How possible is it (within the lore) for a Keeper to be...

[Mia Moui]

...sold in servitude to the Coeurlclaw?  And, if something like this were to occur, could it be possible to suggest that my character (and a few others) were rescued by an adventurer?

 

I have given some thought about how my character's matriarch sold or traded four girls to the Coeurlclaw in an agreement to protect the clan from the nearby Ixali.  I like the betrayal and search for her sisters as character motivation but I don't want to break the lore.

 

Thanks!

[Sounsyy]

I would highly recommend doing the Moogle Delivery Quest The Past Is a Story We Never Tell, which has a ton of lore on the Coeurlclaw King and his gang.

 

Essentially, the Coeurlclaw King adopts Miqo'te into his gang with the promise of protection from Gridania, but at a terrible price. Their initiation is to kill a Wood Wailer, which marks them as heinous criminals of the Wood, as well as sever all ties with their previous life and family. For Keeper Miqo'te, family is their strongest bond, and to sever that bond is unnatural and difficult for them personally and culturally. But usually it is out of desperation that Miqo'te join his gang and once they are in, there's no leaving.

 

I believe it is possible that the King would accept girls offered to him in exchange for favors, or he might just turn around and stab that Matriarch in the back. My only concern is why this Matriarch would go against her cultural norms (family) and sell her children to a gang of murderers who spit on Keeper traditions and aren't really all that concerned with dealing with the Ixali, just murdering Gridanians. Could it happen? I say definitely yes, but I think a stronger motivation may be needed? Perhaps the family did something that has put them at odds with Gridania that prevents them from seeking aid from the White Rams?

[Kellach Woods]

Or, y'know, Gridanian racism.

 

We shouldn't forget that's still a thing.

[Mia Moui]

I could not have dreamed to receive such an amazing response!  There is much to think about here.  I'm new to playing FFXIV even though I've been subscribed for 600 days or so.  (The freebies I got once I made a character were overwhelming).  It will be a while before I can do a lvl 50 quest. Reading the synopsis on gamerscape gives me additional inspiration.

 

Maybe Mia only thinks she and her sisters were betrayed by the Matriarch.  I feel like I might be able to get some wiggle room with her as an unreliable narrator.  If the Coeurlclaw is like a cult, then I think I know what happened to her sisters if they were actually able to escape.  I'm sure they went back.

 

I do like the idea that maybe her clan was up to no good and couldn't seek help from the authorities.  But that might make family bonds stronger?  I've seen movies and read books about criminal families and it seems to go both ways.  I like the idea that Mia invents this whole fantasy about her life before the Coeurlclaw to help deal with her circumstances but once away from the situation, it starts to fall apart.

 

Or I need to think of something else.

 

But I like the complexity of a character who may or may not be responsible for a heinous act.  They may or may not have ever bought into the propaganda but whatever the case, they are desperate to make amends even if that means never seeing her family again.  I also love outsider or cast out stories, probably because of my own circumstances but inspiration comes from lots of different things.

 

I'm just glad my idea isn't completely impossible.  I haven't had the same luck in other MMOs.

 

Thanks forever for your incredible answers!