Help wanted with Midlander Thaumaturge background

[Menord]

(Apologies for the long post. I should learn to be concise. >_>')

 

While preparing for my move to a RP server, I have been levelling my probable main, Cain Locke, and trying to figure out what he is like. I have quite a clear idea of his personality, but his background is giving me problems. I've spent several hours searching the forums and reading up on the lore, but I still find myself at a loss.

 

As the topic title suggests, Cain is a Midlander Thaumaturge. He is ambitious and (supposedly) observant, but while he enjoys watching people and getting to know those who he finds interesting, he struggles with forming deep relationships or friendship. If he had to choose, he would rather be needed than loved, and this probably shows in his behaviour. He tends to be a bit snarky and is more likely to point out the flaws in something than remain quiet for the sake of politeness.

 

Cain is relatively young, but his parents are gone – whether that means being dead or having abandoned him for reason or another. This is both to explain their absence (if it was ever brought up in RP) and parts of his personality. I imagine that he might not have had a lovely childhood.

 

So, to the actual backstory/origin part. From what I've understood, Midlanders live pretty much everywhere, which... isn't very helpful if you are indecisive like me. I originally planned to make Cain an adventurer who recently arrived to Uldah (as the opening scene suggests) as a way to explain why he/his player might not know much about the history of the area or the local events. However, from what I've understood, his name doesn't fit Othard/Doma naming scheme, Sharlayan wasn't too keen on combat magic and an Ishgardian Hyur wouldn't probably have much reason to venture outside his kingdom.

 

The quests show that Ul'dah has both quite a few refugees and poor folk, which naturally gave me the idea of making Cain either. If he was a refugee, though, I'm not sure where he could be from: Ala Mhigo was mainly a Highlander kingdom, if I've understood correctly, and the other options are mainly the same as with him being a foreign adventurer.

 

That leaves the idea of making him a native citizen of Ul'dah. If, however, I couple that with his lack of parents, how likely he would have managed to become a Thaumaturge? Literacy isn't apparently too widespread in Eorzea, so a child of poor family / orphan isn't probably the most likely candidate for wielding powerful magicks, unless he was very dedicated and stubborn – and willing to somehow teach himself how to read.

 

I'm starting to get a bit worried whether I picked a bad race/class combination: Cain is a Thaumaturge because he sees it as a way to gain power and prove his worth, but I've also OOC taking a liking to the class and can't really see him as anything else (save for Rogue or something similar, perhaps; I haven't yet even tried the class). Any pointers or advice would be much appreciated.

[Valence]

All city states are hardly composed of a single lineage/bloodline actually and Ala-Migho is no exception. Highlanders are not the sole inhabitants in there. Midlanders among others can also hail from there.

 

If you go the Uld'ah route, it's true that everything tends to be determined by wealth but honestly, I wouldn't let them defeat you. I don't see why even a street urchin could not for some reason be noticed by someone from the Ossuary for his unusual aetherial capacities.

 

If you are interested by a Doman legacy, nothing prevents you to say that this name is just an eorzean handle he took, while you can find him a true doman name.

 

If Sharlayan is your thing, maybe he was outcast or exiled himself because he was a bit too much interested in destructive magicks for the tastes of the forum there.

 

Honestly, possibilities are plenty here. It's not like you are trying to shoehorn your character into a concept, far form it.

[L'ohba Tia]

Thaumaturgy as we know it is an Ul'dahn philosophy, so being a native citizen of Ul'dah puts him in prime position to become one. Thaumaturges aren't simply mages that throw fireballs. They're priests of Nald'thal (excluding adventurers who have just gone there to learn to throw fireballs). So depending on what you want to do with him, he could have joined the Nald'thal priesthood at a young age. You say he wants power, which is the what the Ul'dahn philosophy is almost entirely based around. If you want more info on the Order of Nald'thal, you can check out Sounsyy's compilation in the lore discussion section.

 

Edit: Just adding real quick that it doesn't matter much if your character is poor or an orphan. Money is everything in Ul'dah, but your lot in life isn't determined by how much you have at birth. It's a place where anyone can potentially make something of themselves. Two members of the Syndicate are entirely self-made. Lolorito, who began as a simple porter in another company, and Raubahn who's a refugee previously imprisoned on suspicion of being a Garlean spy. If they can make it to the Syndicate, Cain can easily become a thaumaturge in any number of ways.

[Ellmida]

If you want my opinion at all I think you're over thinking it with the name, but if you are so concerned you can explain it away depending on where you want to go nationality wise

[Sounsyy]

From what I've understood, Midlanders live pretty much everywhere, which... isn't very helpful if you are indecisive like me. I originally planned to make Cain an adventurer who recently arrived to Uldah (as the opening scene suggests) as a way to explain why he/his player might not know much about the history of the area or the local events. However, from what I've understood, his name doesn't fit Othard/Doma naming scheme, Sharlayan wasn't too keen on combat magic and an Ishgardian Hyur wouldn't probably have much reason to venture outside his kingdom.

 

Hyur can definitely be found everywhere! Though I can also understand where the sky's-the-limit approach can be rather daunting, unfortunately for Hyur it's very much the truth. What it may boil down to for you might be cultural aesthetic, what fits best with the backstory you want, and what sort of story you're wanting to tell with this character.

 

The Hyur of Eorzea comprises two clans: the Midlanders' date=' who settled in the realm's low-lying regions, and the Highlanders, who claimed the high mountains as their home. This does not, however, represent the entirety of the Hyuran people. Outside of Eorzea, Hyur can be found in Ilsabard in the north, Othard to the east, and even as far as the New World, their manifold clans and houses as innumerous as the stars in the night sky.[/quote']

 

As for where to be from? Well, for Othard you have the choice of Doma, Rabanastre, Hingashi (Kugane or Bukyo), or Bozja. Hingashi and Doma both share the Japanese naming conventions, but that's not to say your Hyur couldn't have taken on a more Eorzean-esque name when moving here.

 

More lore on Doma can be found here.

 

Sharlayan isn't keen on their knowledge being exploited for war. Despite that though, they are some of the world's most gifted magi and count powerful thaumaturges among their number. A key difference that I've brought up a couple times in regards to Sharlayan and Ishgardian thaumaturgy and conjury is that these variants of the magic wouldn't have the same religious implications attached to them.

 

More lore on Sharlayan's Studium and it's anti-war policies can be found here.

 

As for Ishgard, eh, you're probably right in the not having much reason to travel outside Ishgard, but your backstory also wouldn't need you too. As a poor Brume-born Hyur, your character could've been accepted into Saint Endalim's Scholasticate and learned thaumaturgy (as well as a slew of other topics) there too. Like I said above, in this instance, your thaumaturgy would reflect the religious doctrine of Halone instead of the Ul'dahn thaumaturgy exploring the divine duality of Nald'thal.

 

More lore on Ishgardian thaumaturgy here.

 

 

__________________________

The quests show that Ul'dah has both quite a few refugees and poor folk, which naturally gave me the idea of making Cain either. If he was a refugee, though, I'm not sure where he could be from: Ala Mhigo was mainly a Highlander kingdom, if I've understood correctly

 

Many of the refugees in and around Ul'dah are from Ala Mhigo's fall twenty years ago. Others are more recent refugees from the Calamity. But you can definitely be a Midlander from Ala Mhigo. While it is predominantly Highlander, according to the lore book about 40% of the city's population was made up of other races, most prominently Midlander Hyur, Seeker Miqo'te, and Hellsguard Roegadyn.

 

So just being a refugee trying to hack it in Ul'dah is another workable approach and a common theme among NPCs. Fame and Fortune are why most people flock to the Jewel in the first place. Power is another.

 

I'll also throw up a few relevant links:

-Ala Mhigan Races

-Weight of Gil in Ul'dah and Resentment of Refugees

 

 

__________________________

That leaves the idea of making him a native citizen of Ul'dah. If, however, I couple that with his lack of parents, how likely he would have managed to become a Thaumaturge? Literacy isn't apparently too widespread in Eorzea, so a child of poor family / orphan isn't probably the most likely candidate for wielding powerful magicks, unless he was very dedicated and stubborn – and willing to somehow teach himself how to read.

 

Your character's parents could've been adamant worshipers of Nald or Thal in life and donated to the Order. Maybe your character was raised to believe in Nald'thal right up until his parents died and he was orphaned.

 

Literacy definitely isn't widespread across Eorzea according to Fernehalwes, but Ul'dah does have schools (likely expensive?) and once inducted into the Order of Nald'thal, I imagine that they could teach your character how to read the many tomes and incantations which make up thaumaturgy.

 

The last thing I'll mention is that in Ul'dah, the Order of Nald'thal is the religious center of the city-state and is responsible for far more than just training adventurers and laypeople off the street how to cast fireballs. Like L'ohba mentioned, I have a lore post that dives into the Order and the origins of thaumaturgical practice in Ul'dah below. I'll also throw in a post detailing how the actual mechanics casting thaumaturgy work.

 

-Order of Nald'thal Lore

-Mechanics of Magic Lore

-More on Astral and Umbral Stances and Polarities

 

 

Hope this helps! ^^

[Menord]

Oh dear. Now I feel like I was worrying a bit too much, especially about my character's name. ^^' I do remember reading some of Sounsyy's lore posts, but somehow I either missed or already forgot about e.g. the Ala Mhigo racial distribution. Thanks a lot for all the answers: I'm glad and relieved to see that the community seems to be both helpful and accepting of silly newbies like me.

 

After some more pondering, I think that I will make Cain a native Ul'dahn (spelling?). Sounsyy's lore compilation mentions that quite a few poor folk come to the Arrzaneth Ossuary to worship Thal, which could explain how Cain ended up becoming a Thaumaturge. His parents might have been worshippers of Nald'thal as well, and after their death/disappearance and some time living on the streets, it wouldn't much of a stretch to say that Cain found his way to the Ossuary.

 

I don't see why even a street urchin could not for some reason be noticed by someone from the Ossuary for his unusual aetherial capacities.

 

I like this idea a lot, too. It would definitely justify Cain's job of choice, especially combined with the backstory idea above. His birthday also happens to in Fifth Umbral Moon, which makes Nald'thal his patron deity; even more of a reason to say that he was destinied to join the Order of Nald'thal and become a Thaumaturge? Perhaps, heh.

[Valence]

The guardian deity is actually not tied to the Namesday (birthday) of folks. The guardian deity is chosen as a patron deity of sorts.

 

The deity tied to the namesday is... how is it called again? Memory leak...

[Sounsyy]

The guardian deity is actually not tied to the Namesday (birthday) of folks. The guardian deity is chosen as a patron deity of sorts.

 

The deity tied to the namesday is... how is it called again? Memory leak...

 

It's still called a guardian deity. How it's chosen varies greatly from Eorzean to Eorzean, their nameday being just one of these factors. Regardless of the deity a worshiper chooses for themself though, Eorzeans believe that their birth deity will ultimately guide their fate.

 

More info on that topic here.