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Where would we be without Rome? Or the Ottomans? Or even WWII. For all its horrors, it did spring some technological innovations. But yes, forcing their way on us, instead of leaving us to adopt it, was Garlemand's mistake.
The Echo does not make us slaves to no one. We were given a power and retained our own free will. Hydaylen counsels us and shields us, she does not force our hand.
If anything, the Echo is a point for "we are the good guys".
You're right. We're horrible people for letting a man die after he just tried to murder us.
i never considered the sides in Eorzea to be "evil" and "good"
every side is trying to get what they want for justifiable reasons
Hydaelyn feels threatened and tempers you as an effort to survive (self preservation possibly?).
the ascians are trying to take back what they believe is rightfully theirs by summoning zodiark.
Gaius believes that the only way for eorzea to survive is under garlean rule, and eorzea is desperately trying to defend their borders from both the beast races and the empire to protect their way of life.
as for beast races:
ixal, Amalj'aa, and Sahagin became hostile after being taught how to summon their primals by the paragons. possibly to gather people to be tempered to fuel their primal's existence.
Sylphs are content with what they have, as are the tempered ones as long as they aren't attacked.
kobolds are hostile because of a treaty with limsa lominsa that was broken...by limsa lominsa. (titan seems content with what he has though)
correct me if i'm wrong, i tried to keep it pretty general, but this is what i picked up from the scenario and a few side quests.
Someones hero is another mans enemy.
Gaius has tried on numerous occasions to kill me. I'm glad he exploded.
Point 1: Gaius pulled an ancient weapon of mass destruction from the ruins of Ala Mhigo, repaired it, and then powered it up with three Primals, before threatening to send it against Eorzea.
Point 2: Garlemald's intent was to wash over Eorzea in its Outward March, forcing all the city-states to bend to Garlean will. As you'll recall from certain NPC's accounts (particularly the main storyline, just before running off to rescue your fellow Scions), you'd know that they don't exactly treat the inhabitants of new acquisitions very well.
Point 3: He hurt my friends, authorized the slaughter of countless innocents just to get information on The Echo, and allied with the Ascians willingly. Gaius is very much not a nice person.
The man seems crazy to me.
I had no remorse fighting against him, he's become obsessed with his concept of the only means to bring about peace is with force to the point that he's projecting his vision of how the world works onto you, regardless of what your response is to him he will always try to insist that you, for all the strength you've gained to stand before him, fit exactly into his view of how things work, save for what you do with that strength. And he can't stand that. Even when it becomes clear that there are machinations at work in his war-machine beyond his own, even when it becomes clear that he cannot truely control the Ultima weapon when Lahabrea forces it to cast Ultima, rather than step back and re-evaluate what is going on, instead he continues to try and kill you. Why?
Because you stand between him and Eorzea, and despite your 'strength to rule' you reject his idea of what the world should be.
Silly idea.
Seems contrarian simply for the sake of being 'the outsider'.
Almost a hipster point of view of things, I'd say. Being the good guy is no longer en vogue, so lack of decent forethought and common sense inevitably results in the "Oh, hey, we're the bad guys!" delusion.
Maybe it's a carry-over from the recent surge of entertainment that's saturated with this ethos, that the bad guys aren't so bad, and the good guys are old hat, washed out, closed minded, etc.
In every situation (excepting mental illness) everyone is acting out in a way they believe will bring them the most happiness. Their actions (misguided or otherwise) have a purpose, and from their standpoint, they can classify any obstacle in their way as 'evil'.
But to jump over the fence just to shout 'Look where I stand!' belies ignorance on the part of the individual.
There are societal norms for a reason, and they're not all an evil system trying to suppress individuality and fun.
That's all.
i've always enjoyed the saying "Actions speak louder than words" then again Gaius and the Ascians want to destroy and or take control over everything to keep them in their "Grip" so to speak. While with the Garlean's world conquest and primal destroying may look good on paper... or a scroll however it does not in fact work at all. They have the stronger weapons they have the more man power... we have the echo and Hydaelyn. Reminds me of the Empire VS the Rebel Alliance... out manned out gunned yet it took just one person with an exceptional ability (ok maybe two but you get my point) to throw the entire Galactic Empire into a frenzy that was finally finished off and turned into the New Republic. (I really have read too many Star Wars Novels and watched the Original three movies too many times.)
Also to talk about the song Answers that someone posted the link too. That song originally was talking about how Ala Mhigo was taken over by the Garleans and how they felt about being repressed along with your "Path Companion" being given the Echo and such like that. (at least that's what someone told me)
also the Garleans were the ones who decided they wanted to take over the world...
then the ascians are described as suchQuote:
Garlemald is unsurpassed in the field of magitek, a technology which it exploits with devastating effectiveness in warfare. Unperturbed by their lesser numbers, the Garleans went forth upon gigantic flying warships, bearing powerful weaponry the likes of which the world had never seen. One nation after the next fell before their relentless onslaught, first those of the northlands, followed by the sovereign states of the eastern continent, Othard. Employing suppression and conciliation in equal measure, Garlemald indoctrinated the peoples it conquered, thus integrating them into its ever-expanding territory. So it was that the Garlean Empire came into existence.
Quote:
Known also as "Paragons," these malevolent, black-robed figures sow the seeds of conflict across the lands of Eorzea. Just as their faces are concealed by sinister masks, the true motives of the Ascians remain obscured behind veils of secrecy and terror.
ma·lev·o·lent
məˈlevələnt/
adjective
adjective: malevolent
1.
having or showing a wish to do evil to others.
Woah, there's a difference between being good and being a saint.