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+--- Thread: [Discussion] Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character (/showthread.php?tid=18947)
Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - Amnesic - 03-25-2017
I'm looking to get some lore and viability checks as well as some opinions for a character idea I've just finished. I don't exactly have too much of an idea how the Maelstrom works, how they name their ships, and where exactly technology stands in different decades, so that's what I'm mostly needing clarified with lore. Viability-wise, I need some help on seeing if a physical healer can make it in a world with magic healing, (I would figure they can, but you never know).
Anyroad, here's the character information:
Basics:
Catharine Mella Bethune, or Missy as she usually prefers, is a Midlander Hyur in her late twenties whose primary profession for the last ten years is acting as a self-taught nurse and contract medic for the Maelstrom in Limsa Lominsa. Her hair is entirely silvered as if she was much older than she is, and has been since she was ten, due to a hereditary trait consistently passed down in her family.
Appearance:
Despite all of her efforts to conceal it, Missy visibly has a prosthetic left forearm made out of a mix of carved wood and leather with metal mechanisms attached to the remainder of her left arm. It is purely controlled by a small, flat lever on the inner side that basically controls making her hand close inwards to the maximum of a loose fist. Her tinker brother made a total of three for her, but the second one has always been the one she prefers.
Profession:
She uses very little healing magic, instead opting to use various medicines, bandages, light surgery, and the like out of personal preference. She has only generally treated people who walk in off the street and the guards in the city, but on occasion she has ended up treating a few higher ranking soldiers. She learned what she knows from a few old books and experience, but she’s basically been doing it her whole life. Most of the time she works in her clinic; also known as the main room of her somewhat small house.
Personality:
For a very large majority of the time she stays in a calm and motherly attitude towards any of her patients regardless if they are older than her, continuing to treat them like children even after they are long out of her care. This includes (but is not limited to): fixing meals, bringing up embarrassing topics, terms of endearment, and general fussiness. Sometimes the kind side of her can vanish in dire situations, but the calm never vanishes. Her sympathy for almost anything borders on boundless, and she is in some ways, too caring.
If you notice anything off or incorrect at all, just tell me! Opinions are very welcome!
RE: Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - Amnesic - 03-26-2017
So, er, nothing at all? I'll try bumping this then; seriously, even just a comment or something is fine by me.
RE: Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - SafetyGoggles - 03-26-2017
I'm not a loremaster but I've rp'd with medical doctor types, and I actually find this very refreshing and enjoyable in comparison with the 's age magic wand, you're healed!' (Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I like injuries to take time to heal)
I've also met many people with various types of prostethics and yours seems well thought out and lore friendly c:
RE: Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - Nero - 03-26-2017
I like it quite a bit. It's a humble background with a lot of detail, which I personally appreciate highly. The idea of a medicinal person who doesn't use much magic is one I've never encountered, so you've got a unique idea going for you there. I enjoy the suggestion that the family has an Elezen heritage and also have no idea where it came from.
As for lore details!
One of the wonkiest things to deal with in FFXIV is the timeline, given the irregular years and eras; I'd advise getting this sorted because it's...really, needlessly confusing at times.
The current in-game year is at is hazy, but the best guess is the year 1 (or possibly year 0) of the Seventh Astral Era. Preceding this was five years of the Sixth Umbral Era, and before that, 1,572 years of the Sixth Astral Era. So for example, piracy in Limsa Lominsa was outlawed in the year 1563 of the Sixth Astral Era, so that's about 15 years between then and present day (+9 years in the Sixth Astral until 1572, +5 years in the Seventh Umbral, +1~ for the Seventh Astral Era). The Maelstrom was founded in 1572, so there's currently about six years between their founding and present day.
Technology-wise, Eorzea is a couple of ways away from industrialisation; the best estimate would be roughly 18th-century technology, with a lot of exceptions. Limsa Lominsa has a thriving firearm industry, mostly utilising muskets.
As for purely medicinal based healers, it would work fine. I like the concept a lot. The thing with healing magic in Eorzea is that it's not instant regeneration; for example, if you set and mend a broken bone with healing magic, you probably still should put a sling around it until it heals fully for at least a week, maybe. The recuperation time is a bit hazy, but it could be anywhere from a couple of days to a month. The point is that healing magic isn't an instant cure-all, so medicine still has a place in Eorzea.
So while the "main" battlefield healers would undoubtedly be conjurers or arcanists, who are unparalleled at life-or-death situations using magic, there would still need to be personnel responsible for actual after-action care and recuperation. I can imagine your character in a field hospital like Florence Nightingale (though hopefully with fewer amputations and horrendous gangrene). Healing magic can make fatal wounds non-fatal, but they still need to be properly cared for in a traditional manner for some time.
For the most part though, non-magical doctors in Eorzea tend to be alchemists or have undergone alchemical training. Alchemy in medicine is primarily used to treat diseases and chronic conditions, since things like common injuries and wounds can be mostly taken care of with magic. Potions are an acceptable stopgap measure, but potions, being liquid aether, are impractical to use regularly outside of emergency situations.
Regarding the Maelstrom: currently, Limsa Lominsa is headed by a Chief Admiral. Beneath her is Maelstrom Command. Maelstrom Command itself is responsible for two different fleets and a ground division called the Yellowjackets. The Yellowjackets are a sort of combined militia and police force, used to keep the peace within La Noscea.
The first fleet is the Crimson Fleet, consisting of five squadrons, with four in reserve. These squadrons are simply referred to by their numbers, and are each stationed in different waters around Eorzea. Squadrons themselves contain an unspecific number of levys. You can think of squadrons as battalions, and levys as companies or platoons.
The second fleet is more of a provisional organisation of privateers under Maelstrom Command. Essentially, these are former pirates or adventurers who have agreed to serve under the Maelstrom as part of the Foreign Levy.
For ship naming, there's no real naming convention you need to worry about. The Maelstrom is nominally a military organisation, but it's comprised of pirates or former pirates who all name their ships whatever they want, so I wouldn't worry about that.
I think that's all I have off the top of my head, so feel free to ask questions, but keep at it! I think this is a great character concept!
RE: Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - C'kayah Polaali - 03-26-2017
My main character has some conjury, and does some healing with it when necessary, so I pay attention to the way different people handle it.
Building on what Nero said, one of the things I've seen that I really like is the idea that magical healing is normally the equivalent of primary treatment - setting a bone, bandaging a wound (but better, because the skin closes), performing life-saving surgery - that is normally followed by a period of "regular" healing, but that it can be used in an emergency to "force" the issue. The tradeoff is that if you use magical healing to force heal an injury completely, it won't heal as well. Force healing a broken bone so that a fighter can immediately return to combat will result in a weakened bone that is prone to rebreak. Strenuous activity might make a force-healed laceration tear open again. In addition, the force-healed person's body is running all the more on reserves, so when they finally do run out of steam, they'll require an extended period of recuperation to fully heal.
RE: Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - Amnesic - 03-26-2017
(03-26-2017, 12:41 PM)Nero Wrote:
Well for the most part it doesn't seem there's too much I'll have to change with the time. The only real problem as far as I can tell is the creation of the Maelstrom and the period in which her brother was employed.
Given that her brother would be thirty-five now, it means he would have had to be in it as early as twenty nine, creating the problem that he would have already vanished by this point, so I'll have to figure out which part I'll need to change. Either, I'll need to move up his disappearance to be much more recent, or have him never be part of the Maelstrom in the first place.
Either way damages it to me, and I'll have also reason out a new way on how she managed to obtain her contract with the Maelstrom. This one'll be tough because it was one of her primary RP hooks as well. The Calamity was technically six years ago, right? I might be able to work with it using that as a hook as well. As for the Maelstrom, I would figure Cyril would be under privateer division should I keep him in there.
It's not a large detail, but would the pirates that took her family still be capable of having early magitek? Twenty-five years ago seems like quite a jump, but I'm very unfamiliar as to which cultures currently hold it and for how long they've had it. This detail can suffer to be removed, but it does add explanation as to why she dislikes magitek.
I've mostly planned her to be the odd mix of a family doctor and a field medic, so her working in field hospitals would probably be likely enough. Her living room has essentially functioned as a hospital during times when there are lots of wounded going around. Basically, the part of her profession is perfectly fine and within lore, and to my great relief, I don't have to change this idea entirely.
Thank you for all the information, it's been a really big help and it has saved me from quite a big error. (And, sheesh, the time is really confusing in Eorzea!)
(03-26-2017, 02:40 PM)Ckayah Polaali Wrote: My main character has some conjury, and does some healing with it when necessary, so I pay attention to the way different people handle it.
Building on what Nero said, one of the things I've seen that I really like is the idea that magical healing is normally the equivalent of primary treatment - setting a bone, bandaging a wound (but better, because the skin closes), performing life-saving surgery - that is normally followed by a period of "regular" healing, but that it can be used in an emergency to "force" the issue. The tradeoff is that if you use magical healing to force heal an injury completely, it won't heal as well. Force healing a broken bone so that a fighter can immediately return to combat will result in a weakened bone that is prone to rebreak. Strenuous activity might make a force-healed laceration tear open again. In addition, the force-healed person's body is running all the more on reserves, so when they finally do run out of steam, they'll require an extended period of recuperation to fully heal.
I'm still debating if she should have the ability to use healing magic, but as it stands she basically sticks to primary treatment by physical means (bandages, splints, and the like), any herbs or poultices that produce healing benefits, and the use of potions and antidotes in emergencies. I'm currently leaning away from her having magic of any kind given her secluded past and perhaps adding to why she is not a fully well-known name around Limsa Lominsa. That, and she can reassure people her ways make sure it (mostly) grows back stronger, right?
RE: Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - Sounsyy - 03-26-2017
Nero actually did a pretty great job of going everything, so I'll just be adding a few more details, links, and blurbs that could help you out further.
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(03-25-2017, 11:27 PM)Amnesic Wrote: I'm looking to get some lore and viability checks as well as some opinions for a character idea I've just finished. I don't exactly have too much of an idea how the Maelstrom works, how they name their ships, and where exactly technology stands in different decades, so that's what I'm mostly needing clarified with lore. Viability-wise, I need some help on seeing if a physical healer can make it in a world with magic healing, (I would figure they can, but you never know).
First, let's talk about the Maelstrom! The Maelstrom was founded in the Year 1572 (roughly 5~6 years ago officially) by "Chief" Admiral Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn. One of the many confusing things about Limsa's government and military is that the city-state is usually run by an "Admiral" who wins the Trident held once every seven years. In order to unite Limsa Lominsa's many factions together against the Garlean threat, Merlwyb abolished this system and made herself a "Chief Admiral," giving herself complete unfettered dictatorship of every ship in Lominsan waters, pirate to merchant. The last Chief Admiral was Agatzahr Roehmerlsyn, who created the Trident system in the Year 992. Just so you can get an idea of how unprecedented this move was.
Anyways, Merlwyb gathered all armed vessels under her new rule and created the Maelstrom Grand Company. It's primary force, called the Crimson Fleet, is made up of the first five of the old Lominsan Armada's (known as the Knights of the Barracuda) nine squadrons. Each squadron is devoted to one specific body of water under Limsa's control. The remaining four squadrons of the Lominsan Armada remain in reserve status and are still known as the Knights of the Barracuda.
The Maelstrom's secondary force are it's Privateers, which are a conglomerate of the many pirate factions who decided to raise their banners with Merlwyb, as well as the Foreign Levy, which is made up of foreigners and adventurers and act to bolster the Maelstrom's land-based infantry. Prior to the formation of the Maelstrom, it was the Knights of the Lominsan Armada's 1st Squadron, known as the Yellowjackets, who acted as Limsa's only land-based marines and police. After the Calamity, the Yellowjackets were separated from the 1st Squadron to act as peacekeepers while the Maelstrom acted in a military capacity.
Lodestone Wrote:At the heart of the Thalassocratic Navy lies the Crimson Fleet, composed of five independent squadrons, the First through Fifth. The Maelstrom is an extension of the First Squadron, expanding its role as armada flagship and granting it power to administer not only the remaining four squadrons, but the various merchant fleets that navigate the seas of Vylbrand. With the reestablishment of the Maelstrom, the Admiral has invoked ancient maritime law, by which she promoted herself to Chief Admiral, effectively expanding her authority to cover not only state and military dealings, but grant her the power to directly command all ships in Lominsan waters.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Maelstrom Command oversees two armadas: the Crimson Fleet and the privateers. The former is the Maelstrom's main force, and is composed of five of the Lominsan Armada's original nine squadrons. While the formal Lominsan navy and the Knights of the Barracuda initially preserved their separate command structure, it was completely integrated into the Maelstrom following the Seventh Umbral Calamity. The Yellowjackets, once infantry of the Barracuda, have since been granted independence so that they may keep the peace throughout Lominsan territory.
The privateer fleet, on the other hand, is an auxiliary force. It includes pirate vessels that answered the Admiral's call, armed merchant ships that have been requisitioned, and retired warships that have been refit for service. The Foreign Levy is the final component of this fleet, an incalculably large contingent of adventurers whose experience fighting on dry land makes up for Limsa's historical lack thereof.
So when you say your character and her older brother worked for the Maelstrom ten, fifteen years ago, they would have actually been assisting the Knights of the Barracuda. Piracy would be legal, and Limsa's primary economy, until Merlwyb takes office in 1563.
More lore on the Maelstrom, Limsa's government and laws, and military can be found in the links below. Limsa Lominsa lore is my strongest suit, so if you have more questions feel free to ask.
-Limsa's Government Lore
-Maelstrom Lore Overview Doc
-Yellowjacket and Lominsan Armada Lore
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:The Crimson Fleet
1st Squadron (Galadion) - 2 war galleasses, 4 galleys, 2 galleons
2nd Squadron (Bloodbrine) - 1 galleass (Bonnibell), 4 galleys, 1 galleon
3rd Squadron (Merlthor) - 1 galleass, 2 galleys, 3 galleons
4th Squadron (Indigo) - 1 galleass, 5 galleys
5th Squadron (Ash) - 1 galleass, 5 galleys
Historically, galleasses are the largest class of ships. Galleons are middle ranged. Galleys are the smallest. But it's hard to say if this holds true in the Knights of the Barracuda. The Astalicia is typically referred to as a "galleon" but it's model is the largest class of ship, seemingly contradicting the normal size values. The Whorleater, which is made from two galleons strapped together, uses the correct mid-sized three mast ship model. In Erik's version of the tale of Bloodshore, he also notes Galleys as being a sizable vessel, with noted smaller warships. Galleasses are only noted in the lore book, so it's hard to note their size outside of real world context.
In game (assuming the ascribed sizes are correct), galleasses (5 masts) are represented by the Triumph, Victory, and Astalicia (found in Barracuda Piers, Moraby Bay, and Lower Decks respectively). Galleons (3 masts) are represented by the Braveheart (found in the Wolves Den - as well as found in Barracuda Piers and 1.0 Lominsan MSQ). Galleys (1-2 masts) are represented by the Lost Duchess and Rhotano privateer (found in the Sahagin quests near Moonshade Isle and outside Costa del Sol respectively).
As far as ship naming goes, as you can see, it's pretty open ended. Personally, I like to name my ships with words from the Roegadyn language, but you don't see many if any of those in the game yet. I actually brought this up to Fernehalwes, and he said he's hoping we'll have an upcoming quest explain more about the original settlers of Limsa Lominsa and why a Roegadyn ship from Aerslaent (the Galadion) doesn't have a Roegadyn name.
Thalassocratic Ships: Triumph, Victory, Galadion, Braveheart, Bonnibell, the Swallow
Pirate Ships: Astalicia, the Misery, Lady Infernal, the Haar, Cloud Dancer, Rusty Claw, Jolly Merchantman, the Stormcry, the Beagle, the Nonsuch
Merchant Ships: Ice Princess, the Orion, the Morningstar, Imperial Princess
As for non-magical healing, that's actually the vast majority of Eorzea's healers! Even though they're widely underrepresented in roleplay in favor of magical healing, which is comparatively more rare in the lore. There are medics, chirurgeons, surgeons, cutters, phrontists, hospitaliers, and herbalists across Eorzea that use traditional methods. Even in places like Gridania and Ishgard that have Conjurers, there's multiple lore points sourcing that traditional methods are still used in addition to magical efforts, especially during extended or long-term care of a patient. Magical healing, in lore, appears only to stave off immediately life-threatening injuries. Once exhausted, healers must resort to herbs, potions, and other traditional remedies to cure afflictions, diseases, and infections.
A very in-depth post on this can be found here.
For drugs and herbal remedies, these threads might be helpful:
-Eorzean Drugs
-Tinolqa's Botanica Eorzea
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(03-25-2017, 11:27 PM)Amnesic Wrote: Despite all of her efforts to conceal it, Missy visibly has a prosthetic left forearm made out of a mix of carved wood and leather with metal mechanisms attached to the remainder of her left arm. It is purely controlled by a small, flat lever on the inner side that basically controls making her hand close inwards to the maximum of a loose fist. Her tinker brother made a total of three for her, but the second one has always been the one she prefers.
It's actually really refreshing to see someone use a prosthetic that isn't magitek. Magitekâ„¢ is specifically Garlean machina, and while it has made its way into limited circulation around Eorzea, it's still an incredibly rare resource. Its use and distribution is tightly controlled by first, the Garlond Ironworks and then the upper echelons of the Grand Companies, though some undoubtedly makes it onto the black market. The process goes kind of like this: Lominsan privateers scrap defeated Garlean ships. Those privateers then either sell it on the Black Market or turn in their finds to Maelstrom Command for a reward, who then send it to the Garlond Ironworks workshop. The Ironworks then takes that tech, studies it, replicates it or weaponizes it, and ships it off to the Grand Companies to utilize. Limsa is attempting to create magitek-inspired, ceruleum powered warships with its share of the returns.
The technology that is much more widely available to Eorzeans is Clockwork, which is created by goldsmiths and tinkerers. Though in regards to actual prosthetics, we most often see references very plain "peg-legs" and other basic wooden/light metal contraptions.
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(03-25-2017, 11:27 PM)Amnesic Wrote: When she was around the age of five, pirates using an earlier form of magitek, whose origins are still unknown to her, ended up capturing both of her parents for reasons she does not even know today.
Assuming this is some 20ish years ago, this might've been a rare sight. Not impossible though! Garlemald hit their magitek revolution around the Year 1513, which was about sixty-five years ago. With the help of Midas nan Garlond and his son, Cid nan Garlond, leaps and bounds in magitek technology and warmachina catapulted Solus zos Galvus into leadership and a position to unify the northlands of Ilsabard and forge the Garlean Empire.
It wasn't until 1572 that all trade with Garlemald ceased in Limsa and Ul'dah, so some magitek devices could've found their way into Eorzean hands, however, the majority of Garlemald's magitek advancements were made for military application (civilian use is also canon, but we don't know to what extent) so it's unlikely that a Garlean trade ship would've parted with any of that sort of tech willingly, and it takes a special kind of pirate crew to knock over a magitek drommond.
So a few options could be Garlean sailors or merchants, Far Eastern drommonds under the Imperial banner, or a band of very brave pirates? I'm assuming this is what inspires the brother to really take after tinkering? Seeing as how this takes place on the Thanalan coast, you could also say that they were Ul'dahn pirates or part of Ul'dah's Golden Fleet. (I have a personal headcanon that Ul'dah's merchant ships may use mammet servitors as part of their crew.) So that could be another option, but ultimately that's up to you!
Hope this helps! ^^ Lemme know if you have more questions!
RE: Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - Amnesic - 03-26-2017
(03-26-2017, 05:55 PM)Sounsyy Wrote: *Snips~*
This helps me a whole lot. I had no idea about the Knights of the Barracuda and their existence basically prevents me from having to change my story at all now!
I can now handle it like this with just a few edits: (from Missy's age of 29~30):
I'm currently figuring that her brother likely began in the 1st Division and eventually got himself moved to the 5th out of his interest in discovering who took their parents.
Hearing that physical healing is actually very common makes it a lot easier for me to explain how she managed to learn a lot from books and such; common professions also mean they are more likely to have information available more widely for self-practitioners and as such, Catharine herself.
As for her not using magitek, she's afraid of it, she'd likely never be able to afford it, and I feel it gives her more character to work with what she can. (It's hard for her to put a lot of stress on it, and the third arm is likely to rip off part of her tendons if she does.)
I'll keep those ideas in mind about the pirates, but for now I'm going to leave them unknown under the guise she was currently a frightened five-year old at the time and she really can't remember too much of it. If I leave it open, then it makes for future character development and RP hooks just as how her parents and Cyril's whereabouts are currently unknown but not defined as deceased.
Thanks again; this lore has really helped me out a lot! I'll get to making a few revisions upon the story, and I think it'll be finished!
RE: Assistance With A Physician/Nurse Character - Alastair Helyous - 05-20-2017
She lives in Limsa Lominsa, learnt from old books and a lot of experience, is an actual physician...
Honestly, wouldn't Arcanima be a more fitting practice for her instead of Conjury? I mean, the Arcanists Guild is already inside Limsa Lominsa and their magic is more... medicinal than the Conjury's shamanic-esque nature. Virus, Bios 1 and 2, Physick...
Even the fact she spent a long time studying alchemy (formulae, calculating amounts of this to mix with that...) leads me to imagine her being more attuned to a mathematics based form of magic. I understand she isn't casting spells very often, but Conjurers require a quite strict training to attune themselves to the Elements so that they don't end up draining their own Aether when casting spells - what could lead to death. I cannot see much how she would fit in time for that kind of training when she is also studying alchemy, fishing or later on acting as a nurse. In the other hand, such dedication is not required when working with Arcane Geometries.
At least that's how I felt from reading her backstory, at least...