Jaliqai Qulaan
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JALIQAI QULAAN (Pronunciation: jah-lee-kai khoo-lahn), more commonly known amongst those familiar with her reputation in the bounty hunting circle by the epithet Red, is a Xaelan huntress hailing from the continent of Othard. A former member of a small, thought-to-be-destroyed tribe known for its exceptional prowess in hunting, called the Qulaan Tribe, she has since turned her skill in tracking down and pursuing her quarry into a marketable skill. Her thirst for increasingly thrilling, challenging hunts first saw her wandering freely across Othard chasing man and beast alike for many years. However, with the increasing Garlean presence in her homeland making the hunt nigh impossible, she has since been forced to retreat to Eorzea like many of her ilk. Now residing primarily in Ul'dah, Jaliqai is finding that the quarry that pulls the most coin in the Jewel of the Desert, along with its own host of challenges and dangers, is information.
Jaliqai is tall for a female Au Ra with a sturdy physique (Reference NSFW) that belies much training and conditioning of her body, as is common of Qulaan stock bred, raised, and trained for a life of endless hunting and sport. Her skin is dark and dusky in color, though her lustrous black scales and the numerous, varied scars accrued over her hunting career still stand out in stark contrast. She has the look of someone who takes great pride in their looks, with her neat and well-kept appearance when out and about. Her face is almost always made up, lips and the corners of her bright golden eyes painted red like the ends of her neatly cut, short black hair. Likewise, she seems to spare little expense when it comes to her clothing, and even less where her armor and weaponry are concerned.
Blunt. Capricious. Predatory. Jaliqai's personality is one that some may very well find to be off-putting, with her often sharp tongue and her penchant for saying exactly what is on her mind with little to no concern for the feelings of others. There is no beating around the bush or sweet sugarcoating of words with this Xaela. She's also possessed of a terribly mercurial temperament, her mood changing at the drop of a hat. One moment she could be all grins and laughter, and the next could see her turn surly and aggressive. However, her predatory nature tends to stick out most of all. She tends to watch people and judge them as a beast would its prey, calculating motives, sizing them up, gathering information. Still, despite her recent lone wandering, her upbringing has left her with a deep sense of loyalty and a natural orientation towards functioning in a group. Once one does manage the task of earning her respect, she's a fierce ally to have at one's back and would hunt any that do them harm to the ends of the world and back. Those who prove themselves worthy of leadership will find themselves with a subordinate who is surprisingly good at following orders and getting jobs done.
This is a list of the items that Jaliqai currently is keeping on her person. Feel free to use this information if it comes up logically in the course of RP, such as pickpocketing, a search, etc. Last Updated: September 27th, 2015.
Face Claim: Nargis Amelina (NSFWish). Body Claim: Natalia Karandashova (NSFWish). Voice Claim: Uyanga Bold.
THE QULAAN were one of the lesser Xaela tribes that roamed far and wide across the continent of Othard, often referred to as the Wolves of the Steppe by other Xaela tribes and Othardian peoples alike. Known for their exceptional prowess in tracking and bringing down prey, much like the wolves that they claim as brethren, the Qulaan revered the Hunt above all else. Never lingering in one place for too long, this tightly knit group of Auri trackers and warriors followed wherever the promise of worthy quarry led them. Yet the constant danger of their pursuits as well as the occasional brushes with larger, hostile Xaela tribes tended to keep their numbers small with little growth. Despite this, the cunning tribe compensated for their lacking numbers with traditions meant to breed and raise even stronger stock, keeping their bloodlines going for generation upon generation. Paired with their willingness to interact with, learn from, and trade with outsiders, the pack remained strong. As the Garleans began to appear with frequency in Othard with the continent's subjugation in the year 1521, the Qulaan found their hunts and way of life stifled by these foreign invaders, as many other Xaela tribes did. Their movements and resources restricted, it took a good deal of time to adjust. Yet eventually, the ever-adapting tribe managed to learn how to carry on, finding ways to continue living and hunting without drawing the Garleans' ire. Still discontent remained, only the barest of begrudging tolerance for the inconvenient presence given. Roughly eight years ago, the other tribes, villages, and cities that the Qulaan regularly interacted and traded with began to notice the tribe's marked absence. After a few moons, rumors began to spread that the tribe was no longer. No one quite knew for certain what had happened to the Wolves of the Steppe, yet myriad theories were put forth. Some believed that the tribe had turned in on itself, erupting in battle that left them fragmented and easy pickings. Others suspected that another larger tribe, most likely Kharlu or Jhungid, subjugated and assimilated them into their ranks. Or maybe an attack by a hostile Dotharl tribe, who destroyed them as they did the Hotgo? A hunt went terribly wrong? Whatever the case, even if the circumstances were unknown, one thing was: the proud hunters were no more.
The Qulaan tribe now has its own wiki with all the information on them you could ever want.. and probably a lot more that you didn't.
Jaliqai, as was the way of her tribe, has been taught how to fight and how to hunt from a very young age. Though ultimately her skills skewed more towards the hunt and pursuit of prey itself rather than battle, she is still a very much capable fighter. Her small frame and lightness on her feet make her naturally more agile, quick, and balanced. However, muscle wrought from years of training, fighting, and careful maintenance ensure that when she needs to don heavier armor and weaponry, she has the necessary strength to wield them by sacrificing some of that natural speed. The Xaela does best when she is in a fight with at least one partner at her back. While she can hold her own when by herself, it's far from comfortable or natural for her, and can sometimes lead to thoughtless mistakes on her behalf.
Here is a list of recent and/or notable fights, roleplay scenes, etc. that Jaliqai has been a part of. This list is by no means all inclusive, and serves more as a general reference as to what she has been up to.
Jaliqai was borne of the union of the Qulaani hunting partners, Sechen and Yesugei. While the two were never romantic lovers, they were extremely close to one another as hunting companions and parents. While Jaliqai was never quite as close with her father as she was with her mother, both had a hand in raising her -- alongside the rest of the tribe, as was their custom -- and shaping her into the young woman that she became. And that was that. Her childhood into her early adulthood passed with little fanfare or upset.
When Jaliqai was in her twenty-fourth cycle, her previously normal life was ended with the apparently decimation of her tribe. What started as a freak accident when a beloved Auri girl was slain by a trigger-happy Garlean patrol while trying to sneak past and avoid them drove the grief-stricken Qulaani tribe into a reckless push for revenge. They tracked the Garleans back to their encampment and fell upon them with all their fury. However, despite the tribe's fighting prowess, their relatively low numbers and their inability to properly defend against the mightier magitek of the Garleans ultimately spelled their defeat in the chaotic, bloody skirmish that followed. Many died that day. Those who did not, Jaliqai included, were rounded up to be transported back to only the gods know where. Heavily injured and barely clinging to life, Jaliqai finally escaped capture when she pretended to be dead, and was subsequently tossed out unceremoniously onto the roadside with the other Auri that had passed from the extent of their wounds. There, weak and buried in the pile of bodies, she very well might had succumb. However, following a respectable distance behind the Garlean transport was a group of Doman villagers whose lands the soldiers were passing through. Having noticed the trail of Xaela bodies left in their wake and bearing no love for the invaders, these farmers and villagers gathered the fallen hunters and huntresses to properly bury them. It was then that they found Jaliqai, barely alive, and brought her back to their home to nurse her back to health. Days passed before the woman had recovered enough to be coherent and discover what had happened. She begged the Doman villagers to help her in properly burying her tribemates in their custom, to which they agreed. With the villagers' help, Jaliqai brought the shrouded bodies to the funeral pyre and such for them, alone, until dusk broke to dawn. It was then that she begged them never to speak of what had happened to the Qulaan, to not bring shame and tarnish to their reputation. Once Jaliqai had fully recovered, she knew that she could not continue to live amongst the kind Domans that had taken her in. They were just far too different from her, and the village would never be her home. So, she was given enough supplies to travel and decided to set out to wander, to pursue a new life by herself. It was lonely and difficult for someone who had spent their entire life surrounded by their family. Yet ever determined and hard-headed like her mother, Jaliqai did not give in to despair or self-pity.
Instead, she decided to take up a different sort of hunting: bounties. At first, she mostly stuck to the rewards offered for creatures, sticking to those whom she knew she could take down by herself. Yet as she grew more confident, she joined larger jobs that took in a handful of hunters, finding this style of work in a group much more to her liking. Still, they were but temporary arrangements, and after each job was completed, Jaliqai found herself alone once more. Eventually, the offer was extended to her by a contact to join them in the hunt of a human bounty. Never one to turn down a challenge, Jaliqai agreed, and quickly found the work was very much suited to her. She had always been much more of a clever, observant tracker than a true fighter, and such work with her mind resounded strongly with her. Gradually, she began to take less contracts for beasts to focus more heavily on tracking down people, and she saw much success with this across Othard for the next handful of years. Garlean presence had always left a sour taste in her mouth, especially after what had happened to her family. Yet she had begrudgingly bore the weight and inconvenience of their presence in the land. Yet as time ticked on, she came to find them more and more stifling. Finally, when Doma was razed to the ground, Jaliqai knew that it was time to leave her homeland. Buying passage aboard a refugee vessel, she made the trek across the sea to the continent of Eorzea.
Jaliqai had known truly little about Eorzea when she had first arrived in the land. What bit she had heard came from the mouths of sailors and traders that she had met, or occasional rumors. When she finally set foot in the land, these bits of information had scarcely prepared her for the culture shock. She had it better than most tribal Xaela, she figured, having gained a somewhat more cultured sense in her previous eight cycles spent wandering and learning. Yet still, this was a new land, new people, and new way of life. Not to mention, most of the men and women had never even heard of her kind before, much less laid eyes upon them. Like many Au Ra that arrived in the initial influx of refugees, Jaliqai took great pains to conceal her more Auri features and to keep her new peers at arm's length. Still, she knew that she had to adjust and adapt to this new land, and hesitated little in trying to work her way back into the bounty hunter's world. It was then that she accepted an open contract and joined onto a job alongside Bayard Bronzeblade, an established and charismatic Highlander who was already fairly established in the Eorzean bounty hunting world. He took leadership of the group and, in particular, took a great interest in the mysterious foreign woman who had come to them alone and looking to prove herself. Over the following six moons' time, Jaliqai and Bayard became increasingly close. He managed to get her to open up more than she did with others, and in exchange, he taught her all that she needed to know about Eorzea, its history, its places, and its people. He introduced her to the contacts that she would need in the bounty hunting world, from her fellow hunters to the secret sellers and everything in between. Yet in the end, realizing how much she had come to care for the man and how such a feeling stirred up a deep sense of guilt inside of her, Jaliqai ultimately decided to leave Bayard's company and strike out into Eorzea on her own.
As far as coin goes, all roads seem to lead directly to Ul'dah. With that in mind, Jaliqai made the decision to come to the Jewel of the Desert to try her hand at finding work there. It did not take long for the Xaela to learn that the thing people seemed to want tracked down most in the desert was information, not beasts. Realizing that, Jaliqai took up the challenge of a new kind of hunt, and found herself extended acceptance into the Blind Viper soon after. Now, Jaliqai seeks to continue to expand her list of contacts and her reserve of knowledge, and actively claims Ul'dah as her hunting grounds. While up north to a job in Ishgard with Bayard, Jaliqai eventually learned of rumors that there may yet be other Qulaani hunters that had come to Eorzea. Her curiosity is piqued, but she refuses to let herself feel overly hopeful for fear that the rumors are just that: words.
These are mostly backstory-related relationships. However, should anyone express interest in creating a Qulaan member or family member, I will add them here as necessary.
Listed here are the non-tribe and non-family characters, both PC and NPC, that Jaliqai has interacted with enough or in such a way for her to form a real opinion about them. Please don't take personal offense if your character isn't listed here, or how the interaction or relationship is described. It isn't that I dislike your character or our RP. I just tend to only add these as necessary for those who make a real impact on Jaliqai, and descriptions are purely based upon in character experiences and opinions! Last Update... September 29th, 2015. * An asterisks denotes that Jaliqai doesn't know the individual's true name.
◢ Common Rumors - Easily overheard. Use these freely!
◢ Uncommon Rumors - A little more difficult to hear. Use sparingly or ask first!
◢ Rare Rumors - Very rarely overheard. Please ask before using!
◢ Player Character Rumors - Feel free to add rumors of your own!
You are not permitted to re-use this artwork for your own characters or purposes, whether on Final Fantasy XIV or on other games, forums, etc.
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Jaliqai is played by a twenty-something year old woman straight out of the heart of the good ol' American countryside, where most people own more tractors than they have teeth. Despite this, she actually kind of likes it there most of the time, even if it's left her with an insufferable drawl and more than a handful of colorful Southernisms that cause people to scratch their heads when she speaks. She works a nine-to-five job (actually more like eight-to-four-thirty) and so she's not always around or energetic enough for RP, but she still very much enjoys hanging out with other RPers, chatting, and running content in the game even when she isn't feeling the flow of creative juices -- which she also thinks is a very gross-sounding phrase, for the record. If you like adorable cats, Game of Thrones, and groan-worthy puns, then chances are, you will get along with her just fine. She also curses like a Finally, he's a grab bag of little side notes that may be of interest to you if you RP with me!
Overall, I'm pretty chill as far as guidelines go. I don't have an extensive list of 'Do's or 'Don't's or things that I personally find triggering. So chances are, you won't offend me or make me uncomfortable unless you're trying to or just being really skeevy in general. Still, for the sake of making sure everyone's on the same page here, let me make a few mentions in particular:
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