SUGGESTION: Add Equippable "Auras" as Visual Rewards for High-Difficulty Content

It’s no secret that rewards for higher-end content, such as Criterion Dungeons, the 40-offering "The Final Verse" Quantum Deep Dungeon, and other challenging modes, feel underwhelming compared to the effort and mastery they demand.

This is unfortunate because the content itself is exceptionally well-designed. The encounters, mechanics, and environments in these modes represent some of FFXIV’s best work. Players love the challenge, but many agree that the rewards do not match the quality of the experience.

A potential solution is to expand character customization by introducing a new cosmetic category: Equippable Auras. These would be visual effects that surround a character, like radiant energy, elemental glows, or particle-based effects, and could be unlocked through high-end challenges.

This concept already exists in several successful MMOs. Games like Phantasy Star Online 2, Mabinogi Heroes (Vindictus), and Dragon Quest X have introduced aura or aura-like effects that signify player achievement or rarity. Even global titles like Diablo III, Path of Exile, and Guild Wars 2 feature equippable aura cosmetics as prestige rewards.

FFXIV’s engine and art style are more than capable of supporting such effects in a tasteful, lore-friendly way, imagine elemental, holy, or void-themed auras tied to certain trials or dungeons. These would provide an exciting, purely cosmetic incentive that reflects both effort and skill, without affecting balance.

In short, “Equippable Auras” would give players a new and meaningful reward vector, a visible mark of dedication that complements the already outstanding high-end content and deepens FFXIV’s identity as a game of expression and prestige.