Crystal Tower Quests (Raids)

I never got around to doing the Crystal Tower Quests, bit I'm getting the feeling that SE is suggesting players do them before ShB comes out.
https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodes...678ad0a1a6d5da
Does anyone think this will be needed for MSQ?

It will be needed to understand parts of the MSQ I believe, not necessarily to do the MSQ

Based on how things have gone in the past, doing the previous raids has never been required to unlock the existing story. If that was the case you wouldn't have been able to jump into Omega without doing the Crystal Tower series either, as that's where Nero officially joins the cast as a neutral party. At worst things will just be confusing, but overall you'd likely be fine with just reading a wikipedia article if the thought of unlocking the raids seems unsavory.

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Originally Posted by Enla

Based on how things have gone in the past, doing the previous raids has never been required to unlock the existing story. If that was the case you wouldn't have been able to jump into Omega without doing the Crystal Tower series either, as that's where Nero officially joins the cast as a neutral party. At worst things will just be confusing, but overall you'd likely be fine with just reading a wikipedia article if the thought of unlocking the raids seems unsavory.

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While they aren't necessary, there are scenes that are different if you did complete them. For instance, when you rejoin Alisaie in Ishgard, if you did the coils all the way through, the scene is different than if you hadn't(at least that's what I'm told...I still haven't finished those, and a friend had, she said the scene was different dialogue)

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Originally Posted by Avatre

While they aren't necessary, there are scenes that are different if you did complete them. For instance, when you rejoin Alisaie in Ishgard, if you did the coils all the way through, the scene is different than if you hadn't(at least that's what I'm told...I still haven't finished those, and a friend had, she said the scene was different dialogue)

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This is correct. I had finished the coils before that scene and Alisaie mentions them in that scene if you finished them. One thing I really like about the game is that side stuff you do can have an impact on the MSQ, even if it's just some extra dialogue.

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Originally Posted by Avatre

While they aren't necessary, there are scenes that are different if you did complete them. For instance, when you rejoin Alisaie in Ishgard, if you did the coils all the way through, the scene is different than if you hadn't(at least that's what I'm told...I still haven't finished those, and a friend had, she said the scene was different dialogue)

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Yep, but those can again be viewed on youtube or read on wikipedia if the person absolutely doesn't want to do the raids. Personally I like the little easter eggs that come from unlocking everything and the story acknowledging that, and the Crystal Tower raids are so mindnumbingly easy these days that they can be done in an evening, but if someone doesn't want to do it I don't think they're missing out on much by just going to the wikia.

Crystal Tower is advisable for another reason, the Alliance roulette unlock. It is great xp for leveling, but I'd really advise running the Crystal Tower as already there is a cut scene with a change based on if you completed it or not in the MSQ for 4.56.

I also wonder how a possible NPC choices for Engimatic Man to be will be if you finished the CT raids or not, as one not possible in Crystal Tower if you don't do the raids. Maybe he gets named if you do it and stays Enigmatic if you don't?

SE does want players to do them before SHB, hence making it easier to get into LotA, but it won't be required. The only time I remember optional instances becoming required was near the end of ARR with the original three Hard Mode primals, and even then I might be wrong on them not always being required to move on to the rest of the primals.

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Originally Posted by Rosa_Frandlia

Crystal Tower is advisable for another reason, the Alliance roulette unlock. It is great xp for leveling, but I'd really advise running the Crystal Tower as already there is a cut scene with a change based on if you completed it or not in the MSQ for 4.56.

I also wonder how a possible NPC choices for Engimatic Man to be will be if you finished the CT raids or not, as one not possible in Crystal Tower if you don't do the raids. Maybe he gets named if you do it and stays Enigmatic if you don't?

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I did the CT raids way back when, and he remains enigmatic to the bitter end.

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Originally Posted by Adeacia

This is correct. I had finished the coils before that scene and Alisaie mentions them in that scene if you finished them. One thing I really like about the game is that side stuff you do can have an impact on the MSQ, even if it's just some extra dialogue.

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Yup, and I also believe her dialogue kind of gives you a little push to go and finish them up as well. However, it might even be totally different if you never started them at all, but not totally sure on that. I was stuck on T9 when I got to that point in HW.

I would fully expect the dialogue to change if a player has not started or completed the Crystal Tower series. Get in there OP. They are ran constantly now thanks to roulette, and I also believe they've adjusted the FATEs that are required to unlock them, making it MUCH easier to do so.

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Originally Posted by Gemina

Yup, and I also believe her dialogue kind of gives you a little push to go and finish them up as well. However, it might even be totally different if you never started them at all, but not totally sure on that. I was stuck on T9 when I got to that point in HW.

I would fully expect the dialogue to change if a player has not started or completed the Crystal Tower series. Get in there OP. They are ran constantly now thanks to roulette, and I also believe they've adjusted the FATEs that are required to unlock them, making it MUCH easier to do so.

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They actually did away with the initial FATE requirements entirely. From the blurb on the Lodestone they posted on the 12th:

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Prior to Patch 4.4, players were required to participate in FATEs to complete the Chronicles of a New Era quest “Legacy of Allag.” However, in Patch 4.4 the quest was updated to require adventurers simply defeat specific enemies.

Players who had previously accepted the quest may continue to progress by completing the FATEs; however, abandoning and reaccepting the quest will grant access to the updated version. In turn, players will have quicker access to the Labyrinth of the Ancients and the Crystal Tower alliance raid series. If you were planning to challenge the Crystal Tower alliance raid series before Shadowbringers, we recommend using this new method!

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I can't source it, but I think the writer for ShB advised players who haven't done the crystal tower raids to do so, I would think that it will be building off of the cliffhanger we got at the end of World of Darkness, so yes, definitely consider doing them, they have been stripped of almost all challenge, so it won't be particularly daunting or difficult to just breeze through them. I myself am probably going to rewatch the cutscenes in the inn as a refresher, since I am a bit hazy on some of the finer details, been a couple of years since I did CT raids.

I expect the dialogue will depend on whether you did the raids and the MSQ will be borrowing important elements from them, so I would suggest getting on that asap, lest the story in ShB lose some of its impact.

They'll plan the script with the possibility that the player hasn't completed the raids, but it's going to be intended that you've completed them.

Also keep in mind, once you play them, that they're set back in post-ARR even if you haven't done them until now.

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Originally Posted by Avatre

While they aren't necessary, there are scenes that are different if you did complete them. For instance, when you rejoin Alisaie in Ishgard, if you did the coils all the way through, the scene is different than if you hadn't(at least that's what I'm told...I still haven't finished those, and a friend had, she said the scene was different dialogue)

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From the quest Two Sides of a Coin - Alisaie gets three different variations in dialogue depending on your progress in the Coils, and Alphinaud gets four.

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Originally Posted by Rosa_Frandlia

I also wonder how a possible NPC choices for Engimatic Man to be will be if you finished the CT raids or not, as one not possible in Crystal Tower if you don't do the raids. Maybe he gets named if you do it and stays Enigmatic if you don't?

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I'm expecting time travel to be involved - so if we assume the Crystal Tower raids happen at some point in the "current time bubble" of the MSQ, whether that's in the past or future for the individual player, the Enigmatic Figure is from a point in time beyond that.

It's suggested that the Crystal Tower simply "appeared" on the First, so it's possible it somehow shifted in time and space from Eorzea's future to the First's past.

Also, unless there's something odd going on with clones or exact doubles, the Enigmatic Figure's character data leaves very little doubt as to his actual identity...

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Originally Posted by TitaniaZero

I did the CT raids way back when, and he remains enigmatic to the bitter end.

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I assume Rosa means in Shadowbringers, not in 4.56.

While they haven't done it before... I think there could be a possibility that 5.0 MSQ could possibly be Gate'd behind having Crystal Tower completed. Which is why they went out of the way to make it even easier to get the raid unlocked and made a specific lodestone post to advertise just that change alone.

This was also something teased as a possibility for the Eden series in 5.0 (the 8 man raids) being weaved into MSQ, which also hasn't ever been done before either.


That being said, Clearing CT is really really really really easy these days. They can even be completed unsync if desired.

They should just force ppl to do it, i dont see why they need to make 2-4 versions of dialoge just some ppl cant be assed to do it >_>

There is more then enough time, after all and no reason to not do it.

My guess is that there will be something in the new x-pac that will be locked behind the Crystal Tower raids. It most likely won't be MSQ, but some content that is released early into the x-pac.

I don't think they will be required for the MSQ though but I do think they will affect some dialog in Shadowbringers. But yeah I highly recommend doing these you'll get faster alliance raid que times and the story is pretty good too, lots of great FF3 music remixes too!

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Originally Posted by Iscah

They'll plan the script with the possibility that the player hasn't completed the raids, but it's going to be intended that you've completed them.

Also keep in mind, once you play them, that they're set back in post-ARR even if you haven't done them until now.





From the quest Two Sides of a Coin - Alisaie gets three different variations in dialogue depending on your progress in the Coils, and Alphinaud gets four.

I'm expecting time travel to be involved - so if we assume the Crystal Tower raids happen at some point in the "current time bubble" of the MSQ, whether that's in the past or future for the individual player, the Enigmatic Figure is from a point in time beyond that.

It's suggested that the Crystal Tower simply "appeared" on the First, so it's possible it somehow shifted in time and space from Eorzea's future to the First's past.

Also, unless there's something odd going on with clones or exact doubles, the Enigmatic Figure's character data leaves very little doubt as to his actual identity...

I assume Rosa means in Shadowbringers, not in 4.56.

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Rewatch it in your inn room. The scene with Tataru changes and you can see with the "show progress" check box. The gates are either blocked or closed depending on if you did the CT.

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Originally Posted by Rosa_Frandlia

Rewatch it in your inn room. The scene with Tataru changes and you can see with the "show progress" check box. The gates are either blocked or closed depending on if you did the CT.

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I'm not sure which part of my post you're replying to, so I'm not sure what you're meaning.

Do you mean that because there is dialogue that allows for the possibility that you haven't done the Crystal Tower, there isn't a right or wrong version?

I don't think it really works that way - it's more to do with the way the game handles optional quests. The ideal version of the timeline includes these events, but if you haven't done them, it won't claim that you did. But they still have a set place in the timeline, and a non-interactive version of the story (eg. the lorebook or side stories on the website) that referred to them would not allow for the possibility that they didn't happen.

If someone got to the end of the MSQ now, and then did the CT quests, they wouldn't be looking for the enigmatic man's beacon when the tower was opened up - because we've stepped back to a point in the story twenty levels before we were told to find it.



Another example of the game providing variable dialogue depending on progress, related to the CT quests and available in the cutscene viewer, is Nero's reappearance in post-Heavensward. Cid has a variable line depending on whether the quest has been completed or not (and probably at least one more if you got to that point with the quest in progress - I'd love to see his reaction if you left Lv50-Nero stranded in the void!), but that doesn't change the fact that the CT story is part of Nero's timeline and certainly comes prior to his (re)appearance here. And of course his Lv50 self would still be standing in Mor Dhona at this point if you never picked up the quest from him!



So ultimately, it isn't really a free choice whether the CT raids are part of the story or not. They happened in the grand scheme of the plot, but if you personally haven't made them happen for your character yet, then the story will have to contort itself a bit to maintain the same degree of coherency, and it's not what would be considered canon from an external view of the game timeline.

They said it wouldn't be part of the msq and they're not currently required by it, but I think the hint is that if you want to understand why or how the tower matters going into 5.0 or who the voice might be then one should go do them.