If you could kill off one of the scions...

[Delily]

It's worth pointing out our character has been taken prisoner at least twice too...

First time we face Ifrit and at the end of 2.55. While the first time we actually free ourselves it was more due to our enemies not knowing we had the echo and the second time we did get rescued.

While that's true, between the times we get kidnapped by the Amal'jaa and then Teledji Adeledji's forces, we've stopped a Garlean invasion and defeated several primals. Minifilia, on the other hand, has done nothing that no one else did.

[Delily]

I'm not saying that reasons Minfilia is unpopular are invalid. I'm merely pointing out that a lot of the justifications are rather inaccurate or unfair. She isn't useless. She is boring. Its like Dave in accounting. You don't see what he is doing and when you do see obvious results of his work it's when things go wrong and the rest of the time he never really seems to do much that you can see.

I have no issue with people not liking Minfilia. I think there are many valid reasons why she is unpopular. I'm just neurotically inclined to argue if I think their justication for it is inaccurate. :P

Minfilia isn't a favourite character of mine. I just think her background gives her really exciting potential to shine as something that isn't a scholar or a soldier. We have heaps of scholars and soldiers. A character who's strengths lie in resourcefulness and misdirection combined with excellent planning skills has some really interesting possibility for story development. The other Scions generally don't fall into that category.

Heres the problem with Minifilia, I honestly can not think of one significant thing she has done that effects the plot. She's provided a very basic level of leadership and management to the Scions, but as our stand in, Alpinaud has had a greater impact on the plot then she has had. As the leader of a paramilitary organization, she needs to have some level of combat skills and some level of strategy. Sure, she provides a focal point for getting people together and getting them to talk, but honestly, the WoL would be able to do that if we weren't the silent hero.

[Kimbot]

I would kill off all Scions, I think Honda is best bro. 2016 Honda Accord best safety crash ratings around bro! Touring bro, diamond white pearl bro!

[Kaiser-Ace]

I would kill off all Scions, I think Honda is best bro. 2016 Honda Accord best safety crash ratings around bro! Touring bro, diamond white pearl bro!

And the thread winner is, Kimbot!

That's the best comment I've seen on this thread yet.

[dinnertime]

I don't know why you would think to kill any of the scions, especially when they're your good companions.
Also, I can understand why most people hate Minfilia so much, but I see these reasons (like her "uselessness" for example) as rather shallow, honestly.
There has been previous points as to why she's really not that useless, but I agree that she shone the weakest out of most characters even though she had so much potential (with her backstory and all), or that what she has done for us is overlooked.
Honestly, the scions that don't have much going for is Yda and Papalymo, they're like the comedy relief duo and fight side-by-side, but that's it as far as I know.

[Fenral]

If it actually came down to a BioWare-style choice that forced me to choose to save either Yda or Papalymo, I would choose Yda. I was pretty let down by 2.0's MSQ, when it looked like she would finally have to deal with being separated from Papalymo. It's a fairly common trope for "paired" characters for the simple reason that it works, and it can be really good for character development, but aside from one business-as-usual fight scene she didn't actually get much screen-time then.

On the one hand, being separated now means she has another chance to grow on her own, on the other, I don't want 2.5's BS to turn out to be just a means to redo earlier squandered character moments.

[Kallera]

I would kill off all Scions, I think Honda is best bro. 2016 Honda Accord best safety crash ratings around bro! Touring bro, diamond white pearl bro!

Killing summons with the Honda Accord? Just use the navigation system, now with only a quarter of the backtracking.

[Balipu]

Lots of people here compare Minfilia to an accountant.

Except that's Tataru's role. And she's pretty good at it. And while she wouldn't be able to defeat a ladybug in combat, she gets plenty of points for trying.

Sure I wouldn't outright kill Minfilia as she isn't a mass murdering psychopath, but I wouldn't go out of my way to bring her back now that she is gone.
I don't like that we lost Ysayle and Estinien but with Alphinaud, Tataru, Urianger, Y'shtola, Matoya, Cid, Alisae, Yugiri. and soon Krile we have more than enough genuinely useful Scions. The rest cant stay where they are.

[Belhi]

Lots of people here compare Minfilia to an accountant.

Except that's Tataru's role. And she's pretty good at it. And while she wouldn't be able to defeat a ladybug in combat, she gets plenty of points for trying.

Sure I wouldn't outright kill Minfilia as she isn't a mass murdering psychopath, but I wouldn't go out of my way to bring her back now that she is gone.
I don't like that we lost Ysayle and Estinien but with Alphinaud, Tataru, Urianger, Y'shtola, Matoya, Cid, Alisae, Yugiri. and soon Krile we have more than enough genuinely useful Scions. The rest cant stay where they are.

Not an accountant. A manager. They are very different roles. Tataru does all the administrative paperwork and bookkeeping. Minfilia organises and co ordinates the Scion's resources and personel as well as maintaining communication and co ordination with various related groups.

For example, Tataru will be calculating our bottom line and assessing our income streams. Minfilia on the other hand will be making choices on how that income is invested to best meet the Scion's goals and monitoring those projects. An example of that is the scholar we bodyguard in 2.5. That's one of a number of independent scholars hired by the Scions to measure Aetheric levels in various places around Eorzea. Minfilia would be organising the hiring of the scholars, providing the details on the areas they need to measure Aether and organising the bodyguard detail to insure the scholar's safety. That information then provides the Scions with statistics which allows the more specialist members to assess trends and identify unusual changes in Aetheric levels, which is particularly useful in finding Primals early.

That's why I say Minfilia's job isn't useless, just unglamorous. Without someone doing that work we wouldn't have had the data we had available and such things free up the more specialised personnel like the Archons to focus on more complicated and specialised work.

[Cilia]

Minfilia [makes the] choices on how... income is invested to best meet the Scion's goals and monitoring those projects. An example of that is the scholar we bodyguard in 2.5. That's one of a number of independent scholars hired by the Scions to measure Aetheric levels in various places around Eorzea. Minfilia would be organising the hiring of the scholars, providing the details on the areas they need to measure Aether and organising the bodyguard detail to insure the scholar's safety. That information then provides the Scions with statistics which allows the more specialist members to assess trends and identify unusual changes in Aetheric levels, which is particularly useful in finding Primals early.

OK, you've got a point.

Well, 12% of a point.

In this particular instance, the scholar isn't strictly necessary. Give us an "aetherometer," show us how it works, and show us where to take readings and the scholar becomes unnecessary. The scholar is more a convenience of storytelling and programming, since we can just take his word for the aether readings instead of designing an interface we can view and we can't verbally react to Wilred's body. We obviously had nothing else to do as we were tasked with the bodyguard detail, so "we were too busy" is no excuse. She makes us do literally everything else of importance outside R&D; I see no reason why we could not do this task on our own.

... unless the Warrior of Light is just too dumb to use an aetherometer. But I doubt that, considering ACN and its Jobs, as well as MCH, require no small amount of intellect, and even if you never touch them the trainers won't turn you away for being stupid.

Other scholars on similar missions, OK.

Minfilia is really just there for exposition and to ostensibly maintain relations with the city-states and other diplomatic matters thanks to her charisma. I understand that, but keep the camera off her instead of constantly making us go talk to her in the Solar while she stares at Tupsimati. This is why Tataru is bearable, likeable even, in 3.0 - we don't see her often, but she contributes whenever the camera is on her (cf. Minfilia, who as always, appears to do nothing but deliver exposition and be physically attractive). Show Minfilia contributing, making a real difference, and her hate will go away. Like, a dynamic fight where she has to maintain a comm link with you to provide intel and assistance. That way you actually have to pay attention to her cues and not just muscle memory it, and it shows her contributing to the cause rather than doing so ostensibly. If Minfilia is so instrumental to our successes, show us instead of telling us.

She has a lot of potential as a character, I acknowledge that. Still, Minfilia has not exactly endeared herself to me by giving us often self-evident marching orders and loitering in the Solar to stare at Tupsimati, and unlike some people I won't give her a free pass because she's physically attractive.