I'ziva hails from an island in the Cieldalaes archipelago (pictured south of La Noscea). She was born a middle child with a precocious personality, something of a scamp getting in and out of trouble in creative ways (going places she shouldn't go to set hunting traps before she was allowed to hunt, tracking down beasts, looking for adventure, playing games with wild animals, etc.), always well intended if a bit short sighted. She greatly admired the older females in the clan for their confidence and skill. She chose to train with throwing and hunting knives and eventually joined her tribe-sisters in the hunt, eager to prove her skill.
A fair number of traders traveled through that would barter with them on occasion. As a result I'ziva, like others before her, grew up hearing many stories about the mainland to the Northeast. The first story that stood out was of the Rose of the Desert, Ul'dah, whose people were known for the richness of their lives be it literal or figurative. The first time she heard about it she couldn't get the tale out of her head. Each day she imagined grander ideas of what such a place must look like: towering stone walls set in an arid land of sand, sprinkled with the rare oasis. Wide, populated streets, scents of exotic foods and fragrances traveling from the marketplace. To a young cub whose entire life had been lush forest it sounded fascinating. She began asking after other places merchants had traveled to (sometimes having to be boxed on the ears for being a pest but remained undeterred) and heard tales of even further lands like La Noscea and Coerthas. It was then that Ziva's desire to travel the world began to burn in earnest, a thirst for adventure that she still carries with her to this day.
At the age of seventeen Ziva was deemed ready to begin a coming of age trial. She almost couldn't wait for the word "go" and set out for the nearest port city that very week. It took a couple years to raise the coin to make the trip overseas. During that time she worked odd jobs and acted as a sort of mercenary, protecting travelers and gatherers, sometimes hunting down supplies on request. By her twentieth year she'd finally raised the coin needed. During this journey the Calamity struck dealing Eorzea a devastating blow. She stood on the deck of the ship with the rest of the passengers watching in awe and horror as the debris struck the land in the distance.
None were surprised to find the land in a bad way once docked. Instead of continuing on to Thanalan Ziva spent the next five years there, helping the people pick themselves back up wherever she could lend a hand. Eventually she refined her battle skills when she joined the Adventurers Guild and the "Dutiful Sisters", a front organization for the Rogues' Guild. She spent her days upholding the pirate code, loving every minute of it. Eventually Ziva was encouraged by her guild leader to take what she'd learned and continue her adventures out in the world. Finally, it seemed, she would be able to make her way to Thanalan and visit Ul'dah, proper. Little did she know that from the moment she stepped foot onto the ferry bound for the rose of the desert her life would become one non-stop adventure.
Ziva's story as the Warrior of Light picks up there. The story in question is absolutely massive, but there are thankfully a handful of websites that have taken the liberty of summarizing the story. I hope that's acceptable! I linked both in case one format is preferable over the other, though both sites were missing pieces ("The Lore Train" is missing Stormblood and only has part 1 for Shadowbringers, but "Land of Odd" is missing Shadowbringers entirely).
"For customizable/silent protagonists: How are you justifying your portrayal of the character? What is your in-canon evidence? Please explain how, if your character lacks dialogue or a set background, you determined their history and personality."
Ziva is half-Sun Seeker on her father's side, which explains the mixed naming conventions and her mixed physical traits. Ziva also happened to get her daring, laid back, and adventurous spirit from him, while her sisters both took after their mother's shrewder way of thinking.
The pugilist class simply fit with her personality and what would be her preferred fighting style at that time in her life. Her thrill seeking nature meant that she preferred being in the thick of the action, something it took her a while to grow out of. When she joined the rogues it was because she enjoyed the atmosphere and saw an opportunity to really challenge herself, put her agility to better use. It was in the same family as pugilists, still in the thick of it all, but with BLADES. Her decision to take up very different disciplines/jobs later on in her journey is the result of her character development over the course of the story and will be elaborated in the personality section.
I came up with Ziva's personality based on a handful of traits/keywords, these were "extroverted", "very confident", "comfortable", and "fundamentally good". I'll expand on those in personality, but XIV was my first MMO, and while I've created plenty of OC's in my time RP'ing this game was my first experience crafting a custom video game protagonist. I knew I'd have some limitations, so her backstory didn't come until after I'd learned more about the world and lore. I went in with some basics in mind and built out as I became familiar with the game setting. When I decided to bring her into DWRP I started by profiling her personality traits using the Brigg's system. Please note, I did not pick a personality type and base her on that, the personality came first, and I simply used the Brigg's system as a cross-reference. It's something I do with all of my OC's to be sure that my logic for their line of thinking/processing/acting makes sense! So yeah, by then I had a solid personality pieced together.
The main story and my dialogue choices established her as someone who helped others because she was asked and fairly compensated, at least at first. She was starting over in a new city (first in Limsa, then again in Ul'dah) and wanted to establish herself, and didn't mind starting small to do it. She also wasn't the sort of person who could ignore something wrong that was happening right in front of her, so she continually found herself pulled into bigger and bigger problems either because curiosity got the better of her, someone needed help, or she was set up by someone else. This is what eventually led Thancred to approach her and invite her to join the Scions. She saw it as a good opportunity to continue doing what she had been doing, and learning more about the land and the Echo in one fell swoop.
She retired her ninja blades following the events at Baelsar's Wall and took the opportunity to study the way of the Red Mage. It provided her a way to support her allies on the battlefield while still taking a more offensive approach, and even allowed her to get in up close on the action once in a while. Once mastered she then took up study under the Astrologian's guild so that she could learn healing magicks, intrigued by the concept of being able to alter fate by predicting its course. Her curiosity got the better of her in the downtime waiting for the means to traverse the Rift, and she chose to learn the way of the Dancer, working exceptionally hard to learn the skill in time to make use of it in her future trials. With this skill she was, again, able to support her comrades while still taking an active role in combat.
I'ziva Ganajai | Final Fantasy XIV | Reserved (PT1)
Name: Koree
E-mail: reeplaysjournal@gmail.com
Preferred Contact:
Timezone: CST/CDT
Current Characters in Victory Road: 0!
Character
Name: I'ziva Ganajai
Series: Final Fantasy XIV
Timeline: Shadowbringers; Just after hearing the gunshot on Mt. Gulg
Canon Resource Links: FF Wikia: Final Fantasy XIV, FF Wikia: Hydaelyn, and FF Wikia: Warrior of Light (XIV)
Original Character Background: Birth Clan/Coalition information, and Significant Relationships
I'ziva hails from an island in the Cieldalaes archipelago (pictured south of La Noscea). She was born a middle child with a precocious personality, something of a scamp getting in and out of trouble in creative ways (going places she shouldn't go to set hunting traps before she was allowed to hunt, tracking down beasts, looking for adventure, playing games with wild animals, etc.), always well intended if a bit short sighted. She greatly admired the older females in the clan for their confidence and skill. She chose to train with throwing and hunting knives and eventually joined her tribe-sisters in the hunt, eager to prove her skill.
A fair number of traders traveled through that would barter with them on occasion. As a result I'ziva, like others before her, grew up hearing many stories about the mainland to the Northeast. The first story that stood out was of the Rose of the Desert, Ul'dah, whose people were known for the richness of their lives be it literal or figurative. The first time she heard about it she couldn't get the tale out of her head. Each day she imagined grander ideas of what such a place must look like: towering stone walls set in an arid land of sand, sprinkled with the rare oasis. Wide, populated streets, scents of exotic foods and fragrances traveling from the marketplace. To a young cub whose entire life had been lush forest it sounded fascinating. She began asking after other places merchants had traveled to (sometimes having to be boxed on the ears for being a pest but remained undeterred) and heard tales of even further lands like La Noscea and Coerthas. It was then that Ziva's desire to travel the world began to burn in earnest, a thirst for adventure that she still carries with her to this day.
At the age of seventeen Ziva was deemed ready to begin a coming of age trial. She almost couldn't wait for the word "go" and set out for the nearest port city that very week. It took a couple years to raise the coin to make the trip overseas. During that time she worked odd jobs and acted as a sort of mercenary, protecting travelers and gatherers, sometimes hunting down supplies on request. By her twentieth year she'd finally raised the coin needed. During this journey the Calamity struck dealing Eorzea a devastating blow. She stood on the deck of the ship with the rest of the passengers watching in awe and horror as the debris struck the land in the distance.
None were surprised to find the land in a bad way once docked. Instead of continuing on to Thanalan Ziva spent the next five years there, helping the people pick themselves back up wherever she could lend a hand. Eventually she refined her battle skills when she joined the Adventurers Guild and the "Dutiful Sisters", a front organization for the Rogues' Guild. She spent her days upholding the pirate code, loving every minute of it. Eventually Ziva was encouraged by her guild leader to take what she'd learned and continue her adventures out in the world. Finally, it seemed, she would be able to make her way to Thanalan and visit Ul'dah, proper. Little did she know that from the moment she stepped foot onto the ferry bound for the rose of the desert her life would become one non-stop adventure.
Ziva's story as the Warrior of Light picks up there. The story in question is absolutely massive, but there are thankfully a handful of websites that have taken the liberty of summarizing the story. I hope that's acceptable! I linked both in case one format is preferable over the other, though both sites were missing pieces ("The Lore Train" is missing Stormblood and only has part 1 for Shadowbringers, but "Land of Odd" is missing Shadowbringers entirely).
The Lore Train: A Realm Reborn: part 1 and part 2, Heavensward: Part 1, 2, 3, and 4 (Conclusion).
Land of Odd: A Realm Reborn, Heavensward, Stormblood
Twinfinite: Shadowbringers
Ziva is half-Sun Seeker on her father's side, which explains the mixed naming conventions and her mixed physical traits. Ziva also happened to get her daring, laid back, and adventurous spirit from him, while her sisters both took after their mother's shrewder way of thinking.
The pugilist class simply fit with her personality and what would be her preferred fighting style at that time in her life. Her thrill seeking nature meant that she preferred being in the thick of the action, something it took her a while to grow out of. When she joined the rogues it was because she enjoyed the atmosphere and saw an opportunity to really challenge herself, put her agility to better use. It was in the same family as pugilists, still in the thick of it all, but with BLADES. Her decision to take up very different disciplines/jobs later on in her journey is the result of her character development over the course of the story and will be elaborated in the personality section.
I came up with Ziva's personality based on a handful of traits/keywords, these were "extroverted", "very confident", "comfortable", and "fundamentally good". I'll expand on those in personality, but XIV was my first MMO, and while I've created plenty of OC's in my time RP'ing this game was my first experience crafting a custom video game protagonist. I knew I'd have some limitations, so her backstory didn't come until after I'd learned more about the world and lore. I went in with some basics in mind and built out as I became familiar with the game setting. When I decided to bring her into DWRP I started by profiling her personality traits using the Brigg's system. Please note, I did not pick a personality type and base her on that, the personality came first, and I simply used the Brigg's system as a cross-reference. It's something I do with all of my OC's to be sure that my logic for their line of thinking/processing/acting makes sense! So yeah, by then I had a solid personality pieced together.
The main story and my dialogue choices established her as someone who helped others because she was asked and fairly compensated, at least at first. She was starting over in a new city (first in Limsa, then again in Ul'dah) and wanted to establish herself, and didn't mind starting small to do it. She also wasn't the sort of person who could ignore something wrong that was happening right in front of her, so she continually found herself pulled into bigger and bigger problems either because curiosity got the better of her, someone needed help, or she was set up by someone else. This is what eventually led Thancred to approach her and invite her to join the Scions. She saw it as a good opportunity to continue doing what she had been doing, and learning more about the land and the Echo in one fell swoop.
She retired her ninja blades following the events at Baelsar's Wall and took the opportunity to study the way of the Red Mage. It provided her a way to support her allies on the battlefield while still taking a more offensive approach, and even allowed her to get in up close on the action once in a while. Once mastered she then took up study under the Astrologian's guild so that she could learn healing magicks, intrigued by the concept of being able to alter fate by predicting its course. Her curiosity got the better of her in the downtime waiting for the means to traverse the Rift, and she chose to learn the way of the Dancer, working exceptionally hard to learn the skill in time to make use of it in her future trials. With this skill she was, again, able to support her comrades while still taking an active role in combat.