Lack of lore on the Raen Au Ra

[yuurei94]

Hello everyone. I've been trying to come to terms with the fact that the Raen just don't seem to have an identity in FFXIV.

Sweeping statements like this necessitate some sort of backup, so allow me to explain.

We are introduced to the Raen and the Xaela in Heavensward, but the most we get out of the Raen is Yugiri. However, she is known as a Doman, rather than as an Auri. Her looks would be rather striking in Eorzea, seeing as the Auri are rather rare here than in other continents, but I do not immediately recall anyone ever making any such comments about her being an Auri, much less a Raen.

The only significant lore we get is through the ninja quests which involve Princess Yuki and her subjects, which I did enjoy quite a bit. However, we still didn't get much recognition of them being Raen, but rather as being Doman/Far Eastern.

Going into Stormblood, we finally get something about the Raen with Sui-no-Sato, even being described as a village of Raen. This was akin to desert for me, as I finally found a place where I thought we'd get much more knowledge about Raen culture and their way of life. Unfortunately, what we did get to know was rather scant in comparison to the veritable love letter to the Xaela that was the Azim Steppe.

We are also made aware that there is a population of Raen in Sharlayan through Mikoto in the Ivalice raid series.

Ironically, as we move into Shadowbringers, we actually get a wealth of lore on the First's equivalent of Raen in the kingdom of Voeburt, which I adored. It felt quite right for the Raen (even though the royal family of that fallen kingdom apparently had the scales of the Xaela), and I eagerly snatched up all the Voerburtite sets relevant to my Raen character.

Further on into the patch content, we are introduced to a new population of Raen in the Sorrow of Werlyt questline, with names that are much more similar to their First counterparts and that they aren't as confined to the Far East as they were previously portrayed as being.

[yuurei94]

Part 2, because my original post was too long:

With all that being summarized (forgive me if I've neglected or forgot to mention other pertinent information), I will gather what we do know about the Raen on the source:

- The Raen left the Azim Steppe in antiquity for unknown reasons, but they value solitude and tranquility, which is naturally something the Steppe does not offer.

- The Raen have a tendency to live in secluded communities made up of (seemingly exclusively, in the Far East) mostly Raen and prefer their solitude.

- Some Raen decided to formally join the major states and essentially discard any identity they had prior.

- The Raen have a respect for hierarchy and nobility, as seen through their monarchical states they live in.

- They are very spiritual (but of what religion, other than a general belief in kami, in the Far East?).

- They have a strong tradition of ninja clans and families.

- They live in secluded villages in the mountain valleys of eastern Othard.

- There's a population of Raen who live in Werlyt on Ilsabard, so presumably, there are more Raen elsehwere.

Other than these nuggets of lore...what else?

One of the most detrimental things to their identity as a race is that the writers of FFXIV have essentially just plopped them in with any local culture and adopting that culture, making them, at best, an aesthetic choice, rather than a thoughtfully written race/species with their own unique traditions and beliefs (one and the same, really).

I don't want to sound harsh, but it feels as though the Raen were just the palette swap of the Xaela and only exist because of the two clan race system we have in the game.

As of yet, the Raen that we see on the Source don't have their own unique naming conventions, even. It's very discouraging for roleplaying a Raen character when you barely have any reference for your own character's race, which, at least for myself, takes me out of the experience of being something 'other'.

I hope everyone is able to see where I'm coming from and can help contribute to this quandary of mine and the Raens'.

[RicaRuin]

Same goes for Keepers of the Moon and Duskweight Elezen. However, the Raen do have their own naming convention, just because it uses Japanese just like Hingashi does it's not less of a naming convention.

And a small pet peeve of mine: Auri is the adjective, not the Plural. Plural is Au Ra as well.

[Caitlyn]

Auri is the adjective, not plural. The plural of Au Ra is Au Ra ^^. And "doman" is the nationality, Yugiri is still an Au Ra.

You can actually bypass the limit in your posts just by editing it.

Both Xaela and Raen have their origins in the Azim Steppe. But in fact, the Azim Steppe belongs to the 51(?) Xaela clans. Raens are spread over the world, integrated (or adapted) within the culture of Doma and Kugane. There is no REAL (big) hometown or country for Raen only, but that may count for Lalafells as well. The only Raen-only area is that small bubble underwater (Sui No Sato).

For the Drahn (Au Ra of the First) its even worse. I dont expect a hometown for the Drahn, because the flood of light destroyed 90% of the planet. I kinda wished, that the Drahn would look a bit different to their Au Ra counterparts (having different horns, claws, small wings, longer tails, etc). Same goes for Lalafells and Dwars as well (and the other races of course).

I assume, Xaela stay in the Azim Steppe to keep their traditions alive, while Raen gave them up to explore the world outside of it. I kinda hope to see more Raen in Sharlayan, which would make the Xaela a more traditional/wild tribe, while the Raen would be more intellectual/open minded.

To be honest here, there is not much information about the Au Ra in the enzyklopedia books, especially for Raen. Xaela got a bigger part in the books, because of the description of every clan.

And a small pet peeve of mine: Auri is the adjective, not the Plural. Plural is Au Ra as well.

Damn, too slow xD

[Anonymoose]

On the Source, having Raen in your service was seen as a boon in the Age of Blood so many of them got scooped up by established sub-cultures around Hingashi and have since assimilated completely into those cultures; Sui-no-Sato is probably the closest we can get to an authentically Raen culture for now.

[MilkieTea]

The Raen naming convention is Edo-period Traditional Japanese names. It's not even just Japanese names, it's names specific to the Edo Period.

[Iscah]

- They are very spiritual (but of what religion, other than a general belief in kami, in the Far East?)

Worship of the kami is a religion in itself, not a vague spirituality in addition to something else. Specifically it is an import of Japanese Shinto, or something close enough to it that perhaps the writers don't see a need to go into further detail.

[yuurei94]

You can actually bypass the limit in your posts just by editing it.

Thank you for letting me know.

Both Xaela and Raen have their origins in the Azim Steppe. But in fact, the Azim Steppe belongs to the 51(?) Xaela clans. Raens are spread over the world, integrated (or adapted) within the culture of Doma and Kugane. There is no REAL (big) hometown or country for Raen only, but that may count for Lalafells as well. The only Raen-only area is that small bubble underwater (Sui No Sato).

This is one of the important points I was referring to. A lack of community and consanguineous identity really makes the Raen bereft of, well, an identity of their own. It seems in most cases that their identity is someone else's.

As I mentioned earlier, there are isolated Raen communities in the mountains of Othard, so perhaps these settlements may have their own unique culture.

For the Drahn (Au Ra of the First) its even worse. I dont expect a hometown for the Drahn, because the flood of light destroyed 90% of the planet.

I was referring to Voeburt, before the Flood of Light. The First's equivalent of Xaela seem to be most populous in the Rak'tika Greatwood.

I assume, Xaela stay in the Azim Steppe to keep their traditions alive, while Raen gave them up to explore the world outside of it. I kinda hope to see more Raen in Sharlayan, which would make the Xaela a more traditional/wild tribe, while the Raen would be more intellectual/open minded.

This runs counter as to how they are described by their in-game blurb:

Unlike their sister clan, the Xaela, who bloody the land with their endless tribal conflict, the Raen have embraced a life of tranquility and solitude, long abandoning the nomadic lifestyle of their ancestors to settle the deep valleys of Othard's mountainous eastern reaches. Only on rare occasions will one emerge from the valley mists to seek adventure in realms afar.

To be honest here, there is not much information about the Au Ra in the enzyklopedia books, especially for Raen. Xaela got a bigger part in the books, because of the description of every clan.

I hate to say it, but it is particularly lazy and careless to completely fill so much lore on one clan and severely neglect the other. It makes playing them feel rather shallow and imbeds a sense of not belonging to the world one is playing in. I've tried playing Duskwights and Keepers of the Moon, who have more lore and the Keepers even having their own naming system and smidgens of clan culture observable in the Black Shroud and some of the class/job quests, and they've felt more represented than the Raen.

On the Source, having Raen in your service was seen as a boon in the Age of Blood so many of them got scooped up by established sub-cultures around Hingashi and have since assimilated completely into those cultures; Sui-no-Sato is probably the closest we can get to an authentically Raen culture for now.

Yes, I remember reading this as well, and that's how they got their reputation as excellent swordsmen. I suspect that these Raen's descendants are the ones we see in places like Hingashi and the open settlements of Doma.

The Raen naming convention is Edo-period Traditional Japanese names. It's not even just Japanese names, it's names specific to the Edo Period.

Do we know that this is exclusive to the Raen? The humans of Doma and Hingashi also have many archaic Japanese names.

Worship of the kami is a religion in itself, not a vague spirituality in addition to something else. Specifically it is an import of Japanese Shinto, or something close enough to it that perhaps the writers don't see a need to go into further detail.

I'm very familiar with Shinto and have a personal copy of the Kojiki myself, so there isn't a need to explain it. The kami in Othard are very vague, with only some primals having equivalents to the Amatsukami and other divinities from Japanese mythology.

[MikkoAkure]

It's not that Raen have a lack of lore, it's just that they assimilate completely into hyur culture wherever they go. It's even in their bio:

"The Raen now make their homes in central Othard and the surrounding islands, where they have forged strong relations with the Hyur and other races, adapting readily to new cultures."

"The Raen coexist peacefully with other races to ensure the safety of their own land"

"The Raen, however, having assimilated to Far Eastern culture, have adopted the common tongue of the Hyur."

I don't feel like they're similar to Moon Keepers or Duskwight since we know those two clans have their own culture. Original Raen culture is most likely close to current Xaela culture since they came from the same place. I also don't believe we can look to Sui-no-Sato for answers since those Raen seem to have assimilated Doman culture through the Kojin as those are their only contacts to the outside world as well as the people that made their underwater lifestyle even possible. Underwater Raen architecture resembles more closely nearby Doma and Hingashi than the Azim Steppe, they have Far-Eastern names and dress, and they have a belief in the kami.

As far as the Ilsabardan Au Ra go, we don't know too much about them except that according to an elderly local, they are not native to the region and "arrived over time".

What I would like to know though, is if the Raen have some sort of subculture unique to them despite being in say, Kugane. At least some sort of set of quirks that sets them apart other than their appearance. There are cultures of refugees in our world who have abandoned their original cultures for those of their new home, but unlike in FFXIV, we're all one species and can also blend together. As far as we know, except for one specific legend, modern Au Ra and Hyur do not intermarry or have children together, which would be a barrier to complete assimilation.

I was referring to Voeburt, before the Flood of Light. The First's equivalent of Xaela seem to be most populous in the Rak'tika Greatwood.

The dark-scaled Drahn of the Greatwood are all members of the Night's Blessed and are extremely recent arrivals. If you notice, the Night's Blessed also have a lot of what we would describe on the Source as Duskwights. I think it's a style choice since they're supposed to represent the night. What I did notice that has actual connections to pre-Flood First, is that the dark-scaled Drahn seem to be Voeburt's nobility.

I hate to say it, but it is particularly lazy and careless to completely fill so much lore on one clan and severely neglect the other. It makes playing them feel rather shallow and imbeds a sense of not belonging to the world one is playing in. I've tried playing Duskwights and Keepers of the Moon, who have more lore and the Keepers even having their own naming system and smidgens of clan culture observable in the Black Shroud and some of the class/job quests, and they've felt more represented than the Raen.

I think it's less lazy and more of a stylistic choice. They still belong to the world and in Hingashi many of the clans are ruled by Raen. Even the governor of Kugane is a Raen.

Do we know that this is exclusive to the Raen? The humans of Doma and Hingashi also have many archaic Japanese names.

This is not unique to the Raen and the other races of the Far-East also have archaic Japanese names. Before Stormblood though, when the Raen were released, refugee Raen from Doma were the only ones to make it to Eorzea so that's why that is their specific naming conventions in the lore forums and in the game.

[Gerel]

If I recall, the Raen were "forced out" of the Steppe by the Xaela for wanting something other than a nomadic and war-centric life, which is what led to a large bulk of the Raen population leaving to form Sui-no-Sato and the rest spreading throughout the Far East to become the eventual warriors of the various warlords throughout the Age of Blood. Their assimilation and adoption of other cultures filled the void left from that exodus--which seems to be a strong component of Raen temperament and "culture." Unlike the Xaela, who thrive on sticking to the principles of the Steppe and nothing but, the Raen are far more malleable and capable of adjusting to differing people if it means a place in the world.

In a way? Yeah. Raen are just a "palette swap" for the Au Ra in that they largely just become part of whatever culture that they're born into, but that's largely just because the Raen have actually become more like the Hyur in their tendency to spread throughout the world and adapt. It was their main method of survival post-Steppe. The Xaela get more focused lore because they stubbornly stuck to their guns and decided to keep the bulk of ancient Auri culture. That doesn't mean certain Raen families haven't kept the old traditions alive from their tribal days on the Steppe, or may even still hold some reverence and worship of the Dawn Father. It's just more homogenized or perhaps practiced more privately.

This also isn't accounting for the Raen who did decide to stay on the Steppe, as part of the Malaguld, or who have since decided to return to their old roots by joining up current day. But if you're looking for Raen culture? You do have to look at Xaela culture more closely, too, and perhaps extrapolate the concept of what Raen tribes may have been like. If they were anything like the Xaela (which is why they do get so much more lore in the encyclopedia in comparison), then they were wildly different from one another in scope of tradition and custom.