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Armie Buff
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Sergeant Buff
Youuuu maggots! Whattaya think yer doin', invading Buff airspace?! It'll be a scorching day in Siberia before you get past me, ya yellow-bellied yahoos!

Armie Buff is the military-obsessed daughter of Archie Buff. After the traumatic death of her mother, Armie became a shut-in who was so terrified of the outside world that she communicated with other people exclusively via a remote-controlled helicopter drone in the manner of a drill sergeant. The drone also featured a voice modulation system that made her sound like a male in his early or late 20's. Armie appeared as a witness during the civil trial over custody of the Founder's Orb.

The arson attack[]

Born to Archie Buff and his Russian ex-military wife, Armie and her parents lived together in an apartment in the city. However, their lives drastically changed one day when their home was set ablaze in an act of arson, leaving Armie and her mother trapped inside. In desperation, Armie's mother broke down a window, grabbed her daughter, and leapt out of the apartment, which resulted in her death. Armie herself suffered severe damage to her legs, confining her to a wheelchair, but she otherwise remained physically unharmed thanks to her mother's sacrifice.

Surviving such a traumatic experience also left Armie with psychological scars, including a case of pyrophobia that was so severe that she would collapse upon seeing, smelling, or even just hearing about fire. In addition to this, she also became agoraphobic, shutting herself in her room in an attempt to avoid the outside world.

Doctor's Study

The Buffs' new residence in Kurain Village.

In an attempt to help his daughter overcome her fears, Dr. Buff resigned from his position as a professor of archaeology and moved them to a new home in Kurain Village. However, Armie's condition did not improve, as she spent all her time shut in her bedroom. She even created a modified helicopter drone to perform anything she needed to do outside her room. Said drone also featured a voice modulation system that made her sound like a male in his twenties.

Although she recovered from her physical injuries only a few months after the arson attack, Armie continued to use her wheelchair, as she knew that she would be homeschooled, and thus not have to venture outside her home to school, if she kept up the facade of needing it.

Another loss[]

Main article: Turnabout Revolution

Six months after the arson incident, Armie overheard her father arguing with Datz Are'bal. The exchanged ended with Are'bal being evicted from the house, as seen by Armie through her drone. Armie kept watch from her room as her father continued investigating an artifact he had acquired that was known as the Founder's Orb before suddenly setting it on fire. Seeing this, Armie's pyrophobia was triggered and she fell unconscious. Later, while milling about in the corridor outside her room on the first floor, she felt a stranger grasp her wheelchair and move it. Terrified, she fled back to her room.

Sarge

"Sarge" confronting Apollo Justice.

The next day, her father was found dead in his study. Armie's paranoia worsened to the point that she refused to meet anyone in person and kept as much of her identity and past a secret as possible, including claiming that her self-imposed isolation was "siege defense". When Apollo Justice and Dhurke Sahdmadhi arrived to look into the fate of the Founder's Orb, she initially sent out her drone to harass them, as she viewed them as nothing but intruders in her home. However, after Justice opened up about his own past, she opened up a little bit and become somewhat more friendly towards them.

After Justice and Sahdmadhi discovered the location in which Dr. Buff had hidden the Founder's Orb, a local politician claimed that it belonged to him and had renowned defense attorney Phoenix Wright represent him in a civil trial against Justice and Sahdmadhi. After being called as a witness for the trial, Armie left her home for the courtroom, but insisted on staying in the defendant lobby and testifying via "Sergeant Buff" instead.

She initially turned on Justice, believing him to be defending Are'bal, the man she blamed for killing her father, and proved extremely reluctant to remember the events of the night, even at one point stealing Athena Cykes's Widget device to stop a Mood Matrix session on her in its tracks as she was afraid to remember more details. After the presiding judge ordered her to continue the therapy session, she had the drone steal the judge's gavel. Subsequently, a minor firefight broke out as the bailiff and Cykes wrestled against the drone over the purloined items as Armie unloaded the drone's non-lethal gatling guns and missiles. Although they were able to retrieve the items, Armie was in incredible distress, but Cykes was eventually able to help Armie regain the confidence she lost after her mother's death, leading to the girl summoning the nerve to appear in the flesh at the witness stand.

Armie standing

Standing on her own two feet again.

Armie's testimony proved critical in the case being ruled in the defense's favor and Paul Atishon being charged with Dr. Buff's murder, as he had been the stranger who moved her wheelchair, leaving his fingerprints on it in the process. Following the trial, Armie admitted the truth behind the condition of her legs and, for the first time in months, stood up on her own two feet.

After the trial's resolution, Armie received an invitation to participate in an archaeological dig from the university her father used to work at. She hoped to find an ancient ruin to name in her father's honor, as well as the opportunity to visit Justice in Khura'in.

Personality[]

Armie Buff
Careful, soldier! Don't forget I could blow you away at a moment's notice!
Athena Cykes
S-She's just too cute...
Hillmugshot

Mugshot.

Sanagi

Her drone.

As a result of her trauma, Armie became withdrawn and espoused a philosophy of self-protection, although she admitted to feeling remorse about the sacrifices her father had made for her, as well as sadness at his death. In her "Sergeant Buff" persona, Armie demonstrated many traits and mannerisms of a stereotypical drill sergeant, such as giving people military ranks and referring to situations with various tactical terms. She also possessed a degree of technical skill and somewhat childish, violent tendencies, outfitting her drone with both surveillance capabilities and functioning (if harmless) weaponry, the latter which she had a tendency to use when angered.

Name[]

  • Japanese - Hiruneria Sanagi (佐奈樹 ヒルネリア):
    • "Sanagi" (佐奈樹), her Japanese surname, comes from "sanagi" (蛹), which means "pupa". This may be a reference to her initial shut-in nature metamorphosing into someone able to better take care of herself.
    • "Hiruneria" (ヒルネリア), her Japanese given name, comes from "hirune" (昼寝), which means "afternoon nap".
  • English - Armie Buff:
    • Her full English name is a play on "army buff", in reference to her military obsession.
  • French - Armie Déterre:
    • Her full French name is a play on "Armée de terre", which translates to "land army", the official name for the French military.
  • Traditional Chinese - Zuǒnàishù Jùnmì (佐奈樹 郡蜜):
    • "Jùnmì" (郡蜜) is a pun on "jūnmí" (軍迷), which means "military fan".
  • Simplified Chinese - Zuǒnàishù Jiālìdùn (佐奈树 嘉丽顿):
    • "Jiālìdùn" (嘉丽顿) is a pun on "jiālǐdūn" (家里蹲), which means "hikikomori".

Notes[]

  • Armie is the third witness in the series to give testimony without being physically present, the previous two being Shelly de Killer and Orla Shipley.
  • When entering the courtroom (and when the gallery murmurs), Armie is seen to not fully reach the witness bench, with her head stopping few inches above it. However, when the point of view is turned on her, she's shown to be taller than the stand without any support.
  • If Apollo chooses the wrong answer during the first segment of "Sarge"'s Mood Matrix in the civil trial ("Something else shocked you"), "he" references the possibility of developing a flamethrower. However, it is unlikely Armie would ever actually suggest this even when putting on a brave front, as even the discussion of fire would trigger her pyrophobia.
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