Where do we go from here? (3.4+ Speculation)

[Alberel]

Also yeah, I doubt Ala Mhigo will be accessible anytime soon. I don't see much build up in the story for us to liberate it yet and the MSQs have been so short for it to even pull that off right now.

I'm not sure how you can say there's been no build up to Ala Mhigo. A whole segment of the 3.0 story was dedicated to Ilberd guilt tripping Raubahn over not liberating it sooner and Ida and Papalymo are both currently infiltrating the Ala Mhigan resistance. There's also the fact that Ishgard has rejoined the Eorzean alliance, which the GCs were waiting on in order to prepare a counter attack on Garlemald, and the only way to Garlemald is through Ala Mhigo.

Absolutely everything in the story thus far points to Ala Mhigo being the next arc of the story. All that has to happen is for the GCs to announce it in either 3.4 or 3.5. It's the only location of pressing concern right now. Anywhere else just wouldn't make sense unless we get some bizarre curve-ball to sidetrack us (in which case the expansion would just feel like filler).

[dinnertime]

I'm not sure how you can say there's been no build up to Ala Mhigo. A whole segment of the 3.0 story was dedicated to Ilberd guilt tripping Raubahn over not liberating it sooner and Ida and Papalymo are both currently infiltrating the Ala Mhigan resistance. There's also the fact that Ishgard has rejoined the Eorzean alliance, which the GCs were waiting on in order to prepare a counter attack on Garlemald, and the only way to Garlemald is through Ala Mhigo.

Absolutely everything in the story thus far points to Ala Mhigo being the next arc of the story. All that has to happen is for the GCs to announce it in either 3.4 or 3.5. It's the only location of pressing concern right now. Anywhere else just wouldn't make sense unless we get some bizarre curve-ball to sidetrack us (in which case the expansion would just feel like filler).

I am aware of that but it doesn't seem so impactful to me yet. Everything about Ilberd or Yda and Papalymo being in the resistance wasn't really a huge deal to me as much as Ishgard being part of the alliance again.

Before Heavensward, patch 2.4 and 2.5 were mainly about winning Ishgard into the alliance so it'll really depend on what 3.4 and 3.5's story is going to be. You forget that the Warriors of Darkness + Ascians is a possibility as the main story of it, but I know Ala Mhigo is something more likely right now. Assuming 4.0 is about Ala Mhigo then that impactful build up will happen during in 4.0's story, but that also doesn't mean Ala Mhigo would be accessible instantly (since it's not yet liberated, assuming it will be at the end of 4.0's story and will be the new Revenant's Toll/Idyllshire).