Sasata Sata
Appearance and Personality | Abilities and Equipment | Relationships | History | Stories | Rumors | Other Resources and OOC Notes
 Sasata "Sass" Sata
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| Gender | Female |
| Race | Lalafell |
| Clan | Dunesfolk |
| Citizenship | Limsa Lominsa |
| Height | 2 fulms, 9 1/2 ilms |
| Weight | 38 ponze |
| Hair Color | Red-brown with blond highlights |
| Eye Color | Amber |
| Nameday | 4th Sun of the 4th Astral Moon |
| Occupation | Mercenary with Mythril Wings |
A Dunesfolk Lalafell who left a sea of sand dunes for the actual high seas, this outgoing, adventurous, and somewhat loud girl is a fixture at card tables in Limsa Lominsa - much to the chagrin of the other players. There are frequent rumors that follow her, claiming she's the best card cheat in all Eorzea, but until someone can catch the light-fingered lass at it, they're likely to remain just that...
"It's in the cards!"
What's a runty desert bumpkin like me doin' sitting in a Lominsan tavern, proclaimin' to be a pirate? Well, isn't it obvious?
Takin' all yer gil, of course!
Hey now, settle down, it's just a friendly game of cards, innit? I mean, that hand is a terrible deal, no doubt, but that's just the way the cards fell. Nothin' fishy at all about it, aside from the fact you're on a streak of those horrible hands an' you owe me...what is it now, five hundred?
Ah, don't worry about it, your fortune'll change eventually, I'm sure of it.
How do I know?
Easy! I'm quittin' now an' takin' my winnings with me. You can go back to takin' the rest of these fools for all they're worth with that stash of cards hidden in yer boots. Oh, don't bother protestin'. I have a nose fer cheats, an' yer one of the worst-smellin' ones I've seen in a long time. I know this lot don't like me much, but you - you, they REALLY don't like. Especially now that they know about the spare cards.
Tell ya what - you keep the five hundred I'm owed. Yer gonna need it for medics, judgin' from this angry lookin' gent over here!
Best of luck to ya, my man. Yer gonna need it for sure!
~Sasata Sata, overheard at a backroom card game at the Drowning Wench.
All About Her...
The Physical...
Blessed with a perpetually babyfaced set of general looks, a fairly average build for a lalafell that boasts no real extra muscle or fat, and standing at a very unimpressive two fulms, nine and a half ilms, this tanned woman would get mistaken for an underaged person very easily if it weren't for her gambling and drinking habits.
There's almost always a huge grin plastered across her round face, and her wide amber eyes dance with mischief. A set of three whisker-like black lines are tattooed across her chubby cheeks; they are often mistaken for childish makeup by others. There are a single pair of piercings in the lobes of her pointed ears, usually adorned with whatever interesting earrings she's found or won in a recent card game. Occasionally these earrings are mismatched.
Her red-brown hair is usually mostly tucked up under a hat of some sort, leaving only stray bits poking out and framing her face. When fully visible, it is either long and worn in two pigtails with dip-dyed blond ends, or cut short for practicality (or because of accidents) with blond highlights. Long or short, it's almost always chaos and bedhead-related, style-wise. There is a decorative stone worn on her forehead, a small green homage to Oschon.
Her favourite style of dress involves attempts to mimic Lominsan pirate fashion ideals: Occasionally mismatched items, frequent use of bright reds and deep blacks, and a leaning towards the decorative rather than the wholly functional. It has the overall effect of making her look like a young girl playing dress-up in a sailor's closet.
She always carries a deck of Sharlayan playing cards regardless of her outfit, and somehow manages to hide it even when her clothes have no obvious hiding spots for anything.
...And The Personality.
Loud, boisterous, and extremely friendly to the point of flirtation, Sasata can and will talk to - or at - anyone at any time, anywhere. She is generally very optimistic and personable, quick to smile and seemingly bereft of any sense of personal space as she sidles up next to people regardless of their gender. She tends to look for the fun in everything she does and appears to be completely carefree and utterly lighthearted in her day to day life. Being of a somewhat chaotic and carefree mindset, she chafes under authority and is prone to quick-witted back-sassing without thinking at any and all commanders, which occasionally lands her in trouble. She is fond of games of chance and fruity or sweet alcoholic drinks, favoring rum or sweeter white wines whenever possible, and tends to drink them more often than she drinks soft drinks; she's almost never found too far from a bar of some sort as a result.
She has the public air of a complete slacker, barfly, and degenerate gambler.
Underneath that, however, she's a very calculating and potentially dangerous opponent. Sasata is extremely street-smart and very quick to pick up on things (like the various magical skills she has). She uses her outgoing personality to get information from people who shouldn't be talking in the first place, and tailors lies to what they want to hear in order to get them to hand over even more.
Because she has no qualms about "borrowing" objects and secreting things about her person, many of her fellow card aficionados assume she's a cheater and a deck-stacker of epic proportions, though not a one has proven it - probably because she's not a cheat at all. At least not in the conventional sense of the word. She allows the rumor to circulate strictly because it, coupled with her flirtatious and outgoing personality, helps keep people off-balance around her.
She is inherently fond of children and the downtrodden, often going out of her way to help either one of these groups as best she can. If it makes someone smile and betters their life a bit, no price is too high. On the other hand, if you're an oppressive force, a thief who steals from those with nothing left to lose, a slaver, or someone who preys on the weak and the young? You've just made an enemy for life when she finds out.
Despite being fond of travel and not really staying anywhere besides the gambling tables for very long, Sasata has a lot of love for her family and does maintain strong ties to them, occasionally sending money and items for the support of the caravan they live in when she can spare either. As a result, she's always got a home with them should she choose to go back.
Some Tropes that apply to Sasata include:
- ■ The Trickster
- ■ Plucky Comic Relief
- ■ Obfuscating Stupidity
- ■ Professional Gambler and The Gambler
- ■ Lovable Rogue
- ■ Winds of Destiny, Change
- ■ Chaotic Good, heavily leaning Chaotic Neutral
Abilities and Equipment
Personal Abilities
Sasata's major gifts lie in her intellect rather than her physical nature - she has a talent for swift learning, a high degree of adaptability, and a knack for picking up and casting magic as if it were second nature. While she has never stayed with one caster or magic school long enough to be considered a serious student of any of them, she has managed conversations that have allowed her to glean some information about how their particular branch works from every caster she's met. Between this and her occasional reading of magical tomes (when they don't bore her enough that she just wanders away from them), she's pieced together her own bizarre but functional magic, which she calls Fatespinning.
Utilizing aether drawn both from her own reserves and the surrounding area's aetherflow, and using her personal deck of playing cards (which those in the know would recognize as a Sharlayan-produced deck of sixty rather than standard Triple Triad cards), Sasata performs magics that will augment, heal, and shield her allies, harm her enemies, and if the cards fall correctly, can even sap strength from those who would harm her. To an outsider, it looks much the same as a Sharlayan astrologian's casting and abilities, but she does not use a star globe and doesn't do readings of any sort - she merely changes fights in her own favour as the need arises.
Sasata is also very nimble and dexterous, a set of talents most often seen in her card playing and her habit of making small items appear or disappear on her person. If she had not taken so easily to magic, it would not be a stretch to consider her at home in a thieves guild or working as a light-fingered spy for someone. As a result of this dexterity, she is a reasonably decent shot with a pistol. If magic fails her, she will not hesitate to resort to a gun. She does, however, have little to no hand-to-hand fighting capability, and she will avoid being in a melee fight whenever possible.
As is the case with most desert-born Dunesfolk Lalafell, Sasata has an innate resistance to poisons and toxins as a result of her traditional upbringing. This most often manifests itself as a very high tolerance for alcohol, and makes her a much more dangerous opponent in a drinking contest than her size would suggest. Many a Highlander has found themselves under the table after going drink-for-drink with her.
Outside combat situations, she is a decently accomplished fisherwoman (though she only fishes for fun in her spare time, never for any actual good reason), tailor (she's not great for creating her own garments, but excellent at repair and alterations), and goldsmith (mostly to fix clasps or reset gemstones), and she is learning to cook.
Common Equipment
While she can - and often will - have other items on her, these are the things Sasata never travels without. They can be considered on or about her person at all times she is out in public.
| Item | Description | |
|---|---|---|
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Deck of Sixty | A well worn and often used deck of Sharlayan cards with a field of light yellow stars on a navy backdrop on the backs. Several of the edges are foxed, a few corners a bit bent, and the designs aren't all clear anymore. It doesn't seem like Sasata actually gambles with them, but she will shuffle and riffle them constantly. |
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Home-Built Handgun | Given to her by a friend in the Mythril Wings after a shared adventure, this gun is always tucked somewhere inside whatever outfit Sasata is wearing. She considers it emergency backup for those times her fatespinning can't provide her with enough oomph. |
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Wedding Ring | Though it isn't always on her hand, this ring never leaves Sasata's possession. Regardless of how heavy the betting gets, it's never on the table. She claims she isn't married, so it's not really clear why she has such an attachment to it. |
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Carved Whistle | Dangling from an aging leather strip that's looped around Sasata's neck, this whistle appears to be a child's attempt at making a chocobo call. Artax seems to be the only one who responds to the weird, choked sound it produces. |
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Small Booze-Skin | A lalafell-sized alcohol holder. Usually has something with rum in it contained within. Or just plain rum. If you're lucky, she'll share. |
Pets and Companions
Sasata travels with two animal companions: an albino runt of a rouncey chocobo named Artax and a "trained" opo-opo named Pockets.
| Name | Description | |
|---|---|---|
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Artax | A very small, very fast, and very overprotective chocobo, Artax is a runt and an albino who bonded to Sasata early in his life and has staunchly refused to leave her side since. He seemingly has no fear whatsoever despite his stature and will charge headlong at anything he deems a threat to his rider and best friend. Over the years, Sasata has trained him to use his size and speed as an advantage in combat - he is nimble, difficult to pin down, and gifted in locating and abusing weak points in his enemy's physique against them. He will default to kicking for and pecking at vital areas in a fight, and is a harrier - once he's in a fight, he doesn't relent until he's rendered physically unable to be in combat anymore. |
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Pockets | Won in a card game at the Drowning Wench shortly after Sasata arrived at Limsa Lominsa, Pockets is a baby opo-opo with an eye for shiny objects and swift paws he won't keep to himself. While he was classified as trained by his original owner, it's fairly clear that the only tricks he really knows are to come when he's called and to steal things (though usually not on command). He's not even particularly good at the latter of the two, lacking any concept of stealth. He's been known to look people dead in the eyes while rifling their pockets. Sasata thinks he's funny, so she's kept him around, but the tiny primate has a knack for getting himself - and by extension, Sasata - in trouble with his kleptomaniac habits. |
Relationships and Affiliations
| ♥ | Romantic Interest | ♥ | Platonic Love | ■ | Positive | ■ | Neutral | ■ | Negative | ☠ | Deceased | ? | Uncertain |
| ■ Adeya Evenar | "She might as well be the mom of the Wings, but at least she's sorta got a sense of humor!" |
| A scrawny Miqo'te girl Sass met through the Mythril Wings, Adeya is frequently a voice of reason and stability to the more outlandish and sassy Lalafell of the free company. Sass respects her skills, but doesn't always see eye-to-eye with her due to a difference in style. | |
| ■ Alfeaux Jeulerand | "He's a little weird, but he's really sweet. And kind of terrifying, really." |
| A duskwight Elezen from Gridania, Alfy is a pleasant and kind man with a terrifying secret who Sass likes to poke at (in a friendly sort of way) occasionally. They met through Mythril Wings after Sass was recruited by them and moved into their estate. | |
| ■ The Bunny | "I don't know much about him, but what I know seems like a riot. He's got bombs!" |
| Sass ran into Bunny at the Regalia Largesse event, where he was handing things out for Thiji Higuri. The two talked a bit about explosives - though not nearly enough, in her mind - after he showed off a small indoor firework. He passed her a sample of the firework as the two parted, and Sass is "saving it for a special occasion". | |
| ■ Idristan Agache | "You know, I don't say this often, but I really wish he'd be less of a jerk." |
| An Ishgardian Elezen, Sass met this smart but sour individual during some Mythril Wings tavern escapades. Despite an initial liking of his brash ways, Sass' opinion of him soon turned bad when he picked on Alfy because of his heritage. She, as of now, is very unimpressed. | |
| ■ Jordon Dalton | "He didn't say much when I met him, but I guess he's alright?" |
| Met in passing at the Mythril Wings' company bar, Sass barely got introduced to this relatively pleasant-seeming Miqot'e man. She'd liked to have talked with him more, but the alcohol beat her to the punch and he exited the conversation soon after she arrived. | |
| ■ Solenne Lagarde | "She's honestly kind of scary. I mean, I like her, but she's kind of scary." |
| The "boss" of the Mythril Wings, Sasata met Solenne during her initial interview. She was struck by the Elezen's composure and nobility, and has since been amazed by her gift for observation and her talent for shutting down other folks' awful ideas or infighting. | |
| ♥ Shushulo Shulo | "Finally, someone who really gets me!" |
| Another Lalafell prone to drinking and casting, Shu was almost instantly declared Sass' best friend in the Wings the moment they met. Shu encourages Sass' backtalk, drinking habits, and is now teaching her the joy of explosives. It was Shu that gave her the pistol she's now so fond of. If there was anyone she could consider family in the rag-tag mercenary company, it's probably Shu. | |
| ■ Thiji Higuri | "Short of the Sultana, I don't think I ever heard of anyone with so much money - or such a big heart." |
| Sass had heard rumors of the Higuri Regalia and it's patron for some time, having grown up in the Thanalan sands. She knew he was rich, but she was not expecting the vastness of the wealth - or the fact that he seems ready and eager to give it away to anyone who needs a hand up. She helped procure the Regalia an apartment in the Goblet for a community-wide giveaway raffle (a feat which earned her Honorary Angel status with the entrepreneur/philanthropist), and has not once regretted lending the company help. | |
| ■ Vesper Lyall | "She was a little off the last time I saw her, but she seems pretty together and fun otherwise!" |
| Sass has met Vesper more than once now, but one of the meetings - where the miqot'e had apparently managed to drug herself with some sort of hyper-waking concoction and was acting she was afraid her heart was going to beat out of her chest - clearly left the bigger impression. Sass is fairly sure Ves is fun to be around when she's stable, but she has to admit that the potion had some very funny effects on the other girl. | |
Affiliations
- ■ The Confederacy: Sasata loves a pirate, and this group has done it so well for so long they earned her immediate respect on hearing of their existence. She has gone out of her way to prove herself their ally and brought them Sharlayan and Eorzean card games, and as such is welcome in their waters whenever she's at the Ruby Sea.
- ■ Maelstrom Command: The Lominsan Grand Company was unsure what to make of her when the gambler and barfly showed up at HQ and demanded she be allowed to help them. She has since proven to be a staunch - if occasionally baffling - ally, and command has come to trust her decisions.
- ♥Rolling Sands Trade Caravan: Sasata's family caravan, she remains in good standing as her parents' eldest daughter and is thus welcome to come home whenever she wants or request help from any member while she's in the Thanalan desert. She sends them money and supplies from Limsa Lominsa occasionally, which allow them to make more interesting - and thus expensive - goods.
- ■ Sanguine Sirens: With her time split fairly equally between tables at the Drowning Wench and the Missing Member, it was a matter of time before Sass became at least friendly with the ladies who run the latter establishment. While she doesn't subscribe to all their public rhetoric (being abusive to men just because they're men is not her style), Sass likes that a band of women carved out their own empire in a traditionally male-run area of life. She and the pirate crew have developed a respect for one another's styles and they are likely to come to one another's aid.
- ■ The Yellowjackets: While the military arm of Limsa Lominsa's security may be alright with Sasata, her relations with the city's internal security forces are a little more strained. She's been implicated in a few crimes, and though they haven't gotten a thing to stick yet, the Yellowjackets are watching her like a hunting hawk watches a mouse. She enjoys taunting them, but Sasata is well aware this could end badly at any time.
History
Born in a traveling trader's caravan that wanders the desert from Southern Thanalan to Ul'dah and back again in a slow loop, Sasata Sata is the oldest female child and the second oldest of five children total born to goldsmith Sesera Sera and professional tailor Jojorak Momorak. A bright, happy, and friendly child, Sasata showed interest in everyone and everything the caravan encountered on its rounds. While her parents, aunts, and uncles would be off wheeling and dealing with the locals, the precocious youth would grill anyone she could about what they did, picking up a little of everything from everyone and repeating the things she learned excitedly over meals. Her mother in particular encouraged this behavior, insisting that she should get to know everyone she could because "you never know where you'll find what you want to do." Both parents taught her the rudimentary skills of their respective crafts so she could help them produce their wares, but Sasata wasn't much for either, and was very easily distracted from them. She never got beyond those beginnings as a result.
Her maternal grandfather, a moderately trained conjurer and the caravan's healer, noted the girl's sharp intellect and fairly large aether reserves early. He attempted to sit her down long enough to train her in conjury, figuring she would be a good replacement for him when he passed on and a good extra set of hands in the meantime. While she took to the spellcasting as if she was born doing it, she was incapable of hearing (or simply ignored the calls of) the spirits and thus never got beyond the early teachings.
She wound up spending most of her childhood helping out random family members as a result of her inability to settle into a role based on her immediate family's jobs, looking for some sort of career she really enjoyed. The closest she came was helping her chocobo breeder uncle look after his brood of birds, feeding and caring for the prize animals he bred for racers at the Gold Saucer.
For her sixteenth nameday, her uncle offered Sasata the pick of the current clutch - eggs laid by his prize female, Whitefeather. She chose the egg that was, objectively, the smallest of the lot. Her uncle advised against it, stating that based on the size of the egg alone, there was a good chance it wouldn’t even hatch. If it did, he said, the bird wasn’t likely to make it through its first year of life in the harsh desert. Runts didn’t thrive well out there. Sasata refused to relinquish her choice, partly because she felt a kinship with the tiny egg. She spent some time ensuring the egg got as much warmth and love as could be managed.
When the egg finally hatched, a tiny, pale bundle of fluff somehow poked its way through the tough shell, and Sasata was immediately smitten although the bird was very weak. Her uncle again tried to talk her into one of the stronger hatchlings, but his warnings fell on deaf ears. She absolutely doted on the scrawny hatchling, securing it all the best things she could find to make sure it stayed healthy - food, plenty of water. She carried it around in a small harness for the first few weeks, letting it thrive off her body warmth. When it took its first steps, she was overjoyed.
After a few months of her handling and care, the little chocobo was running beside his new best friend through the desert sands. He wouldn’t leave her side, chirping happily as she went about her business and kicking at things that made anything he considered threats toward her. Sasata continued to provide what she could, and the bird, who she had named Artax, thrived with her. Her uncle, meanwhile, was astounded. He was certain the runty bird was not going to survive, but here he was - tiny and strong, just like his niece.
At some point after her twentieth nameday, the family caravan returned to Ul'dah to load up on goods after nearly a year in the desert. Sasata wandered the Ruby Road Exchange, examining goods and keeping an ear out for interesting stories and people. She wound up wandering into a back-alley game of Hide the High Heart, where she spent the afternoon laughing with a large sea wolf man who was recently in from Limsa Lominsa. He regaled her with stories of the sea, of free pirates, of bigger and better card games to be won.
Sasata was smitten.
For the next few days, she could think of nothing but the Lominsan coastline and fanciful tales of pirates. It was the first time something had grabbed her like this, the only time she'd really been interested this much in something. She let her mother know she had finally figured out where she was supposed to be, and though no one in her family was overly thrilled by her declaration of becoming a famous pirate as a career choice, they waved goodbye and wished her good luck as she rode off from the caravan, her belongings packed into saddlebags on her bird.
During her travels, Sasata spoke with and learned from casters from Ul'dah and Limsa Lominsa. Her quick mind absorbed everything she could glean from them, dissecting and reassembling their magics and making them her own. Her unique and inclusive perspectives on magic lead her to stitch together her own homebrew style designed to keep her alive and tilt things in her favour. While not as potent as a single-schooled caster in any respect, her personally-branded Fatespinning got what she wanted done.
Shortly thereafter, she secured lodgings at the Drowning Wench, and began to make a name for herself as a fast-handed gambler who would chat up anyone at her table. Always fun to have around, the bartenders and serving girls loved her for her generous tips while the other players developed a distaste for her winning ways and her ability to seemingly read their next plays directly from their minds. Shortly after she arrived, she won a baby opo-opo in a game. He has since been rechristened Pockets (short for pickpockets) for his habit of taking things from other people.
It's here in Limsa Lominsa you'll most often find her today, still grilling any casters she comes by on their techniques and bilking table-tourists out of their gil down at the Drowning Wench.
Stories
A series of stories written about Sasata. These are not necessarily in chronological order for Sass' life; they are instead listed in the order they were written. This section will be updated as stories are finished.
- ■ Shot Through the Heart - The story of why Sass cut her hair short.
- ■ Lady in Red - Sasata meets the ladies of the Sanguine Sirens.
- ■ Weapon of Choice - Sasata chooses a melee path suited to her.
Rumors About Her
Presented as a potential means of interaction with Sass, here's a series of rumors a character might be likely to hear about her if they're spending any time in or around Limsa Lominsa or the Gold Saucer. You -might- hear about her in Ul'dah, but it's far more likely these rumors will come out of a sailor at the docks or a barmaid at the Drowning Wench.
Keep in mind, however, that these are rumors. Some may be exaggerated, others entirely false - some may have even been started or spread by Sass herself in order to keep up appearances!
Common Rumors - The usual lot; easy to overhear and often repeated.
- ■ "If you feel like losing yer wages, the lalafell's holding court at the card tables tomorrow." -- [Drowning Wench Patron]
- ■ "Don't think I ever saw her sad, that one. Always a laugh, and a good tip to boot!" -- [Miqot'e Barmaid]
- ■ "No idea where she got that blasted monkey, but I hate it." -- [Pickpocketed Lominsan]
- ■ "I'm sure she's cheating somehow. Somehow." -- [Broke-ass Gambler]
Uncommon Rumors - Not often whispered, but you might get these ones.
- ■ "I think she wants to be a pirate or something. She's always at the docks, bugging sailors for tips or whatever." -- [Lominsan Barfly]
- ■ "The Yellowjackets have their eyes on her. I'd steer clear if you don't want trouble." -- [Back-alley Dealer]
- ■ "I hear she won her rank in a card game. Don't see how that's possible, but she hasn't exactly denied it." -- [Maelstrom Private]
Rare Rumors - Unlikely to be heard much; let me know first please!
- ■ "They say she's casting some kind of spells during the games, but I've never seen her do it." -- [Gold Saucer Table Bunny]
- ■ "She's a really nice lady! She got my kitty all better!" -- [Lominsan Child]
Other Resources and OOC Notes
Notes
- ■ Sass is very friendly, and so am I! Feel free to say hi either in or out of character.
- ■ Sass is panromantic, but asexual and sex neutral/averse. As a result, she'll show interest in a lot of different people and gender is not an issue in her attraction, and though she is prone to sexual innuendo and heavy flirtation, her goal is never sex. I will not ERP with Sass.
- ■ Sass' history section does not, and never will, include anything that's happened since I started playing her actively. It's all just her life leading up to when she became a fixture at Limsa Lominsa. Frankly, I'm kind of lazy and don't really feel like doing that much heavy upkeep on a wiki page.
- ■ While Sass is obviously a pretty light-hearted character, I don't mind more mature themes. She's a wannabe pirate and a mercenary by trade, so it's not like the darker side of life doesn't exist for her. She will probably keep cracking jokes at horror as it approaches, though. So there's that.
- ■ Sass is on Balmung, and I'm a night shift worker. Because of this, she's on either late nights or very early mornings in the EST time zone.
- ■ I've got no problem with Discord, in game, or Tumblr rp. Just let me know!
Links Out
- ■The Tol and the Smol - a Tumblr Sass shares with my Roegadyn dancer/puncher, Playful Blossom.
- ■Mythril Wings - The FC that took Sass in.
- ■Livin' on the Hedge - The writer's personal Tumblr mayhem.
