Zarya (Overwatch)
Zarya is a female video game character who features in Overwatch.
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Biography
Aleksandra Zaryanova was born in Novanskoye which was a remote Siberian village that was on the front lines of the Omnic Crisis. Although Russian forces defeated the Omnics and shut down their omnium, the region was devastated by the conflict, and her father was killed in the war. Only a child at the time, Aleksandra was surrounded by the post-war destruction, and as she grew older, she swore that she would gain the strength to help her people recover. Focusing on weightlifting and bodybuilding, Aleksandra was identified by the national athletics program as a potential star. She trained extensively, moving up the ranks while representing her country, and was expected to shatter longstanding records in the upcoming world championships.
But on the eve of the tournament, an attack came from the long-dormant Siberian omnium, and her village was thrust into war once again. Aleksandra immediately withdrew from the competition and rushed home to enlist in the local defense forces, sacrificing the life of fame and fortune she might have had. The magazine Богатыри reported on her departure. Now a soldier in the Russian Defense Forces, Zarya was deployed to the Krasnoyarsk front in Siberia; the same front where her father had been killed holding the line against the omnics. Serving as a soldier, Zarya became a symbol to some, a stalwart fellow soldier to others. But for Zarya, it was a chance to use her great strength to protect the ones she loved. Zarya was given an experimental weapon by Katya Volskaya, CEO of Volskaya Industries. Her particle cannon was deemed too heavy for standard soldiers, but it also required the kind of quick maneuvering and accuracy that Russia's mechanized force couldn’t achieve. Zarya fought on the front lines, and saved many lives with the weapon.
After a trio of Talon agents tried to assassinate Katya, Zarya was summoned to her office. After being asked whether she knew why she was here, Zarya responded that she believed she did. However, after being told about the nature of her mission, to track down Sombra (who was among the Talon agents who'd tried to assassinate Katya), Zarya realized that the assignment hadn't been what she'd expected. She told Katya that a spy would have been a better choice. Katya shrugged the suggestion off, and sent Zarya on her way. Over weeks of searching, she visited Lijiang Tower, Hanamura, and London. She reported to Katya that her leads had run dry. Katya sent Zarya to Numbani to meet a hacker. Zarya was uncomfortable in Numbani, rankled at the sight of humans and omnics living together. Her mood wasn't improved when she discovered that her hacker contact was an omnic named Lynx Seventeen. She contacted Katya, asking if she knew the hacker was an omnic, but Katya explained that sometimes, one had to ally with undesirable allies in order to fight a common enemy. Lynx showed Zarya the data they had gathered on the "Sombra Collective." Zarya explained that the supposed collective was actually a single woman, and Lynx explained that given that Sombra's calling card was a sugar skull (similar to that of Los Muertos), and had implicated Guillermo Portero for corruption. Given all that, they headed for Dorado, Mexico, where they met with Portero himself. He wished them luck, but stated that LumériCo couldn't give them any aid.
Overview
Personality and attributes
She came to be known as one of the world's strongest women, a celebrated athlete who sacrificed personal glory to protect her family, friends, and country in a time of war.
Zarya is distrustful of omnics, even those who seek co-existence with humanity.
Powers and abilities
Zarya’s mighty Particle Cannon unleashes a short-range beam of destructive energy.
Deploying powerful personal barriers that convert incoming damage into energy for her massive Particle Cannon, Zarya is an invaluable asset on the front lines of any battle.
As a soldier in the Russian Defense Forces, she is proud to use her strength to protect the ones she loves.
Notes
- Zarya was designed by Arnold Tsang where she was voiced by actor Dolya Gavanski and featured in the Overwatch setting.
In other media
Video games
- In Heroes of the Storm, Zarya was a playable champion within the setting of the MOBA video game where she was voiced again by actor Dolya Gavanski.
Appearances
- Overwatch: (2016)
- Overwatch 2: (2022)
External Links
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