Thankyou for Rhapsodies of Vana'diel.

[Stompa]

I just want to say a very big thankyou to everyone involved in making the Rhapsodies of Vana'diel.

The cutscene movies are heart-achingly beautiful to see, and the story-writing is bold and profound. The story-writing in the latest RoV is engaging and stirring, beyond anything I have read in even the greatest of fantasy novels.

The blending of existing storylines into RoV is masterful and enchanting. The RoV rewards system is also very well designed, and fun. The concept of tying character-upgrade rewards into a blend of existing and new storylines, is a truly brilliant idea.

Thankyou for this enthralling story, it is just simply wonderful. :)

[Draylo-]

I agree, great job :)

[Raiyara]

While the story might be nice I'm certainly not enjoying it too much in part because I can neither proceed on Rhapsodies because its at a part of the story where lilisette is unavailable and is blocking me 1st by not letting me finish the Sandoria S quest chain and now is blocking me from proceeding in Wotg to get her back! This is after spending all day doing the bastok S quest chain to get around the 1st problem only to be blocked at the second -.-

Honestlys more like Glitches of Vanadiel this one. 1st one didnt have these issues C_C

[Obysuca]

Honestlys more like Glitches of Vanadiel this one. 1st one didnt have these issues C_C

Well to be fair, they probably intended for you to have finished all the expansions before doing Rhapsodies

[Zarchery]

I meant to make this thread but you beat me to the punch.

Rhapsodies of Vanadiel storyline is awesome. It's not really the best in my opinion. Sometimes I think it's a little too fast paced. Like the part where the one SOA NPC we all know and love entraps the Disjointed One seems like what in other story lines would have stretched out over several missions and a couple updates to resolve. The fights are a little too easy, which I guess is good because it means I don't have to be bottlenecked to continue enjoying the story.

My favorite part, which I absolutely love, is how it integrates all these previous story lines. It was such a delight seeing Nashmeira, Tenzen, Prishe, and Gilgamesh all gathered together. Or to see Sehl'teus and Balomor together. Originally, the introduction of these characters took place over the span of several years and several different expansions, so it's easy to forget that these people all inhabit the same world and it's actually kind of unusual that they never met each other.

I also really love that the whole quest is an attempt to seek out Altana. We've seen so many supernatural beings and demigods, including Altana's counterpart Promathia.... but we've never actually seen Altana in anything but a painting or sculpture.

One question that still remains on my mind is this: where was Bahamut during the meeting of the Terrestrial Avatars? That seems like a major oversight. Fenrir, Odin, Alexander, Atomos, Cait Sith, and Diabolos were there. I think Siren and Phoenix joined in too (though Phoenix seems to be more of an insubstantial force than an actual being). No Bahamut though....

[JeanPaul]

While we're pointing out great things in the update, Sinister Reign is easily one of, if not the absolute best designed event in thing in the game. I award many JeanBucks to those involved in its creation.

[Stompa]

My favorite part, which I absolutely love, is how it integrates all these previous story lines. It was such a delight seeing Nashmeira, Tenzen, Prishe, and Gilgamesh all gathered together. Or to see Sehl'teus and Balomor together. Originally, the introduction of these characters took place over the span of several years and several different expansions, so it's easy to forget that these people all inhabit the same world and it's actually kind of unusual that they never met each other.

I also really love that the whole quest is an attempt to seek out Altana. We've seen so many supernatural beings and demigods, including Altana's counterpart Promathia.... but we've never actually seen Altana in anything but a painting or sculpture.



It reminded me of Marvel's "Secret Wars" when you got all those different legendary heroes from totally different places and times, all gathered together. I agree with you about Altana too, we don't know what to expect, and there is a lot of possible surprises ahead. I have been trying to guess where it is all heading, and I just can't guess at all. There are so many possible perpendiculars lol.

This last update has given me my new total #1 favourite trust too, Orange Glowy Nashmeira. Her trademark combat stance of looking away from the mob while slapping the air like she's having a tantrum, is still here, and now in glowy orange. It is the best thing ever.

And this update was also my favourite RoV bonus, being able to cap lots of VW atmacites for a new super-low price. I had got a lot of them to lvl 10 but had stopped pouring cruor into them lol, but today I went and got loads of them to lvl 15.

[Stompa]

While the story might be nice I'm certainly not enjoying it too much in part because I can neither proceed on Rhapsodies because its at a part of the story where lilisette is unavailable and is blocking me 1st by not letting me finish the Sandoria S quest chain and now is blocking me from proceeding in Wotg to get her back! This is after spending all day doing the bastok S quest chain to get around the 1st problem only to be blocked at the second -.-

Honestlys more like Glitches of Vanadiel this one. 1st one didnt have these issues C_C

Its just because RoV gives "Trust" ciphers as primary direct rewards, this tells you that the whole of RoV is based on the bonds you have formed with characters in the old storylines. And if you haven't formed strong bonds with those characters (by finishing the missions and add-on quests) then your bond is not strong enough to progress in the bond-based RoV storyline. It makes sense from that point of view, but I do feel sorry for people who haven't had time to finish all the storyline yet. Hopefully RoV will inspire new players to experience the amazing and sublime mission storylines in the old game, it might motivate some players who might otherwise have skipped that whole area of the game.

[Zarchery]

And this update was also my favourite RoV bonus, being able to cap lots of VW atmacites for a new super-low price. I had got a lot of them to lvl 10 but had stopped pouring cruor into them lol, but today I went and got loads of them to lvl 15.

That kind of makes me want to go get more atmacites. I have a few, but when I progressed through Voidwatch I was just concerned with getting clears and didn't really even try for staggers.

[Draylo-]

I got my atmacite to level 3, and then 4 and both times it said something odd. First upgrade was "Your molted peiste skin has been upgraded to level 3!" and second was "Your Windurst Rune has been upgraded to level 4!" then it stopped. Strange huh lol

[Stompa]

I got my atmacite to level 3, and then 4 and both times it said something odd. First upgrade was "Your molted peiste skin has been upgraded to level 3!" and second was "Your Windurst Rune has been upgraded to level 4!" then it stopped. Strange huh lol

My Red Institute Card reached level twelve today too. Its all my dreams come true, and much more!

[Numquam]

My Red Institute Card reached level twelve today too. Its all my dreams come true, and much more!

How are you guys getting upgrades on these items? o.O

[Vinedrai]

I also really love that the whole quest is an attempt to seek out Altana. We've seen so many supernatural beings and demigods, including Altana's counterpart Promathia.... but we've never actually seen Altana in anything but a painting or sculpture.

Although we haven't yet met her true self, we did see her image at the end of WotG.
http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/ffxi/images/1/1b/Lilith_Ascendant.png/revision/latest?cb=20101209085512

[Riggs]

this is really pissing me off right now, i've been waiting to do these missions for weeks now and guess what, i can't proceed because i was on mission 31 in Aht Urhgan, fair enough i just did that mission and now i'm stopped again.
I still can't progress as i'm now stuck on mission 33 and can't do that until after jp midnight which i missed by 1 hour, and this thing about bonds is rubbish as if i was back on mission 12 she would be in town and i could proceed.

Two things here SE messed up.
1 . Bloody tell us this weeks ago so we could have finished off these old missions.
2. get rid of this ridiculous JP midnight rubbish

[Athen]

this is really pissing me off right now, i've been waiting to do these missions for weeks now and guess what, i can't proceed because i was on mission 31 in Aht Urhgan, fair enough i just did that mission and now i'm stopped again.
I still can't progress as i'm now stuck on mission 33 and can't do that until after jp midnight which i missed by 1 hour, and this thing about bonds is rubbish as if i was back on mission 12 she would be in town and i could proceed.

Two things here SE messed up.
1 . Bloody tell us this weeks ago so we could have finished off these old missions.
2. get rid of this ridiculous JP midnight rubbish

Just a heads-up, you may want to have all of the Seekers of Adoulin missions done before November, if you haven't gotten them finished already.

I wonder if Abyssea will play into the RoV story at all. If so, a Shinryu clear wouldn't hurt either.

[Stompa]

How are you guys getting upgrades on these items? o.O

Its either a bizarre glitch that makes temporary items you don't even have anymore, displayed in chatlog as "levelled up" during the atmacite level up process. Or it is the final logical endpoint of the Random Generated augment system that we already have, taken to its logical conclusion, randomly levelling up random KIs that you don't even have and only exist as a non-kinetic mono before and after levelling up. I think it is just a glitch.

[Stompa]

Although we haven't yet met her true self, we did see her image at the end of WotG.
http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/ffxi/images/1/1b/Lilith_Ascendant.png/revision/latest?cb=20101209085512


I always thought that this second form of Lady Lilith, which she attained after stealing the divine force from Lilisette, was just the embodiment of Lady Lilith's megalomania, it was like a more golden and god-like version of Lady Lilith. She was ranting about her being god-like, with majestic wings and claws etc. So I never saw that as how Altana would look, just the way Lilith pictures herself as goddess.

But then of course, the power of Altana is the ultimate power, victory of light over darkness, and a being with this kind of power can manifest in any shape or form that they choose. I always pictured Altana as a more 'normal' looking form, f.ex. a person carrying a book, rather than a glowing winged form. But in lore, we are all children of Altana, and so perhaps Altana exists in every form that her children believe in. :)

[Vinedrai]

Player and Lilisette are blessed by Altana with the ability to traverse through Walk of Echoes and are called by Cait Sith "Wings of the Goddess". When Lilith merges herself with Lilisette, she also obtains the essence (or w/e it may be called) of Altana which Lilisette carries within and "ascend"s to a god-like appearence in Altana's image. If you look at Lilith and Lilith Ascendant closely, you will see that they don't look a like. It looks more like a mesh of Lilith and Altana if she was a human.

Of course, this is a matter open to speculation as they never said that form was definitely Lilith + Altana, but I just feel it is safe to assume it is at least Lilith + Altana sauce.