Matiss Ferrum

- Steve Yzerman

Matiss Ferrum is a citizen representing District 12 in the Hunger Games. They belong to Tehblakdeath. Please do not utilize this tribute in your Hunger Games without their permission. If you wish to use this tribute, leave the owner a message, either on their message wall or in the comments section.

Information
Name: Matiss Ferrum

District: Twelve

Gender: Male

Age: 18

Alignment: Lawful Neutral

Personality: Many people are aware of the surface level characteristics of Matiss, that of a strange individual. Rituals and routines are very key to him, ones that contribute to the upkeep of his physical form. Though these have helped to keep Matiss as a strong and well-toned athlete, many of these are oftentimes considered to be incredibly strange, perhaps eccentric in nature. Conversely, despite these odd, compulsive, consistent behaviours, Matiss demonstrates many good qualities for someone in his position as a teammate to possess, such as his cooperative nature, something that makes him a reliable team player for those he aligns with.

Height: 6'7"

Weight: 217 lbs

Weapon(s): Matiss's physique makes the use of medium to large weapons a very real and ever-present possibility. This build makes the use of a weapon like a scythe a prevalent option for combat situations. Though Matiss does not have any combat training with this weapon type, he is a quick learner, and focusing on training with them would likely mean he'd be at a fairly decent skill level by the time the Games actually start. Aside from that, Matiss would also find close quarters weapons suitable for his use. Brass knuckles and the classic but effective knife would both fulfill this expectation in his mind.

History:

Backstory=Honestly I will probably never write the full version. Just click the tabber above and to the side. Guidelines/Condensed Version=
 * Matiss is a District 12 native, born to Tapio Ferrum and Shelley Cay. Though his mother was a District 4 native, his father was a forward for his hometown District 12 Rangers.
 * Though few people were granted permits to travel from District to District, athletes in Panem's sports leagues were one group that were generally granted these permissions. This was no different for Tapio, seeing as he was one of the most well-respected players for any major organization in Panem's history.
 * It was actually during one of these trips that Tapio met Shelley: after a game against the District 4 Solar, Tapio had gone to dinner at a restaurant where Shelley happened to be bartending. Immediately smitten by both her and her alcoholic mixes, they spent the entire night talking with one another.
 * Soon enough, the pair became married, and Shelley moved her mixing business to District 12 with him, where it became very popular among both the wealthier and poorer citizens of the District.
 * Matiss was born four years after Tapio and Shelley's marriage, and spent his formative years following his father's footsteps.
 * Tapio would retire from the league when Matiss was 6 years old, focusing now on raising his child as a future athletic prodigy.
 * A combination of Tapio's famous status, Matiss's prospective athletic status, and some light bribery allowed for Matiss to stay out of the reaping bowl for quite some time.
 * This trend continued until Matiss was 15 years old, when a freak accident left Tapio paralyzed from the waist down and wheelchair-bound, making Matiss take a few months away from his development to care for his father.
 * Matiss was informed that he would be entering the reaping bowl starting on his 16th birthday, as his father's personal fame started to dwindle, and the time he took away from playing meant that the Capitol could no longer "assure his safety".
 * Nevertheless, Matiss soon returned to the rink, having lost almost none of his form during his time off.
 * At 17 years old, Matiss was drafted by the same team his father captained, in the 3rd round, 75th overall.
 * Matiss's 18 year-old year led to his callup to the Panem Hockey League by the Rangers, where he spent time as their backup, playing in his first game four months before the reaping.
 * Throughout 8 games, Matiss got 7 starts, 3 wins, 2 losses, and 3 overtime losses, posting a 2.19 GAA and a .926 SV%.
 * This limited sample size left the Capitol to debate whether or not they would give him an exemption. In the end, a poll between a select few elite had Matiss stay in the reaping bowl by just two votes.
 * That vote may have been the end of him: Matiss Ferrum became District 12's male representative in the 333rd Hunger Games.

Strengths: Matiss's physical abilities and endurance are clearly his defining strengths. They are both aspects of him that play into a clear role as a "face" among the Capitol audience. However, a more subtle strength of Matiss's is his memory and retention skills. Years of analyzing film tape has allowed him to develop a skillset revolving around predicting and expecting particular outcomes based on what he sees from his opposition. A major part of his strategy going into the Games is to watch predicted outcomes from Capitol betters, entertainers, and analysts, in order to properly develop an idea of who he needs to watch out for.

Weaknesses: Matiss has too much empathy in his heart. He wouldn't be able to bring himself to kill someone who he sees as helpless. This could not only cause tension within his preferred alliance, the Careers, but also could come back to bite him if they happen to be masking their true power and potential. Matiss's mental state is also a potentially sore spot: given his struggles with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), he has some volatility in terms of how his perception of himself can differ. Though he commonly feels suicidal as a result of this, he's never acted on these urges. However, it's not out of the realm of possibility that a certain combination of factors could trigger these detrimental actions.

Fears: Matiss's biggest fear is letting down the people that are relying on him to give it his all.

Reaping reaction: Matiss shook his head in disappointment when he was called, heading up to the stage while making eye contact with the cameras.

Group Training: Initially attending the Career "prospect camp", more commonly referred to as tryouts, Matiss will demonstrate his physical shape and the skills that have come with his years of athletic training and conditioning. Whether or not he is accepted, he'll spend the majority of his time adapting to his weapons of choice and studying skills that the rest of the Career pack likely wouldn't focus on, i.e. edible plant identification. If asked about why he's spending time at some odd stations, he will reference the idea that one should be prepared for any situation, no matter its likelihood. He's seen and heard of Games where arrogance and a lack of preparedness has killed Careers, Trent Korey in the 325th serving as his main example.

Individual Sessions in Training: Matiss's individual routine involves a quick weight lift to warm himself up, before moving into honing his weapon skills one last time before the Games truly begin.

Interview Angle: In spite of being quiet in nature, Matiss offers a valuable perspective as a C-list celebrity coming into the Games. His interview angle of choice reflects this: Matiss demonstrates a complex knowledge of the stratagem of the game and how his life experience as a professional athlete will increase his odds of coming out on top.

Alliance: Though Matiss will initially join the Careers, seeing them as his best opportunity to advance through the Games, Matiss's sense of honour and dignity will sway him to eventually part ways with them, particularly if one of them is someone he sees as needlessly cruel or bloodthirsty.

Token: Matiss's initial token, which was a roll of black grip tape, was denied for potentially providing an unfair advantage in the mid to late game. His backup token was also denied, being a keychain replica of his goalie mask, though this was for unknown reasons.

Mentor Advice: You gotta keep yourself in check, Matiss. Stay safe out there. Come back home for them, okay?

Inspiration and Etymology
Matiss Ferrum is a tribute that I developed exclusively for Luke's 333rd Hunger Games. While my original concept was going to be a District 12 Female following the modern trend of victors from said District (i.e. Charce Firre and Soot Dustcloud in regards to Luke's canon), on July 5th, 2021, Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks, who I had followed the development of since he was 17 years old, was killed in a fireworks accident, and thus my concept changed trajectory to reference him instead.

Matiss is a French derivative of the Greek name Matthaĩos (Μαθθαῖος), which itself derives from the Hebrew name Mattityahu (מַתִּתְיָהוּ), meaning "gift from God". Ferrum is the Latin term for iron, and given that District 12 heavily focuses on mining (though specifically coal), I figured it wasn't too much of a stretch to christen Matiss with that last name.

Trivia

 * Matiss's junior team and PHL team both derive from my Panem Hockey League project. This attribute is shared with Archaic tribute Zane Onyebuchi, Aether tributes Otto Lecavalier and Parker Kelly, and Nether tributes Oakley Wiesblatt, Brax Bailey, and Darkerr Blackvale.
 * Given Matiss's time and place in the chronology of Luke's 333rd Hunger Games, though, he is set in an alternate timeline without District 0 and 14's teams.