Hydaelyn Role-Players

I just got done posting at the welcome desk, but I really need some help with my character's backstory. Originally, she was going to be a lalafell... and then I went Au Ra (Raen) and things have been, kind of turned upside down.
Some key notes about her:

• Fairly shy, VERY easily flustered. come hunt me down, flirty characters!
  
• Loves cooking, gardening, taking care of people. She'd never turn down a person in need. Even if she wasn't qualified to help them, she'd do anything she could- even hand over her whole wallet...
  
• ...leading to our next point that she's kind to a fault. It's not that she doesn't understand the world is harsh, it's that she would rather get screwed over herself than not help someone who needed it.
  
• She's more of a foresty person- meaning she hangs out more in the Shroud/Gridania
  
• ...She has a Dunesfolk Lalafell name, and I'm keeping it that way! So she was probably raised by a lalafell or given her name by one.
  
• She's currently only 18, neutral good. 
  

That being said, my main idea here was... amnesia, after the Calamity. I figured it wouldn't be too uncommon for someone to have amnesia after that, from injury or even completely suppressing the memories due to trauma. For Mimifu it's likely the latter. She raised what money she could, getting it anywhere she could legally, to get a boat over to Eorzea... an older lalafell, an adventurer, took her in and moved her to Gridania, but left one day to never come back. Mimifu likely picked up adventuring herself to look for her guardian, but she really likes to just sit back and cook things to support those who go out into battle. 

If I do go with the amnesia idea, I'll be thinking of what her past would be... because I know, someday, she'll probably remember it. 

I was just wondering what you seasoned FFXIV roleplayers thought... Is amnesia too cliche? Really just throw any and all ideas at me, whether it's a small suggestion to what I have or a whole new idea entirely. My mind is open for all sorts of criticism and ideas! I'm not too familiar with the lore outside of the main story, especially when it comes to Au Ras... other than the fact that they obviously aren't from the main continent.

At 18 years old, you could probably play off their young age as the reason they're not too wise to the lore of the world. You could also do the amnesia too (though you do need to figure out how they got it- like a head concussion or the like)- nothing wrong with that! Either way, you don't need to get overly complicated here- a basic backstory is all you'll need and you can fill in the gaps later as you go. This pretty much holds true for both Au Ra and Lalafell- just pick the one you like most aethetically, and then go from there! You won't need to do much more than read the Wiki page for both races to have the basic idea you need. Once you're off and going, your environment and the other characters you encounter can help with shaping the character's destiny.

Thank you for your input!

She'll likely have dissociative amnesia, which is psychological rather than physical. Such dramatic memory loss is rather rare, but what I've figured is... 

I'm personally of the mind that whatever you decide to do, if you have thought it out really in-depth and plan to portray it accurately and in detail, you can make ANYTHING work. In this particular case, I think you've got a home run right here- I think your take here is pretty great overall. Garleans make a good excuse for just about any atrocity, too!

I tend to believe the simpler the better for basic character concepts.. you're certainly welcome to play an amnesiac, but I would think hard about what it is you're hoping to gain through that angle, and how you intend to play it, and resolve it (if it will be resolved).

Its one of those things that can be so easily eye-roll inducing, while sometimes it can form a key element of a very interesting plot. I'd just make sure that you have a good reason for wanting to do so before adding the additional complexity to the character's tale

Certainly any amount of ignorance about the world can be explained away by someone's upbringing or general character.  Most people are broadly ignorant, some even moreso than others.  That's nothing extraordinary or surprising, but in the hands of a character who is actually keenly curious and has simply been unable to explore the wider world (perhaps she had spent most of her youthful energy simple taking care of ailing parents, for example) could be as interesting as a recovering amnesiac.

But don't let me dissuade you, I am just trying to be helpful.  If that's the angle you'd like to take, and it works for you, then run with it ^_^

Thank you for your input! I definitely do have a goal in mind for what I'm doing; the situation is quite personal to me as someone who has gone head to head with trauma. I definitely agree it can be super eye-roll inducing!

My hopes for it is the kind of character development I can see from it. When she remembers her past, will she break, or will it make her stronger? The possibility of it giving her a new goal, one that perhaps she can move forward to with the people she meets.. Of course, there are definitely other ways of getting this effect, but I do feel like this is something I can go deep into as a player. Repressed memories are awful, and they come back in so many different ways.. and I'm almost positive she'll start remembering things as soon as she stops hiding in corners all the time. 

Seeing it from a different angle definitely helped me think it through more, though, thank you! Of course, there's always her life from before everything went down to think of, too, because she will eventually have to face it. At that point, taking care of parents or running a store- those things would definitely explain some of her hobbies and skills.

If you have actual personal experience in amnesia or trauma maybe it can actually help you play an usual cliché and turn it into something interesting and believable.

If you want to go the road of something a bit less dramatic, there is options too. This is a highly magical world, and in the Shroud, we have for example creatures called Sylphs that are said to be very fond of pranks, varying from the mild incomprehensible item misplacement to much more grave things. I don't see it as a stretch to imagine a certain combination of beguiling/confusing spells that were made to last under specific conditions that induced a certain kind of amnesia. Or even a selective amnesia, and whatnot.

This would however shift the crux of the matter from a fight against herself (her own repressed memories) to a fight against a curse. Or a fight against a curse that makes her believe she has to fight against herself.


Edit: You might want to take care with the combination of two character traits that tend to add obstacles to most RP situations. Shy characters, while totally fine in themselves, add a challenge for you to reach out to other characters. Just expecting others to naturally come to yours will often have to happen after you proatively make it happen OOCly with other players. If your character is interesting enough (and the amensia thing may help), they will come, but that's not always enough. Shy characters can be frustrating to play, as I know from experience for near than 8 years on another game. Especially if they are -very- shy. These are especially hard to play because not only they are shy, but to a point where walking up to them is not enough to shake them up, and thy might remain very shy with their friends also. It takes a bit of RP witchcraft to turn that shyness into a proactive and defining character trait, where the character becomes that valuable addition to the roleplay of the group and the shyness is actually a proactice answer that shows up at the right time (if that makes any sense?).

Take also care with crippling illnesses like amnesia or anything very noticeable. It tends to immediately derail RP from its flow when it gets to be mentionned. You might want to thread carefully and know when is the right time to bring it up in roleplay.

You bring up a lot of important things to think about; thank you! I may actually... combine the sylph thing with what I have, if that makes sense. Maybe her lalafell guardian actually asked the sylphs to solidify her amnesia out of worry for her? With this, the fight against herself will only start once the curse is removed. Perhaps she had repressed memories before but never slept well and couldn't deal with things such as fire or magitech equipment; but with the curse, she could be nervous at worst around them.

Of course, I am aware that a shy character can be very difficult to play! I've played a large range of characters in roleplay for the past 8 or 9 years; creating a solid but shy character requires some RP witchcraft indeed. It's certainly something I'm willing to work with/around! Not to mention, she's not shy all the time; if she sees someone who needs help, she'll break that barrier immediately. Of course, she might be a little embarrassed once she snaps out of her "helper" mode...

As for amnesia and the possibility of derailing RP; her bringing up her amnesia would require her to be at least somewhat close to someone, and they themselves asking about something that would trigger the conversation. Mimi doesn't like making a scene or having people worry about her; she'd likely talk about the currently unnamed lalafell as if she adopted her when she was an infant, and most people would probably just think she was an orphan unless they purposefully did more digging. Mimi has a good few years on her amnesia as well, so she has other memories to talk about; it shouldn't be very obvious in most circumstances.