This page is going to be for some incomplete unstructured ideas on my next character.
I feel like I probably want to trade in DragonStar. He was very much focused on Martial Arts, The Immaculate Order, and The Dragon Blooded, in that order, with Endings coming a distant 4th. I think that for a more heaven-focused game, with the Maidens Crisis as its core, I need a character who's a more focused example of his Caste.
I'm pretty willing to be flexible and pick something fit into the party, as long as I can find a concept I find compelling. Endings is still my favorite Caste in concept, and in terms of the nature and flavor of the powers available, so I'm going to work from that for now. I've got ideas which stray into Secrets as well. I'm avoiding Battles intentionally to avoid becoming a clone of my last Solar character (who was Melee+Presence+War focused). I'm open to Serenity or Journeys, but haven't come up with anything compelling for them yet.
My particular interest in Endings is around the combination of abilities/Charms, which are likely to be common to many of the concepts below. In particular, I'm likely to want an MA-focused character regardless of caste, which makes Endings convenient. I really like Bureaucracy for Terminal Sanction and Underling Invisibility. Awareness and Integrity have several Charms which are both very useful and cool in concept (e.g. Death of Self Meditation, Inevitable Pursuit). Occult is reasonably likely to be included in any character too, just because long-term any Siderial will want Sorcery, and also it's good to be able to deal with Spirits directly. Performance will likely show up to some extent in any concept too, due to prayers, astrology, Heart-Brightening Presentation Style, and Defense of Shining Joy.
I think the important things to define about a character in our group creation session are the core ethos/focus, and the niche of powers he's likely to use. Below are my current ideas, defined along those lines. Several of these ideas follow on from each other, and several could potentially overlap into a single character.
Ninja: This concept would embrace the Endings Assassin stereotype. Not killing for money, though. Instead, he sees himself as responsible for removing the bad elements of society so that the remainder can survive. He'd probably understand the Usurpation as being necessary along those lines, though he could be convinced that the situations with new Solars today is different.
Charms would focus on MA, Stealth, Athletics. Bureaucracy for Terminal Sanction and Underling Invisibility. Styles would be VBoS and Ebon Shadow, followed by CMoS and Obsidian Shards of Infinity (the latter needing mechanical fixes, but I like its concepts). Social abilities would be focused on Manipulation, Disguise, etc.
Life/Death Balance: This concept would take a similar core ethos as the Ninja above, but with a different focus. The character sees himself as responsible for who should live and who should die, not just the latter. So his powers could be as much focused on saving people as killing them.
Charms would be similar to the Ninja, but with Medecine and Resistance (for the damage-transfer abilities) and less Stealth. Maybe add Thrown for the cursing effects. Styles would be VBoS and Wood Dragon (which is the most effective healing out there, and also has a good life/soul focus), followed by CMoS or Citrine Poxes of Contagion.
Doctor: This concept would follow the progression started by the previous two. The character starts as a physician, and still thinks like one. He sees Creation as an organism which needs care. He's responsible for curing its diseases, and surgically removing dangerous growths when necessary.
Powers very similar to the Life/Death concept. Potentially with a more scientific/academic approach, which could lead him into Secrets rather than Endings. or maybe Socialize and Bureaucracy as the tools for curing "social infections". Definitely Citrine Poxes of Contagion as his first Siderial MA.
Spirit Intimidator: This is a concept which could be its own or layer onto another one. The idea being the "dealer with spirits" of the party, with a focus on dealing physically, though dealing socially could be stressed too in a stand-alone concept. DragonStar fit this concept, with his approach to Spririts being that they should be kept in line and kept from interfering with Creation. The same concept could potentially have the opposite focus, thinking that Heaven and Gods are the only important things.
Powers here would include Occult, and the MA charms for hitting spirits. Styles probably VBoS and Wood Dragon again (Wood spans the soul/spirit line anyway). Possibly Sorcery coming in earlier than it would in other concepts.
Killer Bard: This concept isn't fully thought out, but I was somewhat inspired by Silver-Voiced Nightingale Style (Celestial - Scroll of the Monk), which could make a good core for a song-focused Serenity. Focus combat on MA+Perfomance, with Dodging rather than Parrying. Conceptually I would've add Dreaming Pearl Courtesan Style if it weren't so weird and useless. I don't have a personality for this one yet, though, and don't feel I know the Serenity Charm-set well enough to be sure what to do with it.