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nymfaia · 2 years

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TATTOO TRADITIONS & THE NADAAM.

One of Magnai’s most prized features happens to be the looping tattoo curled around his upper arm. Formed out of circles and unfinished, the art is updated with every Nadaam win he adds to his streak.

Much like military officers may display pins or patches on their uniforms to flaunt their station, those who win the Nadaam often find a way to flaunt their victory. Some tribes add embroidery into the winner’s robes, or add ornamentation to their tent.

The Oronir tattoo one another, as one man’s win encompasses the tribe as a whole. While they are not the only to do so, they are the only family to approach it in such a way that leads the art unfinished should they ever lose.

The tribe they quarrel with the most, the Dotharl, view each win as an accomplishment on it’s own, and any artwork they put into their flesh reflects the same: a pattern that fully wraps around the winner’s forearm, upper arm, or part of their leg. Most commonly seen among them is the hammer, a motif intending to signify power and eternal life. This goes along with their belief that the strongest among them will return to the Steppe.

The hammer pattern can be seen among many Dotharl:

The Oronor do not see one win to be fully encompassing. Strength is made of multiple victories, even if such a victory is not one they personally obtained. Combined with their belief of being descendants of Azim and the sun, their tattoos are derived from the King’s Bracelet pattern:

(In the real world, the symbol is often seen as a sign of peace or tranquility. While I’m not sure this is something that would jive with the Oronir tribe, who pride themselves on their competition and thirst for victory, I do see a similarity in it to the astrological symbol for the sun: ☉.

Which, obviously, given the clan’s beliefs, aligns quite nicely, and is why I ended up choosing the pattern overall.)

With the end of Stormblood, the tattoo will remain unfinished. It only partially wraps around his upper bicep, not quite centered in a way that shows the failure wasn’t expected. His tribe could win another Nadaam, of course, and add onto their tattoo ring without a gap - and many will. But Magnai sees it as an end to his reign, and even should he win another round, a gap will be left where the win could have been.

As for Cirina, she indulges in the tradition for the novelty. Very few in her tribe’s history have had a win, and while it is not something she would have had done for any other occasion, it is something to be proud of. However, she opted not to have a bracelet or anklet tattoo, and has instead the ulzii hee: the endless knot. It is intended to symbolize everlasting happiness, and she has it placed below her collar, in a similar area to where she would pull her bowstring taut before firing.

Since Alta has not returned to the Steppe as of Endwalker, she has still yet to receive her Nadaam tattoo - something I’m certain Magnai has bothered her about during their stint in Garlemald. Without much memory of her own tribe having won, nor what kind of design they might have displayed, she’s remained fairly mum on the tradition. However, I do think she would try and get something pertaining to her adventures and time spent abroad, her time in other realms and in other times.

(Which might end up being something as simple as a black line around one of her limbs, given how difficult it would be to truly encompass everything.)

#☀️ magnai ; hcs.#🏹 cirina ; hcs.#☄️ alta ; hcs.#AS ALWAYS take this with a grain of salt #i found something real and grounded in tradition and adapted it for fantasy much like a lot of the game #for instance - the nadaam is actually a horse race tradition in mongolia! not a big ol brawl #i mean no disrespect with the use of the pattern. i just like how it looks. it matches the iconography of the xaela and their lore #needles tw #stick and poke tw #tattoos tw #body horror tw #long post tw #also i saw this pattern and immediately thought of a.zem's symbol don't @ me. LOOK AT IT.#THIS IS A LONG POST IM SORRY

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