Tali'Zorah vas Normandy nar Rayya

PLAYER INFO.
✖ Handle: AO
✖ Contact: plurk @ vyco | email @ hipposkhloros@gmail.com
✖ Are You Over 16: yep
✖ Other Characters Played in Consignment: n/a

CHARACTER INFO.
✖ Character Name: vas Normandy, Tali'Zorah
✖ Canon: Mass Effect - Right before Priority: Cerberus Headquarters
✖ Character Appearance: link!
✖ Character Age: 25 during the events of ME3
✖ Pick A Number: 715, 333

✖ Canon Setting: The world of Mass Effect is fairly complex, based around a galaxy of alien species facing a society-ending threat: the Reapers, synthetic AI creatures that are intent on gathering intelligent life and "storing" it in the form of their memory, at the cost of the destruction of galactic society. The galaxy is currently under attack from the Reapers, overwhelming in both numbers and might, and the games are set around the adventures of Commander Shepard and her or his merry band of trigger happy teammates who fly around solving anyone and everyone's significant and insignificant problems and blowing up lots and lots of things. Tali joined the crew of the SSV Normandy since its first flight under Commander Shepard and has been a part of the crew ever since.

"Powers" are considered fairly normal - many people are born with an ability to manipulate "mass effect" fields and are known as biotics - it's pretty similar to telekinesis and can vary in power from coin tricks to combat. Quarians are rarely ever biotics - in order to be born with the ability, you are exposed to element zero in utero, and quarians on their ships almost never are. In some races it's considered naturally occurring, so it's a common thing to see.

Tali herself is a Quarian, a currently migrant race that travels aboard the "Flotilla" (also known as the Migrant Fleet) - a fleet of ships 50,000 strong and home to about 17 million. The history of their race is fairly important to their place in the galaxy: approximately 300 years before the events of the Mass Effect games, the quarians lived on their homeworld of Rannoch already established as a Council (a group of the most powerful species in the galaxy that help to set rules and govern complex intergalactic relations) race with space-faring technology equivalent to the rest of the galaxy.

Presumably because no one on Rannoch had thought to sit down and watch the cautionary tale of Battlestar Galactica and in order to assist in general labor and colonization efforts, the quarian created the "Geth." The Geth started as fairly simple Virtual Intelligence robots that communicated with each other via a network, which the quarians modified over time until at some point the line was crossed to true Artificial Intelligence (notably, AI's are deemed illegal by the Council), and the geth began to achieve signs of true sentience. Fearing this development, the quarians attempted to destroy the geth, which prompted the new AI race to fight for its own survival. It ended disastrously for the quarians: billions were killed in the ensuing war (and the quarians were refused aid by the Council), and those who escaped Rannoch and its colonies no longer had a homeworld to return to. The quarians chose to stay together as a fleet, wandering around the galaxy and searching for a new world to colonize (supposedly, you'd think it wouldn't take 300 years).

Because of their mistakes, and now their status as migrant wanderers (who have a tendency to suck resources from planets to sustain the fleet and drop off their criminals on unsuspecting worlds - exile is a common punishment for criminals) many other races in the galaxy tend to hold some racist views towards the quarians, seeing them as inclined to petty crime and underhanded practices - or as simply deserving of their fate for dabbling in illegal development of AI.

Quarians are fairly humanoid, the main differences in appearance being the dramatic bend of their lower legs and having a three-fingered hand/two-toed feet. Physiologically things are quite a bit different - because of their naturally weak immune system (their home world of Rannoch didn't have many pathogens) in combination with all their children now being born onto sterilized ships where no immune system develops, they are confined to an environmental suit at a young age which they rarely ever leave. The suit is fairly complex, equipped with enhancements to improve life and protect privacy in a cramped home where the only walls might be your helmet visor. On top of this, they're one of several races that can only process dextro-protein based foods, making their diet a bit more complex than the majority of levo-protein based species.

Because of the fleet's relatively small size in comparison to its large population, quarian life is pretty cramped and very dependent on each other for comfort and survival. Because of severe restrictions on population growth and limited supplies, families are only allowed a single child. When that child is old enough, they are sent from the Fleet to participate in the ritual known as the Pilgrimage - where a young quarian is sent out into the galaxy with some supplies and a mission to bring something back to the fleet of worth. This varies a lot, from intel to food to ships, but when they return they present this gift to the captain of the ship they wish to join as a adult working crew member (and in doing this earning their "big boy/girl name, the vas [Ship Name] after their given name). This system along with their environment makes it so that almost all quarians are quite adept at tech and engineering or at least have a useful skill, relying on this know-how to keep their society function and the life supports running. Because I'm sure you're sick of quarians by now (har har), I'm mercifully ending this here.


✖ Character History: another link!

✖ Character Personality:

Tali's story is as much a coming of age tale framed in an attempt to save the universe. From the time she was young girl, she's been told that everything she does and every action she takes is for and reflects on her people, and this is a conviction she holds above almost everything else. She would do anything to save her loved ones, and works hard to improve their lot under any circumstance. Her father, always a hard man and harder still after her mother's death, raised her to incredibly high standards - she would serve her place aboard the Flotilla with skill and pride. As the daughter of an Admiral and of one among the highest-ranking men aboard the fleet, when Tali left for her Pilgrimage it wasn't just with her incredible talent as a machinist and engineer, but with the expectation of a great gift to bring back. She attempts something never achieved before: to obtain functioning data from a Geth - an extremely dangerous endeavour - and succeeds. Her sense of loyalty to her people is strong no matter her circumstances: in ME2 she is accused of treason, the highest charge that can be brought against a quarian, for an experiment her father performed (which resulted in his death) that supposedly involved materials she delivered to him. To prove Tali's innocence Shepard can reveal evidence of her father's mistakes which will exonerate her, but divide her people and bring confusion and chaos to the quarian leadership - an act that will clear Tali's name but leave her angry and distrustful of Shepard. She would rather be exiled from her own people than see them or her father's name suffer, despite their wrongdoings against her. In ME3, if her people die in the attempt to take back the homeworld of Rannoch at Shepard's doing, she cannot conflate her loyalty to Shepard and her loyalty to her people, and commits suicide to be with the rest of her race (FORTUNATELY you'd be kind of a jerk to do this, and it isn't necessary).

While she starts as a slightly näive girl, it's expected - in ME1, it's Tali's first time away from the safety of home by herself and she had never experienced the harsh realities of the world outside. She learns quickly, especially after having her life threatened for valuable information and her companion killed early on her Pilgrimage, and her time with Shepard and the crew of the Normandy help her. As she travels the galaxy, she grows, her isolation in both location and in the environmental suit shedding as she discovers her own personality and desires - once even musing over when "do we get to stop reacting to our parents, and start living for ourselves?" She'll speak up to a turian security officer who once insulted her, and argue loudly for the lives of civilians to a leader of the quarian military, and run straight into almost certain death with confidence if she believes it will make a difference - living for herself. Over the course of the games she matures greatly, to become an adult who speaks her mind, understands who to trust and who to watch carefully at the end of a shotgun, even if she she still feels too young to make the biggest differences. She witnesses the death of friends and allies, including many of her own people, and understands the sacrifice even if she regrets it. During the events of ME2, Tali is found leading a squad of quarians that have been wiped out in a skirmish with the geth, and her self-perceived failure as a leader and her sense of responsibility for the deaths of her team weigh on her heavily: she struggles to find a way to try and write the families of those who died to protect her, even if their deaths are so few among the casualties of the Reaper War.

She trusts those that earn it deeply - she would put her life in the hands of her friends for the sake of closeness: during a conversation in ME2, Tali mentions to Shepard that they are one of only a few people that she would "link" her suit with, allowing Tali to show her face to her friend at a great risk of illness (for a male Shepard this is the start of a romance option, but the same conversation is had with a female Shepard: Tali feels so strongly a sense of loyalty, that she would want to share everything with her most trusted friend). Even when Legion, a geth and a member of the AI race that killed billions of her kind, joins the Normandy crew, she grows from hostile to an almost friendship with a being her race has been at odds with for centuries. Despite her loyalty to her people, she is almost equally loyal to her teammates, even down to her name - during the trial to determine if she would be exiled, she is given the name "vas Normandy" as a mark of shame, as suspicion of treason is on her. In the end, even if she is proven innocent, she wears the name with pride - the Normandy and its crew are more of a family to her than anyone else.

At the core, Tali is a kind person, who wants to see the best in people and who preserves her strong sense of morality even in the darkest hour - and isn't afraid to fight for it. She's a smart chick, with a smart mouth who isn't afraid to say what she thinks (or of a good dose of sarcasm when it's called for), and is damn good with a shotgun if you don't want to listen.

✖ Character Powers:

Machinist: Born onto the quarian fleet and trained since a very young age, Tali is extremely talented at most things mechanical, having to do repairs on 100 year old junker engines and the life-support system of her own environmental suit. She's excellent at both creating and repairing, and learns quickly - even mastering the systems of the incredibly complex SSV Normandy in barely any time at all.

Combat: Tali is pretty good with a gun, but uses a pistol or a shotgun: precision or power. She's a competent soldier, but isn't a powerhouse on her own, and her genius lies in modifying the gun so it shoots death lasers rather than accuracy. She can also do some hand to hand, and her suit has the option to carry a knife, but for obvious suit-related reasons getting into it with blades isn't really her thing. With the help of her omni-tool, described below, she can also craft a simple flying combat drone to attack/annoy enemies and provide a distraction.

Sabotage: A subset of her tech prowess, Tali is particularly good at dealing with synthetic AI or VI enemies - able to hack into their systems and make them explode or something (blah blah science jargon). The point of it is that she's particularly good at taking down mech enemies, that includes robots and super suits.


CHARACTER SAMPLES.
✖ First Person POV: yet another link

✖ Third Person POV:

Tali has heard people (humans, mostly) use the phrase "calm before the storm" before, but until now, she didn't truly understand what it meant. She'd be raised next to the rattling hum of engines and spent the last few years in a hail of gunfire and motion, and now, here - standing on the Citadel (where it all began, just a few short years ago). It felt quiet. A heavy sort of silence, where you can clearly hear the echos of conversations, decisions past. She remembered looking at the same magnificent lake and wondering just how they had managed to build such a feat, before she had even heard of a Prothean or seen the might of a true Reaper.

She still wondered how they had managed to create such a beautiful thing.

If they could, once this was over, make something just as beautiful on her new homeworld. It felt strange to have a home to return to, that she was fighting to protect something concrete instead of the idea - a vague recollection her people had of a world, instead of the heavy weight of sand and rock. She understood the raw desperation Shepard exuded a little better even now, a force that carried across the edges of a galaxy, the desire to protect not just the souls but the ground they walked on and the monuments they built. Hopes and dreams. She hopes they make a difference, and dreams they live to see the other side.

Tali barely notices when the other quarian sits across the table from her, hands clasping in front of her, only looking up with a start when the woman reaches over to grab her shoulder, squeezing tightly. It's baffling to see a fellow quarian outside of the Fleet (she catches herself-- off of the homeworld, now), especially since the massive efforts to rebuild Rannoch are underway. They are all either aligned with the galaxy-wide forces headed towards Earth, or helping the effort with the geth to begin farming, irrigation, building (all things Tali thinks are beyond her - it's better she's out here, better to go out doing what she can instead of getting in the way).

"I . . . " Tali starts to ask why, but reconsiders, maybe it's rude to ask. "Do you need something?"

The strange quarian just nods, hurriedly, hands clenching in agitation.

"You've got to help-- It's urgent, Rannoch desperately needs you! We're going to lose the homeworld again!" With the words, Tali nearly panics, she'd thought they were safe finally - for a time, until she could finish her work with Shepard, standing up and sending her chair clattering backwards.

"What do you mean? Of course I'll help, please just tell me--"

She doesn't remember the rest, it goes dark so quickly.


CHARACTER ITEMS.
✖ Pick a Team: Orange

✖ Mission Freebie: Her "piece of home": a rock from the surface of Rannoch.
✖ Personal Item or Weapon: An omni-tool! The Omni-Tool is basically a handheld computer that can analyze and aid in hacking, make small repairs or constructions in armor, play audio/video and dispense medication. It can also stab with a blade it creates (more science jargon), but basically it's a handheld computer that can also be used for basic self-defense.

✖ Character Inventory:

-Her environmental suit: completely self-contained and pre-installed with several programs for life-support including immunoboosters and improvements to the sense-functions (touch, smell, sight enhancements). The suit comes with built in mass effect generated shielding, which helps protect from suit punctures and bullets. It also has a copy of famed cheesy cross-species romance Fleet and Flotilla downloaded. The sing-along version.