A bunch of wealthy merchants from Ul'dah are footing the labor organizations to get the aetherytes rebuilt. The money goes to said merchants. It's explained in game somewhere, don't know offhand who says it.


I keep seeing this talk about "immersion" and "open world engagement", but forcing people to walk everywhere is not engaging, but just another walking simulator with random battles thrown in. You can't just make a huge world, make it a slog to travel through, making annoying monsters that force you to fight if you want to get anywhere, and call it a day. You have to give people a reason to WANT to engage off the beaten path. Give people a reason that makes them want to keep exploring or engage in activities that makes them forget about the daily grind.