Several weeks later, Jon rides out with Mormont and an expedition to investigate condition beyond the Wall. They ride out to the Fist of the First Men, exploring abandoned Wildling civilizations along the way. Arriving at the Fist, they are brutally defeated by an army of the White Walkers. Jon, Mormont, and fifty lone survivors flee the Fist, retreating to the Wall.
RP Sample:
Jon ran his gloved hand over the wolfshead hilt of his sword, longclaw, and paced silently atop the Wall. Ghost bounded along behind him, the white direwolf's feet padding along behind him. Snow fell from the murky grey heavens above, and the bitter cold wind blew into Jon's hair, the wind that seemed to be getting colder and colder as the days passed and the words of his father's House came to pass.
Winter is coming.
His long, black cloak bellowed in the wind as he paced, Ghost trailing along beside him. He wore black leather and fur, and his hands were protected by black gloves. Jon turned to peer out over the vast wilderness, staring out upon the trees and the icy wastes in the far distance, all covered by an icy fog. As he turned to scratch Ghost's ears, he remembered that Mormont would need him soon. The duties of a Steward were never complete. With a parting glance at the land beyond the Wall, he walked away, the cold wind still snapping at his face, and the grey, pale light of the sun, far, far away, beginning to shine dimly as morning came upon the Wall, and the brothers of the black.
++OOC Info++
Player: Silent Watcher
Other characters played: N/A
Any plans in mind for the character? Sort of.
Do you agree to the rules: Yes
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