- "I'm stronger than I look. I'm well versed in all the martial arts. 'Ali, the One-man Army' they call me in the south. The mere mention of my name strikes fear into the hearts of any who would wrong the common man. I've killed more people than I can count, and all with one hand." —Ali boasting to Omar, before his subsequent defeat
Ali is a character in Octopath Traveler. He is the son of the renowned merchant Maruf and one of the 2 deuteragonists of Tressa's story (alongside Leon Bastralle).
Profile[]
Appearance[]
Ali has short messy black hair, green eyes, tan skin and a red bandana with a feather strapped to the side, matching with his vest. He's always seen carrying a large backpack, and wearing white short-sleeved undershirt with green pants and leather shoes.
Personality[]
Ali is an energetic, fast-talking merchant with a silver tongue. His way with words wins the hearts (and loosens the purse strings) of his customers, whom he tends to attract in large numbers. Much of Ali's current mercantile skill has developed since a fight with his father, in which Ali set out on his own to prove his own skills. He hopes that by proving himself a good enough merchant, he can redeem the shame of his father's debt.
Although Ali's eloquence frequently employs hyperbole, he never seeks to deceive his customers into a bad bargain. He demonstrates generosity even as he teases his rival Tressa, and his integrity can be seen in his determination to repay the favor he owes her.
Story[]
Ali greatly admired his father, Maruf but ran away after a loss swindled by his trusted friend and false rumor spread by the latter. From that point, he swore to become as great a merchant as his father was and try to make money to repay his father's debt.
During his travels, he met another merchant named Tressa in Quarrycrest, where he told her about the skystones that she bought and uncovered from a worker and their rarity. Some time later, after witnessing Tressa making good money from the skystones she found and purchased, he immediately set up his shop next to her and took all of her customers away with his sales pitch.
Later, at a food stand, he told Tressa of his father and his ability to sell merchandise. However, they are immediately confronted by Morlock and his assistant, Omar, where they state that the skystones now belong to the former due to his ownership of the land. When Ali attempted to argue against it and fight against Omar, he is subdued and brought to Morlock's Manse.
There, he was physically and mentally beaten and wounded until Tressa arrived to confront them over their swindling of the townsfolk and their treatment of Ali. After their defeat and retreat, Ali thanked Tressa and promised to pay back her act of kindness in the future. Before departing, he told Tressa of the Merchant's Fair in Grandport.
Some time later, Ali is seen in Grandport selling a rug once belonging to a famous aristocrat family when he met Tressa again, who told him of the theft of her notebook by a mysterious woman. Remembering his debt to Tressa, Ali assisted her by distracting the man Esmeralda was with while Tressa went after the woman. Finding out about the man's wanted status, he turned him over to the guards. Shortly after, he witnessed Tressa's victory in the Merchant's Bazaar, where she sold her notebook to Noa of the Wyndham family. After the contest, they both parted ways on friendly terms, promising to meet again in another fair competition.
Ali can be seen in Sunshade after completing Tressa's story. After the completion of his sidequest, he can be found in Marsalim with his father.
Quotes[]
- "Father..." —Speaking to Ali (Sunshade)
- "Boy... My father's definitely been out of the business a bit too long... We've been talking about our new shop together, but we can't seem to agree about anything! All his ideas are so old-fashioned! But, well, if we ever manage to open our shop, I hope you'll stop by." —In Marsalim, sidequest complete
- "Very well. You'll soon find out why nobody's ever heard of the Great Ali's skills with a battle staff... Wait, that didn't come out right..." —When Challenged
- "A monster!? I'm not about to let it get its dirty little claws on my merchandise!" —When Provoked
- "If ya think ya can just walk off with my stuff, yer sorely mistaken!" —Failing a Path Action
Gallery[]
Etymology[]
"Ali" is a name of Arabic origin meaning "high," "elevated," "exalted," or "champion." This name likely reflects Ali's silver-tongued penchant for inflating his reputation and persuading others to buy his wares.
Trivia[]
- Ali's father's name, Maruf, means "well-known" in Arabic. This is appropriate, since Ali claims that "everyone has heard of Maruf."
- In travel banter with Tressa, Ophilia refers to Ali by saying that she has "never met anyone so smooth of tongue."
- In Tressa's Chapter 4 banter, Alfyn calls Ali "an awfully good fellow" and says, "I wouldn't mind sharing a mug or two of mead with him." However, Tressa points out that Ali is "too young for the alehouse," implying that Orsterra's legal drinking age is at least 21 years old.
- Prior to The Adventures of Ali, Maruf declares that his son "couldn't sell a starving man a steak... He doesn't know a thing about making em' want what you're selling." This suggests that Ali has come quite a long way since leaving Marsalim and appearing in Tressa's story.
- Octopath Traveler II contains a potential reference to Ali. During Partitio's Chapter 3, Partitio hawks a carpet vendor's wares with gusto, bidding his customers to "feast their eyes" on the carpets' quality. His tactics hark back to Ali's carpet sales in Tressa's Chapter 4, where Ali shows up in Grandport and makes a grandiose sale of House Khafqa's famed carpet.