Revising Chiyo's backstory

[CrimsonMars]

I'm currently in the process of revising my main character, Chiyo's backstory while retconing as little as possible. She is biologically part of the Ebonclaw clan on her father's side but I am mainly focusing on her mother's side of the family, culture and inheritance, as well as making a few tweaks. Here's what I've come up with so far:

 

• Chiyo is an Ala Mhigan descendant and is quarter highlander, hence being rather tall for a miqo'te. I know cross-breeding is rather rare but I figured Chiyo can be one of those rare cases.
  
• Previously, I had Chiyo unlocked up to six charka rather quickly but I realized that it was a bit of a stretch, so I'm cutting it down to one or two, and only just recently learn about charka from Berrod. I'd like to consider Chiyo as a prodigy, but still very much ignorant on how charkas work and her heritage.
  
• Chiyo was born long after Ala Mhigo was taking over. Her mother was nothing special but her grand parents were strong soldiers, which her grandmother being a former disciple of Rhalgr before the fall and became a foul-mouth hermit. I plan to make her an NPC.
  

• I was wondering what might of happen to the other Ala Mhigan's who didn't escape or got killed. Did they became prisoners/slaves? Knowing this would help shed some light for her grandfather as well.
  

I may consider rewriting Chiyo's backstory entirely, since being "raised: by beastmen seemed a little far-fetched. My goal is to give Chiyo some character development as she learns more about where she came from, especially with the release of Stormblood. Please, let me know what you think. I would LOVE some suggestions as well!

[Seriphyn]

If Chiyo was born in Ala Mhigo after the occupation then she is likely indoctrinated into the Garlean way of life, especially that at fanfest they alluded to this being a story theme for 4.0. The remaining Ala Mhigans aren't prisoners or slaves, just imperial subjects under occupation. The new generation living may very well be receptive to Garlean rule.

 

Don't have to suddenly make your character Ala Mhigan just because the new expansion is Ala Mhigan themed, of course (which I suspect a lot of people will be doing)...raised by beast men is a neat idea. There's that Miqo'te in with the Brotherhood of Ash in southern Thanalan, which would be similar.

[Sounsyy]

-Monk, Chakra, and Fist of Rhalgr Lore

-Ala Mhigan Lore Masterpost

-Monk Lore Book Pages

 

Those links should really help you out with lore relevant to your backstory, Chiyo! Lemme know if you have more questions though and I'll try to make a more detailed post when I'm not on my phone at work. ^^;

[Melkire]

One of the lore book's pages on Ala Mhigo goes into how, post-occupation, Ala Mhigans are "forced to work for a pittance in great smoke-belching factories" to manufacture magitek for the Garlean Empire.

 

It therefore stands to reason that any Mhigans left behind have probably been closely exposed to at least some inner workings of magitek engineering... even if all they do is work a single station in an assembly line.

 

(I would not be surprised if this turns out to be a key plot point in Stormblood.)

[CrimsonMars]

I should clarify that her mother managed to fled Ala Mhigo at the time of the invasion so Chiyo was born somewhere else in Eorzea. I'm been pondering on giving Chiyo some connections to Ala Mhigo well before the Stormblood announcement but only recently did I decide to give her backstory more depth to it. I saw Stormblood as more of an opportunity to give her a personal story than making Chiyo part Ala Mhigan for the sake of it. With that said, I'm not planning on having Chiyo converted. Previously, she wasn't totally interested in Ala Mhigan culture to begin with.

 

Also, thank you guys for the pointers so far! Hopefully, I'll use this information to flesh this out farther. And if it doesn't work out, that's okay. Worst-case scenario, I'll just drop the idea.

[Oli!]

My question in order to get more towards the heart of what you want is "what story do you want to tell with this backstory?" At the moment, even if you were thinking of doing it beforehand, it still seems like a "doing it for xpac relevancy" thing.

[CrimsonMars]

My question in order to get more towards the heart of what you want is "what story do you want to tell with this backstory?" At the moment, even if you were thinking of doing it beforehand, it still seems like a "doing it for xpac relevancy" thing.

 

The main idea so is to get in touch with your roots, and to aid in the residence of course. I do have a couple of ideas but I wanted to learn as much as possible about the expansion as more information gets revealed so that I won't stray too far from the lore like I almost did with Heavensward. This is early in development after all, but I do see your point.

[Oli!]

One of the things I mentioned in another backstory revamp thread is that an interesting and productive backstory is a backstory that can be engaged with on some level. The reason why I ask the question "what story do you want to tell" is because that question will ultimately influence what portions of the backstory are made available.

 

Assuming that you want something transformative for your character, the first thing you'll want is some sort of conflict, not just on a "we're going to war with Garlemald" level, but on a personal level as well. Without this, my fear is that the character's plot will boil down to her running around and going "wow, Ala Mhigan culture is so cool!" This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but if it's not what you're looking for, there generally needs to be an extra spark of conflict or hook of investment that ties your character to this portion of their backstory. Otherwise, there's not much connection; even a non-Mhigan can experience an "I really like this culture and want to aid it" moment; it's nothing unique to your proposed changes, and would likely be doable already with your character's current backstory, whatever that may be.

 

An easy connection is familial, but without any idea as to what that family did, or what their opinions or wishes for their country were, it's hard for me to give you options in that regard.

 

I think a good starting point is brainstorming exactly what you want this cultural connection to mean for your character, and what this tie actually pulls them into that isn't benign or easily escapable.