Andrea Renard

A creative and focused child, Andrea had done decently in school, though her parents always worried that she wasn't applying herself well enough. Losing those loving parents to a drunk driver, however, brought that creativity crashing down to zero. Nothing seemed to catch her interest, until her grandfather introduced her to Gunpla.

She had loved Gundam Wing when it had originally had its English airing, and so she earnestly started in on the Master Grade Wing Gundam kits, diving head-first into the deeper ends of the hobby. Hearing about the Gunpla Academy, she eagerly made plans to move in with an online friend of hers in London.

She had no illusions about her own skill; she knew that she would have to develop her talents on her own before she could attend, but moved anyway, hoping that living nearby the prestigious school would help her learn and grow enough to apply her newfound interests.

However, showing her Gunpla off allowed her to get feedback, and quite encouraging feedback at that. People would praise her use of weathering, her subtle touch at battle damage, and her methods of coloring effect parts. Andrea was convinced, at long last, that she had what it takes, and so she applied and was soon accepted into the UK Gunpla Academy, finding herself placed in Battleshipper Hall.

Physical
Andrea is slimly built, though not without muscle. She keeps herself lean with regular exercise, including walking to and from her job (a distance of roughly three miles), as well as never turning down the opportunity to move or lift anything heavy.

She inherited her mother's dark hair and her father's hazel-colored eyes, and usually wears a sly smirk on her lips. Her clothing is relatively simple, consisting of a tightly-cut black tank top, dark grey jeans, and partial gloves, with a pair of crosses around her neck, each one engraved with the name of one of her parents.

Personality
Andrea is an easy-going but passionate person, preferring to allow the world to pass by as she lives at her own pace. Despite already being 25, she originally planned on refining her techniques before attempting to enroll in the Gunpla Academy, feeling the need to keep up with the prodigies and wunderkind that the school tends to attract. Only receiving praise and encouragement from those who lived in the Academy's shadow allowed her to gather the courage to apply. While building, she tends to tune out the rest of the world, to the point where her roommate has given up trying to interrupt her.

In public settings, Andrea tends to be brash, outspoken, and a bit dramatic. She learned at an early age that nobody bothered confident people, and took that lesson to heart as she began her transition from one gender to another. She wears her confidence like armor, intentionally having trained herself to exude confidence and charm even if she's feeling down, just as a way to keep herself safe.

Gender
At first glance, it may be impossible to tell if Andrea is male or female. She is, in fact, transgendered, having been born male and coming to the conclusion at the age of 17 that she was meant to be a woman. She began chemical transition a year and a half later, and has since become androgynous. Despite identifying as a woman, her interests and personality tics still come across as fairly masculine, causing some to question her identity, much to her irritation. When confronted about it, she will often reply, "Hey, trans girls can be tomboys, too!"

Julien "Grand-père" Renard
Andrea's grandfather, on her mother's side. After her parents' death, he took the young woman in and cared for her, and was the one who originally got her interested in Gunpla, as he felt that having something constructive to do with her hands would be good for the grieving youth's mental health. He was correct, and as she became excited for the hobby, he agreed to move to the UK with her as she pursued her dream of attending the Gunpla Academy. He currently resides south of London, in Croyden.

Richard Hale
A close fried of Andrea's, the two originally met online. As Richard learned of Andrea's new interest in Gunpla, he brought up the topic of the Gunpla Academy, and as she began to fantasize about attending, he offered to take her in as a roommate. She agreed, and the two have been living together since.

Lufia Akita
The first of Andrea's fellow students that she met as she was moving her possessions into her new dorm room, as both of them have been placed in Battleshipper Hall. The younger woman helped her carry her boxes to her room, and the two quickly agreed to be friends. Lufia also offered Andrea her first bit of encouragement from her peers, as she claimed that Andrea's building skills were even better than hers as she saw the taller woman's Epyon standing atop her dresser.

Andy Loveless
Andrea met Andy while sitting in on a class dedicated to basic part removal and cleaning techniques, and the two had a long conversation about various topics, including what Gundam series they had seen, their respective pasts, what kit grades they preferred, and the events of the seventh Gunpla Battle World Championship's final.

Ezekiel McDaniel
One of the more senior students, Ezekiel and Andrea first met as Ezekiel was holding a teaching event alongside Alex King. Ezekiel was teaching battle techniques, and as Andrea felt she needed more serious practice in combat, she brought her Epyon to bear against Ezekiel's Destiny Gundam. During the fight, he pushed her to her limit, in the process teaching her the importance of fighting as herself rather than borrowing the identities of fictional pilots. The two fought to the end of the time limit, essentially having dueled to a stalemate. After meeting once more at a tournament and sharing an intense battle, Andrea declared that Ezekiel would be her rival. After several more encounters, including several heartfelt moments both during and following the armed raid on the Gunpla Academy's campus, the two adopted each other as siblings.

MG XXXG-00W0 Proto Wing Zero EW
Andrea's first hobby-level kit, this Wing Zero was built after the woman had spent a month and a half planning and preparing, watching and re-watching various technique videos on the internet. The result was quite impressive for a first attempt, but still has some nagging problems. Most notably, the kit is relatively fragile, owing to Andrea's decision to use enamel during the panel washing process rather than acrylic. The enamel thinner degraded the plastic, breaking several parts including the kit's v-fin and the inner mechanism for the shield's side blades. To this day, the kit can't support the weight of its buster rifle completely, leading her to regard the kit as unusable in battle.

MG OZ-13MS Epyon
Following her construction of the Wing Zero, Andrea felt she needed to construct its rival. The kit was constructed more carefully than its predecessor, leading to a much more solid and sturdy build. With this kit, in addition to panel washing in acrylic, she incorporated dry-brushing techniques she had learned from online friends who played tabletop war games, applying a weathering pattern inspired by Epyon's last appearance in Gundam Wing, where it stands in front of the core of Battleship Libra as it explodes. As this is the build that she feels the most proud of, it is the suit she prefers to use for Gunpla Battles.

MG XXXG-01W Wing Gundam
Andrea's favorite suit from Gundam Wing, the Wing Gundam was an enjoyable build, allowing her to experiment in using waterslide decals. However, several small issues arose during construction, including a mis-assembled abdominal piece and a broken shoulder joint. While the kit remains visually fine, these small issues leave the suit in a state that Andrea feels uncomfortable taking it into combat, and so it remains as a shelf decoration. The kit itself is weathered and painted to match certain episodes of Gundam Wing, a process which involved carefully watching the episodes and noting every point of damage the suit took, a process which Andrea referred to as "the Mad Thing".

MG OZ-00MS(G) Tallgeese Ground Type
A build that followed Andrea from her grandfather's home to her apartment with Richard, the Tallgeese was plagued with small issues that bothered its builder more than anyone else. Originally, Andrea had planned to paint the kit according to the original TV colors, but gave up on that plan when it became apparent just how expensive painting supplies were. It sat on her shelf for a long time, until she finally gave up and began to build it, as she couldn't afford to purchase other kits, and her pride as a builder wouldn't allow her to scrap it. During a late-night building session, Andrea accidentally assembled one of the vernier engine pods backwards, leading to it being unusable. Rather than abandon the kit altogether (a move possibly motivated out of pride and financial desperation more than anything else), she resolved to finish the kit in some form, leading to her decision to rework the kit as a ground-type mobile suit, completely without the large, bulky backpack assembly.

Roleplay Logs

 * Moving into the Big Leagues
 * Look to Your Peers
 * It IS a School, After All
 * A Visit from Someone Who Cares
 * When a Battle Becomes a Fight
 * The Quest for the Golden Revive
 * Secret Night Activities (Continued)
 * The Aftermath of Protecting Others
 * Tag Team Bully Busters! A Fight at the Arcade! (Unfinished)
 * Recollection
 * The Importance of Being Earnest
 * The Battle Royal