Mo Ran 墨燃 (Mo Weiyu 墨微雨) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
dogmetaphors) wrote2025-12-26 02:44 pm
dogmetaphors) wrote2025-12-26 02:44 pm
Somnia app
CHARACTER INFO
Character Name: Mo Ran
Canon: The Husky and his White Cat Shizun
Age: physically 22, mentally 37
Canon Point: end of volume 7/chapter 243
Wiki Link(s): here
SOMNIA-SPECIFIC QUESTIONS
1. Dreams are how Sleep chooses you. What might draw your character into Somnia— a wound, a wish, a weakness? Would they follow the dream, or run from it? At his canonpoint, Mo Ran has just fallen unconscious after being forced to reenact a memory from his past life within an illusion. What happened before reenacting the memory was traumatic, the reenactment itself was also horrible, and after snapping out of it he barely had time to speak before he collapsed. In short, he’s at his weakest point. Lost and terrified that Chu Wanning will never forgive him for what he’s done, Mo Ran would follow the dream just to understand what’s happening.
2. Somnia is a slow unraveling—of worlds, and of selves. How does your character respond to fear, transformation, and losing control? Do they fight, adapt, collapse? In his past life, Mo Ran was the monstrous tyrant known as Taxian-jun, who slaughtered countless people. Reborn, he struggles to understand what could have driven him to that point and sees his past self as something alien and unknowable. Despite remembering everything about what he’d done before, he acts as though he remembers nothing to the point where the people aware of his rebirth assumed he didn’t actually remember his past. In Somnia it’ll be no different. He’ll ignore, ignore, ignore. He’ll mete out that little bit of control he can muster by pretending that nothing is wrong at all. If nothing else, he’s very good at willfully ignoring things that make him uncomfortable.
Of course, ignoring things is often not enough, and Mo Ran isn’t actually a pacifist. When push comes to shove, he prefers action. When backed into a corner, he’ll lash out violently. He’s like a wounded animal, lashing out out of self-preservation instead of malice. He’s driven primarily by a desire to keep living. Though consumed with guilt, he will continue to survive. It’s what he knows best, and he can’t atone if he’s dead.
Through circumstances that he doesn’t understand, Mo Ran encountered a mysteriously-revived version of his past self, and his first and only concern is fighting him. Is fighting first, asking questions later a great strategy? Probably not, but that’s what Mo Ran does.
3. Connection is the only constant. What kind of bonds does your character form— fast and burning, slow and wary, deep and desperate? How might that shape their time in this world? It is very, very easy to form a connection with Mo Ran. The slightest bit of kindness can make him a lifelong friend, and on the reverse end of things, animosity towards him is a surefire way to turn him into an enemy. Mo Ran has a very simplistic view of the world. He isn’t the sort to plot or scheme against others. If he likes you, you’ll know. If he hates you, you’ll really know. Because he isn’t a deceitful man by nature, it does mean that he’s very “what you see is what you get” when it comes to his opinions of people. At worst, he might take time to warm up to someone, though Mo Ran is very friendly even with people he doesn’t know very well.
Though he’s capable of forming deep attachments, Mo Ran doesn’t necessarily form them readily. Wanting to return kindness (or return malice) is something he’ll do for small things, but the bone-deep attachment to people is extremely rare. He’s in truth only formed two, and one of those was because of a curse that made him fall in love with the spellcaster. It’s not that he doesn’t care about people (the opposite is true), just that when Mo Ran forms attachments, he forms them completely.
Mo Ran is the sort to do anything to help people in distress, regardless of whether or not he knows them at all. His belief of repaying kindness with kindness means that said kindness doesn’t need to be anything particularly earth-shattering— even just giving him food and a place to stay for the night is enough.
Though it’s something Mo Ran doesn’t remember himself, he once said he wanted to save as many people as possible. He’s willing to put himself in harm’s way for other people, even risking the identity he’s managed to create in Sisheng Peak for the sake of protecting what amounts to a group of complete strangers. He might not be the sort to be self-sacrificing, but helping people survive in seemingly hopeless situations is something Mo Ran will do willingly.
4. What are two major forces in your character’s personality that are often in conflict? (Ex: logic vs emotion, power vs guilt, obedience vs rage, etc.) Mo Ran is in a constant state of battling between guilt and loyalty. He has so many terrible secrets, even beyond his identity as Taxian-jun in his past life. Though he refers to sect leader as “uncle” and the sect leader’s son as “cousin”, in truth they’re not related at all. Mo Ran killed the true lost nephew in an act of self-defense, and burned the brothel he had grown up in to the ground. He didn’t expect to survive this, and was pulled from the wreckage as the sole survivor and brought to Sisheng Peak because he was a boy of the right age. This has been a secret that has long ate away at him, knowing that he’s a fake and only got away with it because his adoptive uncle had no idea what his nephew looked like, or even his name.
Despite this, Mo Ran is completely loyal to Sisheng Peak. Though he isn’t related to Xue Zhengyong by blood, he does consider the man family. It’s not a lie, neither is his affection for his aunt. Even his adoptive cousin, for how bad their relationship was for a very long time, truly is family to Mo Ran. Though he destroyed Sisheng Peak in his past life, Mo Ran doesn’t have a shred of desire to do the same in this life, and only wishes for the safety of the first home he’s ever truly known. He’s just not strong enough, or brave enough, to confess the things he knows.
Mo Ran also feels an enormous amount of guilt over his treatment of Chu Wanning in his past life. For reasons completely unknown to him, for reasons that run counter to his personality, he grew to resent and hate his teacher after the death of Shi Mei, a fellow pupil under Chu Wanning. When he became Taxian-jun, Mo Ran had the man imprisoned and tortured among other things, and it finally reached a boiling point when Chu Wanning of the past died, and left Mo Ran inconsolable with grief he didn’t understand. Upon his rebirth, he looks back on his actions with mounting horror, unable to understand why he would torture his teacher so, and finds himself unable to even ask for forgiveness, as the Chu Wanning of his current life has no knowledge of the actions committed by Taxian-jun.
His loyalty isn’t just towards Chu Wanning but also towards the ideals that Chu Wanning instilled in him. He’ll do everything in his power to uphold the values of protecting the innocent and saving as many people as he can. Though he tends to lash out violently when backed into a corner, if it’s a situation in which other people could be hurt, he’s more than willing to risk bodily injury to prevent casualties.
VESSEL SELECTION
Which Vessel Type are you choosing: Token or Offering? Offering
Why does this Vessel type feel appropriate for your character? Simply put, Mo Ran is a wizard in canon. I wanted to go with the other option for that reason. Changing the sort of magic he has access to wouldn’t be all that interesting to me. He’s also incredibly overpowered in canon as it is; writing him starting over wouldn’t be terribly interesting. The other reason is that I’ve always been a fan of body horror, and writing out a character coming to terms with losing their humanity is something I like doing.
There’s also Mo Ran’s own self-loathing. He did monstrous things in his past life, and has been doing so many things to make up for his actions in his current one, but that doesn’t stop him from continuing to feel like a monster. Time to make that literal!
Choose one OR list three subclass options within your chosen Vessel type that you think would suit them: Kimera. Mo Ran is a series of chaotic contradictions. Both a hero and a tyrant; a murderer and a savior; human and (literal) demon. It’s the perfect fit.
Character Name: Mo Ran
Canon: The Husky and his White Cat Shizun
Age: physically 22, mentally 37
Canon Point: end of volume 7/chapter 243
Wiki Link(s): here
SOMNIA-SPECIFIC QUESTIONS
1. Dreams are how Sleep chooses you. What might draw your character into Somnia— a wound, a wish, a weakness? Would they follow the dream, or run from it? At his canonpoint, Mo Ran has just fallen unconscious after being forced to reenact a memory from his past life within an illusion. What happened before reenacting the memory was traumatic, the reenactment itself was also horrible, and after snapping out of it he barely had time to speak before he collapsed. In short, he’s at his weakest point. Lost and terrified that Chu Wanning will never forgive him for what he’s done, Mo Ran would follow the dream just to understand what’s happening.
2. Somnia is a slow unraveling—of worlds, and of selves. How does your character respond to fear, transformation, and losing control? Do they fight, adapt, collapse? In his past life, Mo Ran was the monstrous tyrant known as Taxian-jun, who slaughtered countless people. Reborn, he struggles to understand what could have driven him to that point and sees his past self as something alien and unknowable. Despite remembering everything about what he’d done before, he acts as though he remembers nothing to the point where the people aware of his rebirth assumed he didn’t actually remember his past. In Somnia it’ll be no different. He’ll ignore, ignore, ignore. He’ll mete out that little bit of control he can muster by pretending that nothing is wrong at all. If nothing else, he’s very good at willfully ignoring things that make him uncomfortable.
Of course, ignoring things is often not enough, and Mo Ran isn’t actually a pacifist. When push comes to shove, he prefers action. When backed into a corner, he’ll lash out violently. He’s like a wounded animal, lashing out out of self-preservation instead of malice. He’s driven primarily by a desire to keep living. Though consumed with guilt, he will continue to survive. It’s what he knows best, and he can’t atone if he’s dead.
Through circumstances that he doesn’t understand, Mo Ran encountered a mysteriously-revived version of his past self, and his first and only concern is fighting him. Is fighting first, asking questions later a great strategy? Probably not, but that’s what Mo Ran does.
3. Connection is the only constant. What kind of bonds does your character form— fast and burning, slow and wary, deep and desperate? How might that shape their time in this world? It is very, very easy to form a connection with Mo Ran. The slightest bit of kindness can make him a lifelong friend, and on the reverse end of things, animosity towards him is a surefire way to turn him into an enemy. Mo Ran has a very simplistic view of the world. He isn’t the sort to plot or scheme against others. If he likes you, you’ll know. If he hates you, you’ll really know. Because he isn’t a deceitful man by nature, it does mean that he’s very “what you see is what you get” when it comes to his opinions of people. At worst, he might take time to warm up to someone, though Mo Ran is very friendly even with people he doesn’t know very well.
Though he’s capable of forming deep attachments, Mo Ran doesn’t necessarily form them readily. Wanting to return kindness (or return malice) is something he’ll do for small things, but the bone-deep attachment to people is extremely rare. He’s in truth only formed two, and one of those was because of a curse that made him fall in love with the spellcaster. It’s not that he doesn’t care about people (the opposite is true), just that when Mo Ran forms attachments, he forms them completely.
Mo Ran is the sort to do anything to help people in distress, regardless of whether or not he knows them at all. His belief of repaying kindness with kindness means that said kindness doesn’t need to be anything particularly earth-shattering— even just giving him food and a place to stay for the night is enough.
Though it’s something Mo Ran doesn’t remember himself, he once said he wanted to save as many people as possible. He’s willing to put himself in harm’s way for other people, even risking the identity he’s managed to create in Sisheng Peak for the sake of protecting what amounts to a group of complete strangers. He might not be the sort to be self-sacrificing, but helping people survive in seemingly hopeless situations is something Mo Ran will do willingly.
4. What are two major forces in your character’s personality that are often in conflict? (Ex: logic vs emotion, power vs guilt, obedience vs rage, etc.) Mo Ran is in a constant state of battling between guilt and loyalty. He has so many terrible secrets, even beyond his identity as Taxian-jun in his past life. Though he refers to sect leader as “uncle” and the sect leader’s son as “cousin”, in truth they’re not related at all. Mo Ran killed the true lost nephew in an act of self-defense, and burned the brothel he had grown up in to the ground. He didn’t expect to survive this, and was pulled from the wreckage as the sole survivor and brought to Sisheng Peak because he was a boy of the right age. This has been a secret that has long ate away at him, knowing that he’s a fake and only got away with it because his adoptive uncle had no idea what his nephew looked like, or even his name.
Despite this, Mo Ran is completely loyal to Sisheng Peak. Though he isn’t related to Xue Zhengyong by blood, he does consider the man family. It’s not a lie, neither is his affection for his aunt. Even his adoptive cousin, for how bad their relationship was for a very long time, truly is family to Mo Ran. Though he destroyed Sisheng Peak in his past life, Mo Ran doesn’t have a shred of desire to do the same in this life, and only wishes for the safety of the first home he’s ever truly known. He’s just not strong enough, or brave enough, to confess the things he knows.
Mo Ran also feels an enormous amount of guilt over his treatment of Chu Wanning in his past life. For reasons completely unknown to him, for reasons that run counter to his personality, he grew to resent and hate his teacher after the death of Shi Mei, a fellow pupil under Chu Wanning. When he became Taxian-jun, Mo Ran had the man imprisoned and tortured among other things, and it finally reached a boiling point when Chu Wanning of the past died, and left Mo Ran inconsolable with grief he didn’t understand. Upon his rebirth, he looks back on his actions with mounting horror, unable to understand why he would torture his teacher so, and finds himself unable to even ask for forgiveness, as the Chu Wanning of his current life has no knowledge of the actions committed by Taxian-jun.
His loyalty isn’t just towards Chu Wanning but also towards the ideals that Chu Wanning instilled in him. He’ll do everything in his power to uphold the values of protecting the innocent and saving as many people as he can. Though he tends to lash out violently when backed into a corner, if it’s a situation in which other people could be hurt, he’s more than willing to risk bodily injury to prevent casualties.
VESSEL SELECTION
Which Vessel Type are you choosing: Token or Offering? Offering
Why does this Vessel type feel appropriate for your character? Simply put, Mo Ran is a wizard in canon. I wanted to go with the other option for that reason. Changing the sort of magic he has access to wouldn’t be all that interesting to me. He’s also incredibly overpowered in canon as it is; writing him starting over wouldn’t be terribly interesting. The other reason is that I’ve always been a fan of body horror, and writing out a character coming to terms with losing their humanity is something I like doing.
There’s also Mo Ran’s own self-loathing. He did monstrous things in his past life, and has been doing so many things to make up for his actions in his current one, but that doesn’t stop him from continuing to feel like a monster. Time to make that literal!
Choose one OR list three subclass options within your chosen Vessel type that you think would suit them: Kimera. Mo Ran is a series of chaotic contradictions. Both a hero and a tyrant; a murderer and a savior; human and (literal) demon. It’s the perfect fit.