Au Ra - How will your character react?

[Lilia Lia]

This is something I have been giving a lot of thought lately.  I chatted a bit with my FC about this and was wondering how you all felt.

 

Au Ra are a new race that's going to be popping up in Eorzea.  Their origins are somewhat of a mystery.  From an RP point of view, a lot of people will be transforming into them and/or revealing that they were secretly Au Ra and had been for a long time. 

 

This is kind of creepy, isn't it? 

 

Racial diversity is pretty huge in Eorzea already, and part of the reason that racial tensions are generally low is that the culture is so heavily integrated.  But I don't think Au Ra really get the benefit of the doubt here.  Kids in Eorzea didn't grow up surrounded by Au Ra so they can't be expected to view them as civilized beings.

 

There's also the issue of beastmen tribes with which the city-states are at war.  So even though the player character races are generally open to one another, we have examples to the contrary that raise the question of whether an entire race should be considered friendly or hostile. 

 

The RP reality is that my character is going to be expected to just accept that there is a new race popping up all over Eorzea.  But I don't know how realistic this is.  Realistically I think there would be a lot of suspicion due to Au Ra's sudden appearance, uncertain origins, and apparent tendency to be hidden and secretive. 

 

I haven't seen a lot of race-based RP in general (in terms of stereotypes or prejudices) and for the most part this makes sense to me due to the high cultural integration of Eorzea, but I should think that the Au Ra would be met with a lot of suspicion and skepticism.  I am really tempted to play it like this, too, at the potential cost of alienating a lot of Au Ra players, but this might create a lot of conflict and I'm not sure whether people are willing to accept that.

 

Just some thoughts.  What do you all think?

[Winters Knight]

Holy water. To the face. BE GONE FOUL DEMON!

 

Don't judge me.

[CrimsonMars]

Chiyo had already met one personality, but doesn't really know too much about the race itself,  but just sees them as the scaly miqo'te. She's not prejudice. She actually finds them very intriguing.

[Hyrist]

Well, I have one 'transforming', but one of my characters is fairly adverse to anything Voidsent. Thankfully he has experience with Domans so it won't be a huge problem for him, just awkward.

 

I've got a total of 6 active Player level Characters so the reactions are going to be highly varied, but outright racism against them won't really happen - because there's really no grounds for it. They're just strangers, and interesting ones at that.

[Dravus]

It's not really in Graeham's nature to be judgemental about someone's race so he'll mostly be approaching the Au Ra with curiosity and keen interest. Since he has Garlean blood in his veins he's familiar with the cruelty some Eorzeans show towards the unknown or perceived enemies and so he'll likely do his best to intervene if he sees that an Au Ra is being given a hard time.

[Spethah]

I can't say how my character will react upon meeting one since she's changing into one, but I expect to see racism. This is a realm that was previous, and still is, being invaded so to see a new race suddenly showing up and plonking their butts on Eorzea should caused it's residents to be uneasy and wary. Are they hostile? Are they friendly? Why are they even here? Coupled with already existing racism, I expect Au Ra to be a major target for distrust and abuse.

[Gegenji]

Chachan and Gogon are Domans, so they have no issues with the Au Ra. In fact, Chachan was surprised he didn't notice any around when one had their true form revealed. And then he gave them a hug. :blush:

 

But yeah, on the whole, it seems most PCs are relatively open to things... so I see the Au Ra assimilation being (perhaps disappointingly) painless. There will likely be spots of conflict here and there - but likely from characters who would naturally react that way... or planned interactions with an Au Ra that wants to RP that sort of difficulty.

 

How NPCs in general will react? We'll have to wait and see, I suppose. I have an odd feeling Au Ra WoLs will find everyone just as accepting as any other WoL, though. :lol:

[Proud Dahlia]

Nadine is Ishgardian and therefore isn't terribly fond of anything even resembling a dragon, though at the same time she's not inherently close-minded when it comes to dealing with outsiders. She will probably regard them with a level of mistrust and want to keep her dealings with them short,

[Martiallais]

Nadine is Ishgardian and therefore isn't terribly fond of anything even resembling a dragon, though at the same time she's not inherently close-minded when it comes to dealing with outsiders. She will probably regard them with a level of mistrust and want to keep her dealings with them short,

 

This is probably about the same response Martiallais will display honestly. Couldn't have said it better myself.

 

Zarek, however, will likely be fairly open with them given that I RP him as being the sort that knows somebody that knows somebody that knows somebody so I imagine somewhere along the line he's probably seen one or two before. Having them pop up in droves will be surprising but he'll likely shrug it off given that their gil spends as good as everybody else's.

[Mercurias]

Sato honestly won't care. He hates all people equally.

 

Solomon would wonder how they have sex...And then probably want to try it out.

 

Soren might KNOW. H's very well-traveled.

[Lilia Lia]

But yeah, on the whole, it seems most PCs are relatively open to things... so I see the Au Ra assimilation being (perhaps disappointingly) painless. There will likely be spots of conflict here and there - but likely from characters who would naturally react that way... or planned interactions with an Au Ra that wants to RP that sort of difficulty.

 

This is the feeling I'm getting in general. It seems like a minority of player characters will give this more than a shrug of the shoulders.

 

It's a shame because the sudden appearance of the Au Ra seems to have a lot of RP potential in terms of racial tensions and attitudes.

 

The NPC lore might address a lot of this, though, by giving an overall sense of the world's attitude towards Au Ra.  That is, if any of the NPC dialogue addresses it.  I hope (and expect) that the story missions will shed some light on the cultural context of Au Ra in Eorzea.  So even if we have a majority of player characters accepting Au Ra with open arms, they won't necessarily be a majority from an overall population perspective.

[Flickering Ember]

Since I've already RPed with a couple of Au Ra in game, it seems like Ember's going down the path of "Whoa! That is so weird but cool. Please tell me more about your people!" route.

[Wymsical]

"Racial diversity is pretty huge in Eorzea already, and part of the reason that racial tensions are generally low is that the culture is so heavily integrated."

 

 

Wait, what? I think there's a lot of tension between races and cultures, like Gridania against Keepers, all the hate for Highlanders and Duskwight, and ect. For that reason, I think it's very plausible in-lore for lots of people to be very suspicious and xenophobic of Au Ra. If I had a non-Au Ra character, they'd definitely be uneasy.

[K'nahli]

I think most of my characters will be wary to very wary of males and perhaps intense-looking females.... if I ever RP such a thing anyways!

[Seriphyn]

Need more votes for "Outright Hostile"!

 

Refugees (or outsiders, otherwise) coming to lay a strain on the already overburdened Eorzea, especially Ul'dah, who still deals with refugees of Ala Mhigo and the Calamity. Resemblance to dragons/demons spurring prejudiced ideas about humans sleeping with dragons/demons. Not to mention the freakish gender dimorphism, of which I'm quite pleased is acknowledged by people in-universe as an anomaly. 

 

Just like in real life, there is every reason to react with hostility to an alien people coming and concocting mythical ideas of the way of life being under threat, especially that tensions are so high in Eorzea right now.

 

Not to mention, they're from a land which has been under occupation by the Garleans for far longer than Ala Mhigo! Rumours of spies abound!

[Mogoi Qestir]

I would expect people to be unnerved or something of the like when around the Au Ra.. one side of them being rather isolated and the other side being skilled and versed in tribal war.. realistically, and even with Eorzea being open to the races there now, these individuals are literally just appearing...

 

What's rather saddening, is that when Yugiri showed her face, besides the initial shock, the WoL and Alphinaud[sp?] were just 'oh okay'.. My whole level of trust would've been thrown off a bit... and now? A whole clusterf*ck of them are migrating into the scene that look like voidsent/dragons... 

 

I guess I'm part of the minority that would find it odd to just be curious and wanting to know them versus 'there's possible demons or a race that could be tied to the dragon conflict, how do we know if they're really here for us or to lead Garlemald into Eorzea for more problems or to add numbers to the Dragon side?'

 

Just random ideas there really. I'm both anxious and curious to see the reactions I'll get with my Au Ra.

[ShoggMommy]

I tend to think that there has been au ra sprinkled about up to this point. It's sort of like dealing with "SUDDENLY CATHAR" in SWTOR for example. I tend to believe they already existed in some locations. And considering Yugiri came to us before release of Heavensward there's more of a chance for the Raen from that. As for Xaela I tend to think because they are nomad some do exist.

 

This as an aside for personal thoughts;

My main C'sien has met one, she thought they were void-sent because of the horns and scales. Though C'sien also thinks a lot of things that are different, not in the norm for her are voidsent. She didn't really think of them as dragons as she's not really met many dragons anyway. More voidsent.

 

She was very hesitant and uncertain but calmed down when she was told they weren't voidsent infact. She's very shy around them, but it's why I chose the 'reserved' option first as her first initial view of them was uncertain. She'll be actively curious about them from here on out but not overly curious.

 

My second 'main' is an au ra. On her perspective, she's been traveling for a long time, people are weird, even other au ra. That's about I will give.

 

 

But yeah, on the whole, it seems most PCs are relatively open to things... so I see the Au Ra assimilation being (perhaps disappointingly) painless. There will likely be spots of conflict here and there - but likely from characters who would naturally react that way... or planned interactions with an Au Ra that wants to RP that sort of difficulty.

 

This is the feeling I'm getting in general. It seems like a minority of player characters will give this more than a shrug of the shoulders.

 

It's a shame because the sudden appearance of the Au Ra seems to have a lot of RP potential in terms of racial tensions and attitudes.

 

The NPC lore might address a lot of this, though, by giving an overall sense of the world's attitude towards Au Ra.  That is, if any of the NPC dialogue addresses it.  I hope (and expect) that the story missions will shed some light on the cultural context of Au Ra in Eorzea.  So even if we have a majority of player characters accepting Au Ra with open arms, they won't necessarily be a majority from an overall population perspective.

 

I believe that they actually addressed this with the NPC. That they will not see them as dragons-or-dragon-ilk, or actual demons (as things were explained to have a demonic motif) at all and likely will not really be hostile. Afterall SE doesn't want to alienate a race they specifically made either. I'll see if I can find the quote for you but I remember seeing this either here or on Reddit.

 

 

Followup:

 

The Au Ra group is made with the image of the devil. Their designs are inspired by demons, not dragons. Because of this, even though they have a similar appearance to dragons, they won't be especially persecuted by city residents. (Oda)

http://www.bluegartr.com/threads/125487-Niconico-Super-Conference-Famitsu-Summary-Translation-(4-25-4-26)?p=6407050#post6407050

 

Though I do assume this means Ishgard but yeah. I think it's rather safe to say for NPCs they won't so much bat an eye.

[Blythe]

Even though I am going to be maining an Au Ra, my hyur (that I am NPCing) currently would be slightly skeptical of this new race. Would she outright be hostile towards them? No, but considering all that's happened in last decade or so, she'd be wary what this new race is doing here. If they treat her good, she'll probably have a positive view of them. If they do her wrong, she'll have no problem getting on a step to punch one in the face. (And ultimately having to face the consequences by running away.)

[Seriphyn]

Followup:

 

The Au Ra group is made with the image of the devil. Their designs are inspired by demons, not dragons. Because of this, even though they have a similar appearance to dragons, they won't be especially persecuted by city residents. (Oda)

http://www.bluegartr.com/threads/125487-Niconico-Super-Conference-Famitsu-Summary-Translation-(4-25-4-26)?p=6407050#post6407050

 

Though I do assume this means Ishgard but yeah. I think it's rather safe to say for NPCs they won't so much bat an eye.

 

I think some key words are being missed. The "speculation" that Au Ra are the progeny of dragons is disputed, not refuted. This means that there is still a split on agreement. Moreover, them not being "especially persecuted", well I think the key word there is "especially". They can still be persecuted. 

 

 

Given the more realistic themes of FFXIV, I am pretty sure it is more than possible that many Eorzeans will be discomforted by the presence of Au Ra, as either being voidsent or dragonkin. It is a shame that only a minority of us will actually roleplay out these tensions...because do we really think in a world where there is still racial divides (Elezen vs Hyur, Gridanians vs Keepers, Ul'dahns vs Highlanders), that the mass arrival of Au Ra will be met without a bat of an eyelid?

[Lilia Lia]

It is a shame that only a minority of us will actually roleplay out these tensions...because do we really think in a world where there is still racial divides (Elezen vs Hyur, Gridanians vs Keepers, Ul'dahns vs Highlanders), that the mass arrival of Au Ra will be met without a bat of an eyelid?

 

Consider also that these Au Ra will be arriving so suddenly in such a short timeframe.  In a single day, about half a dozen of the people you know will transform into Au Ra, or reveal that they secretly were them.  More of them will start turning up. 

 

I only hope Au Ra players are prepared to deal with this kind of reaction IC.  It has the potential to deepen their RP, if nothing else.  But I could see some inexperienced RPers finding it frustrating or an obstacle that there are other characters who want nothing to do with them.

[Aoi Fukiku]

It is a shame that only a minority of us will actually roleplay out these tensions...because do we really think in a world where there is still racial divides (Elezen vs Hyur, Gridanians vs Keepers, Ul'dahns vs Highlanders), that the mass arrival of Au Ra will be met without a bat of an eyelid?

 

Consider also that these Au Ra will be arriving so suddenly in such a short timeframe.  In a single day, about half a dozen of the people you know will transform into Au Ra, or reveal that they secretly were them.  More of them will start turning up. 

 

I only hope Au Ra players are prepared to deal with this kind of reaction IC.  It has the potential to deepen their RP, if nothing else.  But I could see some inexperienced RPers finding it frustrating or an obstacle that there are other characters who want nothing to do with them.

I currently RP my Au'ra with the nickname Flower. She is unglamoured and walking about in broad daylight. I have gotten several different reactions. Most of them are tension based and from isghardians who though she by the statement of SE is not like a dragon, still looks like one and gets treated like dirt.

 

She has been Icly

Spat on/at

Chased with a lance/pitchfork/had rocks thrown at her

Been called a lizard lady

Was told if she was any less humanoid looking she would be eaten (by a miqo'te)

Called Ugly, hideous, etc

Generally accepted

Heavily questioned by someone curious about what she was

Had a tuning fork struck against her horns in a testing manner by a lalafell (she did not like this one at all)

 

I'm happy with the results and can't wait for more Au'ra to actually pop up!

[Caspar]

The "I've read about you, but never met in person. Now let me pull your tail. I hear they come off and you can grow another." approach. Being an honorary Doman, this should be the natural reaction for her.

[Gegenji]

It is a shame that only a minority of us will actually roleplay out these tensions...because do we really think in a world where there is still racial divides (Elezen vs Hyur, Gridanians vs Keepers, Ul'dahns vs Highlanders), that the mass arrival of Au Ra will be met without a bat of an eyelid?

 

Consider also that these Au Ra will be arriving so suddenly in such a short timeframe.  In a single day, about half a dozen of the people you know will transform into Au Ra, or reveal that they secretly were them.  More of them will start turning up. 

 

I only hope Au Ra players are prepared to deal with this kind of reaction IC.  It has the potential to deepen their RP, if nothing else.  But I could see some inexperienced RPers finding it frustrating or an obstacle that there are other characters who want nothing to do with them.

I currently RP my Au'ra with the nickname Flower. She is unglamoured and walking about in broad daylight. I have gotten several different reactions. Most of them are tension based and from isghardians who though she by the statement of SE is not like a dragon, still looks like one and gets treated like dirt.

 

She has been Icly

Spat on/at

Chased with a lance/pitchfork/had rocks thrown at her

Been called a lizard lady

Was told if she was any less humanoid looking she would be eaten (by a miqo'te)

Called Ugly, hideous, etc

Generally accepted

Heavily questioned by someone curious about what she was

Had a tuning fork struck against her horns in a testing manner by a lalafell (she did not like this one at all)

 

I'm happy with the results and can't wait for more Au'ra to actually pop up!

 

... Kinda curious what will happen if/when Judge is ever seen without his helmet now.

[Star Lin]

 

... Kinda curious what will happen if/when Judge is ever seen without his helmet now.

Ah, Judge doesn't have to worry about John's reaction to him.  He's already meet his first Au Ra when he help deliver a baby Au Ra.  He also may be meeting his second soon too.  He knows Judge, might blink at the horns, and then get upset that Judge might have thought John would treat Judge badly.

 

John Waterstrike: Sir Judge, did you think so little of us, that we would turn away, just because you have horn?  That you could not trust us, after all the time that you have help oversee at the Grindstone.

 

And if Judge is off his horse, John would grab Judge around the waist in a hug and tell him that it wasn't fair that Judge had to hide who he was because of the way he looked.

[Makyn Loneseeker]

Makyn would be blink at the sudden appearance of so many Au Ra, and so many people he'd know that are now Au Ra. But they're still the same people, and still regular people, so he wouldn't care very much.