Zhuto Zhanarah

Just wanted to poke my nose in here and thank everyone who has been working hard to collect and post both definitive lore and their own interpretations of the blanks spaces therein. I have recently returned to the game and have been working on my new character, who is also a Keeper raised in a more traditional environment. This thread has been very helpful in fleshing out the minor details of her backstory.

The votes were close, but I ultimately decided to go with Keeper, and I am already on Balmung! I look forward to bumping into everyone soon.

I was about to make another post declaring the Seeker the clear winner and detailing her out a bit more, but you guys have made me have to put that on hold. I'd love to find an active Keeper group to role play with, but assumed that the Seekers would be easier to find connections for. I'll be starting the character tomorrow after work, so I will just sit back and keep an eye on this thread for another day.

The Seeker is the one that I was leaning more towards, but I did not want to rule the keeper out if only because I already have a look saved for her that is absolutely perfect! *swoons* Still trying to get the seeker to look just right. I can't seem to find that perfect skin tone.

Hello there, Hydaelyn Role Playing Forums! I played Final Fantasy XIV shortly before the release of Heavensward. I enjoyed the game immensely, but left due to not having people to enjoy the game with. I have recently talked several real life friends into giving the game a shot since WoW's recent release of Legion can easily be summarized as "Daily World Quests: The Game". Thank you, Blizzard, for fucking it up once again and giving me the opportunity to drag my friends off to a superior game! Anyway! I will be starting over as one of two miqo'te ladies and I thought that I would post here to see which one might be more popular and more prone to finding role play. The basis of both are the same, with each being a young miqo'te huntress on the cusp of womanhood setting out to carve her own adventure across Eorzea. The driving forces behind their adventures, however, are radically different. [align=center]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~[/align] The first character is the more simple of the two. She is a keeper of the moon from the deepest reaches of the Black Shroud and has recently left her small tribe behind in pursuit of greater game. A huntress at her very core, she has conquered the greatest challenges of her tribe's ancestral hunting grounds and wishes to travel the world in pursuit of greater trophies. She is a traditional keeper of the moon raised in a small family group of mostly females, which will mean several things. She will be difficult to form a connection with for any non-miqo'te characters, or any male characters in general. Those who can tolerate her seemingly cold and distant demeanor, however, will not find a more stalwart ally or a more willing hunting companion. It also means that she is content existing as a solitary creature; again contributing to that cold and distant demeanor. This character would be best suited for a heavily keeper of the moon group, or at least a heavily miqo'te group. Barring that, a group of mercenaries or hunters would also fit her style, regardless of the race of her companions. Being from the Black Shroud, she would likely start out in Gridania as a Lancer or Archer. [align=center]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~[/align] The second character is much more complex and multi-faceted, so I will have to compress her down a bit. If she turns out to be the one that I would be best off playing, I will post a more in-depth profile in the appropriate area of the foums and work on a wiki. She is a seeker of the sun hailing from the Zu tribe hailing from an island chain in the Rhotano Sea. Her tribe has lived there for many generations, since migrating there from the mainland of La Noscea. They live in peace there, hunting, farming, and trading with the occasional trade ship from Lima Lominsa or Ul'dah. The most notable part of their culture is the way that they honor their tribal cloudtotem spirit, the Zu. The Zu are a migratory species in Eorzea, and so too are the miqo'te of this particular group. In this tribe of miqo'te, it is viewed as a right of passage to venture forth from the shores of their island home to see the world in their own migration. Those who take this journey return home wiser and more worldly, bearing gifts for the tribe from the lands beyond their shores. Each miqo'te who makes this voyage betters not only themselves, but the tribe as a whole. Those females who complete this right are seen as more desirable mating partners, with those who have completed multiple migrations being viewed as prized mating partners. This right of passage is so important to their culture that Tia who have not completed their first migration are barred from challenging the Nunh for their titles. My seeker will be from this tribe and she will have just recently embarked on her first migration. Among her tribe, she is a huntress, the youngest daughter of one of the tribe's most migrated elders, and the youngest sister of the tribe's most prized female, who recently returned home from her last migration to settle down. This particular sister now holds the record of most migrations completed by a single member of the tribe. It is this sister that served as a second mother for my young seeker, and would always return home with tales of the great world beyond their shores. These tales fostered within my seeker girl a great sense of adventure and an eagerness to leave her island home. She is an adventurous spirit and would fit in with just about anyone. She is energetic, optimistic, and always willing to spar and/or hunt. She will always be looking to try new things, see new places, and hone new skills. Due to the location of her home, she could easily start out in either Limsa Lominsa as a marauder, taking up the axe and joining a shipping crew or in Ul'dah as a Gladiator, fighting for coin and fame. Since ships from both nations frequent the waters round the island, either would be viable. [align=center]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~[/align] So those are my girls! I would be interested in all kinds of contacts, and will make a more in-depth profile for whichever seems like it would have the most promise.

This may be something that would interest me, either as a friend or potential romantic partner; race and character mesh pending. Been taking a small break, but will be playing heavily again with the patch. Sorry for the brief reply. Typing from my phone at work. Feel free to send me a PM.

I'm no lore hound myself, so take my criticisms with a grain of salt. With that forewarning disclosed, I don't see anything intrinsically wrong with the little bit that you have worked out, though I would advise that you consider the following points. Miqo'te (assuming your character is one due to her name) are notably rare in Ishgard. It is clearly stated that is far too cold for the vast majority of Seekers to feel comfortable there and it is too cloudy for the Keepers, who are then metaphorically cut off from the moon. That is not to say that there would not be a small handful of Ishgardian miqo'te, but be mindful that her racial identity would have been the odd man out from her peers. The second thing to consider is that only Elezen make up the Ishgardian houses. Your character could be a knight of one of the houses, but would not be able to be a member of a House through blood lineage. If these are points that you have already considered, then I don't see why the character could not work.

As much as I had liked the concept, if it's not going to work then that's that. *Throws her notebook into a nearby fire.* A mundane huntress she shall be, then. I sincerely appreciate everyone's input on this matter. I would have been making myself look like a complete idiot playing the character as I had originally imagined her. @ Momo - I'm enjoying the game too much to leave. This character concept was born not from a desire to play a powerhouse, but from my need to be versatile (shaman, druid, and paladin main from WoW). I always play the hybrid classes in MMOs, but FF14 has extremely rigid class designs that do not allow for versatility. It is my only complaint with the game and I simply sought a way to fix this grievous issue. Such is fate, however, that it's just not going to work. Oh well.

Hello there, Caex! I have only recently started getting into Final Fantasy XIV, so I am no master of the lore, but I am certainly looking for connections. If you would be interested in your character starting his journey in Gridania, my character may be able to begin his training in the art of the spear, though you would need to find another at a later date to transition into training by an official Dragoon if you are interested in your character having more specialized training. My own character is a huntress from a small tribe of miqo'te who live in the deeper reaches of the Shroud, traditionally avoiding contact with the other races unless there is beneficial trade to be had. Though she is trained in archery, the spear is her preferred weapon due to its versatility and there are none in her tribe that match her in her use of the weapon. If you would be interested in talking further, you can contact me in-game or here on this thread. My character name is the same as my profile here. In addition, I would not be opposed to the idea of forum RP and if we mesh well and I feel comfortable sharing additional contact information with you, then I would also be willing to RP through Skype, Discord, or Trillian as well.

I was unaware that a primal-like spirit would put a constant strain on the aetherial flow of the immediate area around it. That does put a bit of a chink in my backstory. I do quite enjoy the idea of the ebb and flow of the powers that Zhuto would have had the abiliy to call upon; that is to say with the Dark Knight being believed to be stronger with the new moon and the White Mage being stronger with the full moon. I know that most people wouldn't play their "Job" proper, and I have no intention of doing it either. My main class is Dragoon, but Zhuto's certainly no proper dragoon. She's a wild huntress who prizes the spear as her primary weapon do to its reach, strength, and its ability to be used as an effective method of catching fish just as well as it can kill a boar. Also do to the length of the weapon, the non-pointy end can be used for non-combat purposes, such as checking the depth of water before jumping on in. For someone living in the wilds, there is no more versatile or valuable weapon from those that we have to choose from. On top of that, the jumps can easily be used IC even if she is not a dragoon because of how powerful miqo'te's legs are supposed to be. Her jumps can easily be aggressive pounces. As for Bards... Well, music is universal. Even the most uncivilized and truly 'wild' human tribes have an affinity for their own brand of music, be it for entertainment, for war, for peace, or for celebration. I'd say that can easily translate to any sentient being in any fantasy universe. As I said in my original post, I love to marry mechanics and role play when it is possible. In the case of the dragoon and that bard, that is very easy and translates cleanly and plainly. So if we cast aside the very notion of a primal, is there any way to incorporate a Dark Kight and White Mage into a Shroud-Dwelling Keeper of the Moon? Again, bear in mind that I am NOT asking about how to make her an Ishgardian Dark Knight or a Trained White Mage - only looking for a way to tap into similar powers with which to allow me to justify having the classes available for when I need to tank or heal IC. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

I appreciate the feedback, though I feel that I should restate some things that I may have not quite explained in as good of a sense as I could have. First, I would like to re-stress that it was not the deity Menphina that was summoned, provided there is a way to make this work. Much like the summoning of Shiva, the tribe did not summon the actual Menphina into Eorzea, but rather a spirit that merely took on the form and the aspects that the tribe believed Menphina to represent. Another point to be made thereof, the spirit is not a 'primal' on the same scale of Ifrit, Leviathan, or Garuda. It was summoned not for destruction, but for protection, and acts more in a similar fashion to Ramuh; shielding its reclusive worshipers from outward assaults when, and only when, their homes are directly encroached upon in what they view as an aggressive manner. In regards to the classes, I definitely did not explain that well enough. The idea of borrowing powers from the primal spirit isn't meant to be a way of granting the character legitimate 'Jobs'. The idea is not for her to become a Dark Knight or a White Mage; merely to grant temporary access to similar abilities or magics to justify having an in-character means of taking up the mantle of tanking or healing for in-character PvE. It's not really something that would just come up when role playing in a bar, nor would it be something that she would use in RP-PvP unless it boiled down to life or death. I won't god-mode to kill or hurt someone, but I'll absolutely god-mode to protect my own character. As far as Black Magic goes, that is a bit of information that I was not aware of, as I have not yet dabbled in Thaumaturge. So that would not work, as using similar magic, regardless of official training and titles, would yield similar results if that is the case. That does throw Menphina's Fury out the window, but that is also the one that I was not concerned with using, as Archer/Bard will be my IC ranged class. So as you've explained, Conjury/White Magic should still be a valid option in the way that I understand things. That just leaves the Dark Knight, which again, she would not be an Ishgardian Dark Knight. I know I might be grasping for straws here, but gladiator is absolutely not going to work for my taking class because I just don't see Zhuto touching a shield in a million years and Warrior... Not into axes. Orcs should have axes. Dwarves can use them if, and only if, a warhammer is not available. No one else should touch an axe. Ever. The marauders make a compelling argument for them, but there's no ocean in the middle of the Shroud. Her magic doesn't have to be Dark Knight in nature. The class is nothing more than a way for me to have a tanking class, and enjoy it while having it fit the character. I also envision Zhuto having some kind of false superstitious belief that her Mercy blessing is stronger the nearer it is to a full moon, as the moon shines brightest that night, while her Wrath blessing is stronger the nearer it is to a new moon, as the moon is absent from the sky entirely (at least visibly). The bit about Archons was an interesting read, but again, we're not talking about THE Menphina here. It's just a spirit that the tribe refers to and believes to be Menphina. I don't know if that makes any distinctive difference, but it's important to note. Honestly, I'm not too fond of the idea of all of this, myself. It sounds a little too mary-sue for my linking, but it sounded a hell of a lot less mary-sue than having Zhuto be the vessel of the spirit like a certain elezen is to a certain icy maiden. Love the character, but I feel that copy-pasting the same concept would be about as mary-sue as I could get. If push comes to shove, I'll drop things if need be, pick up a shitty little axe for tanking, and just not bother with a healing class at all. Would really like to avoid it, however. I'd like to have IC access to all four roles in a party if need be.

Was the idea really that bad? It all made sense to me, but I am no Eorzean lore hound.

Hello and good evening to you, Hydaelyn Roleplayer Forums! I am Zhuto, and I have just recently broken into the wondrous world of Eorzea in hopes of finding other like-minded individuals who enjoy role playing, story telling, and character development. As it stands, I have a single character on Blamung; a female Keeper of the Moon miqo'te. Before I dive into the world of RP within Eorzea, I want to make sure that she conforms with the setting of the world around her, which is why I am here. I'm a lore-centric role player and I always strive to make my characters fit the established setting of any given world that I will be role playing them in, but Eorzea seems like a very flexible place. I'm not yet a lore junkie for this new and strange setting, so I have come to you in need of aid in making sure that everything is in order. I chose the miqo'te race because it seemed like the most relavent one to my interests. I always enjoy playing the more tribal and spiritual races, such as tauren in WoW, norn in Guild Wars 2, and mirialan in SWTOR. The keepers of the moon seemed to fit this theme the closest with their traditional hunter-gatherer lifestyle and their reverence of Menphina. Though I know that many keepers of the moon have integrated with 'mainstream society', so to speak, I know that there are others still that live as they always have, even in the Black Shroud where they are often viewed as poachers. It is in the Black Shroud that the tribe of my character lives, far off in the deepest reaches of the untamed forest. It is there that they have lived for as long as their tales date, hunting, fishing, and living as they so choose. It was a prosperous life until the events of the Calamity, at which point the Shroud became a far more dangerous place to live outside of Gridania's protective gates. As ixal activity increased, the Gridanians became even more ferverous in their attempts to protect the balance of things in the shroud, and the beasts and elementals alike became more ferocious, survival of the fittest became the law of the land. I an attempt to hedge their bets, my tribe turned to Menphina in a most unusual way. Just as the ixal summoned their guardian spirit, Garuda, so too did my tribe seek to summon Menphina, who they viewed as their own guardian spirit. This, obviously, is where I begin to worry about my character's backstory. I don't want to sound like a mary-sue or anything, and I don't want to outright break any standing lore, so let me walk you though my thought process here. The summoning of primals seems like an easy enough process to understand when dealing with beings such as Ifrit or Garuda. These spirits exist out there in the aether, and the beast tribes offer aether crystals as a sacrifice to empower said existing spirit so that it can create a physical form. There are other primals, however, that we learn are formed from nothing more than the summoners' own beliefs, such as King Moogle Mog and Shiva. It is the latter type of summoning that I am using in this character story. My tribe did not summon THE Menphina, provided that the Gods are confirmed to be existing entities, but rather their own depiction of Menphina - a spirit born of their own beliefs and desires. Also note that from here on out in this post, when I refer to Menphina, I am refering to this spirit, not the deity. The tribe was successful in their summoning, and Menphina was called to Eorzea deep within the Black Shroud. As a benevolent, but protective spirit, Menphina came to act not as a bloodthirsty harbinger of destruction, such as Ifrit or Garuda, but as a protector and watcher of her chosen children, more akin to Ramuh. The formerly nomadic tribe established a small, permanent settlement in the trees and caves surrounding Menphina's Glade, the location of the summoning, which they now revered as a sacred place. A shrine was established for the spirit, and obtaining a small offering of aether crystals became a daily duty of the tribe so that their guardian could maintain physical form. To this end, the tribe saught to establish trade agreements with the nearest Gridanian settlements, allowing the Gridanians to stop viewing them so harshly as poachers and more favorably as fellow citizens of the Twelveswood. Here comes another part that has me worried, but again, let me walk you through my thought process so you can see where I am going with this. We all know that game mechanics and role play don't often mix, but I love it when I can try to make them. In this case, I am referring to the game's class and job system. While I hope to level every class to 60 eventually, most of them will be OOC conveniences than anything else. My four chosen "main" classes, however, will all me IC so that I can do any content IC if I so choose. These jobs are Dragoon for melee DPS (though IC, my miqo'te is not a dragoon - she is a huntress for her tribe and the class is being chosen for the weapon), Bard for ranged DPS (again, she won't be a bard, but the weapon falls in line with her duty as a huntress, although she may eventually learn the art of the Bard as part of her character development), White Mage for healing, and Dark Knight for tanking. Lancer (Dragoon), and Archer (Bard) are easy enough to marry into one character without much trouble, but throwing White Mage and Dark Knight into the mix will be a bit more difficult. That is where Menphina's Blessings come in. Menphina (again, the spirit, not the deity) bestowed upon her children three blessings that would allow them to borrow her strength, at the price of aether, of course. Menphina's Wrath granted her children unimaginable vigor, clad them in heavy armor, and bestowed upon them an enchanted greatsword when called upon. Menphina's Fury imbued her children with powers long forbidden to Eorzea - the ability to utilize Black Magic. Lastly, Menphina's Mercy gifted her children with the ability to cast powerful white magic. Not all of her children were so gifted that they could call upon these blessings, and fewer still could call upon all three. My character, in particular, is gifted with the ability to call upon Menphina's Wrath (making her a Dark Knight) and Menphina's Mercy (making her a White Mage). Since these blessings are temporary "power ups", so to speak, it will also lend itself to explaining why she cannot cast Dark Knight magic or White Magic while she is being played as a simple huntress (a lancer or archer). These powers are simply not her own to use freely and must be called upon. So that's really it... Or at least those are the aspects of the character that I have concerns about. I'd love to hear some feedback.