Getting started in rp

[FloppyDingo]

Alright, so I've finally settled down to start learning lore for FFXIV and get a character established so I can begin rping on balmung. First step I figure? Lets learn about the race we chose.

 

Months ago I started playing with a friend on a completely different server and only recently decided to move over to try my hand at RP since I enjoy tabletop rp (dnd, ect.) quite a bit. I had made a Xaela Au'ra character, and found an online name generator for him to get him a good name... or so I thought. 

 

The name it gave me?

 

Kiyokage Mizuhiki

 

The naming convention for Xaela?

 

Mongolian.

 

So now here I am, with my Xaela Samurai in game, staring at this glaringly obviously wrong name, debating... do I drink the fantasia and just switch over to a Raen? (Which I'd rather not do, I rather enjoy how he looks) - Do I pay for a name change? (Also would rather not throw away money on this)

 

Or do I find a reason for his name to be what it is? Raised by someone not of his race? Maybe. That would be one way to explain it - but I can't decide if that feels... handwavey or not. Part of me feels like that might be stretching it too much, while another part of me says "don't be silly, that's fine, orphans aren't uncommon".

 

What do you guys think? Do you have any suggestions?

 

One final question:

 

Warrior, or Samurai for class RP? I haven't read much into it yet, but I do know apparently it's faux pas to rp a blackmage, so I don't know about the other classes yet.

 

Thanks!

[Kilieit]

In future, you can use the name generator on the game itself! (Symbol looks like a little dice, next to the boxes where you type your name in.) It can be guaranteed to differentiate between clans properly, and considering they all have their own separate naming conventions (as you've learned), that's important.

 

Whether you fantasia, name-change, or come up with a backstory reason is completely up to you and what you feel most comfortable with, since all three would ultimately work. One other option, though, is to just... have your character introduce himself by a different name when RPing. It's not ideal (you'll still get some people who look at the nameplate), but at the end of the day, nameplates are meta info and information given through actual RP should/will take precedence. So if your character is introducing himself by a given name, that's what most other characters are going to call him. It helps if you put it in his search comment, too (since then it can be referred to without people having to scroll up or ask you).

 

Lastly, for RP job - those two have pretty different IC flavours, so I would ultimately decide based on what you think suits your character best after playing/youtubing the job quests for each. But either could be appropriate for a xaela, and xaela NPC's of both exist! It's also worth noting that you can RP a character who wields a katana without being a Soul Crystal Carrying Samurai, and likewise a character who wields an axe without being a Soul Crystal Carrying Warrior. The soul crystals are only important if you're going into the more mystical, historical side of the job (haven't played SAM, but for WAR that means invoking and controlling the Inner Beast). So don't feel like you need to find a way for him to obtain a soul crystal unless that's specifically what you want - don't feel a need to force it, in other words.

[FloppyDingo]

In future, you can use the name generator on the game itself! (Symbol looks like a little dice, next to the boxes where you type your name in.) It can be guaranteed to differentiate between clans properly, and considering they all have their own separate naming conventions (as you've learned), that's important.

 

Whether you fantasia, name-change, or come up with a backstory reason is completely up to you and what you feel most comfortable with, since all three would ultimately work. One other option, though, is to just... have your character introduce himself by a different name when RPing. It's not ideal (you'll still get some people who look at the nameplate), but at the end of the day, nameplates are meta info and information given through actual RP should/will take precedence. So if your character is introducing himself by a given name, that's what most other characters are going to call him. It helps if you put it in his search comment, too (since then it can be referred to without people having to scroll up or ask you).

 

Lastly, for RP job - those two have pretty different IC flavours, so I would ultimately decide based on what you think suits your character best after playing/youtubing the job quests for each. But either could be appropriate for a xaela, and xaela NPC's of both exist! It's also worth noting that you can RP a character who wields a katana without being a Soul Crystal Carrying Samurai, and likewise a character who wields an axe without being a Soul Crystal Carrying Warrior. The soul crystals are only important if you're going into the more mystical, historical side of the job (haven't played SAM, but for WAR that means invoking and controlling the Inner Beast). So don't feel like you need to find a way for him to obtain a soul crystal unless that's specifically what you want - don't feel a need to force it, in other words.

 

I've gotten to level 60 with the Samurai quests and thus far the only times the soul crystal has been noted in game was:

 

Initially when you're chosen to become a samurai, you're given it by the first NPC master.

 

and

 

After you finish the level 60 quest, it glows signifying you're "a full samurai now" and you learn the meditate skill.

 

Otherwise it doesn't really reference the gem in game at all, at least not so far. But we'll see where that goes. For now I'll probably just play him as a swordsman and see where it goes from there.

 

As for the name thing - one thing I've debated is that perhaps, if he does have this name, that it's a chosen name... and that he has a true Xaela name he no longer uses for some reason.

[Momo]

It doesn't feel handwavey at all to have your character be a Xaela and live in Kugane and be a samurai. A city like Kugane, one open to outside inhabitants, could be the perfect place for a Xaela to live outside the tribal life, much like the Raen chose to do. Seeing every type of race in Kugane wouldn't be unusual, so I think he would blend in pretty easily.

 

My suggestion about the name? Keep it the way it is, and have a tribal name he maybe left behind at some point. This will help boost his backstory and give you a jumping-off point to start working around in that respect. How did he get to Kugane, what happened to his family, why did he leave his tribe? Those sorts of questions are what comes to mind when I think about it, so hopefully that can help you set a good grounded storyline for him.

 

Unless I am totally mistaken...I think the soulstone is spoken of directly at the start of the SAM quest? He gives it to you along with the starting armor and says something about you feeling bonded with it right away, but I will have to go back and look to be sure of it. Hopefully some of this helps! (Also, something that I think helps on RPC itself, is getting a little avatar so people can recognize you around and be there to help when they see you posted, and take an interest in you, can we see maybe a pic of Kiyo?)

[FloppyDingo]

It doesn't feel handwavey at all to have your character be a Xaela and live in Kugane and be a samurai. A city like Kugane, one open to outside inhabitants, could be the perfect place for a Xaela to live outside the tribal life, much like the Raen chose to do. Seeing every type of race in Kugane wouldn't be unusual, so I think he would blend in pretty easily.

 

My suggestion about the name? Keep it the way it is, and have a tribal name he maybe left behind at some point. This will help boost his backstory and give you a jumping-off point to start working around in that respect. How did he get to Kugane, what happened to his family, why did he leave his tribe? Those sorts of questions are what comes to mind when I think about it, so hopefully that can help you set a good grounded storyline for him.

 

Unless I am totally mistaken...I think the soulstone is spoken of directly at the start of the SAM quest? He gives it to you along with the starting armor and says something about you feeling bonded with it right away, but I will have to go back and look to be sure of it. Hopefully some of this helps! (Also, something that I think helps on RPC itself, is getting a little avatar so people can recognize you around and be there to help when they see you posted, and take an interest in you, can we see maybe a pic of Kiyo?)

 

Yeah sure! I'll post a picture at the end of this reply.

 

I believe you're correct about the samurai soulstone. He just kind of... hands it over because you show promise, and then it's like "cool you're a samurai now, good luck" and that's that. The entire 50-60 questline is you "bonding" with the soul and learning to be a "full fledged samurai" - so apparently just having the soulstone doesn't make you one - it just gives you the introductory course and sets you on the path. (though I think most soulstones are pretty similar - you have to unlock their potential through hard work)

 

As for his name I came up with, what I feel is a good solution:

 

His chosen name, is Kiyokage. He does not have a last name yet, as he feels he has not "earned it" - a mixture of his own Xaela heritage (where one's last name is their tribe - and clearly he has abandoned them by leaving), and the Kugane thing where one has to "earn" their surname through militaristic prowess.

 

He's currently a 'swordsman' (not samurai, yet, I want to give him room to grow) and is wandering seeking to improve his skill and earn a name for himself. There's some inklings of maybe one day returning home to try and start up his own tribe, but those are inklings - dreams of dreams so far off in the future that they may never even happen.

 

As for his original name? Nergui. It's mongolian for "No Name". His mother was of the Borlaaq tribe, and seeing as he was male he was immediately given up to the Iriq tribe. When he learned of this it fostered some resentment - hence him leaving at a rather young age and spurring a bit of a sour disposition.

 

That's kind of where I am with him right now. Any thoughts on that would be appreciated!

 

And here's your picture - taken by a new friend I met through RP who happened to capture a rather dramatic lightning strike:

 

 

And another picture I took myself:

 

 

I'll have to make an entry in the RPC and such here when I get a chance.