and it's always so we live under the burnt clouds

QUICK REFERENCE LOOKS:

Hair: black, styled in an undercut curtain.

Eyes: dull gray, can look steel blue under certain lighting.

Skin: very light (he was like 26 when he saw the sun for the first time). Plenty of small and bigger scars, especially over the arms and torso, somewhat typical of street fights.

Build: brick shithouse. no really. he's noticeably vertically challenged short and might look petite at a distance, but dude is actually jacked (and it becomes more apparent whenever he does something that puts any strain on his back). Thanks to this, he's also heavier than one might expect at first glance.

Injuries: if played from the ending (ch139), he's pretty banged up; he may have bandages covering half his face or already be healed over. Notable damage:
- right eye (clouded over to blindness, crossed by a long vertical scar over his whole face)
- right hand (missing index and middle fingers)
- left knee (crushed by a titan; needs a crutch, wheelchair or a cane to move around; in games with more modern settings I usually opt to giving him a permanent orthopaedic knee brace after some surgery).

QUICK REFERENCE PRESENCE:

Voice: Usually quiet, mild, almost tired sounding, firm but somewhat mellow. He speaks without much (or any) inflection. Sometimes there might be a tinge of annoyance and he'll raise his voice if he deems it necessary, though it tends to maintain the same monotonic quality unless he's outright yelling. It's hard to tell what he's feeling from his tone.

Mannerisms: He's surly, quiet, tense, measured, stoic, and often looks like he doesn't want to be there. He tends to speak in short, clear sentences and often comes off as rude, flippant or awkward. He'll normally keep his distance and expect his personal bubble to be respected.

Stance: Aloof but alert. He often keeps his arms crossed and/or leans against things which may appear bored or dejected. He tends to keep both feet firmly planted on the ground and can quickly spring into action without necessarily tensing or otherwise telegraphing it first.

Vibe check: "Unexpectedly short, high-strung, ill-mannered, and unapproachable." - Petra, 850. Levi is hailed as Humanity's Strongest Soldier and hero of the people, but in person he has little if any "heroic" or popular qualities; he's awkward, sour, coarse and abrasive, insults people he doesn't like with the subtlety of a sledgehammer to the face, and will resort to crude, out of place poop jokes when trying to lighten the mood. Most people who don't know him well are put off or even intimidated by this; however it's not too difficult to see beyond the rough exterior, especially for those who have gotten close to him.

On the inside, he's a big softie who cares about his friends, his subordinates, and humanity in general, who despises needless deaths and who's extremely empathetic toward the poor and less fortunate; he's actually very emotional and feels strongly about all those, but he's bad at showing it and has been traumatized enough that he usually remains very outwardly stoic at all times. However his eyes remain very expressive and his feelings can often be read from them if one just knows where to look.

Tl;dr he fits the "kind, but not nice" mold very well - he's kind of a dick but he has a lot of compassion for people and would sacrifice anything for the sake of humanity.

QUICK REFERENCE ACTION:

He is an extremely skilled combatant. He's very proficient at hand to hand (or knife to knife) brawling, able to throw around opponents twice his size and use his environment creatively in order to win. He is also pretty much regarded as god of 3D Maneuver Gear (sword version), able to move naturally yet with agility and surgical precision like nobody else - an interesting unique quirk is that he especially seems to use momentum more than gas, given the way he's constantly launching cables when fighting. While big part of it is his street fights and combat experience, he does also have Ackerman heritage - which means he's stronger and more durable than a regular human by default, as well as having practically superhuman reflexes and battle sense.

Tl;dr his combat stat rating is 11/10 and it really shows.

QUICK REFERENCE SHIPPING:

My favorite canonverse ships for him are Erwin, Hange, Erwin and Hange, and Furlan. Also interested in Miche and Onyankopon tbh. Not opposed to giving other ships a shot either! Feel free to ask about whatever, especially if it's an AU.

I'm very much open to crosscanon ships if the chemistry seems right, but I don't see him having an interest in someone much younger than himself in normal circumstances. So crosscanon characters should preferably be 25-30 (depending on his canonpoint) or older, unless agreed otherwise.