Hellsing?!, Juusu domas par Hellsing! Options

[TheBadEdd]

Luudzu izpauziet savu viedokli par Hellsing, jo tas bija mans pirmais anime ko es redzeeju... (atskaitot dazus hentajus ) Un taadeelj man veel iipashi nevar buut savs viedoklis taadeelj gribeetos dzirdeet ko juus domaajiet! THNX!

P.S. Man vinjsh likaas tiiri nekas atskaitot nobeigumu... Es tur neko nesapratu...

[Roze]

Pachakareejos pa tiiklu veel un atradu sho to ljoti labu, kas reizee atbild uz dazhiem jautaajumiem:

Background/History:
Let's get one thing perfectly clear. Arucard is Dracula. The first clue is his name, Arucard (or Alucard) is Dracula spelled backwards (This was first used in the 1943 Universal film Son of Dracula.). The second is the Hellsing Organization and references to its being around for about 100 years (meaning it was started in the very late 1890s, or soon after the events in the novel Dracula). Then comes the name Hellsing itself, an obvious reference to Dr. Abraham Van Helsing. Arucard virtually admits to being Dracula (although not in so many words) in Episode 9, Red Rose Verligo, telling the vampire Incognito; "My name is an anagram too." Finally, in the last episode of the series, Hellfire, Incognito asks "Who are you?" and we see a momentary split screen of Arucard's face with that of a grinning wild-eyed man with a thick mustache. The image resembles period depiction's of Wallachian prince (and later king) Vlad Dracula (a.k.a. Vlad Tepes or Vlad the Impaler). And true to his name, Arucard leaves Incognito impaled on a thick shaft of silver after killing him.

The anime never says exactly when Arucard was made part of the Hellsing Organization, or even how or why. We only get a scattering of hints, such as a comment that Integra's father named him "Arucard." There is also Integra's father's message that if she (Integra) was ever in trouble she could find help in the basement -- said help being a bound and restrained Arucard. In addition, Arucard tells the young Integra that he will make the same pact with her that he did with her father -- which is to serve her however she needs. This seems to lend weight to the idea that Integra's father "captured" Arucard in the first place, although I have to wonder how the second manga series with Walter and Arucard fighting Nazis in World War II fits into all this.

At any rate, Arucard has been part of the Hellsing Organization for some time. He normally keeps to himself, or associates only with Walter or Integra. He is brought in only when things look bad, or if he's bored and requests the chance to see some action (a request often made).

We first meet Arucard in Episode 1, The Undead. He remains a constant figure throughout the series. Episode 6, Dead Zone and Episode 13, Hellfire, show Arucard operating at full power (or close to it). The Hellfire episode also has has some of the strongest clues as to Arucard's real identity as Dracula.

Personality/Motivation:
Arucard is bored with unlife. Or, more accurately, he's bored with just sitting around doing nothing. He wants (and likes to) test his skills and powers to their limits, and looks for someone -- anyone -- who can give him a proper challenge. He even asks Integra if he can accompany the regular Hellsing troops in Episode 5, Brotherhood, just so he can try out his new gun (the huge 13mm Jackal). In the same vein, he's pretty contemptuous of anyone (especially other vampires) who can't give him the challenge he seeks and desires. He insults the Cheddar Village vampire for being basically an idiot, Jessica and Leif for not knowing what they are, Luke for thinking he was Arucard's equal, and so on. On the other hand, if he finds someone who seems to be able to challenge him to a good fight, he can't wait to throw down and get on with the action. He actually seems to like (in a twisted sense) Alexander Anderson for this very reason, as the priest shows a willingness to fight him one-on-one, and doesn't back down unless obviously unable to continue the fight. A prime example of this is when Arucard shoots both of Alexander's arms off, and the priest responds by picking up one of his swords in his teeth and trying to run Arucard through with that! This is the sort of gesture Arucard can respect in an opponent. And if his foe won't throw down fast enough, Arucard will encourage them with repeated cries of "Hurry! Hurry!! HURRY!!!"

Arucard tends to ignore most people, treating them as just part of the landscape. He really only respects Integra and Walter. He seems to like Walter based on Walter's combat abilities and their history of fighting the undead together, fondly calling him "The Angel of Death." He also likes the guns Walter brings him to play with, discussing them in detail when they are handed over. Integra he has an even deeper respect for, based partially around who her father was, the contract he has with her (which he adheres to utterly), and her own indomitable will and unshakable oath to never give up. As for Seras, she is treated somewhere between a servant and an equal. He certainly respects her for her courage and willingness to be shot in order to kill the Cheddar vampire, but her struggle to not totally submit to her vampiric nature does seem to confuse him.

Quotes:
"Guns are useless against me!"
"How pleasant! I haven't had this much fun in a long time."
"I have my own reasons for serving humans. But of course, it's not a story for trash like you!"
"I'm merely a tool of the special operations agency, Hellsing. I dispose of garbage."

Powers/Tactics:
Arucard is a very, very powerful vampire, almost absurdly so. He displays an incredibly wide range of powers, some only briefly, some repeatedly, many of which having highly bizarre (and visually impressive) special effects. First and foremost, he is a vampire, and has a large number of classic vampiric abilities (both traditional and literary). He has strength far greater than the human norm (he can lift, swing around, and fire at arm's length the 35 lb Jackal handgun), can punch his hand through a vampire's chest, fangs, drinks blood, isn't really alive anymore, can turn another person into a vampire with his bite, can shape change, and so on.

But Arucard's powers go further than that. He can project illusions (into multiple people at once), read minds (entering into Integra's dreams), dispel such powers in others (with an impressive visual display of the sygil on the back of his gloves floating over head in the sky). He can telekinetically move objects (The Cheddar priest could move Seras, while Arucard is shown lifting the Freak chip and pulling a pistol clip into his gun from across the room, but it only stands to reason Arucard could do the same if not more.). Arucard is capable of interesting and impressive movement powers. He can simply walk through walls, and often enters into Integra's office by doing so (Note: Arucard stuck his arm through the door of a subway car and fired one of his guns to shoot one of Alexander's knives out of the air. This means he can Affect The Physical World with his STR, guns, and Missile Deflection at the very least!). In addition, he has limited powers of levitation, and has floated down through the ceiling to talk to Integra. In that's not enough, he can teleport as well, silently fading away into the night, and capable of traveling unknown distances (he travels from Hellsing mansion to London in one shot).

Arucard's most impressive power (aside from his Cromwell Initiative -- see below), is his power of regeneration. Not since Yakumo in 3x3 Eyes has character had such incredible regenerative powers. Arucard can recover from seemingly any amount of damage, especially physical damage such as that caused by bullets. When he's states "Guns are useless against me!" its not mere hyperbole -- he's completely serious. Only Alexander's blessed blades seem to really bother him. At any rate, Arucard is seen rebuilding himself from nothing more than a pool of blood and gore, and coming out whole and unharmed.

If the occasion calls for it, Arucard will activate what seems to be called the Cromwell Initiative (or, as Arucard tells Luke: "Now I'll show you how real vampires fight!"). It requires him to remove all the restrictions on his powers but then allows him to assume the form of shapeless and shadowy black mass covered in red eyes and fanged mouths. This mass can bend and stretch easily, and will send out howling eight-eyed dog's heads to attack a foe. Of course, Arucard is still in there (somewhere), and he's been known to produce his handguns out of the dog's mouth to fire on a foe.

Although the character sheet doesn't show it (mainly because I wasn't sure how to apply it), Arucard is required (I guess....) to release various controls on his powers before going into action. He is either activating his power, or simply telling someone (Integra?) what he is doing. At any rate, it works like this: before (usually way before) any confrontation, Arucard will announce "Releasing contract restriction system to "X" level." The levels range from five to one, with one being the highest level of power. He will also announce the Situation. This seems to range from C to A, with A being the most dangerous. To reach his highest level of power, he will state: "Unlocking limited release limited release control system to level one. Situation A. Cromwell approval in effect." and then promptly go to town on an enemy vampire. I didn't apply any limitations for all this, as it seems to be window dressing, and doesn't look to limit his powers anyway -- except for in Episode 13, when it looks like Integra activates level one for him, and I wasn't sure how to define that in game terms (since, as I've said, I wasn't sure what was being done).

For all his power, Arucard's tactics are really simple: let the other guy shoot you, get up and then shoot him back. He does this repeatedly, allowing Seras to shoot him when they first meet, the priest of Cheddar's ghouls to gun him down, Luke to put a bullet in his head, and so on. Even when fighting Incognito he seems willing to take a hit or two if it means he can fire back at a clear target. When fighting a powerful foe (as he thought Luke was) or when things look really bad (as with the invasion of Hellsing mansion in Episode 5, or after being "killed" by Incognito), Arucard will drop all his restrictions and activate the Cromwell Initiative, shape shifting into his shadowy form and then tearing his foe to shreds.

Arucard's Guns
I've left Arucard's two guns for last. They are both large automatic pistols, custom made by the Hellsing Arms Weapons Industries Company, Limited. The first is the Hellsing Arms .454 Casull Longslide Automatic. It is a silver gun, with what looks to be a 12-round clip, and fire the .454 Casull round. The second is the 13 mm Jackal "Anti-Freak Battlegun." It is a huge weapon, 390 mm in length (that's 15.3" inches), weighs 35 pounds (I'd give it around +4d6 of Hand Attack if you pistol-whip someone with it), and has a six round clip. The gun is black, and has "Jesus Christ is in Heaven now" written on the side. Both guns use blessed mercury bullets. The Jackal is said to use macadmium-processed pure silver casings with a Marvells Chemical's cartridge type NNA 9. The end result is two weapons capable of punching really big holes in people (and vampires).

Appearance:
Arucard is tall, standing well over six feet in height. Although he's not as tall as Alexander Anderson, he's close, coming in at around 6'4". He has a trim build, with very long arms, and a face more striking than handsome. His eyes are red and his hair is black. His clothing (which seems to be a part of him) consists of tall black boots, black trousers, a black jacket, white shirt, red tie, a long red overcoat, and a broad-brimmed red hat. He also wears sunglasses with round yellow lenses. These are not part of his body, and can be broken. The rest will reform with his body to be good as new if he's ever shot up.

Arucard's hair seems to be related to his power level. The more power he has released, the longer and wilder it will get. This is seen several times, especially when he fights Incognito or after Alexander cuts Arucard's head off in Episode 7.

Designer's Notes:
Is it "Arucard" or "Alucard"? Technically, it's the latter, as it is quite obvious Arucard is Dracula, and Dracula spelled backwards is "Alucard." However, there is no sound for "L" is Japanese, so such names as "Lebia" (from Silent Mobius) or "Larry Vincent" (from Gunsmith Cats) can be difficult to translate. In the case of "Lebia," Silent Mobius creator Kia Asamiya has written it as "Lebia Mavelick" in his manga (note the "l" in the last name -- her name should be "Lebia Maverick"). In the case of Larry Vincent, her name was mistranslated as "Rally" initially and has remained so ever since. So, you can use either.

(Arucard created by Kourta Hirano, and Studio Gonzo from an idea by Bram Stoker, character sheet created by Michael Surbrook with assistance from Max Fauth)