Carina of the Algai Aiel is of average height for a female with dark reddish hair and pale blue eyes. Very slender and not very well muscled, a source of shame for her. She has, however, learned to compensate with speed and agility.

She is quick witted, with a sharp, biting sense of humor, even for an Aiel.

She is the youngest of five girls. Her father died in battle when she was three years old. Her ultra-feminine mother and older sisters attempted to prepare her to be a wife and mother. She realized at a young age that she was different and rebelled, running off at age fifteen, intent on becoming a Maiden of the Spear.