Engine Eberhardt/IF-69.19

===Background===
Engine Eberhardt is an accomplished glitch hunter, speedrunner, and theoretical physicistEberhardt technically never studied physics, but once he claimed that he could “theoretically be a physicist”. No one could argue with that, so he was given a Ph.D. on the spot.. He currently holds the world record in the “any%” category of 82 unique video games, and has submitted over 1,000 runs of various games to online leaderboards. He’s most well known for his innovative way of playing blaseball, where he applies various speedrunning tricks on the field. In practice, this often means baserunning at impossible speeds, avoiding defensive players via hitbox manipulation, and abusing broken physics objects to get hits. 
Prior to joining Lift’s shadows, Eberhardt had no background in blaseball, and instead was interested in track-and-field. He claims that he joined the team on accident after an experiment using scripted momentum launched him straight into The Legscraper faster than it could render, trapping him in the shadows. At that point, he found himself on a dark, empty blaseball field, and with nothing else to do, began to optimize the time it took him to run the bases until his release from the shadows.
Though he’s never used them, Eberhardt claims that, during his time in the shadows, he discovered exploits that would make blaseball completely unplayable, such as one that would give the offense infinite runs. When asked by one reporter, he explained that he avoids those techniques to maintain the integrity of the game. “After all,” he said, “guys like me doing stuff like that ruins it for everyone. What’s the point if I’m the only one having fun?”
===Transfer to the Steaks===
After several seasons on the Lift, Eberhardt became curious about opportunities on other teams. He eventually signed up for an exchange program and expressed interest in the Dallas Steaks, because of their car-dad team culture. He and Cory Ross agreed to a year-long exchange with one another.
Eberhardt spent its year in Dallas learning about American culture and American cars. It became friends with fellow car enthusiast Dickerson Morse, who taught Eberhardt about car dad culture, and with Kline Greenlemon, who liked spending time with Eberhardt as it practiced its speedrunning technique. Greenlemon, despite being in a state of quantum flux, made a point of being small enough to sit on Eberhardt’s shoulder as often as possible.
===Return to the Lift===
At the end of Eberhardt’s year-long exchange, he returned to Tokyo. Greenlemon decided to also go to Tokyo, wanting new experiences. The two of them introduced the rest of the Lift to country music. In Season 20, Eberhardt had different walk-up songs, all of which were country music.
Eberhardt also spoke in English in interviews for the first time, with a distinct Texan accent. It got in the habit of shouting “git along, little doggy!” whenever someone hit a home run and ran the bases, and called reporters “pardner” mid-conversation, even in interviews where he spoke Japanese. Concerned teammates called Cory Ross, who said that the Steaks didn’t intentionally teach Eberhardt any of that. The origins of Eberhardt’s accent remain mysterious. When a brave reporter asked about it, Eberhardt mimed lassoing them like cattle and then walked away. No reporters have asked since.
===Transfer to the Steaks (Again)===
After just one year back in Tokyo, Eberhardt was contacted by former teammate Knight Triumphant, who wanted to continue their league-wide mission. Eberhardt agreed to return to the Steaks so that Triumphant could spend time with the Lift. He spent the next two seasons in Dallas, this time alongside Ross, who helped Eberhardt learn to become more dad-like. It also befriended Leach Herman, who tried to teach it to do speedrunning tricks while wearing chaps, spurs, and a cowboy hat. Eberhardt reported the most problems with the spurs, saying that “they threw me off my game,” but figured it out with help from Herman.
Eberhardt also spent two years attempting to introduce the Steaks to Beef Wings; the results of these experiments are in a legally sealed court document. When asked, the Steaks say that they don’t remember what Beef Wings are. It’s unclear if this is because of the court settlement or because of the nature of the Beef Wings themselves.
===Return to the Lift (Again)===
Triumphant eventually indicated that they wanted to return to the Steaks, and a slightly-homesick Eberhardt agreed. Eberhardt spent the remainder of the Expansion Era with the Lift. This time, when it returned, it was excited to announce a newfound passion for square dancing. Once again, all the Steaks refused to claim responsibility for this trend. Herman, however, proudly claimed his role in Engine’s new cowboy-inspired fashion sense. Teammates were split on whether the cowboy hats and four spurs per boots were an improvement over Eberhardt’s previous fashion sense.
Some lasting effects of Eberhardt’s time in Texas became gradually clear. Eberhardt enjoyed grilling, and regularly gathered the team for team meals. This companionship became even more important as the end of the Expansion Era approached, as a way of keeping the Lift together. Also, he kept the Texan accent. If anything, the accent got stronger after the second trip to Dallas.
During Season 24, Eberhardt used its video game speedrunning prowess to help find shortcuts as the team navigated towards the Horizon. It stayed in touch with the Steaks as they navigated towards the Vault, but ended up focusing its time and energy on its current teammates, including helping a recently-redacted-and-attracted Frankie Incarnate adjust to being on the Lift.
===Personal Life===
Eberhardt is close friends with Ayanna Dumpington and Goodwin Morin for their similarly fast-paced lifestyles, and occasionally bonds with Silvaire Semiquaver and Cudi Di Batterino over their time in the shadows. In his free time, Eberhardt has been known to time himself running the bases, trying to find new ways to exploit reality and improve his time. He still regularly posts speedrun attempts of various games to the internet.
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