Application - Folkmore

[jetpacking]

★ Character Information ★

Character Name: Sam Wilson
Character Age: Late 30s-ish (would be just over 40 but lost 5 years during the Snap)
Character Species: Human
Current Health: Healthy!
Outfit: Pair of jeans, t-shirt, leather jacket, sneakers

Character Canon:
Link to History: Wiki Page
Canon Point: End of Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Canon Iteration: Original canon
Canon Iteration Explanation: N/A

★ Folkmore Roles & Attributes ★

Skills:
Sam is a skilled fighter both hand to hand and with firearms. He's also recently become proficient in fighting with the world's deadliest frisbee Captain America shield.

He's also a proficient flyer when paired with his exo-suit. His reflexes are very quick and very good, especially for an unaugmented human. Despite being only human, Sam manages to keep up with the super-powered members of the Avengers quite well.

Sam is very good with people, even in difficult situations, having worked counseling fellow veterans with PTSD.

He also cooks a mean breakfast.

Canon Abilities:
Without his Exo suit, Sam has no abilities beyond a normal human being.

Role: Legend

Role Qualities/Attributes: He'll have wings like a kestral (brown and gray) but be able to summon them and dismiss them at will -- once he figures that out anyway.

Role Reasoning:
Sam Wilson is a big damn hero. He's willing to risk and sacrifice to help others and to do what's right. Whenever possible, he tries to avoid fighting and bloodshed, but he's also not hesitant to throw himself into the fray to fight for his cause. He's incredibly loyal to friends and to family. Over all, Legend fits him well because there's a lot of good in him.

Sam isn't a pushover. He can be prickly and sarcastic, but when it comes down to it, he definitely falls squarely into the Legend box.

In many ways, in his current canon point, Sam is coming into his own fully as a hero after finally taking on the mantle of Captain America that he had initially declined, not feeling worthy of it.

★

OPTION 2 QUESTIONS (PICK 4-5) 100-300 WORD LIMIT EACH:

What was the most traumatic experience your character endured? How did this change them?
For Sam, the moment of his greatest trauma was losing Riley, his wingman during his time in the armed forces. Riley and he were a team and were very close, and part of Sam still feels guilt for not being able to save Riley. His partner's death was enough that he left the military and reentered civilian life.

Rather than make him jaded or closed off, Sam takes this pain and channels it in the hopes of doing good. Even if he believes he doesn't have the stomach for combat any longer, he wants to help people. He goes into counseling to help fellow veterans with PTSD.

This trauma was also not enough to keep him from being willing to step back into the battle and help Steve when he needed him. After that particular crisis was handled, Sam continued to work with Steve, jumping back into the fray because he believes he can make a difference. So while losing Riley was trauma for him, it only took him away from the battlefront briefly, and only seems to have solidified his determination to fight with and for the people he cares about.

What experience challenged your character's core beliefs? How did they handle this or change from it?
Meeting Isaiah Bradley and learning of the hidden history of Black men who had been experimented on with the super soldier serum, Sam realizes that there are things he was never aware of that paint an even darker picture of America's past with racism than he knew. This information definitely shakes something in Sam, and he goes back to speak with Bradly multiple times.

In the end, understanding Bradley's full story and everything that had happened to him is some of the motivation that Sam needs to finally step up and take on the mantel of Captain America. More than that, he uses it as strength to also take a stand against the global repatriation initiative that the Flag Smashers had been fighting against -- a strong enough stand that it actually seems to have made a difference.

Sam comes to understand exactly what he is standing for and representing by becoming the next Captain America, and that he is capable of doing that.

What is the most important and defining relationship(s) in your character's life and why?
At his current canon point, Sam's most important relationship is his partnership with Bucky Barnes. Though the two men initially butted heads constantly -- both being stubborn, strong-willed men who had not gotten off on the right foot -- in recent times he has come to both appreciate and rely on the other man. He and Bucky have both helped each other grow and move past their greatest personal stumbling blocks, in Sam's case, a reluctance to accept that he was the one Steve chose to succeed him as Captain America for a reason.
Though they still very much know how to push each other's buttons, the two men are close now.

Another important relationship for Sam is his friendship with Steve Rogers. Steve is the one who drew Sam back into the fight after he'd retired from being a soldier with Riley's death. Sam trusts Steve entirely, willing to help him shortly after meeting him and fighting by his side thereafter. He's even stated this in so many words, saying that "I do what he does, just slower."

With Steve, Sam found someone to follow and support and look up to. With Bucky, Sam found a partner who has helped him be a better version of his self and step into his own power.

What is your character's moral code? Do they have one? Why or why not?
Sam Wilson is a good man. In many ways, this echoes back to the origins of the first Captain America. When Steve Rogers was chosen as the recipient of the super soldier serum, he was told by the lead scientist that it was not because he was a good solider, but because he was a good man. In choosing his successor in Sam, Steve seems to have selected for that capacity as well.

Sam shows himself willing to help with no question about danger or what is in it for him, if it is the right thing to do. When Steve and Natasha show up at his doorstep needing help, he simply lets them in, feeds them and then volunteers to help them, because it is the right thing to do. Even after they've taken down the helicarriers and Hydra is on the run, Sam does not go back to his quiet life. Instead he continues to work with Steve to find Bucky and chase down the rest of Hydra.

When he has the choice, Sam tries to use tact and diplomacy rather than diving straight into fighting. If he does not have to injure or kill someone, he will always make that choice. He has a heavy sense of responsibility, and though he's human and makes mistakes, he still always tries to do what he believes is right.

Is your character capable of forgiveness or will they hold a grudge until they die? Would anything ever make them change their mind?
Sam can definitely forgive. He's willing to put aside his differences and work with John Walker and work together, despite their past clashing and fundamental disagreements on basically everything. When trying to track down and stop the Flag Smashers, his first approach is to try to talk with their leader, not wanting to have to kill her despite the violent actions that the group has taken.

Even dealing with Baron Zemo, Sam does not trust or like the man for a moment, but he is willing and able to put aside his feelings for the greater good. On a lighter note, he also seems to have forgiven Scott Lang for handing his ass to him the first time they faced off, and even suggests contacting him when they need assistance during the events of Civil War. He makes a point of telling Lang that their first fight was an audition and it's would never happen like that again, but there seems to be no hard feelings despite that first interaction and Sam's bruised pride.

In general, Sam is an emotional person, but he's also capable of taking a step back and thinking about his reactions and working through them with reason rather than letting his emotions continue to get the better of him.

★ Player Information ★

Player Name: Daisy
Pronouns: She/Her
Are you over 18?: Sure am
Contact(s): seasided or seasided#5378 @ discord
Who Invited You?: Current Player
Current Characters: Caleb Widogast, Diluc Ragnvindr
Permissions: Here
Writing Samples: TDM Top Level & TDM Thread