Profile
Coyotes Laughing
Mangy Bones
Haruspex
Rogue of the Rust
FOR ALL LASTING IMPRESSIONS, HARUSPEX CAN BE SUMMED UP QUITE SIMPLY. A smooth-tongued conniver with an ego just as grand, Haruspex has always prioritized himself and his goals in any situation, often using any slick charm he can muster to weasel his way into getting what he wants. Maybe it's to borrow your gun to give it a "look-over", maybe to lower your guard so he can take the bounty off of your head, or maybe to simply have his confidence thoroughly preened with compliments-- he can talk his way in and out of situations with well-practiced ease, and uses that same tongue to be told whatever he wants to hear. Haruspex is a sly opportunist in his entirety, and doesn't care much for playing fair when it comes to jumping at chances-- if it might get him what he wants, he's willing to play any dirty trick in the book in order to assure that.
Constructed cold for the war on Cybertron, Haruspex quickly decided for himself that he had no intention on contributing to the ongoing war and deserted from the Decepticons the moment they hit Earth. Refusing to hold any more interaction with the warring factions other than the occasional barter with either side for his own gain, Haruspex instead found solace in haunting the plains of the West by partaking in the outlaw lifestyle he found himself so fond of. He's adept with tracking down bounties of all sorts for nothing more than his own entertainment, and it wasn't long until he'd successfully built his name as a revered machine among men. The hunt is his game, and he believes himself a master of remaining two steps ahead-- even if his ego biases his opinion in his own favor just a little bit.
Motif
Haruspex is inspired off of coyotes and their common depictions, mostly comparable through his appearance in general and parts of his demeanor. Through art and literature pieces of him, I tend to use symbolism to refer back to this motif when about scenes that pertain to him.
Physique
Haruspex has a leaner build and smaller stature in general compared to most other cybertronians, more-so built for agility and better range of motion over brute strength. Although holding a bulky chassis, he sacrifices thicker plating for more flexibility with his frame.
Demeanor
Haruspex carries himself with a constant air of confidence, posture neatly upkept and a constant laid-backed air to him unless under frustrating circumstances. Very flaunty and smooth with his movements, he's incredibly practiced in being suave and he knows it.
Tactic
Haruspex is heavily preferent of the element of surprise for a quick and clean attack on opponents, but if not possible, he resorts to wearing his opponents down with his agility and with lighter hits. A self preservationalist, he's very dependent on focus on keeping himself mostly unscathed during his fights, both considering he's not meant to withstand heavy damage over time and simply because he likes to keep himself looking nice. If unable to get the jump on somebody through ambush to damage them quick, Haruspex is much more likely to fall back early.
Scent
A somewhat pleasant overtone of smoke, fresh earth, and oddly enough faintly of citrus. Other than that, he smells exactly like what you'd assume from a machine-- heated metal, engine exhaust, and oil.
Collecting
Haruspex is a fond collector in greedy amounts, and this collection is primarily focused on old guns and other weaponry he loots off of his bounties like trophies. Everything is upkept incredibly well, and to be allowed something from his stash is a pretty high honor when it comes to him.
Snow & Rain
Haruspex hates cold weather and the wetness that comes with it, either from snow or rain. With his heavy preference of dry and hot climates, he deems the opposite utterly repulsive. It's not uncommon to see him grumpily sheltering during bad weather, muttering curses under his breath.
Compliments
As Haruspex is incredibly self-confident, it's no surprise that he's a huge sucker for being complimented. He'll do his best to act nonchalant and casual about it for appearances, but he'll definitely be thinking about it for the rest of his day.
Puzzles
Haruspex isn't bad at problem-solving, but he's easily frustrated and not easily entertained by anything that makes him have to stop and think for a while, whether it be a simple jigsaw puzzle to solve or a complicated calculation for a planned robbery.
Arid Weather
Being the staple weather of the deserts he finds himself roaming, Haruspex quickly grew fond and preferent of the dryness. It's a nice temperature, keeps his frame in good shape without the humidity, and the only trade-off is dust and burrs-- easily cleaned when you're made entirely of metal.
Vivid Colors
Though Haruspex doesn't hold too much against bright, saturated colors, he just doesn't like them all too much and they tend to strain his optics a lot. Maybe it's because he's used to very desaturated surroundings, or maybe just aesthetic preference, it's not too clear why exactly he's repulsed.
Late Nights
Haruspex heavily enjoys night, being the one time he's most alert and active. There's something peaceful about the calm quiet to him, but it's mainly the advantage of cover that it gives him which he enjoys. Others are sluggish and unguarded in their exhaustion, and Haruspex exploits that as often as he can, having adapted to be most efficient at late times.
Gambles
He's incredibly impulsive, and taking gambles and risks is something he finds hard to avoid, causing him great frustration when luck turns against him and he ends up losing something. It's not necessarily something he dislikes in general, but as he struggles with self-control with his confidence, the gambles he takes usually don't end up going in his favor.
Weaponry
Haruspex constantly keeps himself armed with older-fashioned inspired weaponry, even in modern ages. One notable weapon of his, being his primary gun, is a custom revolver a good friend of his built to allow him his aesthetic while not sacrificing better technological advancements. The gun, which he soon incorporated into his frame, is his complete pride and joy, and he loses his marbles over any sort of nicks or scuffing to his most prized possession.
Tricks
Haruspex is capable of mimicking sounds through his vocalizer pretty clearly, whether it be the rattling tail of a rattlesnake to scare some cowboys or perhaps the shot of a revolver to spark chaos in a standoff taking too long to get entertaining for him to watch. Besides that, Haruspex' favorite party trick is storing excessive amounts of heat to release in short bursts of flame, often coming from the vents on his shoulders or from the corners of his mouth.
Appearance
Haruspex keeps himself pretty well preened despite the unavoidable dust that ends up on his plating during his various endeavors. He takes pride in looking nice, and even went as far as making modifications to his own frame such as the green paint and the spikes he'd all done by hand. His painted-on mustache was a late-night decision because he thought it looked pretty charming on human cowboys, and now he fights tooth and nail refusing to get rid of it.
Preference
Haruspex has a preference both with the people he hangs out around in general and possible romantic partners for anyone who can keep up with and match his own spree of chaos. Though he'd do best around someone who compliments his own energy and viewpoint, he'll always tolerate anyone who strokes his ego in any sort of way-- Haruspex of course prioritizing this above all else. He heavily values loyalty, and if you have his back, he'll surely have yours.
Right leg was lost in a shoot-off he had with an ex-con he'd been hunting down a few months after he first deserted. His cover had been broken and he'd taken an explosive round to the leg. Honestly isn't bothered by the loss-- he simply built himself a prosthetic out of parts he salvaged a few days after he was humbled and fled to lick his wounds, and though it's a bit janky at times, it gets the job done other than the frequent maintenance and oiling it needs.
During his time in the West he first started to never let himself be fully spotted by anybody other than targets he intended on claiming the bounties of-- he found the whispered rumors being told of something they couldn't see out in the prairie too entertaining to do so. Eventually, though, he seemed bored and let himself around the town he lurks around as he pleased, much to the sheriff's annoyance. He most definitely didn't fit in the saloon, but he didn't care.
Though he was a menace to the town he stuck around, he also kept them guarded from other outlaws and outside, sparking a very tense alliance between him and the townsfolk. Still got under their skin all the time by stealing from or spooking them, but he worked amiably with the sheriff when necessary. Whenever they found the distraught, tied up form of someone that they'd been unable to arrest prior right in the middle of the road at the first light of dawn, they could instantly assume it was Haruspex' handywork in delivering a criminal right to their doorstep.
Haruspex was one of many forged to be a soldier during the later times of the war, transported in stasis to further the war effort that had just recently started on Earth with the arrival of both factions. But, with his activation, he decided pretty early on that he had no intention on involving himself with the conflict. He did what work he could around the Nemesis while biding his time, but upon opportunity while in orbit in the atmosphere, he snuck himself onto a smaller transport ship headed out to source energy in stockpiling preparations.
Immediately upon landing in uncharted land in Arizona during the mid-1800's, Haruspex high-tailed it from his hiding spot while the rest of the crew was occupied, marking his desertion from the Decepticons and causing him to be assumed as going M.I.A in conflict. Haruspex eventually stubmled across an old western town during his aims to gain distance, and after studying the inhabitants, he adopted himself into the culture and settled into cover amongst the outskirts around the town. From here is simple-- Haruspex spent the rest of his time before the collapse of the Western Era building himself a revered name among the startled townsfolk he found his focus of interest, hunting bounties and living out his life mostly war-free for his own entertainment. Although Haruspex kept himself steered clear from the conflict, he did occasionally hunt bots down to go alongside his human targets, faction disregarded. If they caught his interest, anyone was fair game to him-- at the end of the day, it was all for the hell of it, anyways.
Every now and then Haruspex stepped himself a bit more into involvement from his position on the sidelines as a neutral faction, and did occasional jobs for either side in exchange for both a change in pace and for various things they could offer of his interest-- mainly supplies, as he could only go so long without restocking on energon. He, however, wasn't keen on involving himself any more than that, and he remains just as detached from the war in modern times. Haruspex isn't sure how he hasn't gotten himself deactivated yet with the nerve he usually has, but his aims are to have a good time with his life while he's still operational, not a long time.
In present times, he hasn't changed a single bit. Though the lawless times of the Wild West are over, he still finds himself living and acting just as he did before, though with quite a bit more social experience now that he's not bunkered down and confined to the frontier he was so dedicated to. Haruspex eventually ended up picking up an alt-mode, and is quite the fan of using it to travel where he pleases. Whether it be to visit a reenactment town under disguise in his free-time or simply to go hang out and mess around with bots from either faction, Haruspex refuses to give up his shenanigans, and if there's one thing he's good at?
It's always managing to get himself out of situations he shouldn't be able to get out of.
- Fullbody ref coming soon! don't mind the current placeholder :)
- Prosthetic leg is not optional. if you need any additional references, just ask!
- Stands at roughly 19'4".
- Sharp teeth, canines aren't long.
- Top grey parts on his helm are angled slightly back like pinned ears, cheekplates are also slightly angled back.
- Most of the green parts on his body aren't biolights but instead simply just painted plating. Can be drawn glittery or just metallic-- up to artist interpretation.
- Lanky limbs, he's got pretty long legs and not too much bulky plating on them until you reach his calves. Tires on his heels can roll down to slot in the bottom of his pedes to work like skates.
- Pupils, if drawn, are wide, hollow slits. Picture a cat's eye when dilated.
- Feel free to play around with his spike placement! The only ones I'm dead-set on are the ones on his helm and on his collar.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Duis sollicitudin elit sed tellus blandit viverra sed eget odio. Donec accumsan tempor lacus, et venenatis elit feugiat non.
Duis porta eros et velit blandit dapibus. Curabitur ac finibus eros. Duis placerat velit vitae massa sodales, eget mattis nibh pellentesque. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Duis sollicitudin elit sed tellus blandit viverra sed eget odio. Donec accumsan tempor lacus, et venenatis elit feugiat non.
Lorem.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Duis sollicitudin elit sed tellus blandit viverra sed eget odio. Donec accumsan tempor lacus, et venenatis elit feugiat non.
Duis porta eros et velit blandit dapibus. Curabitur ac finibus eros. Duis placerat velit vitae massa sodales, eget mattis nibh pellentesque. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Duis sollicitudin elit sed tellus blandit viverra sed eget odio. Donec accumsan tempor lacus, et venenatis elit feugiat non.
Duis sollicitudin elit sed tellus blandit viverra sed eget odio. Donec accumsan tempor lacus, et venenatis elit feugiat non.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Duis sollicitudin elit sed tellus blandit viverra sed eget odio. Donec accumsan tempor lacus, et venenatis elit feugiat non.
Duis porta eros et velit blandit dapibus. Curabitur ac finibus eros. Duis placerat velit vitae massa sodales, eget mattis nibh pellentesque. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Duis sollicitudin elit sed tellus blandit viverra sed eget odio. Donec accumsan tempor lacus, et venenatis elit feugiat non.
Comments