Eric DeLane comes from a long line of arena battlers. His father was one half of a two 'mon team in his youth and his mother was a successful battler in her own right. Eric's older brother is an up and coming talent in the Steelstar League, but for his part Eric never had much more than a passing interest in the arena despite having a natural talent for it. Nonetheless his parents enrolled him in the prestigious Poke-Combat Academy of Higher Learning in order to get him the best education possible, as well as to hopefully kindle what interest in battle he did have.

Eric did fairly well in both academics and battles but never did join a team. However the area in which he excelled was in the arts. Eric was a talented artist and entered into one of the academy's newest programs in production and promotions, steering his artistic talents towards that aspect of arena battles. His parents weren't overly thrilled by this decision but accepted it, feeling that any interest in the arena was better than none. Eric quickly became the "go to" guy when friends needed help designing a logo for their team, drawing up flyers for battles or other activities, or just wanted a drawing of their favorite cartoon or gaming character. While working together on a class project during their sophomore year Eric began a relationship with friend from elementary school Nicole Blackclaw. The two enjoyed a brief romance but ultimately their differing interests would lead to a breakup. The two remained friends, with benefits even, but near the end of his sophomore year Eric's father was diagnosed with a rare illness. The family moved to the Hoenn region so that Eric's father could be near a specialist for treatment and Eric left the Poke-Combat Academy, enrolling in an art school in Hoenn.

Recently Eric's father passed away after a long bout with the illness and the family left Hoenn and the bad memories behind, returning to their home in Viridian City. Eric was given the choice of enrolling in a fine arts school in Viridian City but instead elected to return to the Poke-Combat Academy, re-enrolling there mid-year. While not abandoning his art studies he stepped up his focus on battling in honor of his father. Although behind in his battle-oriented classes after attending art school for a year, he is determined to pick up the slack by undergoing intense battle training and taking extra classes. Upon his return to the academy he contacted his old friend and flame Nicole in order to enlist her aid in this effort but so far she hasn't come to any decision as to whether or not she's going to help. While her own plate is rather full, there are some old feelings that she didn't realize still existed exerting some influence over her. And him as well.

Eric is generally a nice guy although his demeanor and expression have gotten somewhat dark and brooding since his father's passing. He's typically cool and collected, putting on the image of the soulful and troubled artist, although he refrains from overdoing it or making a spectacle of it like some are prone to do. In contrast to his outward appearance he is passionate about both his art and his battling, particularly now that he feels he has a cause for both, and he tends to approach both with the same mindset. Eric's greatest assets in a battle are his speed, quickness, creativity, and intensity, which has caught many opponents off guard.