Edmund Rockwell

Edmund Rockwell is a 19th century London Chemist.  Ever since he woke up on the Island, Rockwell is curious about the wondrous properties the flora and fauna have.  With his keen intellect for his time, he has become the tribe leader of a neutral tribe on the Island.  However, his obsession and lust for more power starts him on a path of no return.

Alias:

• Stupendous Scholar and Scientist
• Gallant Gentlemen
• Explorer Extrordinaire
• Sir Edmund Rockwell
• Obsessive Man
• Monster
• The Master
• Corrupted Master Controller

Background

Being from 19th century London, all that is known is that Rockwell was among several scientists that laid the foundation of present day science but he may have done his own study and is unaware of other discoveries.  He may be from Victorian England because of England's past activity of expanding and controlling an empire so vast the sun never sets on it.

Personality

Being a 19th century British man, Rockwell is shown to be one of the kindest survivors, but his self-centeredness and sense of superiority over other survivors in terms of intelligence say otherwise.  Since his physical strength has waned due to his old age, his intellect is sharp and he uses that to get around other survivors, making him one of the most cunning manipulators in the ARK lore.

Before Rockwell started down on his path to corruption, Helena noted that he was a kind person who would offer what survivors need without hesitating. His gentleman, scientist, and scholar demeanor made him a mentor figure to Helena.

Throughout Genesis: Part 1, Rockwell enjoys mocking the survivor's ignorance of what is really going on and how the Earth's current condition, ARKs, Genesis Simulation, Element, and the Homo Deus fit together. According to HLN-A, Rockwell is far from the gentle, kind man that Helena Walker described as he corrupts survivors with Element and harshly editing one mind after another. He is also careless and arrogant while altering the Genesis Simulation as he leaves messes and backdoors but he seems to know that everyone in the simulation, including the player, aren't a threat to his plans. Time after time, Rockwell mocks the player for how they are now nothing compared to him and how little of what they know on what is really going on.

When confronted by the survivor in the Genesis Simulation during the Arrival Protocol, he mocks and insults the survivor through his avatar, the Corrupted Master Controller.

Relationships with Other Survivors

• Helena Walker
  • Being close friends when it comes to science, they always chat about the abnormalities of the ARKs over tea.  With Helena being from Australia, Rockwell sees her as lesser because he is from Great Britain but still respects her area of study.  No matter how much trouble Helena is in or if she needs something, Rockwell gives the things she needs as if she is his closest friend, a trait Helena well respects. 
  • However, when Helena left Rockwell out on an expedition, he doesn't forgive her and begins descending down madness because he feels like Helena abandoned him. 
  • On Scorched Earth and Aberration, he straight up lies to Helena since she is ignorant of the fact that he saw her in New Legion custody. Trying to keep Helena in the dark, he keeps his kind exterior intact.
  • Because of what he did as a monster, Helena is forever scarred of being held responsible for bringing the man that killed many Tek survivors.

• Nerva
  • The tribe leader of the New Legion, Nerva gives Rockwell an impression that he has permission to rule the Island.  His honesty and intellect makes him think he has the right to rule although accounts of Roman authority being harsh makes him have second thoughts about him.  However, the Roman Centurion is the reason why Rockwell began to descend into madness because Nerva exercised domination and his tempting offer of test subjects and aid of obelisk study.  This in turn, compromised every single relationship he had with other survivors except Helena's.  The only thing he doesn't like is how Nerva uses such a basic base layout.  However, his descent makes him want to ditch the New Legion so he can have the power of the obelisk for himself.  He even noted to wanted to dispose the New Legion over and over to reach his goals.

• Timur
  • The tribe leader of the Burning Phoenix, they first met when fellow Phoenix members took notice of Rockwell's exceptional medical skills as a nurse.  Rockwell was brought to their main headquarters to help Timur's wife Nasrin help deliver their child.  Rockwell's skills helped the tribe and he gained Timur's trust.  He used it to manipulate Timur to challenge the guardian. Upon victory, Rockwell took his Edmundium and the trophy into the night as the tribe choked on a poisoned feast that was compromised by Rockwell himself.

• Raia
  • The Masked Vigilante of the Desert Ark, Rockwell rarely interacts with her.  He only notes she is way too observant and can notice poison.  Rockwell calls her a witch and mocks the name Wali al Aswad.

• Mei Yin
  • Hearing stories about her, Rockwell get images of a person eating others with her creatures, where in reality, she is actually the most effective hunter on the Island.  Upon seeing her on the Aberrant Ark, he is enraged at seeing her in Tek armor and notes of her glares.

• Diana
  • Diana was Rockwell's caretaker before he became a monster.  Even though Diana truly said that she is taking care of him, Rockwell saw it as a way to use her as leverage to reach his goals of trying to "understand and unlock" a being's true potential.  When Diana saw Rockwell's monstrosity, she killed it and brought him before the council, removing him from any type of research.

• The Player
  • Beating him on the Aberrant ARK, Rockwell is enraged that he is bested by someone with far less power.  He even vows to them that he will come for them when he and his ARK landed on Earth.  In the Genesis Simulation, Rockwell only explains to the survivor about what Helena and the Homo Deus are planning for them and even goes to lengths in persuasion to prevent them from getting out of the simulation. When the player manages to wake up from the Genesis Simulation, Rockwell grabs the player and pulls them somewhere as the screen blacks out.

Appearance

Rockwell is an elderly man who always wears a pair of trusty glasses.  Time after time, he is portrayed to have the romantic hairstyle and a regular style for his beard and moustache. Even though he wears cloth and desert cloth, there was an instance when Rockwell wore a hazmat suit to the Molten Element region. Rockwell soon became a tentacle monster that is the second largest thing in the ARKs behind the King Titan. Refer to the monster Rockwell.

Abilities

“I did not expect much from Edmund Rockwell, but he has surprised me. He has a curious way of speaking, but he clearly possesses a razor-sharp intellect and a wide breadth of knowledge." ~ Nerva Explorer Note #13

Even though Rockwell isn't the strongest survivor, he makes up for in experience and intellect so concentrated a person would want to have a 2 month discussion with him about chemistry and the sciences. Nerva notes about his wide knowledge of managing politics, studying science and finding the best compromise of the various tribes on the Island.  His many recipes have also come to attention to how capable he is.  With them, he was able to travel to places where a typical old man would break. Within the span of the Island storyline, he has made a recipe for Fria Curry, Calien Soup, Steak Saute, Battle Tartare. Being from England, his background is focused on chemistry.  He has knowledge about chemical bonds when he studied element. To carry out his experiments, he regularly grabs unsuspecting new survivors that he does let them be taken care of.

Time to time, he remarks or exaggerates the numerous times he has traveled the world and bested some of the most dangerous predatory animals in his youth and past life. Two notable remarks are how he supposedly took down a Bengal tiger with his bare hands and how he can beat a seeker into submission if he was back in his younger years.

However, even if he has no power, his intellect is keen and wide to many survivors on the Island. That same intellect can help bring an agreement that can prevent a war between two warring tribes. But his intellect has a dangerous side as he was able to manipulate Nerva, the leader of the New Legion, and Timur, the leader of the Burning Phoenix Clan, into serving his needs without them realizing it. He even manipulated Diana, the emotional support of the Tek tribe into getting him the things he needs and wants.

When he gained power by turning into a monster with tentacles with an injection of Element into his body, he was able to ruin the highly advanced Tek village and create a massive hole in the middle of the Aberration ARK.

As more time passes, he becomes more accustomed to controlling Element than it controlling him.  As a result, he becomes a central pillar for Element much like the King Titan, but in a more controlled manner. Between the time between Aberration and Genesis: Part 1, he notes that his power and tools grow stronger with each passing day and have the potential to alter the very foundations of Earth. This is seen during the Arrival Protocol as he is using Element to control the many minds of survivors that will soon become Corrupted Avatars by corrupting said minds outside of the Genesis Simulation in an attempt to stop the player from escaping.

ARK story

Refer to the explorer notes

Notes/Trivia

Rockwell as a "Corrupted Human"

• Rockwell's Element-Infused monster form is similar to the Nephilim described in the Book of Genesis in the Bible.
  1. Both grew to massive sizes that are described to make a normal human pale in comparison in terms of size.
  2. Both of their behavior was abnormally aggressive and they acted like brutal tyrants. They were far from gentle, normal human beings.
  3. Both the Nephilim and the monster Rockwell were the union of a human body with an outside force that can easily twist their human traits. The only difference is that the Nephilim were the result of a union with a human body and an outside force(wicked angels) by birth while Rockwell was united with an outside force(Element) by injecting it into his system.

Gallery

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  Nerva's depiction of Sir Edmund Rockwell.

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  Helena's depiction of Edmund Rockwell as the obessive man she found in the desert

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  Rockwell begins his studies on Element.

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  Rockwell is engrossed in his obsessive studies on Element.

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  Edmund Rockwell envisions a future where humanity and Element intertwine to become one.

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  Rockwell is furious in being lectured as if he was a child because he injected a full dose of Element into a charge pet. As a result, Rockwell is unable to get another test subject.

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  Rockwell's partial corruption grows on his body in the form of tumors at the site he cut circulation from the rest of his body after he injected Element into himself to test its effects.

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  Edmund Rockwell writes letters at his desk.