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SYLVAIN JOSE GAUTIER
Truthfully, I hate the idea of planning to kill people I used to be so close with. I guess everybody feels that way though.

FULL NAME Sylvain Jose Gautier
AGE 25
DOB 5th of the Garland Moon (June 5)
HEIGHT 186cm
RACE Human

CANONPOINT Flexible, default CF.
RANK Flexible, depending on route.*
LIKES Women, lively places, board games
DISLIKES Unclean places, jealousy
INTERESTS Fine art, flirting

PERSONALITY. Note: this is written in a very general matter that is heedless of the route he comes from. There is a special section about CF-route Sylvain in the end.

PHILANDERER. Ask anyone about Sylvain Jose Gautier and they'll tell you he's a notorious womanizer: a man who is fully aware of the effect he has on people, especially women, and is very adept at utilizing it for his own selfish needs. Sylvain has a lot of disdain for his position in life and resents the fact that the Crest system in Fodlan has made him special; as a result, he is unable to form relationships with women because he views them as opportunistic and shallow. While he constantly garners the company of women, he is also incredibly vocal about hating them, and discards relationships with them as he feels necessary. (He is, however, more polite towards ladies of nobility.) That's not to say it's impossible to get through him, only that he is incredibly guarded and uses his vices as a defence for himself. Without an anchor for any meaningful interaction, and starved of affection, he can be incredibly self-destructive.

DUPLICITOUS. In order to avoid social pressures on himself, Sylvain tends to present himself in a negative or unfavourable light, and leans heavily on his more flirtatious, charismatic nature. Characters frequently comment on his intelligence and shrewdness, whether it be grasping complicated magical formulae at a glance or putting together facts and deductions regarding the tragedy of Duscur. It is beneficial to Sylvain to keep his true nature hidden. The less people know about him, the better he can shield himself from disappointments regarding what he can and cannot do for anyone.

DUTIFUL. Depending on the route, Sylvain can be incredibly loyal to his country, his friends, and the professor. He's not a religious man, but he is willing to set aside his selfish impulses in order to maintain his relationships with his childhood friends, and most of all, to defend his Prince, taking his duties as a Knight of Faerghus seriously for the latter. In CF-route Sylvain is loyal to the possibility that the Professor presents, and his disdain of the Crest system lends him easily to Edelgard's ideals, even if he doesn't quite agree with her methods. One thing is constant regardless of his path: where necessary, Sylvain is a good mentor, a doting friend, and provides support where he can to other characters. These are some of the few good traits he keeps no matter which lot he chooses in his life. He's not really known for his loyalty, and more for the sincerity of his actions to whom he dedicates himself. For all of the ill reputation he's garnered, Sylvain does try to keep his promises.

GAUTIER. Sylvain's relationship with his family is strained, filled with violence meted by his brother and the relentless expectation of being a Crest-bearer for the Margrave Gautier. If there is any loyalty he holds towards Gautier, it is in restoring relations with its neighbour, Sreng. Gautier's distance from Fhirdiad allows him to dedicate the time away from the castle to further relations with Sreng and better the reputation of the Gautiers with the people. In terms of a legacy, Sylvain does desire a loving family for himself, and despite his philandering ways, often longs to be in a committed relationship with someone and have children whom he will dedicate himself to with or without a Crest. He's not selfless, but the recipients of his goodwill are kept within a limited social circle mostly consisting of close friends and family. Regardless of the route, Sylvain is dedicated to improving conditions with Gautier and their neighbour.

NOBILITY. As a noble, Sylvain is educated in court etiquette and trained in lances like a knight. He just doesn't act like it often and prefers to be shrewd about when and where to use his good graces, usually couched into polite and charming tones by his silver tongue.

CF-ROUTE SPECIFIC.

BLACK EAGLES. Sylvain's disdain of the Crest system and the pain and sacrifice brought by noble families desiring a Crest-bearer as an heir makes him an easy fit with Edelgard's ideals. He does not often agree with her methods, and often cites the Professor as his reason for making it through the war or being able to find happiness. He has no other close relations in the Black Eagles other than Bernadetta (B, also maxes out pre-time skip), Dorothea (A) and the Professor (A/S).

TRAITOR. To his former classmates in the Blue Lions house, Sylvain is viewed as a "lapdog of the empire" (versus Dimitri in the Tailtean Plains), a breaker of vows (versus Felix, bringing up their childhood promise to die together and how he intends to kill him during the siege of Arianrhod) and someone who has been blinded by ideals (versus Ingrid during the Siege of Arianrhod). Of these interactions, only Ingrid is the one with a dialogue asking her to stand down unsuccessfully. CF route presupposes his A/A+-supports with AM do not happen because he leaves the BL house for the BE. Therefore we can see how isolated he is from this house and with only Dorothea as his possibility for an A support on the CF side (outside of Byleth). In CF, regardless of the regrets he has in his life, Sylvain will see it through the end. Even if it dooms him.

PLAYER INTERPRETATION. Where CF-route Sylvain is the default, I tend to have him approach other BL members with trepidation and hesitance. Relations with Dimitri and Felix will be extremely strained, and I'm fine with both characters approaching it as combative (or any of the other members approaching it with a combative air and having him be forced to reckon with the repercussions of his betrayal, moving towards a more positive CR or with him defecting from the Empire in the end as a CR goal). BE members he'll be more charitable and amiable to, with a deference to Edelgard and Hubert. ~~Ask ME about my thoughts on Hubert/Sylvain~~

SHIP-SPECIFIC. I'm fine with M/F, M/M. HERE IS MY EXTENSIVE PERMISSIONS POST. Anything that's not there, let's talk.

CODE BY TESSISAMESS