﹂・・・ Servant Name ・・・﹁

Homer

«The Blind Bard» | «The First Poet» | «The Weaver of Heroes» | «The Unseen Author» | «The Collective Voice» | «Old Blind Man» (by cynics) | «The Shadow Behind the Heroes» | «The Fabricator"»

﹂・・• Gender | Class ・・・﹁

Appears Male (True Identity Ambiguous) | Pretender

﹂・・・ Alignment ・・・﹁

Neutral Evil

﹂・・・ Hidden Attribute ・・・﹁

Heaven

﹂・・・ Region [Country] | Source ・・・﹁

Ancient Greece (Ionia) | The Homeric Question (Scholarly debate on Homer's existence/identity), The Iliad, The Odyssey, Ancient Greek Biographical Traditions (often conflicting).

﹂・・・ Summoning Catalyst ・・・﹁

A fragmented papyrus scroll containing a disputed passage from the Iliad (or Odyssey) that significantly diverges from the canonical text, accompanied by an ancient stylus seemingly crafted from bone and bronze. The fragment itself hints at an alternative narrative or perspective suppressed in the final epics.

﹂・・・ History ・・・﹁

The legend of Homer, the blind poet who composed the Iliad and the Odyssey, is itself a foundational myth. Scholarly consensus questions if a single individual named Homer ever existed. The "Homeric Question" posits that the epics are the result of centuries of oral tradition, compiled and refined by multiple bards. Pretender Homer embodies this ambiguity and controversy. His "history" is the history of the question of his existence.

He is not merely the author, but the concept of the Author – the collective voice of generations of nameless singers whose tales were crystallized under a single, likely fictional, name. His "feats" are the creation of the heroes themselves: Achilles' rage, Odysseus' cunning, Hector's nobility were defined and eternalized by the verses attributed to Homer. He didn't just record heroes; he fabricated their legend, shaping their very essence in the collective consciousness. The epics are his artifacts, the raw material of his Noble Phantasm. His "blindness" is symbolic, representing both the inner vision of the poet and the obscurity of his true identity. As Pretender, he embodies the deception inherent in the unified authorship myth, presenting a singular face (Homer) while being a vessel for countless unnamed contributors and the narrative manipulations required to forge cohesive, compelling epics from disparate oral tales. He is the lie that gave birth to foundational truths of Western heroism.

﹂・・・ Appearance ・・・﹁

Hair Color: Wispy, thin white-grey, often partially covered by a worn, dark woolen hood or simple cloth band.

Eye Color: Milky white, clearly sightless, yet possessing an unnerving depth as if gazing into vast, unseen vistas. Occasionally, faint motes of golden light flicker within them when invoking his powers.

Height: Average (approx. 170 cm), slightly stooped.

Weight: Thin, almost gaunt.

Homer appears as the iconic image of the blind bard: an elderly man clad in simple, dusty traveler's robes of faded blues and browns, leaning on a gnarled wooden staff. His face is deeply lined with age and contemplation. However, subtle inconsistencies plague his form. The exact shape of his features seems slightly indistinct, shifting minutely when not directly observed. His posture fluctuates between profound weariness and unsettling stillness. Shadows cling to him more persistently than they should, and the air around him often hums with the faint, discordant echoes of countless whispered verses. He is the idea of Homer, not necessarily the flesh-and-blood man (if he ever existed). His blindness feels less like a disability and more like a conduit to a different perception – the perception of narrative threads and heroic potential.

﹂・・・ Personality ・・・﹁

Homer possesses a chillingly detached demeanor. He views the world primarily as raw narrative material. Humans are not individuals but potential characters – protagonists, antagonists, foils – in the grand, eternal Epic he perceives being woven. He speaks in measured, rhythmic tones, often lapsing into near-recitations. While not overtly cruel, he exhibits a profound indifference to suffering if it serves a compelling story. He is fascinated by conflict, tragedy, cunning, and heroism, seeing them as the essential spices of existence. He is deeply possessive of "his" heroes and narratives, reacting with cold displeasure to attempts to alter or contradict the "established" epics he embodies, even if historically inaccurate. His blindness enhances his focus on the sound of stories – the clash of arms, the lament of mourners, the seductive whispers of temptation – which he finds deeply beautiful in their raw emotional power.

Likes/Loves: Epic tales, heroic struggles (especially doomed ones), tragic flaws, clever stratagems, the sound of lyres and lamentations, the power of words to shape reality, the concept of Kleos (glory/immortal fame), quiet moments to compose.

Dislikes/Hates: Historical pedantry that disrupts a good story, being ignored or silenced, "unheroic" behavior (cowardice, breaking oaths without narrative weight), the idea of his epics being forgotten or superseded, loud, meaningless noise (as opposed to meaningful sound).

﹂・・・ Class Skills ・・・﹁

1. Presence Concealment (B): Not the stealth of an Assassin, but the obscurity of authorship. Homer can fade into the background of events, making his presence seem unimportant or easily overlooked, much like the anonymous bards who contributed to his works. Allows him to observe without becoming the focus of the narrative... until he chooses to be.

2. Independent Action (B): As a concept more than a flesh-and-blood hero, and fueled by the enduring belief in his epics, he can remain manifested for a significant period without a Master's active magical energy supply. He draws power from the ambient "belief" in the stories he represents.

﹂・・・ Personal Skills ・・・﹁

1. Epic Composition (A+): The ability to perceive, structure, and narrate events as an unfolding epic poem. This grants Homer exceptional strategic insight (seeing "plot threads"), limited precognition (foreseeing dramatic turning points or "fated" moments), and the power to subtly influence events towards more "narratively satisfying" conclusions – often involving heightened tragedy, dramatic reveals, or clashes of heroic wills. Can inflict mental interference (Mental Pollution) by forcing targets to perceive their situation through an epic lens, potentially inducing despair or fatalism.

2. Siren's Whisper (B): A subliminal projection of his narrative will through voice. His spoken words, even casual conversation, carry an undertone of compulsion, suggestion, or emotional manipulation (similar to a weaker Innocent Monster effect). He can plant ideas, heighten existing emotions (especially pride, rage, or despair), or lull listeners into a passive, receptive state ideal for storytelling. Resistance based on Magic Resistance or strong ego.

3. Hero Creation (A): The core skill of the Pretender. Homer doesn't disguise himself as another specific hero; he creates and sustains the conceptual framework of Heroic Spirits drawn from his epics. He passively strengthens Servants connected to the Trojan War cycle or Greek myth (as recorded/defined by him), making their legends feel more "real" and potent. Conversely, he can subtly weaken heroes whose legends contradict his narrative or were minimized by it. More actively, he can temporarily impose aspects of his version of a hero onto a Servant (e.g., forcing Achilles to manifest his heel weakness more prominently, emphasizing Odysseus's cunning over his brutality). This skill is the manifestation of his role as the shaper of heroic identity.

4. Clairvoyance (False) (C): Represents his "blind seer" trope. Not true future sight, but an uncanny ability to perceive hidden truths, motivations, and past events related to individuals or locations by "reading" them as characters and settings within the grand narrative he constantly composes in his mind. Limited by his focus and the narrative "significance" he assigns.

﹂・・・ Noble Phantasms ・・・﹁

Aoidón Skotádi: The Unseen Author's Resonant Reality

Rank: A++

Type: Anti-World

Description:

This Noble Phantasm is the ultimate expression of Homer's nature as Pretender and the collective voice of the epic tradition. It doesn't summon a weapon, but overlays a Reality Marble upon the world – the conceptual space where the Iliad and Odyssey are not just stories, but the definitive reality. Upon activation (often initiated by Homer beginning a recitation), the surrounding environment warps. The air thrums with the sound of countless unseen voices chanting verses. The landscape transforms into a stylized, parchment-like tapestry depicting scenes from the epics: the walls of Troy, the wine-dark sea, Odysseus's ship, the cyclops' cave. Ghostly phantoms of heroes and monsters flicker at the edges of perception.

Within this Marble, several effects take hold:

1. Narrative Law: Events are subtly (or overtly) compelled to follow dramatic, Homeric conventions. Betrayals occur at dramatic moments, heroes face impossible choices, hubris is inevitably punished, and divine intervention (or its appearance) becomes more likely. Luck checks are heavily skewed towards outcomes that make a "better story," often favoring tragedy or pyrrhic victory.

2. Heroic Resonance: Servants connected to the Homeric epics (Greek heroes, Trojans, even monsters like the Cyclops) experience a significant amplification of their parameters and Noble Phantasms, as their legends are reinforced as the "true" versions. Conversely, Servants whose legends contradict or stand outside this framework find their existence destabilized, suffering parameter degradation and increased magical energy cost for abilities.

3. The Author's Hand: Homer gains near-omniscient awareness within the Marble and can directly manipulate the "narrative." He can strengthen or weaken individuals by altering their perceived "role" (e.g., designating someone a "doomed champion" or a "treacherous coward"), impose environmental effects described in the epics (sudden storms, miraculous fog, divine blessings/curses), or even manifest temporary, phantom-like extensions of epic events (a wave crashing like Poseidon's wrath, arrows flying with Apollo's accuracy). He is the unseen hand guiding the tale.

4. Echoes of the Blind: Attempts to directly perceive, target, or harm Homer within the Marble are incredibly difficult. He exists as the pervasive voice of the narrative itself, shifting location and form like a recurring motif. Attacks often strike phantasmal heroes or scenery instead. Destroying the Marble requires shattering the core narrative cohesion – often by resolving a central, Homeric-style conflict or contradiction within its bounds, or by overwhelming it with a Reality Marble/Noble Phantasm representing a fundamentally different foundational worldview.

This Noble Phantasm doesn't create a battlefield; it creates a story, and within that story, Homer is the ultimate, unseen authority. Victory within it is less about brute force and more about understanding and manipulating the narrative rules he imposes.

﹂・・・ Parameters ・・・﹁

Strength: E

Endurance: D

Agility: D

Mana: A

Luck: B+

NP: A++