Difference between revisions of "Mali Bloodscythe"

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| imagewidth =  
 
| imagewidth =  
 
| caption = "I get I'm not the sanest of folks, but there's two things you can count on: I'll protect my friends, and I'll destroy my enemies. Now which side a' that do you wanna be on?"
 
| caption = "I get I'm not the sanest of folks, but there's two things you can count on: I'll protect my friends, and I'll destroy my enemies. Now which side a' that do you wanna be on?"
| title = A Chaotic Adventurer With Loyalties Unknown
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| title = A Chaotic Adventurer With Deeper Scars
 
| gender = Female
 
| gender = Female
 
| citizenship = Unaffiliated
 
| citizenship = Unaffiliated
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| clan = Sea Wolf
 
| clan = Sea Wolf
 
| stat_1 = Age
 
| stat_1 = Age
| stat_1_value = ???
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| stat_1_value = 26 (Technically 31, born in 1546)
 
| stat_2 = Nameday
 
| stat_2 = Nameday
 
| stat_2_value = 28th Sun of the 6th Umbral Moon
 
| stat_2_value = 28th Sun of the 6th Umbral Moon
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| stat_4_value = ???
 
| stat_4_value = ???
 
| stat_5 = Occupation
 
| stat_5 = Occupation
| stat_5_value = Mercenary
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| stat_5_value = Adventurer
 
| stat_6 =  
 
| stat_6 =  
 
| stat_6_value =  
 
| stat_6_value =  
 
}}
 
}}
{{Character-stub}}
 
  
 
==Basic Info==
 
==Basic Info==
'''Full Name:''' Unknown.
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'''Full Name:''' Not for you to know.
  
'''Aliases:''' Goes by Mali Bloodscythe as her pseudonym.
+
'''Aliases:''' Goes by Mali Bloodscythe as her pseudonym. Previous surname aliases have included: "Reaper," "Blanaren," "Darksidhe"
  
'''Nicknames:''' Mali, Malice, Mal
+
'''Nicknames:''' Just Mali.
  
 
'''Pronunciation:''' MAL-ee
 
'''Pronunciation:''' MAL-ee
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'''Birthplace:''' Unknown.
 
'''Birthplace:''' Unknown.
  
'''Current Residence:''' Limsa Lominsa
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'''Current Residence:''' Limsa Lominsa.
  
'''Relationship Status:''' Single
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'''Relationship Status:''' Single.
  
 
'''Religion:''' "Pfff, religion? Feck that noise. If the gods want to come down and do shite ''right'' for a change, maybe I'll start believin'."
 
'''Religion:''' "Pfff, religion? Feck that noise. If the gods want to come down and do shite ''right'' for a change, maybe I'll start believin'."
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'''Laterality:''' Left handed.
 
'''Laterality:''' Left handed.
  
'''Other Notes:''' N/A
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'''Other Notes:''' Mali is a little nearsighted, which might be why she prefers fighting up close and personal with her targets. Due to a healing anomaly her right eye now sees better than her left, but her color vision is worse.
  
 
==Appearance==
 
==Appearance==
'''Height:''' 5'9", and if you comment on her (relatively) short stature you'll have to deal with an axe in your skull.
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'''Height:''' 6'0", and if you comment on her (relatively) short stature you'll have to deal with an axe in your skull.
  
 
'''Weight:''' 135 ponz
 
'''Weight:''' 135 ponz
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'''General Clothing Style:''' Usually a mismatch of armor and casual dress, depending on her mood. The armor is likely to be dirty and covered in bloodstains ("tokens of battle," she calls them), but her clothes are at least kept clean, though not exactly pristine. You will probably never see her in a skirt, but if you do you might not live to tell the tale.
 
'''General Clothing Style:''' Usually a mismatch of armor and casual dress, depending on her mood. The armor is likely to be dirty and covered in bloodstains ("tokens of battle," she calls them), but her clothes are at least kept clean, though not exactly pristine. You will probably never see her in a skirt, but if you do you might not live to tell the tale.
  
'''Voice:''' Unusually high-pitched for a Roegadyn, if she ever did "pansy shit" like sing she would probably be a soprano. She has a gruff, somewhat intimidating tone most of the time, which shows especially when she's calling out in excitement during battle. If you manage to catch her off-guard, though, her voice can be much different, smoother and more dexterous at displaying emotions other than "I love killing things."
+
'''Voice:''' Unusually high-pitched for a Roegadyn, if she ever did "pansy shit" like sing she would probably be a soprano. She has a gruff, somewhat intimidating tone most of the time, which shows especially when she's calling out in excitement during battle. If you manage to catch her off-guard, though, her voice can be much different, smoother and more dexterous at displaying emotions other than "I love killing things." She ''usually'' has a slight Limsa Lominsan accent, but it changes in severity (or disappears entirely) based on her mood.
  
'''Other Notes:''' She has a few cuts and scratches here and there, but nothing that strikes as obvious save for a more noticeable one on her face. Her most noticeable trait is the red war paint she has on her face. She is rarely ever seen without it, which makes some people think it might be a tattoo. When asked about it, her answer changes every time. The include, but are not limited to: family tradition, used to scare her enemies, "it makes me feel pretty," "how about I paint YOUR face motherf--"
+
'''Other Notes:''' She has a few cuts and scratches here and there, but nothing that strikes as obvious save for one on her cheek. Her most noticeable trait is the red war paint she has on her face. She is rarely ever seen without it, which makes some people think it might be a tattoo. When asked about it, her answer changes every time. They include, but are not limited to: family tradition, used to scare her enemies, "it makes me feel pretty," "how about I paint YOUR face motherf--"
  
 
==Personality==
 
==Personality==
  
 
Mali can be almost perfectly described in one word; chaotic. To say that she suffers from mood swings would be both an understatement and a misnomer, as she seems to kind of enjoy it. At times she is perfectly nice and exuberant, albeit with a dark sense of humor and a violent streak. Other times she is a brooding, antisocial pessimist with a chip on her shoulder and an axe with your name on it. Still ''other'' times she is an angry, violent demon of a woman who just wants to see the world burn. Once or twice she even shows a softer side, though she's too headstrong to admit it. Throughout all of her various "personalities" there are a few connecting themes: she likes a good laugh, she's loyal to whomever she decides is her friend that day, and she keeps a tough persona on at all times. In spite of (or perhaps to compensate for) her very "masculine" behavior, she never misses an opportunity to remind her companions that she is very much a woman...unless it involves dressing up.
 
Mali can be almost perfectly described in one word; chaotic. To say that she suffers from mood swings would be both an understatement and a misnomer, as she seems to kind of enjoy it. At times she is perfectly nice and exuberant, albeit with a dark sense of humor and a violent streak. Other times she is a brooding, antisocial pessimist with a chip on her shoulder and an axe with your name on it. Still ''other'' times she is an angry, violent demon of a woman who just wants to see the world burn. Once or twice she even shows a softer side, though she's too headstrong to admit it. Throughout all of her various "personalities" there are a few connecting themes: she likes a good laugh, she's loyal to whomever she decides is her friend that day, and she keeps a tough persona on at all times. In spite of (or perhaps to compensate for) her very "masculine" behavior, she never misses an opportunity to remind her companions that she is very much a woman...unless it involves dressing up.
 +
 +
When around company she isn't used to, Mali's personality shifts are less extreme, mostly because she is very uncomfortable in new or large crowds (though she would never show it, most of the time) and doesn't really know ''how'' to act around new people. She tends to stay away from making big decisions or standing out in the crowd, and the few things she does say usually come off as gruff, rude, or uncaring. While that might actually be the case sometimes, most of the time she is merely putting on her "extra tough" facade to either impress, or scare, new people. Get to know her a little, though, and she lets go of the extra tough guy attitude (thought she has a lot left to spare) and becomes her more extreme self.
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 +
Being socially awkward to an extreme, she has trouble understanding romantic relationships, or even noticing when someone is flirting with her (or setting her up with someone else, for that matter). She also has trouble understanding simple things like filtering what she says, and why people get angry when she speaks her mind. Granted, when she speaks her mind it's usually a sarcastic remark at the expense of someone else. She has trouble not looking like she's about to kill something (even when being as cordial as possible), and tends to be intimidating to the average person without making a conscious effort (or specifically trying ''not'' to be), which gives her a reputation as a bit of a bully, or even a bogeyman for merchants and peddlers ("don't look at her directly! That crazy grin is enough to make your hair stand on end!" "If you see her coming, just give her whatever she wants and hope she leaves."). Despite it all she means well...most of the time.
  
 
'''Likes'''
 
'''Likes'''
*Men - She gets along with men better than women, mostly.
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*Men - She gets along with men better than women, mostly. Not to say that she dislikes women, she just doesn't know how to be...feminine.
 
*Fights - Not necessarily with others, just in general. The thrill of battle is something she enjoys, perhaps a little too much.
 
*Fights - Not necessarily with others, just in general. The thrill of battle is something she enjoys, perhaps a little too much.
 
*Stories - Except for her own. She likes to hear about other peoples' experiences, unless she gets bored of it.
 
*Stories - Except for her own. She likes to hear about other peoples' experiences, unless she gets bored of it.
*Winning - Post-battle celebrations are common.
+
*Winning - Post-battle celebrations are common. They usually involve drinking.
 
*Food - And drinks, of course. She hardly ever turns down a meal, unless it's dodo.
 
*Food - And drinks, of course. She hardly ever turns down a meal, unless it's dodo.
 
*Laughing - Often for no reason. She's very jovial when she isn't being antisocial.
 
*Laughing - Often for no reason. She's very jovial when she isn't being antisocial.
 
*Allies - If you get on her good side she's a fiercely loyal friend...just don't ask too many questions.
 
*Allies - If you get on her good side she's a fiercely loyal friend...just don't ask too many questions.
 
*Challenges - She's always looking to get better. If you defeat her, she'll probably want to be your friend/rival until she can defeat you back.
 
*Challenges - She's always looking to get better. If you defeat her, she'll probably want to be your friend/rival until she can defeat you back.
 +
*New Experiences - Anything new and exciting has Mali's full attention. She always want to know more and try different things.
  
 
'''Dislikes'''
 
'''Dislikes'''
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*Tedium - She hates doing the same thing over and over, and gets bored easily.
 
*Tedium - She hates doing the same thing over and over, and gets bored easily.
 
*Dodos - Alive, dead, cooked, anything. She simply cannot stand dodos.
 
*Dodos - Alive, dead, cooked, anything. She simply cannot stand dodos.
 
'''Alignment:''' Chaotic...something. The closest D&D equivalent would be chaotic neutral, but given the extremes of her personality she can be anything from truly good to pure evil at any given time.
 
 
'''WIP'''
 
  
 
==Abilities==
 
==Abilities==
  
 
===Abilities in Battle===
 
===Abilities in Battle===
 +
Mali knows just about everything there is to know about the fine art of killing things with axes. She spent most of her known life with an axe in her hands, which may or may not have led to her almost homicidal glee for battle. As a side effect of her violent upbringing, she knows probably more than she should about the intricacies of marauding and piracy, but also knows what happens to people who go too far with their power ("getting too cozy with ill-gotten power never ends well, unless you think it's good to lie face down in the dirt with a blade in your back and a pile of corpses beneath you."). Given that she easily falls prey to boredom though, she recently has started to put down the axe more often and branch out into, as she puts it, "different ways of hurting things in extreme fashions." She has at least some demonstrative skill in other forms of combat, most notably with lances and swords. Nothing that rivals her power with an axe of course, but given her tenacity that might change.
  
Coming soon!
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While Mali has enough skill for magic, her life has never focused on it nor really allowed time to study the intricacies of bending the aether to one's will. She sees it as something strange and alien that she might someday grow more accustomed to, and has even dabbled with it in the past, but never for very long. Of course, as unpredictable as she is, the next time you meet her she might be aspiring to be a grandmaster of the aetherial arts.
  
 
===Abilities in Daily Life===
 
===Abilities in Daily Life===
 +
To say that Mali lacks the skills to function as a regular person would be both accurate and a little depressing. She has focused so much of her life on the way of a warrior that she doesn't really know how to act outside of the battlefield, either alone or with others. She can cook enough to stay alive (but prefers other peoples' cooking to her own, as hers tends to be as chaotic as she is), and she knows enough of the basics of living to keep a reasonable life in her small abode in Limsa Lominsa, but she could never settle down and start a life that didn't involve death and destruction as a primary source of income.
 +
 +
As an off hobby she occasionally tries to make things. Nothing big and fancy, but little things that don't take very long and may or may not be useful (somewhere, somehow, she has a closet full of origami cranes and simple woodcarvings, all made out of boredom). She has nothing but the highest respect for people that can actually sit down and make something of actual use (especially those who make things ''she'' can use in battle) but her best way to show respect is mild curiosity and fewer insults.
  
Coming soon!
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Despite her exterior dislike for sitting in one place for too long, she is actually very well read and smarter than she lets on, and even has a bit of an artistic streak, for all the good it does her (the height of which are a few doodles and the aforementioned closet of random crafts). When she isn't out making coin from a dangerous life of adventuring, she actually prefers staying at home with a good book or pen and paper. If she were really desperate and focused on it she could probably make a decent living from her artistic tendencies, though the very thought of it would make her go crazy within her first day on the "job."
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===Strengths===
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*Strong Willed and Passionate - She always puts her full heart and soul into whatever she does, whether it's swinging her axe or simply enjoying the company of friends. Her dedication rarely ever falters, which makes her a strong and confident woman both on and off the battlefield.
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*Loyal - Once you are on Mali's good graces she will always be by your side. She stands by her friends and allies to the death.
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*Master Warrior - She will never claim that she is the best at anything ("it's too boring if there's nothing left to challenge you!"), but she is ''very'' skilled with a weapon in her hand and rarely outmatched with an axe.
 +
*Quick Learner - Mali may act like your average brute but she's actually quite intelligent and picks up new things easily. She can figure out an enemy's weaknesses and adjust her technique accordingly...as long as she doesn't get distracted.
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 +
===Weaknesses===
 +
*Severely Mentally Unstable - It's no secret that Mali is highly chaotic at best and seriously mentally ill at worst. She can be very unpredictable, which often leads to schisms between herself and others if they catch her at a bad time. She is loyal to her friends, but she has trouble keeping them for very long.
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*Quick Tempered - It is very easy to get her riled up and she doesn't think clearly when she is angry, often lashing out wildly (either figuratively or literally) at whatever is nearby.
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*Emotionally Distant - While Mali may not be a wallflower, she rarely lets people in. Even her closest of friends are kept at arm's reach. She is stoic to a fault and will often pretend that she is fine even when seriously injured, refusing help simply to keep up her "tough girl" appearance.
 +
*Lacks Foresight - Mali often runs into situations without thinking them through. She relies more on brute strength and quick wit rather than careful planning and thought-out tactics.
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*Easily Distracted - Mali puts her heart and soul into everything, which means that when she gets sidetracked she gets ''really'' sidetracked. A good distraction can easily make her lose focus on more important matters, even ones that are crucial to survival.
  
 
==History==
 
==History==
  
===What is known===
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===What is Known===
  
Coming soon!
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Mali keeps her past close to her chest. The most people can usually get are rumors and vague descriptions. Those familiar with her would know that she had a rough upbringing full of training and battle, but very little else. She never talks about family, if she ever even had one. Where ever she came from is a mystery, as she seemed to just appear in Limsa Lominsa as a hardened adventurer, and she has yet to divulge where she was before that. She is an enigma, with no past and no visible goals for the future. She is simply here to lay waste to those who stand against her, and she'll likely keep doing that until the day she dies.
  
 
===The Real Story===
 
===The Real Story===
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<spoiler>====All That Glitters====
 
<spoiler>====All That Glitters====
  
Coming soon!
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"Mali Bloodscythe" was born as Skaenwyda Ganzsaldwyn on a merchant ship owned and operated by her parents, originally hailing from Limsa Lominsa. They were not the most well off merchants of Eorzea, but they had enough affluence to have a bit of land in La Noscea and enough wealth to live comfortably when they weren't overseeing their ships. They were a family built on generations of perseverance, from humble sailors to decorated sea captains, and it was tradition for them to often captain the ships themselves. While this meant that "Skaenwyda" spent her first few years going on cruises all across Hydaelyn, it also meant that when she reached proper schooling age, and needed to spend time studying rather than sailing, she was left alone at home with their small collection of servants and bodyguards as her only company. She was a rebellious child from the start, as unpredictable as the seas she was born upon, and rather than spend her time studying economics and history and other things she would need to know to one day take over the family business, she would often sneak out and get into trouble. She was one of very few well-to-do kids that were actually impetuous enough to sneak out, and she had a bad habit of starting fights with the other, less well off kids her age, who wouldn't play with her because she was "a pampered pretty princess," as one little Lalafell once remarked.
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While her parents wanted her to grow up into a respectable young lady, Skaenwyda was growing up to be a rough-and-tumble tomboy. By the time she was 6 her behavior was so uncontrollable that servants were starting to resign rather than put up with the rambunctious child, so her mother  elected to stay home instead of go with her husband on their usual voyages, so as to better train her young daughter in the "proper" manners of a young lady in her position (and to find new hired help that was less likely to quit). For two years little Skaenwyda was tortured with frilly dresses, etiquette lessons, tea parties, and enough classic literature and practical tutoring to fill a small room (which it did, coincidentally). Were it not for a series of very unfortunate events, Skaenwyda might have actually grown up to be a proper lady with a fleet of merchant ships at her disposal. Instead, on Skaenwyda's 8th name day no less, their private seaside villa was ransacked by a somewhat reckless crew of amateur pirates. The pirates took all the wealth they could carry, and kidnapped Skaenwyda for good measure, thinking she would make a good bargaining chip for even more riches. Instead, their heist of a high profile merchant's abode and the capture of their daughter brought the full fury of Limsa Lominsa's navy down on them. The pirates cut their losses and fled for far-off shores, with poor little Skaenwyda in tow.
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====I'll Most Likely Kill You in the Morning====
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The pirates eventually made their hideout in a cave of some distant land that Skaenwyda couldn't pronounce or remember, and put the little child to work as their "scullery-slave," forced to do whatever duty the rest of the crew didn't want to deal with. Of course, Skaenwyda wasn't going to take this sort of thing lying down. She fought back constantly, as well as an eight-year-old in a frilly dress could fight back anyway. It mostly equated to shouting and kicking shins, both of which she did every waking moment. Even when beaten, thrown into a cage, abused, and forced into hard labor, Skaenwyda would keep on shouting at her captors; "you just wait! I'm going to kill every single one of you! You're gonna be sorry!"
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 +
After a while even the hardiest of crew members began to get annoyed at the child's constant tantums, and there was talk of using some very...''brutal'' methods of silencing her. The captain, however, saw Skaenwyda's tenacity as the chance for a little bit of fun. He gave the little girl her first marauding axe and said, "if you ''can'' kill me, you're free to go. Until then, you're ours."
 +
 
 +
Of course, Skaenwyda could barely hold the axe at that age, let alone do damage with it (to anyone but herself, anyway), so her first attempt at the captain's life ended with Skaenwyda doing more damage to herself than her opponent, cutting her cheek so deep that the scar still remains to this day. The crew all had a good laugh as they watched the poor girl fumble around with an axe almost as big as she was, but the captain let her keep it and said, "you keep that axe until one of us is dead, girl. We'll see how long you last."
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The next eight years were as far from her old life as Skaenwyda could have imagined. She worked all day, always reminding the crew that she was going to kill them, and at night she trained constantly for the chance to be free. While the pirates were "home" she cleaned the ship and served the crew their cups of grog (that she always spit in, whenever they weren't looking), and while the pirates were out pillaging she was left to clean the mess that was their hideout after a few nights of rowdy celebrations. Using her various escape techniques, she would sneak past the guard and lay a clever but ultimately ineffectual trap for the captain's return...or occasionally just replace their grog supplies with seawater.
 +
 
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The first year of her shenanigans she had to defend herself from near daily attempts on her life (though whether the crew was actually trying to kill her or merely pulling pranks, she never knew). The second year, the crew started calling her their "Little Reaper," with her constant cries of their inevitable demise and the axe she had become strong enough to carry with her, though she was still ineffectual. By the third year she could swing it with enough force to made a few small dents in the floor (she was, of course, beaten for every new dent she made while she was "training"). The fourth year, she could chop a log...if she aimed long enough. The fifth year, she began sparring with the pirate crew...although as far as she was concerned, "sparring" meant "sneaking up from behind and aiming for the head," though she still lacked the dexterity to be effective at all. The sixth and seventh year, she had become strong enough that the real sparring began. The name Little Reaper began to stick the more vicious and relentless her combat style became. They were even beginning to talk about making her a full-fledged pirate...
 +
 
 +
In the eighth year, a week before her 16th name day (which she only knew because she had been counting) the crew set off once more. Two weeks after her 16th name day, they were still gone. Her guard had taken to pacing nervously each day that the crew did not return. Skaenwyda, on the other hand, was confident they would not be back for quite a while longer. The last time they had docked, she had used her trusty, now slightly rusted axe to break their rudder. Not enough that they couldn't steer as they left, but enough that strong seas (or a barrage of cannon fire) would do the rest of the damage for her, and leave them stranded out in the open sea. She used the spare time and the guard's distracted temperament to build a raft out of spare lumber. It was a terrible piece of work, but it was enough to get her out of the cove as the guard slept. Now she only had to find another ship to pick her up...
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 +
====Home is Where the Heart is====
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 +
She waited four days in the freezing winter sea before a passing ship picked her up. She was half-dead from the cold and lack of food and water, but she wasn't going to let something silly like a near-death experience stop her plan. She was, however, slightly delayed when she discovered that the ship was heading ''away'' from Eorzea and was only halfway through a voyage that would last for at least a few moons, if not until the end of summer. Skaenwyda could do nothing but wait, so she offered herself as an extra hand on the ship. The captain, a Hyur who looked too young to be commanding a ship but too intimidating for anyone to actually say anything about it, was skeptical of letting a mysterious girl they'd found in the middle of the sea do anything other than sit in the brig.
 +
 
 +
Luckily for Skaenwyda (and unluckily for everyone else), pirates were a common affliction on the seas and it wasn't very long before the ship was boarded by murderous villains looking for a big break. Mali was let out from the brig to help and showed her prowess with an axe (and her intimate knowledge of how to mess with pirates) by defending the ship that had been her temporary prison, and the captain suddenly remembered that he could use an extra pair of hands on deck. Pleasantries were exchanged, Skaenwyda's name was nigh unpronounceable for him, and he added the nickname "Malice" to her previous title for her exuberant axe handling. She wasn't very happy with the string of violent nicknames she had been acquiring, but at least he could pronounce it.
 +
 
 +
"Malice the Little Reaper," later shortened to "Mali Reaper" as the full name was starting to scare the merchants the crew traded with, spent the next four moons doing essentially the same things she had done as a pirate slave, but this time her reward for a job well done and an axe well used was a good meal and even better company. They even paid her, which was a new experience in and of itself. She almost didn't want to leave when the ship when they finally returned to Eorzean waters. Goodbyes were had, and promises were made to meet again whenever the crew next made port.
 +
 
 +
A lot of things can happen in eight years and change. A lot of memories can be rewritten, things that once seemed set in stone can seem fuzzy. Mali stepped onto the docks of Limsa Lominsa and every fuzzy memory came back to life in all of their splendor. She remembered every shop her mother had walked her through, every corner of every street, every alleyway where she had beaten up that Lalafell boy for calling her names (she made a mental note to apologize to him, if she ever remembered his name). She was moved to tears just to be back in Eorzea. She didn't even know how she would handle seeing her family again.
  
====Spirited Away====
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The seaside villa had undergone so many re-modellings that it was hardly recognizable at all. If she didn't remember the exact twists and turns of the roads she once traveled on, she might never have found it. She almost didn't know what to do. She had spent so much time waiting for this day, but had never figured out what to do when it happened. After spending too much time staring from a distance, she braced herself and walked up to the door.
  
Coming soon!
+
At first, her parents didn't recognize her. Of course they wouldn't, she was an eight-year-old in frilly dresses when last they saw her, and now she was a mostly grown, dirty, battleworn young woman with a large axe. Once it was clear, though, there was a long reunion full of tears and hugs and "oh my gods what happened" and "we thought we'd lost you." Mali was cleaned up, went back to her old name of Skaenwyda Ganzsaldwyn, and tried to pick up where she had left off. Frilly dresses and all.
  
====Home Is Where...====
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While her parents were merely happy to have their daughter (and heiress) back, Skaenwyda was having trouble adjusting. Ever since she had stepped foot on Eorzean soil again she had begun having strange visions, visions of other people in other places at other times. She was seeing things in other peoples' pasts that rightfully shouldn't have been known by anyone. It did not help that she was already having troubles coping with the quiet life. Years full of nothing but violence and thoughts of revenge had made its mark on her, leaving her with very little in the way of social graces or ways to control her emotions. She was often prone to violent outbursts and frequent mood swings, neither of which were very becoming in a young lady. Her family was often unsure of what to do with her, though they tried their best to work around her problems.
  
Coming soon!
+
Through it all, Skaenwyda tried her best to at least ''pretend'' like everything was fine, and for a while it even worked. She learned to hide her troubles under a facade of confidence. She tried her best not to hit people who made her angry, and re-learn the basics of etiquette that she had long forgotten, but behind closed doors her troubles were getting worse. The visions she had been having were driving her crazy, and there was a constant nagging feeling that something wasn't right. She wasn't supposed to be the proper lady her parents wanted, to have the family life that ''she'' wanted. When she tried to express her worries with her parents they fell on deaf ears. They said she was simply having trouble adjusting, and while they weren't wrong, they weren't right either.
  
 
====Dark Days in Eorzea====
 
====Dark Days in Eorzea====
  
Coming soon!
+
''((Note: At this point Mali's story basically follows the story of FFXIV 1.0, with minor adjustments. If you aren't familiar with 1.0's plot line, there are plenty of places to acquaint yourself on the forums or the official site. [http://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/showthread.php?tid=1615 HERE] is a good place to start!))''
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After a year of trying to be something she was not, Skaenwyda could no longer take it. She could only try to find what was missing. She left a note full of goodbyes and promises to return. She went back to using the name "Mali Reaper," and changed her appearance as best she could. She dyed and cut her hair, began painting her face with "war paint" to disguise herself, she kept her head down and out of the public eye. The life of an adventurer was not one she would have picked, even when she was a little tomboy running through the streets of Limsa Lominsa, but she soon learned that she had a knack for getting into bad situations and coming back out alive, which was as great a skill as an adventurer could have. She even started to do great things, or at least reasonably good things. Unfortunately, reasonably good things meant fame, which meant the possibility of being found. She made it a habit to never be ''too'' good, and when she started to become a known name she would change it to whatever suited her fancy. "Mali Reaper" became "Mali Blanaren" became "Mali Darksidhe" over the years, often switching between the three interchangeably. She kept the first name "Mali" on the off chance that she would meet her old sailing friends, and perhaps because she missed having some sort of stability to fall back on.
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Of course, adventuring had more perks than a bit of coin and an experience you could embellish over a few drinks. Her knack for being in bad situations led her to others who shared her "problem," the power to experience others' memories and, as she found out after a chance meeting with a moogle in Gridania, the ability to understand the words of anyone she spoke to. They called it the "Echo," and it was with the others who shared this power and worked in tandem with them that she found some form of solace, as she now understood why she had been called away from the life she had worked so hard to return to. She may not have been all that ''happy'' that some unknown force had chosen her to go out into the world, but at least now she knew why it happened.
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Were the world a simpler place she would have simply returned home with this new knowledge. She had thought her journeys would take a few years at most. Instead, she spent nearly nine years trying her damnedest to keep everything in one piece as the world around her just kept going from bad to worse. Nine years of killing monsters, of beating back the beastmen tribes, of defending the entire damned land from whatever darkness was creeping over it, and every time she thought that they had ''finally'' done their duty something even worse came to light.
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By the time the Garleans began their invasion once more, Mali had given up on being frightened or surprised by any new developments. Now she was just angry.
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She went to the battle of Carteneau purely to crack some Garlean skulls. There was no desire to do something heroic, no feeling of sacrifice in the name of the greater good. She wanted to make them pay, pure and simple. Her part in the skirmish was, of course, brutal and unforgiving. But anger made her sloppy, and being sloppy on a battlefield can get you killed. She always managed to get the last hit in, but not before adding another wound or two to her growing collection. One soldier managed to take out her eye with a strong blow, fist and metal making contact with flesh and skull. Concussed, bleeding, and suddenly lacking depth perception, Mali figured she probably wasn't going to be coming back from this. Then the key fell. All eyes turned upward, and Mali ''knew'' she wasn't going to be coming back from this. Bright flames shot across the sky, and everything around her was covered in a blinding light...
  
 
====A New Point of View====
 
====A New Point of View====
  
Coming soon!</spoiler>
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Mali awoke in a bed with her wounds healed and bandaged. From the smell of the sea she knew she was in Limsa Lominsa again. She briefly wondered if that was what being dead was like, until she tried to move and was greeted with the pain of a plethora of wounds that even the strongest white magic couldn't heal all at once. Her healer, who had been sleeping peacefully in a chair at her bedside until she started wincing in pain, insisted that she lie back down despite her protests (and vulgar insults). Mali asked about the outcome of the battle that she swore she should have died in, and after a long and awkward conversation about how hard she had hit her head she was finally informed that the battle had ended five years ago.
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Mali's first reaction was to punch him in the face. She didn't quite know why.
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After both parties were healed again (he from his broken nose, and her from her reopened wounds) Mali's second reaction was to see her family. Despite the very likely threat of more harm, the healer insisted she rest for a while longer, as even with conjury her wounds were going to take a while to heal. They met halfway at Mali sneaking out the next night. She only had one good eye and she had to hobble around more than walk, but by midday she made it to where her home...would have been. There was nothing there save for a few remains of the building's structure that were still in the process of being taken over by nature. She asked around Limsa Lominsa, but very few people even knew of her family, and those that did had assumed that they had died during the chaos five years ago.
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With her parents either dead or missing, Mali had nothing better to do than return to the healer who had helped her, who welcomed her back after a strict talking-to about how recuperation is necessary and she was lucky to be alive and this and that and whatever. She spent the next few days resting like she had been told, not knowing what else to do with herself. After a week, despite the large amount of magic the healer used, her eye still felt wrong. She worried that perhaps it had been too badly damaged to heal. Eventually there was simply nothing left to be done. She would just have to take off the bandage and live with her eye as it was.
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It still worked, which was about as much as Mali could hope for. It had healed, but for whatever reason it hadn't healed ''properly''; it had taken on a blood red color and remained slightly more dilated than her good eye. If she closed her good eye and saw only with her right, the colors were slightly off and muted but her clarity of vision had actually gotten ''better''. Both she and the healer were at a loss as to what happened, but at the very least she still had a functioning eye.
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For a while Mali took on odd jobs for enough coin to eat and lived in whatever spare room she could find, as she tried to figure out what left there was to do with her life. She took a new name again, "Bloodscythe." Her old names had outlived their usefulness, anyway. She soon began to feel the tug of adventure in the back of her mind once again...and this time she faced it head-on. She had nothing else to do, she might as well keep doing what she was good at, and enjoy it while she could.</spoiler>
  
 
==Contacts==
 
==Contacts==
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===Affiliations===
 
===Affiliations===
  
Coming soon!
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'''Blue Skies Adventuring Company:''' Mali joined the Blue Skies Adventuring Company on a whim after a very...''interesting'' event in the desert.
  
 
==Other Notes==
 
==Other Notes==
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===Miscellanea===
 
===Miscellanea===
  
Coming soon!
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*There are a lot of placeholder characters in Mali's backstory because I'm lazy. If you would like to be a friend from Mali's past, I'm all for it.
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*More to come! This whole thing is a work in progress.

Latest revision as of 20:44, 3 August 2013

 Mali Bloodscythe
Mali 01.jpg
"I get I'm not the sanest of folks, but there's two things you can count on: I'll protect my friends, and I'll destroy my enemies. Now which side a' that do you wanna be on?"
A Chaotic Adventurer With Deeper Scars
Gender Female
Race Roegadyn
Clan Sea Wolf
Citizenship Unaffiliated
Age 26 (Technically 31, born in 1546)
Nameday 28th Sun of the 6th Umbral Moon
Guardian Rhalgr, the Destroyer
Orientation ???
Occupation Adventurer

Basic Info

Full Name: Not for you to know.

Aliases: Goes by Mali Bloodscythe as her pseudonym. Previous surname aliases have included: "Reaper," "Blanaren," "Darksidhe"

Nicknames: Just Mali.

Pronunciation: MAL-ee

Birthplace: Unknown.

Current Residence: Limsa Lominsa.

Relationship Status: Single.

Religion: "Pfff, religion? Feck that noise. If the gods want to come down and do shite right for a change, maybe I'll start believin'."

Laterality: Left handed.

Other Notes: Mali is a little nearsighted, which might be why she prefers fighting up close and personal with her targets. Due to a healing anomaly her right eye now sees better than her left, but her color vision is worse.

Appearance

Height: 6'0", and if you comment on her (relatively) short stature you'll have to deal with an axe in your skull.

Weight: 135 ponz

Build: She has muscle, but her body is just a little bit smaller compared to other Roegadyn. She has a bit of an hourglass figure, but with broader shoulders.

Skin Color: As pink and healthy as a race of green-skinned people can look.

Eye Color: Heterochromatic; Left eye is a light grey-blue, right eye is blood red and slightly more dilated.

Hair Color: Light purple with red highlights. It's hard to tell if the red is natural, or it was somehow dyed that way.

Hair Style: Windswept and easy to manage. It's clear she spends minimal time managing her hair, but she was lucky enough to be born with follicles that didn't care either way. She has a constant look of "obvious, but stylish bed-head."

General Clothing Style: Usually a mismatch of armor and casual dress, depending on her mood. The armor is likely to be dirty and covered in bloodstains ("tokens of battle," she calls them), but her clothes are at least kept clean, though not exactly pristine. You will probably never see her in a skirt, but if you do you might not live to tell the tale.

Voice: Unusually high-pitched for a Roegadyn, if she ever did "pansy shit" like sing she would probably be a soprano. She has a gruff, somewhat intimidating tone most of the time, which shows especially when she's calling out in excitement during battle. If you manage to catch her off-guard, though, her voice can be much different, smoother and more dexterous at displaying emotions other than "I love killing things." She usually has a slight Limsa Lominsan accent, but it changes in severity (or disappears entirely) based on her mood.

Other Notes: She has a few cuts and scratches here and there, but nothing that strikes as obvious save for one on her cheek. Her most noticeable trait is the red war paint she has on her face. She is rarely ever seen without it, which makes some people think it might be a tattoo. When asked about it, her answer changes every time. They include, but are not limited to: family tradition, used to scare her enemies, "it makes me feel pretty," "how about I paint YOUR face motherf--"

Personality

Mali can be almost perfectly described in one word; chaotic. To say that she suffers from mood swings would be both an understatement and a misnomer, as she seems to kind of enjoy it. At times she is perfectly nice and exuberant, albeit with a dark sense of humor and a violent streak. Other times she is a brooding, antisocial pessimist with a chip on her shoulder and an axe with your name on it. Still other times she is an angry, violent demon of a woman who just wants to see the world burn. Once or twice she even shows a softer side, though she's too headstrong to admit it. Throughout all of her various "personalities" there are a few connecting themes: she likes a good laugh, she's loyal to whomever she decides is her friend that day, and she keeps a tough persona on at all times. In spite of (or perhaps to compensate for) her very "masculine" behavior, she never misses an opportunity to remind her companions that she is very much a woman...unless it involves dressing up.

When around company she isn't used to, Mali's personality shifts are less extreme, mostly because she is very uncomfortable in new or large crowds (though she would never show it, most of the time) and doesn't really know how to act around new people. She tends to stay away from making big decisions or standing out in the crowd, and the few things she does say usually come off as gruff, rude, or uncaring. While that might actually be the case sometimes, most of the time she is merely putting on her "extra tough" facade to either impress, or scare, new people. Get to know her a little, though, and she lets go of the extra tough guy attitude (thought she has a lot left to spare) and becomes her more extreme self.

Being socially awkward to an extreme, she has trouble understanding romantic relationships, or even noticing when someone is flirting with her (or setting her up with someone else, for that matter). She also has trouble understanding simple things like filtering what she says, and why people get angry when she speaks her mind. Granted, when she speaks her mind it's usually a sarcastic remark at the expense of someone else. She has trouble not looking like she's about to kill something (even when being as cordial as possible), and tends to be intimidating to the average person without making a conscious effort (or specifically trying not to be), which gives her a reputation as a bit of a bully, or even a bogeyman for merchants and peddlers ("don't look at her directly! That crazy grin is enough to make your hair stand on end!" "If you see her coming, just give her whatever she wants and hope she leaves."). Despite it all she means well...most of the time.

Likes

  • Men - She gets along with men better than women, mostly. Not to say that she dislikes women, she just doesn't know how to be...feminine.
  • Fights - Not necessarily with others, just in general. The thrill of battle is something she enjoys, perhaps a little too much.
  • Stories - Except for her own. She likes to hear about other peoples' experiences, unless she gets bored of it.
  • Winning - Post-battle celebrations are common. They usually involve drinking.
  • Food - And drinks, of course. She hardly ever turns down a meal, unless it's dodo.
  • Laughing - Often for no reason. She's very jovial when she isn't being antisocial.
  • Allies - If you get on her good side she's a fiercely loyal friend...just don't ask too many questions.
  • Challenges - She's always looking to get better. If you defeat her, she'll probably want to be your friend/rival until she can defeat you back.
  • New Experiences - Anything new and exciting has Mali's full attention. She always want to know more and try different things.

Dislikes

  • Self-centered people - People who are full of themselves get on her nerves. Whether they think they're the best at something or they simply don't think about others as much, or even if they are so focused on their own problems that they run in "depressed mode" all the time.
  • Losing - She will rarely ever admit defeat, even when she's lying half-dead on the ground.
  • Emotional attachments - She doesn't open up to people, and she doesn't know how to respond when people become close to her.
  • Tedium - She hates doing the same thing over and over, and gets bored easily.
  • Dodos - Alive, dead, cooked, anything. She simply cannot stand dodos.

Abilities

Abilities in Battle

Mali knows just about everything there is to know about the fine art of killing things with axes. She spent most of her known life with an axe in her hands, which may or may not have led to her almost homicidal glee for battle. As a side effect of her violent upbringing, she knows probably more than she should about the intricacies of marauding and piracy, but also knows what happens to people who go too far with their power ("getting too cozy with ill-gotten power never ends well, unless you think it's good to lie face down in the dirt with a blade in your back and a pile of corpses beneath you."). Given that she easily falls prey to boredom though, she recently has started to put down the axe more often and branch out into, as she puts it, "different ways of hurting things in extreme fashions." She has at least some demonstrative skill in other forms of combat, most notably with lances and swords. Nothing that rivals her power with an axe of course, but given her tenacity that might change.

While Mali has enough skill for magic, her life has never focused on it nor really allowed time to study the intricacies of bending the aether to one's will. She sees it as something strange and alien that she might someday grow more accustomed to, and has even dabbled with it in the past, but never for very long. Of course, as unpredictable as she is, the next time you meet her she might be aspiring to be a grandmaster of the aetherial arts.

Abilities in Daily Life

To say that Mali lacks the skills to function as a regular person would be both accurate and a little depressing. She has focused so much of her life on the way of a warrior that she doesn't really know how to act outside of the battlefield, either alone or with others. She can cook enough to stay alive (but prefers other peoples' cooking to her own, as hers tends to be as chaotic as she is), and she knows enough of the basics of living to keep a reasonable life in her small abode in Limsa Lominsa, but she could never settle down and start a life that didn't involve death and destruction as a primary source of income.

As an off hobby she occasionally tries to make things. Nothing big and fancy, but little things that don't take very long and may or may not be useful (somewhere, somehow, she has a closet full of origami cranes and simple woodcarvings, all made out of boredom). She has nothing but the highest respect for people that can actually sit down and make something of actual use (especially those who make things she can use in battle) but her best way to show respect is mild curiosity and fewer insults.

Despite her exterior dislike for sitting in one place for too long, she is actually very well read and smarter than she lets on, and even has a bit of an artistic streak, for all the good it does her (the height of which are a few doodles and the aforementioned closet of random crafts). When she isn't out making coin from a dangerous life of adventuring, she actually prefers staying at home with a good book or pen and paper. If she were really desperate and focused on it she could probably make a decent living from her artistic tendencies, though the very thought of it would make her go crazy within her first day on the "job."

Strengths

  • Strong Willed and Passionate - She always puts her full heart and soul into whatever she does, whether it's swinging her axe or simply enjoying the company of friends. Her dedication rarely ever falters, which makes her a strong and confident woman both on and off the battlefield.
  • Loyal - Once you are on Mali's good graces she will always be by your side. She stands by her friends and allies to the death.
  • Master Warrior - She will never claim that she is the best at anything ("it's too boring if there's nothing left to challenge you!"), but she is very skilled with a weapon in her hand and rarely outmatched with an axe.
  • Quick Learner - Mali may act like your average brute but she's actually quite intelligent and picks up new things easily. She can figure out an enemy's weaknesses and adjust her technique accordingly...as long as she doesn't get distracted.

Weaknesses

  • Severely Mentally Unstable - It's no secret that Mali is highly chaotic at best and seriously mentally ill at worst. She can be very unpredictable, which often leads to schisms between herself and others if they catch her at a bad time. She is loyal to her friends, but she has trouble keeping them for very long.
  • Quick Tempered - It is very easy to get her riled up and she doesn't think clearly when she is angry, often lashing out wildly (either figuratively or literally) at whatever is nearby.
  • Emotionally Distant - While Mali may not be a wallflower, she rarely lets people in. Even her closest of friends are kept at arm's reach. She is stoic to a fault and will often pretend that she is fine even when seriously injured, refusing help simply to keep up her "tough girl" appearance.
  • Lacks Foresight - Mali often runs into situations without thinking them through. She relies more on brute strength and quick wit rather than careful planning and thought-out tactics.
  • Easily Distracted - Mali puts her heart and soul into everything, which means that when she gets sidetracked she gets really sidetracked. A good distraction can easily make her lose focus on more important matters, even ones that are crucial to survival.

History

What is Known

Mali keeps her past close to her chest. The most people can usually get are rumors and vague descriptions. Those familiar with her would know that she had a rough upbringing full of training and battle, but very little else. She never talks about family, if she ever even had one. Where ever she came from is a mystery, as she seemed to just appear in Limsa Lominsa as a hardened adventurer, and she has yet to divulge where she was before that. She is an enigma, with no past and no visible goals for the future. She is simply here to lay waste to those who stand against her, and she'll likely keep doing that until the day she dies.

The Real Story

Show text


Contacts

Friends

Coming soon!

Enemies

Coming soon!

Frenemies

Just a joke!

Affiliations

Blue Skies Adventuring Company: Mali joined the Blue Skies Adventuring Company on a whim after a very...interesting event in the desert.

Other Notes

Rumors

Coming soon!

Miscellanea

  • There are a lot of placeholder characters in Mali's backstory because I'm lazy. If you would like to be a friend from Mali's past, I'm all for it.
  • More to come! This whole thing is a work in progress.