Martial artist OC.

[Steel Accord 6,658]

There's a character I would like to base a fanfic around but I'm having some trouble with his details and making him seem like he could plausibly fit into Equestria.

Personality: To help matters, White Belt is an introvert but not at all shy or anti-social. He just prefers one or two friends to hang with as opposed to big groups or parties. He's very measured and cautious, preferring to act on principle rather than his gut. Lastly, despite his lifestyle and passion, he's not at all violent. He enjoys fighting because it's exciting, engaging, and he gets to learn about himself and his opponent. He doesn't even really mind loosing unless the other guy is a sore winner.

Colors: First of all, I gave him the name "White Belt" so I thought that would fit with the occasional color naming convention like Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, etc. I have to wonder though, is white really the best color to give him? Is it either too common or does it scream "obvious OC?" And if I do, what color besides black would be the best?

Name: On that note, while I do love the White Belt because it calls to mind my interest in the martial arts but also my limited skill in that area (something reflected in the character at the start of his story), I'm not sure it would be my only option. Do you guys have any martial arts themed names for an earth pony you could think of?

Cutie-mark: This one's a bit harder to decide because I have a few prototypes and I'm not sure which would fit the idea best. I thought of maybe a spear with some comet like swirls around it. Maybe a Yin-Yang but I thought that might be too obvious. What do you guys think? What's a martial arts symbol that conveys a love of fighting but not a wish for conflict?

Fighting: One of the things that I could also use a second opinion on. Obviously by now we've seen plenty of episodes where ponies, and especially the Mane Six themselves, throw down. However what do you think is the acceptable limit to push that for a character like this? I'm not trying to go straight TV-7 with my story but I also don't want to make it like Mortal Kombat or perhaps more closely Fallout: Equestria in terms of like gore and brutality. (Which the later has the excuse of being a fusion fic with a violent post-apocalypse setting.)

Thanks ahead of time for your input.

Edited November 28, 2020 by Steel Accord
addtions

[Denim&Venöm 16,498]

I guess one thing to consider is what kind of martial art does white belt practice? The martial art can go a ways to determining the personality. Karate and Kung fu are the usual go tos, but there's also throw based arts like Judo, Jiu-jitsu and Aikido with emphasis on deescalation and using an opponents aggression against them. There's grappling arts like Brazillian jiu-jitsu, Luta Livre & Sambo that focus more on ground fighting, joint locks and choke holds, where size and power play second to technique and finesse. You could have martial arts as a sport. Judo, Karate & Tae-Kwon-Do are more traditional martial arts turned sports, but there's also boxing, kickboxing, & various styles of wrestling. 

Do they pursue fighting as a sport? is it a means of self defense? Is it a family tradition? Do they have an idol they look up to who inspired them?  

The type of art White Belt pursues can say a lot about who they are as a character. 

[Steel Accord 6,658]

3 hours ago, Denim&Venöm said:

 

I guess one thing to consider is what kind of martial art does white belt practice? The martial art can go a ways to determining the personality. Karate and Kung fu are the usual go tos, but there's also throw based arts like Judo, Jiu-jitsu and Aikido with emphasis on deescalation and using an opponents aggression against them. There's grappling arts like Brazillian jiu-jitsu, Luta Livre & Sambo that focus more on ground fighting, joint locks and choke holds, where size and power play second to technique and finesse. You could have martial arts as a sport. Judo, Karate & Tae-Kwon-Do are more traditional martial arts turned sports, but there's also boxing, kickboxing, & various styles of wrestling. 

 

First of all, thank you for responding at all.

Secondly though, that’s the thing, because it’s Equestria, they wouldn’t really know about Earth styles, or at least they wouldn’t call them those things. Part of his quest is actually finding the remnants of lost books, scrolls, and other traces of fighting forms.
 

Because Equestria doesn’t see a lot of conflict, their knowledge of what we would call martial arts, that is to say, fighting systems rooted in warfare but with philosophy attached to them, by and large died out after the pony tribes united. (Unless one counts something like the Mighty Helm or Flash Magnus’ Legion.) All other conflicts being resolved by powerful magic rather than a one on one duel.

Were I to give White Belt a close approximation at the start of his journey, it would be Kenpo Karate. (He’ll learn more.)

3 hours ago, Denim&Venöm said:

Do they pursue fighting as a sport? is it a means of self defense? Is it a family tradition? Do they have an idol they look up to who inspired them?

I guess “sport” is the closest comparison although he’d call it a lifestyle. It is his cutie-mark. He loves to fight others, win or loose, but in the friendly sparring sense. He’s not really interested in tournaments or the like. Even if he was, there’s not really any such competitions held in Equestria.

Although he will fight if he has to defend himself or if something important is on the line. But then again, so will a lot of ponies. It’s not a family tradition and the only real “idols” would be Rockhoof, Flash Magnus, and more obscure legends or martial prowess that are a rarity  in their world.

The idea for the story he’s in is that Equestria is a little like the Western world before Bruce Lee really broke down the concept of Kung Fu as philosophy as fighting rather than purely for the utilitarian purpose of battle. And that he’s trying to prove to a resistant community that the path is not in of itself violent.