sixthiteration app.

BASICS

Your name or nickname: Ca
Your year of birth: 1989
A reliable DW account the mods can PM to reach you: beardlust
Who you currently play at 6I: Frank Castle
Link to your hold comment: Here
Referral: N/A

Character name: Josephus Miller
Character type: Fandom AU
Fandom/Canon: The Expanse
Character DW journal: pampa
Does this character have previous CR?: Y

All his significant CR in this chart and I’ll detail the really important ones below.

Basically, he left a space station that was about to kill him for another Horror Space Station that was definitely going to kill him. He’s an excellent detective and opened up a lot of new areas/solved a lot of clues about the mystery of that place. He will immediately apply that knowledge and skills to this place as well. Because he knew he was going to die, Reverie wasn’t as terrible for him as a lot of others. Yes, it was horrifying and tortured them all, but it allowed him a second chance to get to know the Rocinante crew and meet people he otherwise would have had no opportunity to meet. His best friend by far on the station was Kovacs and the two were inseparable. They would often drink with Elektra as well. Miller was next-door neighbors with Karen and the two would chat every day, even if it was brief. She interviewed him once about his life and was working on something of a biography, finding him and his story fascinating. The two had a penchant for sniffing around the station together and getting into trouble, but between the two of them they brought a lot of things to light about the inner workings of that place. They were definitely kindred spirits. Mike and Miller came to be something of buddy cops: they were both focused on getting people to band together and solve the mysteries and problems onboard. Bodhi and himself bonded over both being dead guys. His relationship with Ashford is significant because while they had no CR in canon, they have opposing stances and were able to air their grievances with one another and move the other closer to the middle of the line through debate.

Though in canon, Miller’s closest interactions are with Holden and Naomi, aboard Reverie Terminal his closest of the crew by far was Alex (and to some extent Prax and Bobbie both of whom he never met.) They came to a unique understanding of one another here and to commiserate deeply with each other’s plights. His CR with Amos too was very close, even if most people might assume that neither of them have very much empathy for others. They’re bad at showing it, but they know they’re similar to one another and this drove them closer together. Miller was often getting himself injured saving others from the horrors of the ship. The trouble is that his bones are like straws and 99% of people on Reverie were Inners (from the Inner planets, i.e. Earth and Mars, meaning they have dense skeletons), so he messed himself up on more than one occasion when inevitably a much denser person crushed him. He’s not a very clumsy person, but he started making up excuses to make it seem like he was so no one would make the connection that he cared quite a bit about everyone onboard.

Kids are significant in Miller’s life as he feels like he’s over the hill and missed that boat in his youth. He would often talk with Kamala about what it was like growing up on a space station to help her adjust to life on Reverie Terminal. She was the only person he allowed to call him by his first name and whenever something inevitably went wrong on the station he always made his first priority checking up on her. Miller was starting to really find a place on RT and maybe even a home, something he hadn’t ever truly had throughout his life. This will be a jarring experience for him on multiple levels.

HISTORY

Canon History:
Here.
Reverie History:

Arrives on Reverie really upset his heroic gesture has been thwarted but meets up with the crew who tell him he kamikazed to save Earth and then he feels better (ish).

Moves in next to Karen Page when he discovers they both have a penchant for being nosy.

Karen and Frank find the chapel, the first locked door opened and Miller becomes obsessed with opening the station up.

The first big event is Loss of Gravity, something Miller is well-versed in. He makes his way around helping people and generally earns a reputation as a goodnick despite best efforts.

He saves Alex from being lost in space when his tether fails and is crushed by him, starting out his stay here the way he’ll continue: with a severely bruised skeleton.

In between all the chaos, he drinks heavily and starts becoming close to Kovacs until the two are nearly inseparable. (He also meets Elektra this way.)

Alex dies horrifically and comes back to life and Miller is tasked with “solving the case.” His conclusion is this place is hella fucked up.

Next event is nonstop music that leads to insomnia and hallucinations, two things Miller is already prone to.

He kind of loses it and tries to shoot everything/everyone in proximity until he’s stopped. (More injuries incurred stupidly.)

Miller gets a clue to help them find the cryopods which allow people to “return home” for a time and mysteriously return without waking up (canon updates.)

Ashford arrives on the station which fucks with him, he’s one of the higher-ups in the OPA and everything he despises but as they talk he starts realizing they might not be so different.

Prax and Miller open the door to the plant room which will supply food and air indefinitely.

Mike stages a station-wide meeting to get everyone on the same page and Miller shares all he’s found with everyone.

Next event is an illness ravaging the station, because of his experience Miller thinks it’s the protomolecule and tries to space himself in the midst of his fever.

Ashford of all people saves him and this makes him even more conflicted about the guy.

Things go on like this for a while until the end, he forges a few connections with people but ultimately his goal remains unchanged. He wants to return and die in his blaze of glory the way he was supposed to before being so rudely interrupted.

What is your canon exit point?: 2.4 + 4 mos of Reverie CRAU + 2.5 (his death)

PERSONALITY OVERVIEW

N/A

PERSONALITY QUESTIONS

What skills does your character bring to the situation? Miller has a brilliantly deductive mind that can see connections between items no one else considers. Though everyone on Ceres (and later Reverie) underestimates him, they quickly learn that when he puts his mind to something he won’t quit until he accomplishes it. He pursues information doggedly and will drop everything else for a good mystery. This place would surely fit into that category. He also doesn’t hesitate to put his body on the line, though it’s much more fragile than his brain, and he will likely find this situation unfavorable for his survival. He’s always gotten by against all odds, but he’s never lived outside of a climate-controlled situation. Always on a ship or a station his entire life like most Belters. This makes him skilled at things he won’t ever need here, like loss of gravity or failing air filters. He’s also skilled with firearms but has never hunted a wild animal in his life. Basically, other than deductive reasoning, Miller has no physical skills to bring here whatsoever.

Why did you choose this specific character for 6I, and how do you picture them fitting into the game?
Frank is obviously very capable physically, Miller will be his foil there. And where Frank fails in a mental capacity, Miller can pick up the slack. I think he can bring a unique perspective to what’s happening in the Villages and make people think about what they’re experiencing in an entirely new way. He was very good at discovering new areas or plot elements aboard Reverie Terminal (and of course, in canon) so he will immediately go to work trying to uncover more details about this place and try to make them fit together into a narrative that makes sense. The superpower element with him will also be very fun to play with and I look forward to seeing which color he’ll be assigned. Because Belters are generally frail physically and Miller is no exception, it will be very jarring to have any type of power for him and I plan on utilizing the points system for further powers that might help him with the setting.

How do you imagine your character will survive in 6I, and in what ways will they contribute to the settlement, if any?
He’s used to being a lone wolf or only caring about a select core of people. Other than discovery, he won’t intend to contribute to the community as a whole. He probably will somehow anyway though as he’s prone to heroics even when he’s trying desperately not to give a fuck. Miller is basically a textbook Gryffindor, he throws himself bodily into insane longshots and doesn’t look back. He’s brave, but he also sees the big picture and that matters to him. If he sees many people go without then he will step in, but he isn’t prone to charity for charity’s sake. The mystery aspect however and the Observers he will take a keen interest in. He will launch several theories into the public forum and investigate every avenue. He does not give up or get discouraged by others, so it should make for some interesting CR.
How will your character react to...

Being separated, possibly permanently, from loved ones and their previous life, including loss of powers, if applicable?
Since he has already made peace with his death and then had an entire “afterlife” at Reverie Station, he truly will not be fazed. He’s of the opinion that his friends on Ceres are fine and no one ever told him Diogo was dead so he’s pretty chill overall about whatever is going on in his world/universe. Since he’s dead anyway, he doesn’t think it’s really his place to know all that much about what happened after. He will be much more concerned about the present environment here which I will cover in the next question in more detail.
Their environment being manipulated, possibly in strange or extraordinary ways, and possibly in ways which restrain them?
Miller has never set foot on a planet before so he will be terrified at first. He will also be delighted once he realizes he can survive the gravity and atmosphere. This will lead him into a follow-up panic however: that he is still on Reverie Station and the Villages here are only a simulation. After asking the mods if he would have any ill effects from the harsh gravity on his brittle bones, you guys told me it was up to my discretion so I’m electing for there to be little to no effect. This will only make him increasingly paranoid as time goes on that this is not real or even perhaps a true after life of sorts. He never died on RT but he observed many people dying and instantly coming back to life, and so he will assume the same or a similar mechanic is in place here until speaking with others.

He does not allow himself to be restrained (if it’s within his control) and so anything that restricts him will anger him greatly. Nothing about this environment will make him complacent, he will battle it until the bitter end. It will be conflicting for him as he’s always wanted to see Earth and experience weather, animals, and nature. He will be very interested in all of these things while also constantly be aware that it probably isn’t real. Over time, he will care about this aspect less so that he can still enjoy what’s around him without halting his investigation in any way, but at first he will be deep in “the case” and unable to be dissuaded from it.
Being physically and/or mentally manipulated, such as having hallucinations or suddenly possessing special abilities they did not have before?
Miller has hallucinations all the time. He’s an alcoholic and an insomniac and truly does not take care of himself. He’s also just a little off, if not completely crazy or anything. Not to mention, Reverie often messed with his head so hallucinations will not faze him. However, the abilities will. He will be shocked at first but then immediately adapt and try to use them to further his goals. If he can use them to help people, he probably will, but it will be an after effect of having (whichever power he gets) and not an active pursuit of helping those in the Villages.

He will always use any tool in his toolkit even if he’s not sure how he got it so I plan to give him powers from the vending machine and really dig into the setting with him. As aforementioned, he thinks he’s dead and he thinks he will come back in this place, so putting himself in bodily harm will not be an issue. He dies in canon sacrificing himself to save Earth also, so even when he is informed death is usually permanent here, it won’t change his actions.

POWERS & SPECIAL ABILITIES

N/A

WRITING SAMPLES

SAMPLE 1
Why did you choose this sample? This is where the boys first start bonding and Miller reveals his feelings about Earth etc. I think it showcases his characterization as well as their CR well. It’s also during the gravity event when Miller was able to help a lot of people due to being used to loss of gravity as a routine issue - obviously, most people don’t have that advantage as Kovacs points out.
Linked or pasted sample: Log w/Kovacs @ Reverie

SAMPLE 2
Why did you choose this sample? Elektra is also CRAU from Reverie and their relationship was close so I wanted you guys to see their friendship in action. They know one another’s strengths and weaknesses and aren’t afraid to fill in those gaps for one another.
Linked or pasted sample: Log w/Elektra on TDM