Consider this to be a bit of extra content added, for those of you who like this sort of thing. You can ignore this chapter if you want to but it's here if you want to look at it. This is also the first chapter not to feature a disclaimer of some sort. Isn't that odd?
Walter's Roster: Volume 1
Hello, my name is Walter Dornez. I have recently joined a ragtag group of militia called the Shepherds. Despite being a Shepherd for only a grand total of 4 days, I have already learned much about my fellow Shepherds. I have decided to document my observations in a roster that shall be open to the entire militia. Please note, if you are not part of the Shepherds, or have not gained special permission from either Chrom or myself, I will not hesitate to kill you for peeking into this book. If you are a Shepherd, do not complain about the description I have for each of you. Deny it all you want, I am accurate.
~Walter Dornez, The Angel of Death
July 19
No.000...Walter Dornez, The Angel of Death.
A butler with a natural talent for battle. He wields a special
set of monofilament wires that emanate from his gloves.
When not on the battlefield, he often speaks in a calm, and
dignified, manner. He also acts as the butler to the Shepherds,
often cooking, and serving food and drinks, as well as cleaning
the barracks of the Shepherds. On the battlefield, however he is a
merciless force to be reckoned with. His usage of the wires,
along with his merciless nature, earned him the nickname "the
Angel of Death", a title which he happily accepts, and often
defends with much glee. Despite being well liked by his comrades,
he feels guilty for his past actions. (This is the only entry not written
by Walter)
The one most likely to come to the rescue.
Birthday: unknown
Land of origin: England
Age: 69
Parents: unknown
Children: none
No.001...Chrom, Ylisse's Exalted Prince.
The prince of Ylisse, and descendent of the Hero-King,
Marth. While noble of blood, he leads a militia known
as the Shepherds. On the battlefield he wields the
Legendary blade, Falchion, with much skill. He often
leads the Shepherds into battle with a demeanor fitting
of a king. Off the battlefield, he cracks the odd joke now
and then. Chrom holds a deep admiration for his sister,
Emmeryn, due to her kind and benevolent style of rule.
He cares immensely for his friends and family and will
stop at nothing to ensure that they are safe. He also seems
to have a soft spot for pies, as noted by both Sumia and I.
His strong conviction makes him a fine leader,
and the perfect man to be the exalt.
Most likely to break things
Birthday: May 27th
Land of origin: Ylisse
Age: 20
Parents: unknown
Children: none
No.002...Lissa, The Noblest Healer.
Chrom's tomboyish little sister, and princess of
Ylisse. Despite her noble blood, she often acts
childish. Off the battlefield, she often plays
pranks on others(minus myself, as I seem
to either extremely frighten her, or she has too
much respect for me. I personally think it's the
former) On the battlefield, she acts as a healer, and
understands the responsibility she has to shoulder
to keep everyone alive. Her cheerful demeanor makes
her one of the most likable Shepherds in the group.
She had a huge crush on Frederick as a kid, and she
often deliberately disobeyed him to get his attention.
Though it is unlikely that she still carries this childish
crush, there is evidence pointing otherwise.
Most likely to snort.
Birthday: March 6th
Land of origin: Ylisse
Age: 16
Parents: unknown
Children: none
No.003...Frederick, The Stalwart Knight
Chrom's lieutenant. He acts as a bodyguard for both
Chrom and Lissa, despite the fact they have no need
for one. His sincerity is only matched by his skills with
a lance or sword. On the battlefield, he is a calm and
collected warrior without peer. He executes orders nearly
flawlessly and usually never question orders. Off the
battlefield, he acts basically the same way. Many of the
Shepherds have been known to have stated that Frederick's
training sessions are amongst the most brutal of training
sessions ever known. Those who have survived his regime
have commented that they did feel empowered...
after several days of recovery.
The fondest of starting fires
Birthday: August 26th
Land of origin: Ylisse
Age: 25
Parents: unknown
Children: none
No.004...Sully, The Women to End All Men
With a sword arm built for battle, and a mouth that would
make brigands blush, Sully is one of the most capable
knights in the Shepherds. With her skills with the sword
and lance in mind, she is able to decimate her opponents
with a style, and grace, that many women can only dream
of. Though that comes with the cost that she is somewhat too
self-confident at times, bordering recklessness at times. This
often leads her to ignore her blind spots. Despite a confidence
that many men wish they could have, she suffers from insecurity,
due to her masculine personality.
The last one you want cooking
Birthday: December 5
Land of origin: Ylisse
Age: 21
Parents: unknown
Children: none
No.005...Virion, The Archest of Archers
A nobleman whose past is well hidden. His buffoonish,
and overall idiotic, actions lead many to see him as a
man with no skill what so ever. His skills, however, often
come out in battle in the form of an almost flawless
accuracy with a bow. These skills make him the finest
archer the Shepherds can provide. Virion, unfortunately,
is a hopeless romantic. He will propose to almost anything
that is female. This doesn't outshine the fact that he will
defend anyone he likes to his last breath.
The one who stares at the mirror the most
Birthday: December 10
Land of origin: Valm
Age: 23
Parents: unknown
Children: none
No.006...Sumia, The Graceful Rider
An absentminded, klutzy Shephard with no self-confidence
or self-worth whatsoever. With this in mind, she is eager to
get better. In battle, she fights alongside her trusted Pegasus,
often preforming graceful maneuvers with her Pegasus.
These maneuvers are often combined with her skill with a
lance. Both Frederick and I have noticed that she is a
hard worker. Also noted, is the fact that she has an incredible
amount of potential, and the things that she excels in, she
REALLY excels in. One example is her natural affinity with
working with animals.
Best at tripping over nothing.
Birthday: November 24
Land of origin: Ylisse
Age: 20
Parents: unknown
Children: None
No.007...Stahl, The Oddly Normal Cavalier
An oddly normal Shepherd. Not much can be said about
this member of the rag tag group of Shepherds, as he seems
to be the most normal of the group. This sentiment follows
him into battle, though it surprisingly doesn't hinder him.
He seems to be just as an effective cavalier as Sully and
Frederick but beyond that, my observations end there.
Despite living in an age where war is waged on his country
endlessly, he has a surprisingly trusting personality. It's
unknown whether this should be classified as a strength
or a weakness. There is one thing that has been noted by
all the Shepherds as abnormal, his insane eating habits.
The most eager to clean a plate
Birthday: June 16
Land of origin: Ylisse
Age: 22
Parents: unknown
Children: None
No.007...Miriel, The Perfectionist with no Peer
A perfectionist and meticulous women with a pompous style
of speech. As a perfectionist, she will grow irritated at the
smallest flaw. In battle, she is skilled with magic to the
point that she is deadly accurate with her tomes. It can be
noted that she has the tendency to suddenly stop mid-battle
if so much as anything, whether it be lucky, divine or scientific,
piques her interest. Her everyday life is filled with research, in a
manner that can be considered obsessive. According to some
Shepherds, she is willing to stalk a person until she divulges the
secrets to some of their abilities (Examples include: Kellam's
affinity for stealth, Stahl's odd normality, and Frederick's
skill with a blade)
The most superfluous packer
Birthday: February 12
Land of origin: Ylisse
Age: 25
Parents: unknown
Children: None
No.008...Vaike, The Misplacer of many
A rough-hewn Shepherd best known for his loud mouth
and habit of misplacing everything. While his ability is
something that I would consider exceptional, his
confidence boasts of being even better. His abilities with
an axe is not something to underestimate, as he has
managed to outmatch Chrom in some of their more
intense sparring matches. His loudmouth has often
pushed himself into danger as well. An odd quirk of
Vaike, as observed by ALL of the Shepherds, is his
tendency to refer to himself in the third person. According
to Lissa, his personal nickname, Ol' Teach, is the latest
in a long line of nicknames for himself.
The best at misplacing things
Birthday: December 26
Land of origin: Ylisse
Age: 20
Parents: unknown
Children: None
No.009...Kellam, No comment...
A soft spoken, blank-faced Shepherd who has
a tendency to seemingly disappear, even when
you're alone the room with him. Not much can
be said about Kellam, as he is hardly ever spotted
by anyone. As such, details about him are incredibly
sparse. The same can be said about his skills in battle,
as he tends to fade into the crowd at times. It can be
noted that even I have a hard time tracking Kellam,
even though I have an innate ability for tracking. Despite
his protest to being unseen my everyone, he is proud of his
stealthy nature.
The tallest when sitting down
Birthday: June 24
Age:24
Land of origin: Ylisse
Parents: unknown
Children: None
The Pair up System
As for anymore observations that I've made, they mostly revolve around the system of battle that I shall refer to as "The Pair Up System". As the system is relatively new, I have only tested this strategy in a single battle, that battle being yesterday's conflict. Even so, I see that this system boasts some very fine results.
When working with a partner, people tended to hold more of an advantage in battle. For some reason or another, the presence of another person seems to give people access to increased endurance, power, and speed. People that are closer to each other have bolstered effects. Chrom and Sumia being one such example. I noticed that they worked in brilliant unison with each other, almost to the point that they attacked as one unit. Another example of a strong bond comes in the form of Virion and Sully. Try as she might to act as disdainful towards the nobleman; together they are a formidable team.
There are also certain pair-ups that don't work at all. I have no idea if this is a general lack of care for certain members of the militia, or if they are pairings that have decided to be mutual friends only and nothing more. one such example is Vaike and Virion. They do not seem to bolster each other's abilities as significantly as the others. The mysteries to why they cannot support each other as well as other teams that I can think of is beyond me.
For me, the pair-up system seems to yield very interesting results. For the entirety of today, I partnered with everyone within the Shepherds for a bit of a sparring match and found myself with some peculiar results. I am able to be paired with anyone, and the results all conclude that I benefit from the morale boost. I do not understand why this is, but I must keep these results in mind during the next battle.
That makes me wonder of one thing. What were to happen if I were to pair-up a married couple together in battle? The result is nothing more than a dream at the moment, as I am sure that it is unlikely that any of my allies will marry in the future. As for me, I doubt that an old man such as myself has even a chance at finding love among these young people.
That concludes my observations on this subject, thus far. If I find out anything else, I'll be sure to catalog it here.
~Walter Dornez
July 20
Odd Weaponry
During my years as the Hellsing family butler, I learned the art of smiting. I used this skill to my fullest advantage, creating devastating weaponry for the organization. Due to the renaissance, semi- medieval, nature of the land of Ylisse, I do not know where to find the materials to create something that is common in my world, guns.
As such, I am forced to experiment with swords, axes, and lances instead. This where I hit an odd snag in my creating of weapons. It seemed to me that the more deadly I made a weapon, the easier it broke. Metals such as bronze created oddly durable weapons, but a metal such as silver produces a more powerful blade at the cost of durability.
Bronze, unlike silver, is not an element, but an alloy made up of copper and tin. Something like bronze would be better for making armor, as it has higher resistance and a higher melting point.
Silver is an element. Silver should be the more durable of the two, as it does not corrode as easily, nor does it react to other elements, as it is a more un-reactive element.
That makes me wonder, "Can I somehow create a weapon that is both durable, and powerful?".
The answer is, it's certainly possible.
Chrom's sword, Falchion, is a weapon that is both powerful, and nigh unbreakable. The weapon has been enhanced by the divine power of Ylisse's deity, the Divine Dragon, yet Alexander Anderson's blessed bayonets, and the blessed silver bullets of Alucard's Casull, are all only as durable as normal bayonets and bullets. What does Falchion have that other weapons don't?
The answer alludes me, but I swear that I will find the answer soon enough.
~Walter Dornez
July 21
Writer's Notes
I wanted to write this for the sake of world building, and to add a bit of what Walter does when not in battle. While I won't release Roster Chapters all the time, they will still be added for those people who like this kind of thing.
