「ああ、行くよ！」

CHARACTER NAME: Sakamoto Ryouma
AGE: Mid-20s (in appearance); 31 (at death); technically unknown as a Heroic Spirit
CANON: Fate/Grand Order
CANON POINT: After GUDAGUDA Teito Seihai Kitan
ITEMS COMING ALONG:

• 1 x katana (Mutsunokami Yoshiyuki)
• 1 x revolver (Smith & Wesson Model No. 2 Army)

CONTENT WARNINGS FOR CHARACTER: mentions of murder, war, blood, gore, alcoholism, torture, and assassination

HISTORY:

• Sakamoto Ryouma | TYPE-MOON Wiki
• Sakamoto Ryōma | Fate/Grand Order Wiki
• Ryōma ga Yuku! / Ryōma Goes His Way by Ryōtarō Shiba
  • used as a supplement to the FGO canon and supplies most of the details relating to Ryouma's backstory prior to becoming a Heroic Spirit.
• Ryōmaden
  • NHK taiga drama also used as a supplemental resources for backstory material (mostly if I liked something and it doesn't contradict, it's good details!)

CORE RELATIONSHIPS:

• Sakamoto Otome — Ryouma's older sister and his primary caregiver growing up. Otome had the biggest influence on Ryouma as a person. When everyone else had given up on him because of his difficulties learning and crybaby tendencies, Otome believed that he would grow up to do incredible things. In the novel, Ryouma is described as having an internal guide in the image of his sister that reminds him to "become a fine man".


• Katsu Kaishū — Ryouma's mentor who greatly expanded his knowledge and appreciation for Western culture. Worked as a shogunate official heading up the department that handled warships and ran a private naval school with the intention of training sailors to serve in the Japanese navy. Ryouma considers him to have coined the term "Japanese" to refer to all the people of Japan as united as one nation instead of as separate domains as they were under the shogunate's system. All of Ryouma's most progressive ideas can be owed to Katsu Kaishū, as he probably wouldn't have formed them without his guidance. Ryouma was often concerned when making the most radical moves that he would have to face his mentor in battle and knew if it came to that, he would lose because he would never be able to fire on him.


• Nakaoka Shintarō — a man who would become one of Ryouma's closest friends and allies. Ryouma's last words were spoken to Nakaoka, who was present when he died. If Ryouma is charismatic and goes about things in unconventional ways, Nakaoka is intense and persuasive and brought people to his side with the passion of his words. Ryouma learned a lot from him, as Nakaoka often travelled far and wide and had a lot of information. He served as a great friend and a major obstacle as no matter their relationship; he would not back down from his ambition to go to war against the shogunate. His most significant impact is probably putting Ryouma in the position needed for him to have come up with the idea for the peaceful Restoration.


• Okada Izō — Izō and Ryouma are best friends and have known each other since they were children growing up together in Tosa. The Sakamoto family was better off than Izō's, but they were both from lower samurai families and experienced the awful oppression rampant in Tosa at the time. Izō often consoled Ryouma when he would cry, and Ryouma, perhaps unconsciously, models his behaviour after Izō when he has to be particularly assertive (you can witness this in Ryouma's voice lines where some of his attack lines match Izō's word-for-word and in rhythm). When Ryouma deserted the domain, he left at night without telling Izō. This was intended to protect him, as desertion was considered an act of treason and was punishable by death. He could not have imagined that his choice would directly impact Izō the way it did. Izō would go on to become one of the four famous hitokiri and eventually be beheaded (considered an unclean death) after undergoing awful torture. Even so, Ryouma blames himself for what happened, and though he knows he can't fix it or take it back, he does everything he can to do right by Izō now. He also loves Izō dearly and projects it constantly if he's reminded but somehow thinks he's subtle about it. Though they bicker and fight, Ryouma places absolute trust in Izō. When Izō threatened to kill him, he didn't avoid the attack when it came, much to Izō's surprise. Ryouma knew that with Izō's skill, he could very easily have chosen to kill him but trusted him that he wouldn't. Also, despite Ryouma's kind heart and a general desire for peace, he completely accepts Izō — including his hitokiri history and violent tendencies — and basically enables his alcoholism (because he has it, too...).


• Takechi Hanpeita — a friend and mentor. Takechi is seven years older than Ryouma, but this did not earn him any more respect or protection from Ryouma's teasing, as he habitually referred to Takechi as "the Jaw" or "Fish Chin". Takechi's concern for the future of the country and his willingness to lecture at any time meant Ryouma was kept up on current events whether he wanted to or not. Though they might've started out wanting the same things — and Ryouma willingly joined the Tosa Loyalist Party as a result — Ryouma eventually realised it was a waste of time trying to get any traction in Tosa politics and deserted the domain. They would eventually grow apart, and Ryouma would be particularly unhappy with him after discovering how he used Izō as a weapon, especially as Ryouma considered them all good friends despite their age gap.


• Iwasaki Yatarō — the man who would eventually form Mitsubishi. Though they both grew up in Tosa and met a few times as children, Yatarō did not care much for Ryouma. He considered him to be frivolous and annoying and too popular with women. This is one of Ryouma's few relationships that have an actual negative component, as Ryouma is usually so open-minded that he never develops that. Ryouma respects Yatarō and learned from him, given Yatarō's gift for business and trade and his unwillingness to lay down and give up. Yatarō once ran from Edo to Kōchi in half the time the trip should usually take, just to see his ill father. However, Yatarō's abrasive personality rubs Ryouma the wrong way, and they cannot get along nicely despite this respect.


• Oryou — Ryouma's wife and his most significant canon relationship outside of Izō. Oryou is an Orochi that had been sealed by the ancient spear Amasakahoko at the top of Mt. Takachiho. Oryou hated humans intensely and had built up so much resentment over time while she was trapped there that she was fully prepared to eat the first person she met. However, Ryouma confused her when he simply pulled out the spear, tossed it aside, and said, "You've had a hard time, haven't you?" and then walked away. She found this so odd and curious that she couldn't resist following him. Over time, they would realise their similarities (besides Ryouma also being a dragon, thanks to the character in his name, his favourite lame joke). Despite his way with people, Ryouma always considered himself somewhat of a social outsider, so he feels he can relate to Oryou somewhat. Ryouma is always patient with Oryou, no matter how much she wants to fight or eat people, always gently talking her down from whatever it is. It's a good example of how Ryouma isn't too quick to judge, especially dealing with someone who isn't human; he doesn't try to attach human ideals or morality.

(2+) POSITIVE EXPERIENCES:

• Ryouma is selfless. He genuinely loves people and wants to help them. When asked what he would wish for if he had the Holy Grail, Ryouma says, "The Holy Grail, huh? My circumstances are a bit different, so maybe our wish is a bit different than others... But if I had to decide, it would probably be to make a world where everyone can live happily." He has no real personal ambitions, and much of his success as a negotiator came from the fact that he was negotiating with nothing in it for himself; this would even manage to soften up those ideologically opposed to him. He believes that he exists in the world to perform a duty, not only as a Heroic Spirit but in his past life as a human. As he lived through one of the bloodiest periods in Japanese history, many people died around him, and he vowed to carry the dreams of his friends and allies along with him. The "key moment" here is really Ryouma's path through life, where everything he did after a point was to accomplish what he felt needed to be done to save his country and make the dreams of his comrades come true.


• Ryouma is determined. Regardless of the setbacks, Ryouma keeps moving forward. He is quoted as saying, "I am a person who raises himself up to the next level, rather than becoming discouraged". Even if the setback in question is significant, Ryouma will always find a way. Sitting down and doing nothing is out of the question. A good example is when he attempted to negotiate the alliance between Satsuma and Choshu. Trying to get these two enemies who despised each other to come peacefully to the table was nearly impossible, especially when he could never know when a gesture might unintentionally offend. Instead of giving up on the idea, Ryouma just threw out his original plan and considered a different one. He really embodies the saying if there's a will, there's a way.


• Ryouma is open-minded. He has been described as having a mind "broad as the Pacific Ocean" because he's willing to look at every thought and experience carefully before he dismisses something. He has been described as "paradoxical" for this reason, as he can simultaneously hold two thoughts in his mind without being swayed emotionally by either. This is illustrated at one point in the novel when Ryouma is on a ship sailing past an area known at the time to be a hot spot for aggressions between foreigners and the Choshu Domain. Ryouma was simultaneously critical of the Choshu's xenophobic zealotry and inspired by their passion for defending their homeland.


• Ryouma is confident. The basis for everything that Ryouma does later in life comes from his skill in kendo. As a child, Ryouma was known as a crybaby and a coward. When he started learning how to use a sword — first from his sister Otome and then several dojos — he developed incredible confidence in himself and his abilities. It didn't make him more aggressive, just secure in knowing he could defend himself. He also has no fear of death. Ryouma's personal belief is that someone can die literally at any time, no matter what they're doing. He sees this as the reason why he should throw himself into dangerous situations where something could kill him because he could just as easily die eating lunch and avoiding the danger.


• Ryouma is independent. Most of what Ryouma did, he did on his own. He is great at networking and helping people find what they're good at, but most of Ryouma's success came about from doing things himself. It's said he walked over twenty thousand kilometres throughout his life to achieve his goals, so he can clearly take care of himself and make his own decisions.

(2+) NEGATIVE EXPERIENCES:

• Ryouma is optimistic — which is good — but this often goes to an extreme and gives way to toxic positivity — which is bad. Ryouma will downplay his negative feelings and experiences to avoid dealing with them. By his admission, in voice lines, "What I dislike... Well, I don't particularly like anything sad. That's partly why I'd been running around to escape." This makes him extremely evasive regarding his feelings and desires, to the point that he will suffer in silence if he feels he's doing right by someone else. As long as he's smiling!! This is obviously problematic because those feelings exist even if he's not willing to look at them.


• Ryouma can be too proud, to his detriment. A perfect example of this is the circumstances leading up to his death. A member of the Shinsengumi tipped Ryouma off that there was a rumour going around Kyoto that he had a big target on his back. Rather than heeding this warning, it irritated him that he should have to give the Shinsengumi any credit, so he partly dismissed the idea simply because his pride got in the way. Other circumstances contributed, but ultimately if he had listened and been more careful just once, he might've lived.


• Ryouma is often reckless. He personally considers this a positive trait because he takes "reckless" to mean "willing to do what's necessary at the right time, even if it's dangerous". Other people would probably not agree, given how often his actions might actually get him killed or hurt. While part of it is certainly a lack of self-preservation and a degree of bravery, for the most part, Ryouma will insist that he makes informed decisions. He won't go so far as to call them calculated risks, but his first goal in anything is to arm himself with the most up-to-date information and, ideally, get eyes on whatever it is himself. Ryouma can justify it in different ways, but what it boils down to is he is a man who will go running face-first into danger without hesitation.


• Ryouma is self-destructive. His selflessness is one of his positive traits, but it can easily feed into his most self-destructive tendencies. He is prepared to suffer injuries or even die if it would help or comfort someone he cares about, like when he let Izō cut him to show him how sorry he was. He trusted that Izō wouldn't really kill him but was clearly prepared to die if Izō felt that was what he deserved. Also, his general outlook regarding his purpose in life has always essentially been to live and die for his duty with no regard for his comfort or safety. This also includes working himself to the point of exhaustion or forgetting to eat and take basic care of himself. The fact that he is a Servant makes it easier to do this since he technically requires mana and not energy in the same way as a human, but failing to take proper care of himself for a long period will still have a negative impact eventually.

CANON POWERS:

Ryouma is a Servant. Essentially, this means that he has a body composed entirely of magic (ether) with enhanced strength, abilities, senses, and durability (compared to a human). When a Heroic Spirit is summoned as a Servant, they are something like a complex magical familiar and are more or less bound by the constraints assigned to them by the class they're summoned as. In Ryouma's case, he is summoned as a Rider.

A Servant has both a spiritual and corporeal form which they can shift between at will. A Servant must take their corporeal form to be able to sense or interact with the physical environment. Still, their spiritual form allows them to conserve mana as they have no physical form to maintain.

Since he does not have his wife/partner, Oryou, he lacks a Noble Phantasm since Oryou is his Noble Phantasm itself. Due to the process of being born anew in this setting, Ryouma does not suffer the same problems he would experience if he was forcibly separated from her otherwise.

Ryouma doesn't use any legendary weapons, just the weapons he was personally known for carrying.

Given the nature of Ryouma's canon abilities, his in-game blood abilities will replace or otherwise overlap with what he already has.

• Class Skills
  • Riding (A+ Rank): All vehicles and all creatures up to the level of Phantasmal Beast and Divine Beast can be used as mounts.*
  • Magic Resistance (C Rank): Negates low level magic (described as Magecraft with a chant of two verses or less). It can't block larger-scale spells or curses.
• Personal Skills
  • Hero of the Restoration (A Rank): Confidence under pressure and the ability to maintain a strong forward momentum even in the face of chaos or difficulties. "A special skill that was awarded to Ryouma, who rode through the turbulent times of the Bakumatsu and contributed tremendously to the extraordinary historical reformation known as the Meiji Restoration."
  • Senchu Hassaku (A Rank): Refers to Ryouma's gift for innovative thinking as a visionary. "A set of eight proposals that outline a new nation said to have been compiled by Sakamoto Ryouma. The contents of the clauses were said to be innovative during his time. It's a skill that paves a path of hope for a better future, no matter how dire the situation."
  • Charisma (C+ Rank): The intangible ability to be able to inspire cooperation in others despite not being a ruler or politician. "He may not be able to run a nation, but he possesses solid connections with whom he is affiliated and swore to serve until death. At times, Ryouma's power can be strong enough to weaken groups having ideologies that clash with his."

*Beasts by this definition are not the same as the Beasts in Deer Country but will leave it to mod discretion if his Riding skill is ever applicable to a situation.

BLOOD TYPE: Coldblood
OMEN: Kirin
BLESSED DAY: 15 November
PATRON PTHUMERIAN: The Tower
BLOOD POWER MANIFESTATION:

Ryouma will learn to experiment with empowering ammunition with elemental properties (like the Bloodtinge mechanic) and also other applications for his blood type with other weapons. The Hunter's Code will resonate with him since he believes that a "poison in the right dose can act as a cure," which is how he views his role in the world, whatever world that may be. In the past, he was stirring things up and bringing about major change, and in Deer Country, he will see the necessary "poison" of spilt blood to justify the "cure" of keeping people safe. l would also like him to develop more "traditional" elemental spell effects, especially tied to his emotional state. He tends to suppress his feelings and evade dealing with anything sad or difficult, so his ability to control his power will likely fluctuate in response to this over time.

ONE: here
TWO: here

PLAYER NAME: min
PLAYER AGE: 30+
PLAYER CONTACT: koutenko or koutenko#5884
PERMISSIONS: here