Alright, I am going to say it....

[Dezmeria]

I cannot stand Tuna Man.

 

OK. I will admit he is good in combat.

 

Aside from that I cannot stand his whole, prideful naive personality.  Its like nails on a chalkboard.

 

And to make matters worse I recruit him and then seconds later he wants to bed me. Uh. No.

 

Just the thought of my character sleeping with him ! (It really does make me want to toss-up my cookies).

 

Last thing I need is to indulge in ichthyophile.

 

I really do not get why people are like, "OMG! He is the best character!" To each their own I guess.

 

But does anyone out there not like Mackerel Boy and/or get literately sick about the concept of having "relations" with him?!?

 

 

(BTW: Props to the developers/writers for creating the first NPC in my 30+ years of gaming that literately makes me so damn queasy when he speaks to me/anyone about sex either directly or in-directly).

Edited June 24, 2018 by Dezmeria

[AndreaColombo]

I also resent his vainglorious personality, but I believe he's one of the best-written companions (if not outright the best-written.)

 

I don't have to enjoy his personality to appreciate how well said personality is conveyed by the author, and I believe Paul Kirsch did a great job with Tekehu. I didn't play his romance (I don't like romances in RPGs and would never willfully engage in one), but I kept him in my party for the entire play through and there's a reason he behaves like he does. It's a well-executed character, in my opinion, and I believe that's what most people like about him.

 

Well, that and the fact that he's good in combat

[Parasol_Syndicate]

I guess in some ways he's the Durance of Deadfire? I never thought about it that way. 

Certainly the likability of the character and the intricacy in writing them are two different things. 
 

I always felt for all his faults, Durance had a lot of hard-won insight, whereas Tekehu has mostly arrogant Naïveté. But nothing in his background suggests he should be otherwise. 

I don't think I will ever like Tunaman, but might be persuaded that he brings a new perspective to the game. 

[bugarup]

Yeah, well...how to say this...dude/dudette, you're waaaaay overthinking fishy sex thing and kind of veering into Tali Sweat Grosslands from opposite direction. Anyway, your own character can be wooden and mossy, have gross tumor head, or head that's on fire all the time (imagine making out with that, eh, eh? ), so the whole "scaly fishy dude with sentient hair" deal is tame in comparison.

 

(And yes, he is totally the best in character development/involvement with the story way plus his druid and theurge kits are very powerful, so fishboy da best boy )

[AeonsLegend]

Don't worry there's plenty of people that dislike this one dimenstional irresponsible gooey tentacle head.

 

He's likable perhaps, but he is also boring. He's a kid in a mans body. And to be honest his backstory is stale. Best character? Well when comparing to the other characters he's actually not that bad. But this says more about how bad the other characters are than how good he is.

Edited June 24, 2018 by AeonsLegend

[Celan]

I don't care for the character, either. I had had high hopes for his romance because my character is godlike and I couldn't see her with any of the others, but it can barely be called a "romance" IMO- and what was there was kind of gross. I ended up restarting and only had him in my party for the Gullet part and Ukaizo, which was anticlimactic. Then because I had encouraged him to be independent, he went to the middle of the ocean and started making even bigger water statues for the rest of his life.

Edited June 24, 2018 by Celan

[CENIC]

If you don't bring Tekehu with you to specific areas/quests, it's REALLY EASY to miss out on his character development.

 

Not saying that will make him any more likeable, but I thought that was a risky move on behalf of the narrative team, because personally, my perception of him changed a lot when I actually brought him along and saw his unique reactions to, for example, the Gullet.

[Tick]

My initial reaction to Tekehu was that he was an obnoxious, arrogant side-character, and I was surprised when I realized he was one of the main companions.  But I actually grew to really love him.  Yes, he's arrogant and prideful, but he also feels an immense pressure to basically give up his own goals to be whatever the Huana want him to be, and that all makes a ton of sense when you hear how the Huana and its government have treated him. 

 

Additionally, Tekehu is actually a very happy, sweet guy and he realizes throughout the game how messed up and flawed the Huana are - via things like the Gullet and the Watershapers' secret dragon soul-sucking.  And he genuinely cares about it.  I was pleasantly surprised and impressed when we discovered Delver's Row and Tekehu thought, "Yeah, this is smuggling and messed up, but the Gullet kind of needs this."

 

He's a flawed but well-meaning guy, and he's willing to listen and learn from others.  That wins me over.

Edited June 24, 2018 by Tick

[AeonsLegend]

My initial reaction to Tekehu was that he was an obnoxious, arrogant side-character, and I was surprised when I realized he was one of the main companions.  But I actually grew to really love the character.  Yes, he's arrogant and prideful, but he also feels an immense pressure to basically give up his own goals to be whatever the Huana want him to be, and that all makes a ton of sense when you hear how the Huana and its government have treated him. 

 

Additionally, Tekehu is actually a very happy, sweet guy and he realizes throughout the game how messed up and flawed the Huana are - via things like the Gullet and the Watershapers' secret dragon soul-sucking.  And he genuinely cares about it.  I was pleasantly surprised and impressed when we discovered Delver's Row and Tekehu thought, "Yeah, this is smuggling and messed up, but the Gullet kind of needs this."

 

He's a flawed but well-meaning character, and he's willing to listen and learn from others.  He's a cool, well-written dude.

Even though all of that is true, all of that doesn't fit with his character type. He remains obnoxious regardless of what he does or thinks. He's just a walking contradiction. So I wouldn't say he is well written even though I do enjoy some of his interactions with events far more than the others. Edited June 24, 2018 by AeonsLegend

[Tick]

 

My initial reaction to Tekehu was that he was an obnoxious, arrogant side-character, and I was surprised when I realized he was one of the main companions.  But I actually grew to really love the character.  Yes, he's arrogant and prideful, but he also feels an immense pressure to basically give up his own goals to be whatever the Huana want him to be, and that all makes a ton of sense when you hear how the Huana and its government have treated him. 

 

Additionally, Tekehu is actually a very happy, sweet guy and he realizes throughout the game how messed up and flawed the Huana are - via things like the Gullet and the Watershapers' secret dragon soul-sucking.  And he genuinely cares about it.  I was pleasantly surprised and impressed when we discovered Delver's Row and Tekehu thought, "Yeah, this is smuggling and messed up, but the Gullet kind of needs this."

 

He's a flawed but well-meaning character, and he's willing to listen and learn from others.  He's a cool, well-written dude.

Even though all of that is true, all of that doesn't fit with his character type. He remains obnoxious regardless of what he does or thinks. He's just a walking contradiction.

 

lol

 

I don't think that's contradictory.  You can be prideful and arrogant but also insecure or depressed, or a genuinely kind and caring person that wants to help.  Tekehu isn't so self-absorbed that he can't think or care about others (that would be a disorder).

 

That's one of the things I like about Obsidian's characters.  They don't just fit one trope or mold, there's usually more to them.  Or a twist on the trope/stereotype you'd expect.   It's a lot more human and believable, and a lot less frustrating to read/deal with (from my perspective).

Edited June 24, 2018 by Tick

[AeonsLegend]

 

 

My initial reaction to Tekehu was that he was an obnoxious, arrogant side-character, and I was surprised when I realized he was one of the main companions.  But I actually grew to really love the character.  Yes, he's arrogant and prideful, but he also feels an immense pressure to basically give up his own goals to be whatever the Huana want him to be, and that all makes a ton of sense when you hear how the Huana and its government have treated him. 

 

Additionally, Tekehu is actually a very happy, sweet guy and he realizes throughout the game how messed up and flawed the Huana are - via things like the Gullet and the Watershapers' secret dragon soul-sucking.  And he genuinely cares about it.  I was pleasantly surprised and impressed when we discovered Delver's Row and Tekehu thought, "Yeah, this is smuggling and messed up, but the Gullet kind of needs this."

 

He's a flawed but well-meaning character, and he's willing to listen and learn from others.  He's a cool, well-written dude.

Even though all of that is true, all of that doesn't fit with his character type. He remains obnoxious regardless of what he does or thinks. He's just a walking contradiction.

 

lol

 

I don't think that's contradictory.  You can be prideful and arrogant but also insecure or depressed, or a genuinely kind and caring person that wants to help.  Tekehu isn't so self-absorbed that he can't think or care about others (that would be a disorder).

 

That's one of the things I like about Obsidian's characters.  They don't just fit one trope or mold, there's usually more to them.  Or a twist on the trope/stereotype you'd expect.   It's a lot more human and believable, and a lot less frustrating to read/deal with (from my perspective).

 

In my years of experience I've never ever met a person like this unless they suffered from a mental disorder. And we already have Xoti filling that role.

[Celan]

My initial reaction to Tekehu was that he was an obnoxious, arrogant side-character, and I was surprised when I realized he was one of the main companions.  But I actually grew to really love him.  Yes, he's arrogant and prideful, but he also feels an immense pressure to basically give up his own goals to be whatever the Huana want him to be, and that all makes a ton of sense when you hear how the Huana and its government have treated him.

But... he apparently has no goals, because as far as the epilogues go he does nothing with independence other than live in isolation and make big water statues in the middle of the ocean.

[rheingold]

I'm not crazy about aquaman, but he seems well written enough. He's just irritating, intentionally so, from the writers perspective.

Regarding mental disorders....

Normal has quite a wide gamut, everyone at some stage or another is a hypocrite, contradictory or irrational in some way or the other. It's pretty normal for someone to have completely opposing views actually, it's called being human...

Edited June 24, 2018 by rheingold

[AeonsLegend]

I'm not crazy about aquaman, but he seems well written enough. He's just irritating, intentionally so, from the writers perspective.

Regarding mental disorders....

Normal has quite a wide gamut, everyone at some stage or another is a hypocrite, contradictory or irrational in some way or the other. It's pretty normal for someone to have completely opposing views actually, it's called being human...

No one is going to deny that, but that doesn't imply a person is going to be 100% contradictory to their behaviour 24/7.

[Tick]

 

My initial reaction to Tekehu was that he was an obnoxious, arrogant side-character, and I was surprised when I realized he was one of the main companions.  But I actually grew to really love him.  Yes, he's arrogant and prideful, but he also feels an immense pressure to basically give up his own goals to be whatever the Huana want him to be, and that all makes a ton of sense when you hear how the Huana and its government have treated him.

But... he apparently has no goals, because as far as the epilogues go he does nothing with independence other than live in isolation and make big water statues in the middle of the ocean.

 

 

His goal was to go his own way, without ties or obligations to others, and focus on making his art.  That is a goal.  Some people find self-actualization in creating art or music.  

[Yria]

But... he apparently has no goals, because as far as the epilogues go he does nothing with independence other than live in isolation and make big water statues in the middle of the ocean.

 

That kind of is his goal though. He keeps repeating it again and again that he is an artist and wants to be perceived as one, so he goes around creating works of art in the end.

 

And after encountering some unsusal and marvelous things while sailing around Deadfire, like that adra sculpture of unknown origin or semi transparent whales, I actually appreciate that. The more miracles for people to run into at sea the better, I say. 

[oyibo_warrior]

... well-meaning guy, and he's willing to listen and learn from others. 

I had a similar experience to you with him. He's arrogant and conceited, but he's also compassionate. Unlike the other sympathetic characters he doesn't spend half the time threatening to murder or beat various NPCs.

[Celan]

 

His goal was to go his own way, without ties or obligations to others, and focus on making his art.  That is a goal.  Some people find self-actualization in creating art or music.  

 

Art that almost no one sees? Mmkay.

 

His gift can actually be used to save lives.

Edited June 24, 2018 by Celan

[Yria]

His gift can actually be used to save lives.

 

It's not what others want from him, he is expected to unite the huana in the political sense and lead them into a better future... simply because he was born with scales and tentacles. Great reason to push a person to do something they don't want to do, about the same level as "You're ginger so you should fight for animal rights". 

 

And even if his watershaping can be used to save lives directly, it doesn't mean he has to dedicate himself to it, or that any other applications of his gift are somehow unworthy and devoid of meaning. I think this is a rather dangerous territory to tread, we can't decide for others what their lives should better be spent on. 

[Vitalis]

I guess in some ways he's the Durance of Deadfire? I never thought about it that way.

Certainly the likability of the character and the intricacy in writing them are two different things.

 

I always felt for all his faults, Durance had a lot of hard-won insight, whereas Tekehu has mostly arrogant Naïveté. But nothing in his background suggests he should be otherwise.

I don't think I will ever like Tunaman, but might be persuaded that he brings a new perspective to the game.

If he were the Durance of Deadfire he would embody the Huana way of thinking, similarly to how Durance provided the Dyrwoodan way of thinking. Yes. Durance is the typical Dyrwoodan not Eder.

 

#DuranceDidNothingWrong

[E.RedMark]

 

I guess in some ways he's the Durance of Deadfire? I never thought about it that way.

Certainly the likability of the character and the intricacy in writing them are two different things.

 

I always felt for all his faults, Durance had a lot of hard-won insight, whereas Tekehu has mostly arrogant Naïveté. But nothing in his background suggests he should be otherwise.

I don't think I will ever like Tunaman, but might be persuaded that he brings a new perspective to the game.

If he were the Durance of Deadfire he would embody the Huana way of thinking, similarly to how Durance provided the Dyrwoodan way of thinking. Yes. Durance is the typical Dyrwoodan not Eder.

 

#DuranceDidNothingWrong

 

YAY! so now everything gone wrong in Dyrwood is Durance fault! Awesome lol already hated the guy..

 

now I go and do this too : #EverythingIsDuranceFault 

 

[Dezmeria]

Yeah, well...how to say this...dude/dudette, you're waaaaay overthinking fishy sex thing and kind of veering into Tali Sweat Grosslands from opposite direction. Anyway, your own character can be wooden and mossy, have gross tumor head, or head that's on fire all the time (imagine making out with that, eh, eh? ), so the whole "scaly fishy dude with sentient hair" deal is tame in comparison.

 

(And yes, he is totally the best in character development/involvement with the story way plus his druid and theurge kits are very powerful, so fishboy da best boy )

 

Uh no I am not.  Your just not thinking about it the way I am.

 

When I walk through a fish market I'm not there to pick out wish fish I want to bang.

 

Just imagine the fishy smell. And the slime.   I don't need to find fish scales in awkward places.

 

Sleeping with a Nature or a Fire Godlike (fire could be problematic) is OK. But in terms of a fish...an animal.....uh no, just no.

 

And yes that includes Pallegina. I don't get turned on by the thought of seeing a chicken or a turkey.

 

Or have this deep desire to contract Avian Flu .  But at least she has a few things going for her: being pretty, no slime and does not smell.

[Celan]

 

His gift can actually be used to save lives.

 

It's not what others want from him, he is expected to unite the huana in the political sense and lead them into a better future... simply because he was born with scales and tentacles. Great reason to push a person to do something they don't want to do, about the same level as "You're ginger so you should fight for animal rights". 

 

And even if his watershaping can be used to save lives directly, it doesn't mean he has to dedicate himself to it, or that any other applications of his gift are somehow unworthy and devoid of meaning. I think this is a rather dangerous territory to tread, we can't decide for others what their lives should better be spent on. 

 

Sure, I was encouraging him to go his own way, so I respect that he doesn't want to be political figurehead. But in the end he apparently just wastes his talent completely, so I did regret that I'd led him down that path.

 

And the reason I'm deciding at all is that the game gives my character that power. In the end you don't force him, but I also don't have to like his choice.

Edited June 24, 2018 by Celan

[uuuhhii]

favorite are xoti

but tekehu are the best character

not hard to see how much writer put in to make tekehu the most important one in the story

even without a personal quest

[Yria]

Sure, I was encouraging him to go his own way, so I respect that he doesn't want to be political figurehead. But in the end he apparently just wastes his talent completely, so I did regret that I'd led him down that path.

 

And the reason I'm deciding at all is that the game gives my character that power. In the end you don't force him, but I also don't have to like his choice.

 

Sure, I'm not saying you should like his choices, I was only arguing with the "but he has no goals" part. He does have his own goals,  just because you or I might not like them doesn't make them nonexistent.

 

And apparently the only two ways he can go if you let him recover the secrets of watershaping on Ukaizo is either making sculptures or uniting the Huana in the name of the gods, and I'd rather not do anything that promotes the gods, so that's another reason for me to support his desire for independence (thoughI admit this is a bit metagamey). Imo better if he "wastes" his talent on creating stuff rather than on inspiring faith in the entities that proved their utter incompetence in Deadfire.