marriedanidiot

Player Information

Name: Tea
Age: 39
Contact details: bookwormfaith
Other characters: Kaito Kuroba

Character Information

Name: Nerdanel Mathaniel
Canon: Tolkien's Silmarillion
Canon Point:
OU/AU/CRAU/OC:
Age: older than the Moon and Sun

World Information: Middle-earth & Valinor

Personal History: wiki here

Nerdanel, sometimes called 'The Wise, is one of the lucky elven children born in paradise, in the noontide of the Valinorean elves. Her father Mahtan was a smith, apprenticed to the god of the Forge Himself, and perhaps because of this, Nerdanel grew up... not quite what you'd expect of an elven lady. She developed something of a wanderlust, and became a world-renown sculptor, even in her youth. During her ramblings across Valinor, she would meet, and eventually fall in love, with the Crown Prince of the Noldor, who just so happened to be her father's apprentice. They married scandalously young (for elves), and ended up with seven children - noteworthy because childbearing is quite an Effort for elves, and most families seldom have more than one or two, and three or four is considered large ... and then come Feanor and Nerdanel with their brood! For a time, they were happy, and Nerdanel was widely considered to be the only person who Feanor would listen to. Alas, it couldn't last.

During this period, the evil Vala Morgoth was released and sued for pardon, swearing that he would mend his ways. He lied, but at first it did not seem so, for he went about the land, and particularly to the Noldor, and seemed, at first, helpful. But disquiet began to spread, with no one truly knowing who started it or why, and Feanor's dislike of his half-siblings and stepmother flamed into true hate. In time, not even Nerdanel could restrain him, and when he drew a sword on his brother Fingolfin and was banished to Formenos, Nerdanel did not follow, although all seven of their sons did.

Eventually it was revealed that it was Morgoth behind it all, and when he stole Feanor's silmarils, the jewels he had poured so much of himself into making, and slew his father Finwe, the person Feanor loved the most... Feanor and his sons swore a terrible oath, and led their people to leave Valinor and return to Middle-earth.

Nerdanel, grieving, begged Feanor to at least leave her one of her sons, one of the youngest, the twins, for she was farsighted, and saw only grief down that road. But he rebuked her and refused, and so she waits still in Valinor, patient and sad, for her family to return to her, knowing that there are good chances they never will.

Personality:

One of the early names Tolkien considered for Nerdanel was Istarnie - Ista is the word for 'knowledge', for she was concieved as a character who was curious and wished to learn much of the world around her. Her name Nerdanel references Nerdo - 'strong', in a masculine sense, for she chose an unconventional craft for a woman, preferring to work with stone and rock. And indeed she is strong mentally, morally, and physically. In many ways, she is Feanor's perfect foil - calm where he is wild, patient where he is not, steady and grounded where he would leap forwards. But she is also curious about the world around her, enough that it is said that they met first while she was exploring the lands. She is stubborn, standing her ground on the things that matter to her, no matter the grief born from such a stand.

She is also called 'The Wise', for it was said that she was far-sighted (and named her children accordingly), and her advice well considered, which is why she was one of the few who Feanor would listen to. It was said that unlike her husband, she sought to understand people instead of master them. She loves deeply and passionately, as evidenced by the seven children she bore Feanor, but she does not let her emotions cloud her judgement.

She has a vivid imagination, and her art was renowned not just for statues so lifelike that they would fool people, but also things from her imagination that were "strong and strange but beautiful". Much of her inspiration likely came from nature, for like Feanor she is a restless soul, and wandered much in her younger years.

Key themes:

Nerdanel is always placed in contrast to Feanor, for in some ways they were very similar, both restless spirits who were endlessly creative, and curious about the world around them, but ultimately their differences drove them apart. She is also used to highlight her sons, for in greater or lesser amount, they inherited some of her steady patience and gentleness to balance their father's fire.

Nerdanel's story is one of love that burned too hot, too fast, but it is also one of standing for what you know is right, and endurance despite the bitter fruit.

Main Motivation:

Without her family, Nerdanel has returned to what she knows best - her Craft, or as the Noldor would say, her Art - sculpture, mainly.

She would also like her family to come back to her, but she can't really do much about that.

Skills:

Nerdanel is an elf born in the Years of the Trees who has never left Valinor and the protection of the Valar - this affords her certain racial benefits, which have a slight boost from the whole 'living with the gods thing'.

(1) immortal - as in, does not age, not, cannot die
(2) keener senses than that of a mortal (sight, hearing, smell, quite possibly touch too)
(3) strongly tied to the natural world (as in, can actually speak to rocks. and... probably other things too)
(4) stronger, heals faster, resistent to illness compared to a human
(5) a strong glowy soul

On the personal level, Nerdanel is a sculptor of surpassing skill - her sculptures are said to be so lifelike that they have tricked people into thinking they were alive. She has likely some stone-sense/speech in order to do what she does. She mostly works with stone but likely also works with clay and has tried various other materials over the millenia.

Item:

a small canvas bag with a variety of sculptor's tools - chisels of varying size, a hammer, diamond rifflers for detail work, sandpaper of varying coarseness

Sample: will this do?