🧑🏻🤝🧑🏻 Characters
Here’s the symbolism and integration for Darius - Daryoosh (Father / Baba), Kurosh - Cyrus (Young Son), and Kaveh (Elder Son) reflect the game. If you are in a rush, feel free to skip to Kurosh - Cyrus
Darius (Father | Denial | a.k.a [bábá] بابا | NPC)
Backstory
Darius is born and raised in the village, he is one of the only few who has higher education within the village and has has some military training. That is not why he is the Chief. Its his wisdom, leadership, and trust that he has built over the years with his peer that led him to his position. He feels satisfaction from helping his fellow villager. This may be why he has the 'Village first' mentality. It has been 20 years that he has led this village through hardship into prosperity and dealt with any difficulty that they faced. He is in his 40s now, still considered young and strong. He Married early but lost his Wife to Leprosy recently. He has two sons that he finds hard to communicate with after the passing of 'Maman (Mum in farsi | مامان)'.
Being the village chief was passed down to him by his father and to his father by his father and so on. One of the founding families of the village.
Personality
Calm and collected, but when angry, you can feel the wrath of a lion.
Wise and respectful to all and everyone. Treats everyone the same, even his sons, he treats them like he treats his villagers, as if they are adults.
The type that wants to live by example so has high expectations for his sons. Loves them dearly even though he finds it hard to tell them in words or show them in a way that they could see.
Appearance
Similar to the image below. very similar cloth tire to his eldest son (or vies versa) The brown jacket is a sign of being the chief. (no weapons tho, this photo looks like he has a cardboard knife 😅) The trousers are meant to be loose ish (think early days of Prince of Persia games) and no white cloth around the wrist but character look in the normal setting is like the image below. We will never see the dad in the Fantasy or Nightmare world. So realism design is good enough. [If artists think normal world should also be stylised, I am open to suggestions]
Abilities
Spokes-person and a leader
No in-game powers, just persuasion → If it was D&D, he roles nat 20 on persuasion check!
Why 'Darius' for the name?
Historical Resonance:
Darius I (داریوش) was a pragmatic ruler who stabilised Persia after chaos, focusing on infrastructure and systems (e.g., building roads, codifying laws).
Parallel: the Father is a village chief trying to maintain order under occupation, insisting "This too shall pass" a Darius-like prioritisation of stability over rebellion.
Thematic Depth:
Darius I famously inscribed "By Ahura Mazda’s will, I hold this kingdom" echoing the father’s denial of grief through duty.
His leadership is flawed but human: He ignores his sons’ pain, just as Darius I’s rigidity sparked revolts.
Cultural Weight:
The name is iconic yet accessible (pronounced Da-ree-yoosh) Daryoosh.
Iranians will recognise the irony: A namesake of a great king, powerless to stop his village’s decline.
How to Foreshadow His Arc
Dialogue Hints:
Have him quote (or misquote) Darius I’s inscriptions:
"A village divided cannot stand. We endure."Villagers might whisper: "The chief acts as if he still rules an empire."
Visual Storytelling:
Keeps a broken clay tablet (reference to cuneiform) as a paperweight, symbolising his clinging to old ways. Reference!
Mythic Contrast:
When Kurosh fantasises as Rostam, Darius reject myths entirely, calling them "foolish tales" highlighting his denial of escapism and grief.
Side Note:
In a late-game scene, have Darius finally break down and quote the real Darius I but with a slight change:
"What I did, I did by Ahura Mazda mother's grace. Was it ever enough?"
Ties directly to the mother’s death (the game’s emotional core).
Feels personal, not expository..."mother’s grace" implies her enduring influence.
For those who know: Mirrors Darius I’s "By Ahura Mazda’s will" inscriptions, but through a familial lens.
For others: Reads as a grieving man questioning his choices.
Keeps the story accessible to all players, regardless of their familiarity with Zoroastrianism.
How to Foreshadow This Line
Early Dialogue Setup:
Have Darius say earlier: "Your mother’s grace kept this village whole." (Establishes "grace" as his mantra.)
Villagers nps in background might murmur: "The chief still speaks as if she’s here."
Visual Motif:
Show the mother’s empty chair or unfinished embroidery in their home, a silent symbol of her "grace."
Kaveh (Elder Son | Anger)
Backstory
Son of the village chief. He is eldest son (late teens) and recently lost his mother to Leprosy, death of the mother has made him angry (feeling useless, not being able to help or even touch her when she wanted to say goodbye), but he is not sure why (not the type to admit it)
He is a charmer, considerable amount of villagers (who are around his age range) follow his steps.
He loves his family but recently haven't been able to see eye to eye with the father.
Doesn't like the invaders and wants to start a resistance. Thinks chaos can bring justice.
Appearance
Neater and cleaner, very similar to the image below. The type that you can tell he is brat but in a good way. He doesn't have the brown thing, but everything else is very similar to his dad. Even though he is rebellious, he is still internally want to replicate his dad. which comes from admiration that he is not willing to admit. We will not see him in any of the other worlds. So no stylisation needed.
Maybe, only maybe, if time allows it, have Kaveh fidget with a piece of metal that he carries with himself. If he has a wristband thats a leather, it would work also. [Not exactly this but something like this, more hints of blacksmithing, makes more sense in next paragraph]
Special abilities
He is dominantly a NPC but in 2 small levels he becomes playable but with different mechanics:
→ Charmer
(his "power" is to 'lead the conversation' [choose your own adventure type, player picks dialogue] think Mass Effect Dialogue wheel or Dispatch)
Why Kaveh Fits the Elder Brother
Legendary Resonance:
In the Shahnameh, Kaveh is a blacksmith who leads a revolt against the tyrannical king Zahhak, raising his leather apron as a flag (later the Derafsh Kaviani).
Parallel: Elder son rallies village youth against occupiers, a direct echo of Kaveh’s rebellion.
Thematic Depth:
Kaveh’s revolt was for justice, not power. Similarly, brother’s anger stems from grief (not ambition).
His name subtly hints that the occupiers are Zahhak-like oppressors.
Cultural Accessibility:
Easy to pronounce (/Kā-veh/) for global audiences.
Recognisable to Iranians as a symbol of resistance.
How to Foreshadow His Arc
Dialogue Hint:
Have young villagers call him "Kaveh the Unyielding" or reference his "blacksmith’s tenancies" (nod to the legend).
Visual Symbolism:
Let him wear/carry a patched cloth (like Kaveh’s apron?) as a wristband. (maybe a remembrance from his mother?) (the middle bit from the image above might be a good substitute to wristband?)
Mythic Parallel [Stretch Goal]:
[Only as a easter egg] If Kurosh fantasises as Rostam, Kaveh could briefly be imagined as the legendary Kaveh during a pivotal scene if player used their power when they are close to Kaveh as NPC.
Cyrus - Kurosh (Young Son | Bargaining)
Backstory
Son of the village chief. He is preteens and recently lost his mother to Leprosy, but concept of death is new to him. He wants everything return to how it was before, not realising it never will be.
When he was younger, his mother used to read him and his brother stories of Rostam. As a little insider nickname, the mother always referred to him as "my little Rostam" and the elder brother as "my Unyielding Kaveh" which will be an integral part of the game.
When Maman died, dad became distant, kaveh became not himself, as if he is possessed by a demon. He just misses Maman and wants everything to go back to normal.
Sample Narrative [Pre-Game]
Kurosh knew grown-ups talked in riddles. That’s why he hid behind the barley sacks, quiet as a mouse, listening to Dad and the villagers. Their voices were sticky with fear.
"They took the last of the medicine," someone hissed. "Like they took the food. Like they took Haj Khanoom."
Kurosh’s chest prickled. Haj Khanoom, that’s what the villagers called Maman, even though she’d never gone to Haj. She was just Maman to him. The best one. But if adding Haj made the adults remember her rosewater sweets, the way she’d act out Adventures of Rostam with wooden spoons, or how she hummed while kneading dough... then fine. He’d let them.
Dad stayed quiet, the way he did when mending broken tools from the big farm car. Finally, he sighed:
"This too shall pass. Even the longest night ends at dawn."
Then he looked up to the villagers and recited Hafez with pure confidence, like the leader he was:
"صبر کن حافظ به سختی روز و شب
عاقبت روزی بیابی کام را"
رز فقط بعد از نیش زمستان شکوفا میشود
Be patient, Hafez, through hard days and nights.
Eventually, one day you will attain your desire."
The rose only blooms after winter's bite
The villagers exhaled, their shoulders sinking like dough in the sun. But Kurosh blinked. Roses? Maman had loved roses, she’d tucked their petals between book pages, but winter? That was still months away to finish?! Baba’s hands shook now, and Kaveh’s ribs showed through his shirt like ladder rungs. What good was end of winter if they had to chew on snow until then?
Then again… Maman used to say Rostam fought all night once, until the divs melted into morning mist. Maybe "Winter's bite" was code for stealing back the medicine himself.
He turned to run to Kaveh, only to freeze. His brother stood in the square, surrounded by big boys with firelit eyes. "They steal and kill," Kaveh snarled, "so we’ll burn their castle down!" His fists were clenched, his voice jagged like broken pottery. Kurosh didn’t like this Kaveh. This Kaveh had the eyes... the same flat, black look as the fox they’d found gnawing on bones last winter.
Korush crept away. Grown-ups were useless. Kaveh was scary. But he knew what to do.
The Plan:
Go to the invaders’ castle (like Rostam’s fort in Maman’s stories, towers, divs, maybe a magic feather).
Take back the food and medicine (easy! He was small, and small things slip through cracks).
Bring it home, and then Dad would smile, Kaveh would laugh like before, and Maman…
Well. Maman always said Rostam’s battles ended when the sun kissed the horizon. Maybe this one would too.
That night, Kurosh packed his slingshot and a sack for treasures. As he tiptoed past the graveyard, the wind howled through the stones. For a second, the shadows twisted into long, hooked claws like a Vizaresha’s talons, but Kurosh squeezed his eyes shut and whispered:
"Little Rostam, little Rostam..."
When he opened his eyes, the path ahead glowed faintly, as if a thousand glowworms had gathered to guide him.
Magic? Maybe the Simorgh had sent them, her feathers could call stars down from the sky, Maman used to say. Or maybe it was just hope, stubborn as a goat standing its ground.
Korush stepped forward towards his own adventure.
Personality
He is curious, loves mythos and hero stories. wants to gain fathers respect and attention but also looks up to his elder brother.
Wants everything to go back to how it used to be.
Appearance
Traditional Iranian clothing.
Similar to the image below, no specific style in mind, it can even be the elder brother but younger if it's easier for production. Best case scenario is to have it like the image below
[Stretch Goal]→ The clothing gets muddier as the player progresses through out the game | The more the player gets spotted, the more they get muddier. Similar to the Batman Arkham Style how there are more cuts in the cape the more you die.
(These were AI Generated btw)
As for his fantasy stylisation, I haven't settled on one idea yet, I have few but dependant on skill levels.
Simplest is to leave him be and make assets just normal fantasy.
PREFERED is to stylise the fantasy world, which respectively means stylising the characters too.
I was hoping to give the same feel as the persian poetry books and carpet arts. like the image above but using styles like this video:→ Check Out This Watercolor-Like Painterly 3D Scene Made with Blender
Special abilities
When the Player presses Q, they transform the world into a fantasy world, where the obstacles are easier to over come. BUT they have time limit of (as of writing this) 7 seconds [subject to change]. If the player presses Q again before the 7 seconds are up. They spend the same amount of time they pressed (>7) in the nightmare world. On the other hand, if they don't press Q again before the time is up, they spend twice the amount (14 seconds) in the nightmare world, where everything is more scarier and difficult to handle. After the punishment time is up, they automatically come back to the normal world.
Imagine the shatter effect in this video but it also converts the environment to fantasy.^
Similar to this video "23:03" mark for example. The player changing between worlds:
See image below for more information:
[Note at the time of making the image below, the time limit used to be 4 secs, now its 7]
Why Kurosh Fits the Young Son
Historical Resonance:
Kurosh/Cyrus the Great (کوروش) was a unifier who freed enslaved peoples (e.g., Babylon’s Jews) and ruled with compassion.
Parallel: In the game, Kurosh steals medicine to "heal" his family/village, mirroring Cyrus the Great’s idealism.
Thematic Depth:
Cyrus the Great’s cylinder (an ancient human rights charter) reflects game Kurosh’s childlike belief in fairness ("If I steal, things will go back to normal").
His mythic fantasies (Shahnameh) contrast with his namesake’s real-world empathy.
Cultural Accessibility:
Globally recognisable (via Cyrus the Great), yet deeply Persian.
How to Foreshadow His Arc
Dialogue Hints:
Have him misinterpret Cyrus the Great’s legacy:
"King Cyrus saved everyone. Why can’t I?"Soldiers might mock: "Little king thinks he can steal from an army!"
Visual Storytelling:
Maybe he carry a rusty coin with Cyrus the Great’s profile, his "lucky charm" and a reminder of his impossible standard, and a gift from Maman.
Mythic Journey:
His Shahnameh fantasies should escalate from Rostam’s strength to Kaveh’s rebellion as he nears acceptance.
For the Mother (Lost but Revered) Mandana (ماندانا):
Historical: Mother of Cyrus the Great, symbolising enduring legacy.
Fit: Her death haunts the family; her memory motivates Kurosh.
For a Villager (Optional) Artemisia (آرتمیس):
Historical: Persian naval commander known for cunning.
Fit: A villager who aids Kurosh with stealth tactics.