FFXIV 2nd expansion: Viera-like race still a possibility?

[Nestama]

That is problematic because of a Catch-22.

People want fierce races, but many will not play females unless they are cute.
A race with cute females is not a fierce race.

This is how we ended up with the Au'Ra fierce male/cute female sexual dimorphism.

Why do females have to be cute? If all females of all new races are exclusively cute, then... people are going to get very bored/annoyed with this VERY fast.

The problem with a robotic race, as interesting as it is, is that it won't make sense when you factor in the Echo. When someone dies with the Echo, they take over the closest living things body. For a robot to do this... they would either become {one of six races} OR go through the painful process of turning flesh and bone into what makes them robotic.

[Makeda]

Why do females have to be cute? If all females of all new races are exclusively cute, then... people are going to get very bored/annoyed with this VERY fast.

If designed well, it can still be popular.

There are plenty of WoW players playing female undead and female tauren. They're not "cute" but they are very well animated and have a lot of personality. But... the vast majority of players get hungup over this and only play 'cute' choices.

this is a japanese game ... it attracts a lot of people that want to play the cat girls and other cute females.

Also, the Elezen ... they're lanky, tall, muscular, and stoic looking. They still have the haughtiness and arrogance you'd expect but they are much more civilized, the elezen seem more European with their behavior and culture than a more "traditional" high elven sort of society.

In other words... they're like traditional fantasy elves. Since the fantasy elf is an invention of Tolkien after all.
...Before him, elves were mischievous workshop fairies (probably the pre-industrial gremlin - you blamed mishaps on elf spirits) and santa's unpaid forced labor pool...

And the catgirl thing... well, Catwoman has been around a LOT longer than anime, and she's based on a very old western 'fetish'...

And yeah I know I'm one of the 'people who plays a catgirl'. I'm not negative on the concept. I'm just noting that its such an overwhelming thing that it way overtakes the 'elf-fetish' that dominates so many other games.

[CosmicKirby]

The problem with a robotic race, as interesting as it is, is that it won't make sense when you factor in the Echo. When someone dies with the Echo, they take over the closest living things body. For a robot to do this... they would either become {one of six races} OR go through the painful process of turning flesh and bone into what makes them robotic.

You could easily make a robotic race that has a "soul", it's a pretty common trope in fantasy settings.
The Warforged in DnD, or the Androids in Pathfinder, or Reploids in Megaman X. You could have a soul that's bound to a robotic body. Sure, a person might have a hard time adjusting from a biotic body to an artificial one and vice versa, but that doesn't make it impossible or unlikely.

[Nestama]

You could easily make a robotic race that has a "soul", it's a pretty common trope in fantasy settings.
The Warforged in DnD, or the Androids in Pathfinder, or Reploids in Megaman X. You could have a soul that's bound to a robotic body. Sure, a person might have a hard time adjusting from a biotic body to an artificial one and vice versa, but that doesn't make it impossible or unlikely.

Take 2.2's use of Echo for example (kill Sahagin, is reborn using nearest Sahagin). Say your robot character dies and possesses the nearest living creature. Do you become a human thing again? or do you turn their entire body, consisting of flesh, bones and organs into your robotic body? OR, can you only possess what 'race' you are (this would break lore)? That's what I'm getting at.

[jomoru]

Take 2.2's use of Echo for example (kill Sahagin, is reborn using nearest Sahagin). Say your robot character dies and possesses the nearest living creature. Do you become a human thing again? or do you turn their entire body, consisting of flesh, bones and organs into your robotic body? OR, can you only possess what 'race' you are (this would break lore)? That's what I'm getting at.

I don't see what you are talking about at all. Robot body has soul that's not complicated its no more requiring someone to possess anything nearby than random miqote deaths.

[Nestama]

I don't see what you are talking about at all. Robot body has soul that's not complicated its no more requiring someone to possess anything nearby than random miqote deaths.

Do you remember the cutscene from 2.2 involving the Sahagin? Kill the one with the Echo and he took over the nearest Sahagin. For us, it would be similar. However, with a robot, that's when things get complicated. Imagine you are completely destroyed, beyond repair. Your soul possesses the nearest person so you can continue to exist. Now... do you take over the consciousness of that person (making you no longer a robot)? or do you replace everything that made them a human and make them a robot (flesh, bones and organs replaced)? or can you only possess what you are (if Allagan, then very limited supply, making them Padjal status)?

That's what I'm getting at and why I'm saying it can't work for lore reasons.

[CosmicKirby]

snip

You haven't seen the spirit possessing another race's body yet, but that certainly doesn't mean that it's not possible.

And what would happen in this instance? That's a good question, that would be answered when/if it happened. It could work in any multitude of ways, either altering the new host's body, or not altering it at all.
If I recall correctly, the last thing the Sahagin chief had was a bullet in his brain, by your logic the new Sahagin should've been the proud owner of one as soon as he was possessed. So clearly, the consciousness, or the soul, is the only thing that's transferred.

Lore functions to make the world consistent. If the changes made to it are also consistent, then it's functioning perfectly as intended.

[jomoru]

snip.

You do remember that fishback was using Ascian evil sorcery to do that? Its not a natural aspect of the Echo anymore than Primals naturally appear on theirown. As Ascians can possess various bodies I'll go with that as my answer to whatever question your trying to bring up.

[Nestama]

You do remember that fishback was using Ascian evil sorcery to do that? Its not a natural aspect of the Echo anymore than Primals naturally appear on theirown. As Ascians can possess various bodies I'll go with that as my answer to whatever question your trying to bring up.

Actually, that's a supposed 'advanced stage' of the Echo. Though the trade-off appears to leave them vulnerable to being absorbed by Primals (since you're pretty much Aether at that point, which is what Primals feast on).

The Ascian's themselves also (seem to) have the Echo... which now makes me think what our player characters really are.