Character Info & Permissions

[corps]

INFO:
Name: Erwin Smith
Canon: Attack on Titan
Canon point: Chapter 60
Age: 37 (an estimate; exact age is undetermined)
Height: 6'2" (188cm)
Weight: 203 lbs (92 kg)
Appearance: Tall, strong, blonde-haired-blue-eyed, uniformed, with some truly impressive eyebrows and outstanding cheekbones. Like so. SPOILERS: He's recently lost most of his right arm just below the shoulder, and though the wound itself won't be visible, as he wears long sleeves, the empty sleeve itself is fairly obvious.

 

History: Growing up, Erwin was the son of a local schoolteacher. One day, he asked his father during class a question about humanity's history that he couldn't answer. Later, however, he told Erwin what he truly suspected: that the government and the monarchy had a hand in altering the memories of citizens within the walls as well as forbidding knowledge of the outside world. This theory, of course, was heretical and dangerous. However, a child at the time, Erwin was not aware of this, and began to spread the idea to other children in the area, until the Military Police's 1st brigade approached him about his father's ideas. Soon after, word came that his father had been killed in an accident; but Erwin knew that wasn't the case. His father had been taken by the Military Police and killed for his ideas. Feeling as though his own foolish actions were the cause of his father's death, Erwin became determined to prove his father's theories correct. He joined the military, and later the Survey Corps, seeking to liberate humanity from not only the walls, but the corrupt government. It is clear that even before becoming Commander he was well-respected by his peers. As a Squad Leader, he developed a long-range scouting technique which would ultimately save the lives of many soldiers, and the Commander at the time recognized his potential—as did many others, namely high-standing officials in the capital who thought Erwin an upstart with dangerous ideas, and as such wanted him dead. Erwin was able to avoid this fate, as two of his would-be assassins were killed by Titans, and the other—Levi—opted to follow him loyally rather than kill him, despite the fact that it was Erwin who had forced him into the Survey Corps to begin with after capturing him in the underground slums of the capital.

A summary of Erwin’s part in events that take place during the course of the manga’s main storyline can be found HERE.

Personality: Erwin Smith has dedicated his very life to the betterment of humanity’s position in the war against the Titans, and this goal is the very core of his being. He will sacrifice anything in order to ensure the welfare of the human population, and has more than earned his reputation as ‘a man who will stain his hands with blood.’ He is an austere man, but his passion for humanity is so intense that it’s even broken the veneer of the calm, collected leader he seeks to uphold at all times, hands trembling and eyes intense as he exclaims that he will—and must—use any means necessary to rid the world of the Titans, in order to preserve humanity and everything they have achieved. And that is precisely what he does. He is willing to use illegal methods in order to sway members of the nobility and parliament into continuing to fund the Survey Corps and allow expeditions. He is equally as willing to sacrifice hundreds of his own soldiers on the battlefield if it means they can achieve something that will benefit humanity as a whole, and he will do this without hesitation, and without remorse.

As the Commander of the Survey Corps, the military branch on the front lines of humanity’s war, there is a heavy burden placed upon him. There is a duality to his position, and to that of the Survey Corps in general; while some regard them as the hope of humanity, as they are the ones who journey beyond the walls to learn more about the Titans (and, more recently, to pave a way back to Wall Maria), and Erwin himself is revered by some members of the populous. But still more believe the opposite, that the Survey Corps is a waste of resources, as they never seem to learn anything significant, and yet lose so many soldiers with every expedition (30% each time, as a matter of fact), and many, if not most, blame Erwin for this. Erwin remains equally impassive in the face of both praise and criticism, as both are equally as insignificant when only he can see the goals he has set for himself and the path he is paving in order to reach them. He does not seek to be loved or to be hated, or to be anything at all; he only wishes to achieve his goals for the sake of humanity. He does not reveal his plans to others unless it is necessary to do so, leading others to think that his intentions are suspect.

It is observed by some of those who know him best (Levi, Mike) as well as other intuitive characters (Pixis) that Erwin is a man who is always thinking many steps ahead of everyone else, and that he always has a plan. But he has the capacity to be surprising. As a leader with years of experience, Erwin is well aware of how plans can fall apart in an instant in the chaos of battle, and is known to come up with extensive back-up plans as well, though even that is often not enough, as with the plan to capture the Female Titan in Stohess. Luckily he is also a gifted improviser, able to assess a situation quickly and determine the best course of action. When the Titan research specimens are killed, Erwin comes to the conclusion straightaway that it may have been an ally of the Titans, as opposed to someone who hated Titans, as everyone else seemed to think. He immediately began to formulate a plan to flush out the traitor in their ranks. Even as those around him panic, Erwin keeps a clear and level head, most obviously demonstrated in the way he acts during expeditions beyond the walls, where even the hardiest of men are prone to succumb to terror when facing the Titans. Erwin does not, and constantly leads with decisiveness, courage, and stoicism. This has earned him the respect of many, and the ire of many others. He appears heartless, making judgments that will kill his soldiers with not so much as the blink of an eye. In truth, he has the utmost respect for those who have chosen to serve humanity by joining the Survey Corps, he cares about their wellbeing, treats them with warmth, and puts himself in the same danger they are in every time he leads them beyond the walls. He does what he can to minimize deaths among his troops, including implementing his new scouting formation, for example, which has cut losses significantly.

But he has indeed purposefully distanced himself from other people. He has, in a way, given up his own humanity for the sake of others. As is noted several times in the series, one must be willing to sacrifice their own humanity in order to defeat monsters. Erwin is known for his ruthlessness, and he is weighted each day with the knowledge of the cost of his ruthlessness, and that even a single mistake on his part could—and has—cost many more lives than necessary, as with the disastrous attempt to capture the Female Titan in the forest of giant trees, which resulted in nothing but death and very little information gained. He believes that he deserves to “pay [his] debts in Hell” as recompense for the many lives that have been lost at his command. Yet despite the heavy weight of them, he will continue to make those difficult decisions, as he believes that they must be made for the good of humanity as a whole. As a leader, Erwin must be able to support his soldiers and yet also be ready to sacrifice them if need be. As a result, he constantly wears the mask of the infallible leader in order not only to keep up the morale of his men, but also to separate himself, to prevent himself from becoming too involved with other people. He can’t afford to be seen as a mere mortal man with weaknesses and human attachments. He resigns himself to the loneliness that inevitably brings. It is only what he deserves, his guilty mind tells him, for all the suffering he causes others, and the wrongdoings of his past; his guilt over his perceived role in his father's death continues to haunt him.

As a man who frequently witnesses the gruesome deaths of comrades and subordinates, he has no illusions as to his own mortality, though he knows his own value to humanity's cause, he also recognizes that there are others who are far more important than himself, and is willing to sacrifice even himself for the sake of strategy. “There is a replacement for me,” he tells one of his soldiers on the battlefield when it seems his own survival is not likely, and urges the soldier to concentrate instead on what he considers the more immediate and more important goal of saving Eren, who Erwin believes to be the key to liberating humanity.

While he is very realistic about their situation, despite everything Erwin still believes that humanity can triumph. If he did not have that grim resolve, he would not be able to fight every day for that goal. He is merely attempting to do his part in order to bring this end about. Even if he strives to appear as more than a man, he is only human in the end, an imperfect creature with doubts and misgivings, who makes mistakes and does his best to carry a heavy burden. But Erwin is perhaps one of the few who could do what he does. Not only does he shoulder the blame and the hatred of those who lost loved ones to his orders, but also the hopes of those who still desperately believe in the Survey Corps, while continuing to lead his men with determination and strength through what is the most trying time in recent human history.


IC PERMISSIONS:
Physical contact: Go for it. He does the whole hand-on-shoulder thing quite a bit, himself.
Fighting: Erwin isn't fond of it--and would, in fact, do what he can to avoid it--but he's certainly capable of holding his own, unless there is magic and/or other strange powers involved.
Injuring: Open to it.
Killing: Difficult to accomplish, given that he's survived some pretty intense shit, but I'll definitely consider the possibility with pre-planning.
Mind-reading: He has no supernatural means to prevent it. Just let me know, so I can provide you with more in-depth thoughts for your character to have at.
Romancing: This is a guy who's consciously decided not to pursue romantic relationships because he doesn't know when he may die. So it's not likely.

OOC PERMISSIONS:
Backtagging: Yes. Please.
Threadjacking: Okay.
Fourth-Walling: No thanks.


ON SPOILERS:
This is where you come in! Erwin is from a very recent chapter, which means he is quite literally a walking spoiler. While I won't be throwing around spoilers every which way (apart from one very obvious one that I really can't possibly avoid) with those who aren't already in the know, if you would like me to avoid them otherwise completely when tagging you--or just avoid tagging you at all--just let me know by commenting to this post! No hard feelings.