What is Vashaun?

[SannaR]

Considering how Hraesvelgr kind of dematerialized his eye and transferred it into us temporarily to aid in defeating Nidhogg, I feel like Vrtra probably does something similar with his puppets as opposed to having to resort to more physical measures.

I still can't help but feel like it's a rather...dangerous prospect to have a significant portion of his power detached from him, though; especially if there's a risk of his real body being corrupted by proxy if his vessel is compromised in this coming journey unto the void.

That's what I meant when I asked about degradation. If the simulcarim had any the few times he sent it out into the void all those years ago. As the body isn't made out of dragon stuffs. Or at least isn't hinted at that, just that the eye acts like a core. Which is most likely what protected them during those trips. I also hope this doesn't go south since Nero barely had any wounds and wasn't in there for long before the corruption started to work on him.

[thegreatonemal]

Oh, yeah, this is absolutely what happened. But given the cover story is clearly working, and people only mention one recent predecessor, I figure that the body ages until they retire it. Otherwise either the body sticks around long enough that people notice it's weird how Varshan's brother didn't age, or they go through those bodies before signs of aging could appear, which would require a fairly suspicious amount of turnaround.

The entire reason they retire them is because they DON'T age and people would know something was up if they hung around.

[shadowclasper]

If you do the alchemist job quests in heavenward they explicitly cover cloning as an alchemical art, so pretty sure it's a form of cloning like the allagans preformed

[Gemina]

He does seem to have a different personality. Unless Vrta is the first roleplayer in where he chose to give his more movable incognito til 6.0 self a different personality to help sell the lie? Were the others also named the same or do you think he came up with a list of names? Or maybe named some after past Satraps in honor of their service, but only after anyone who would remember said person was long forgotten? Kind of like how in the world of Valdimar Herlads have an option to be reborn as a companion, but only after no one would remember who they were.

While we have not interacted with each of the First brood; from the ones we have, and know about, Vrtra is the most human [humane] of all of them. He speaks with the common tongue, has expressed human flaws and virtues, rarely takes flight, and the simulacrum situation with his duality.

Speaking of the latter, whenever a duality is present; typically one is a ruse, while the other is the true persona. The thing about Vrtra is because 99% of his interactions with mankind has been through the simulacrum, his dragon form is the ruse, and Vashaun is the true personality. We have to remember that the consciousness of a dragon is contained in their eyes. The simulacrum possesses Vrtra's memories, resolve, and heart. IOW, Vrtra's dragon form is more of a mammet than Vashaun. That also isn't entirely true, and the dragon and simulacrum more or less are two parts of a single entity.

When putting things in that perspective, Vrtra didn't really have to sell a lie so much as figure out a way to walk among his people as one of them, and is actually quite noble. Estinien does address why he continues to walk around as Vashaun now that the duality has been exposed, and while Vrtra basically says it's more convenient to get around, when you read between the lines, it should be obvious that Vrtra is far more accustomed to walking around as Vashaun. Vrtra in very little time, has developed more back story and lore than any of his siblings.

[Alleluia]

I don’t think vrtra’s personality seems different when talking through Varshaan or himself. Other than the situations we’ve interacted with him in dragon form are sometimes a bit more formal and he’s speaking as sartrap, so it was maybe more grandiose. But honestly he’s basically just as stiff when talking through the simulacrum. He doesn’t really seem different to me.

[hagare]

he's an iRobot. Eh eh