Earth Pony Martel Van Starkhuf [Final]

[Bannhammer]

Martel Von Starkhuf

Name: Martel 'Marty' Von Starkhuf

Sex: Male

Age: Stallion

Species: Earth Pony

Coat Color: Royal purple

Mane/Tail/Markings Color and Style: Long burgundy mane and his tail is wound, very long and slender with a metal facet on the end so that he can attach his hammer to it and swing it in wide circles.

Eye Color: Steel grey

Cutie Mark: Large hammer

Physique: Large and stocky with a stunted rear left leg, that is kept in a brace.

Residence: Germaney

Origin: Martel was born with a stunted left hind leg, and he lived the first few years of his life as an outcast, made different by his disability. As he grew older, Marty eventually fashioned himself a crude metal brace that served to even out his legs and allowed him to walk and run normally. Being from a wealthy and well respected family, Martel was raised to be a warrior philosoph, and he considers culture and warfare to go hoof in hoof. His family is a family of mercenaries, and they have served different kingdoms over the centuries, and they earned quite the reputation. The Von Starkhufs are known for brute strength and their blind devotion to the contract. Once hired, a Von Starkhuf never turn their back on the agreement.

The family raised Marty to be a fighter as well, despite his defect. He earned his cutie mark, a hammer, when he first used the unwieldily weapon. He loved the feel of it, the mighty hammer in his mouth or fastened to his hoof. He felt a connection to it, many ponies disregard the hammer because of it's shape and size, and only know to fear it after it comes down upon them. Martel Van Starkhuf knows how it feels.

When he was old enough, his family allowed him to pick the weapon he would use and keep as his very own. It was an important moment in his life, and he picked the hammer, choosing to have one made especially for him, rather than choosing a hand me down. A local smith made a steel hammer for Marty, and the new mercenary named it "Zornstahl", or wrathful steel. The hammer is always with him, connected to the tunic he wears by a sturdy chain.

Roleplay Type:Mane

Occupation: Mercenary

Motivation: To prove he is worthy of the family name and to overcome his disability

Likes: Order, function, respect, the feel of metal, strength, his hammer "Zornstahl", Germaney

Dislikes: chaos, uselessness, apathy, cloth, speed, Stalliongrad

Cutie Mark Story: It was the time of trial for the young pony, the challenges that each young mercenary had to go through in order to be a true Stallion in the eyes of the family. Every single other pony was given their choice of weapon before the tests, and while almost every single pony picked the traditional sword, Martel chose the hammer. Mainly because as the reject, he was given last choice. At first, he hated the hammer, it was large and cumbersome, and most of his sparring partners laughed at him for using it. As he progressed through the exams, he found himself growing more and more accustomed to the large weapon. He learned how to hook it up to his tail and whip it around for massive damage and sword shattering power. Martel felt a special connection to it, and he realized that he was like the hammer. Large and cumbersome, but powerful and formidable. Soon the young pony blazed through the exams with the help of his weapon, and he ended up finishing top of his group, a fact that still earns him a bit of resentment from his contemporaries. The day of graduation, when Martel was presented with a hammer of his very own, he earned his cutie mark, a hammer. A simple cutie mark that represents his devotion to strength and utility, and the fact that he might be underestimated, even ridiculed, but he cannot be defeated.

Character Summary:

Marty is a very proud pony, and he takes matters of honor very seriously. He considers himself above the average soldier, because he was trained independently, and he comes from distinguished stock.

Being raised with a classical education, Martel prides himself on his knowledge of the arts and philosophy. While he does not use the information very often, he still keeps up to date with the latest ideas and theories, and reading is a favourite past time of his. He usually carries around one or two books along with his normal gear, to provide something to do in his spare time.

Martel was teased mercilessly as a foal because of his stunted leg, and he learned to fix his problems by smashing them with his hammer rather than talking them out. The Von Starkhuf has learned to just ignore his disability, and he rarely gets defensive or sensitive about it. He was raised to be an intellectual, but he finds himself using force rather than logic to solve problems.

He wears chain maille underneath a burgundy tunic with the family crest embroidered on it. He offers his services to anypony with the bits, but he's been known to do the occasional job for free. Martel does not consider his occupation to be any less respected than that of knights or other soldiers, and to insult the proud order of mercenaries is a terrible offense to him.

His contracts have taken him around Equestria, and by far his least favorite experience was in the town of Stalliongrad, which he finds simply abhorrent in every way. While not the most moral of ponies, Marty has rarely accepted a job that he found unjust, although the allure of bits has swayed him on occasion.

He keeps a memento from every mission, whether it is a new book or the weapon of the enemy. The only missions he wants to forget are those in Stalliongrad. He finds the large town disgusting and vile, mainly due to the large industries that pollute the city. He hates Stalliongrad mainly because he sees the town as a stain on the map that serves to pollute the world and dirty up society. He hates the city, but not the ponies that live there, mainly because he sees pollution as the main problem, and not the citizens of Stalliongrad.

The hammer is connected, via a chain, to the tunic he wears. If he needs to use it, he simply unfastens it with his mouth and swings it around. If he needs his mouth, Marty can connect it to one of his hooves and swing it around like that. Most of the time; however, Martel uses the facet on his tail to grab the hammer and swing it around with more force than his hooves can generate.

Marty is ferociously loyal, to both his family and whatever contract he is currently working on. He speaks sharply and has no qualms about saying what needs to be said.

[Davroth]

If you go for something German sounding, I'd advise using "von" instead of "van", since "van" is more Belgium or Dutch.

Also, I don't know if you want the first name to be something German sounding, but if so, it's not.

Other then that, looks pretty good to me.

[Xiee]

Can't help but notice that he dislikes Stalliongrad. Perhaps if you expound that a bit? Perhaps a simple experience that led him to hate it? Does he hate how industrial the city looks or the mere fact that its a city not just of Ponies but other creatures/races as well?

Everything else looks perfect. Looking forward to RP with this character of yours. ^_^

[Bannhammer]

Made a few edits, changed "Van" to "Von" and added why he hates Stalliongrad

I kept "Martel", though. It means hammer in french and it sounds cool. :I

Thanks for all the feedback!

[Davroth]

Oh, I just noticed and I thought I'd point it out.

"ZornigStahl" makes me cringe badly. "Zorniger Stahl" would be correct, or "Zornstahl". Maybe I could come up with something better if you tell me what exactly you punched into the translator to come up with the name.

[Bannhammer]

Oh, I just noticed and I thought I'd point it out.

"ZornigStahl" makes me cringe badly. "Zorniger Stahl" would be correct, or "Zornstahl". Maybe I could come up with something better if you tell me what exactly you punched into the translator to come up with the name.

I asked a friend to translate 'wrathful steel' into German for me, since I was just born in Germany and don't speak the language. That is what he told me, by all means, if you know the correct way of saying that, I would greatly appreciate it.

[Davroth]

I'll be home in 4 hours and then edit this post with some alternatives (there's never one answer in German).

ok, so the direct translation would be "Zorniger Stahl". Alternatives I could offer would be: "Wütender Stahl", "Rasender Stahl" or "Erbitterter Stahl". You could go the other route and name them with one word, such as "Wutstahl", though it's not wrong, it's not really used, either.

You could flip it, too, which would make it sound better in German, imho, but I can't say how you feel about that. Like "Stählerner Zorn" "Stählerne Wut" or "Stählerne Raserei".

Hope that helps you a bit.

[Bannhammer]

I'll be home in 4 hours and then edit this post with some alternatives (there's never one answer in German).

ok, so the direct translation would be "Zorniger Stahl". Alternatives I could offer would be: "Wütender Stahl", "Rasender Stahl" or "Erbitterter Stahl". You could go the other route and name them with one word, such as "Wutstahl", though it's not wrong, it's not really used, either.

You could flip it, too, which would make it sound better in German, imho, but I can't say how you feel about that. Like "Stählerner Zorn" "Stählerne Wut" or "Stählerne Raserei".

Hope that helps you a bit.

Thanks!

I really think this will help the whole profile sound a bit better. Now I just need to decide which one to use O.o

Would it be possible to tacke zorniger stahl and just put them together, like in one of your previous posts, like Zornstahl? Or should I flip it, Stahlzorn?

[Davroth]

yeah, Zornstahl is fine, Stahlzorn is fine, too. If you'd want to sound it a bit more old german, you could go with Zornesstahl, too

[Bannhammer]

Thanks!

[Pony_Sage]

Hay there, just figured that I would stop by and give my two bits. The first thing that strikes me is his name, 'Martel' does not sound very pony-like. As you stated it means hammer in French, but it is still usually used as a human name. I do like his last name though, very fitting. A little tweaking on his first name might help a little, maybe Maul, Mace, Lucerne something along those lines? The name isn't a huge issue, however if I were you I would come up with one just in case. The only other thing I would like to see is a little more explanation behind his cutie-mark, how he got it and the like. Maybe he went through a trial of some sort, or had to protect somepony and used a hammer? Simple things like that add a bunch to the depth of a character.

I would like to point out although I see nothing wrong with the character, there might not be that many instances where you could play him, this being a mainly social RP. Although how you offset his warrior nature with the philosopher side may help this out. I would just keep this in mind.

~Sage AkA Freddie Freewings

[Bannhammer]

EDITED for what Pony_Sage said!

[Pony_Sage]

"Assessed!" Thus spake the Sage.

[Skye]

[Bannhammer]

Awesome!

by the way, i noticed that this character was placed in the 'pegasus' section of the approved applications when he is in fact an earth pony

[Pony_Sage]

Thank you Bannhammer. The situation has been rectified!

~Sage AkA Freddie Freewings