Revelations from Patch 3.56

[Fenral]

I have my audio in japanese and I swear I heard Nero call omega Kawaii omega-chan.... please tell me this is a thing XD

"Kawaii-ko-chan" meaning roughly "little cutie." Usually reserved for young females, but there's no accounting for taste.

...

And... well... there it is. The end of (another) era. One of my favorite surviving Scions is now dead, and the other was a body double the entire time. At least she's getting an expansion.

Not much else I can say that hasn't been said, though I do wish we could have been given something to tie the Triad back in. We've at least gotten a couple confirmations that not every side-raid NPC must needs go the way of G'raha Tia, but leaving the newest Scion (and Thancred!?) out of the loop is a meh way to end the cycle. On that note...

Still really disappointed that the Crystal Tower amounted to a "that one time when you betrayed us" and that's about it. Not every raid can be the Binding Coil, I guess. Nero didn't have to get the key to Omega from Unei, but it would've been a nice way to remember people we're supposed to not forget. Also kinda dumb that the first time Cid has ever mentioned it outside of the questline itself comes at the end of the following expansion. /shrug

Now back to not finishing my Anima and internally debating whether or not I want to shell out for the Collector's Edition again. I am a sucker for artbooks and cloth maps...

[Naria]

The cliffhanger at the end of 2.55 was great for hype but was admittedly problematic at the time since we ran around Eorzea for three months despite our "fugitive" status. All and all I think this end has less glaring plot holes than 2.55 (although Thancred did apparently fall down one), but being less suspenseful it does not build hype like the banquet did. To be fair I think that 3.5 and 3.56 would be more exciting if played through in sequence without the two month pause. We have a fair amount of characters built up for the Ala Mhigo portion (Lyse, Raubahn, Pippin etc) but for Doma even Yugiri is still largely a blank and undeveloped character which I think cuts down on anticipation since we know half of the story is in the far east but not much else.

In contrast 2.x set up several story arcs for Heavensward: Iceheart and Shiva, Estenien's return, what were the Ascians up too in Ishgard, the mysterious city itself, the introduction of Aymeric, Haurchefant's friendship with the WoL, the banquet and the missing Scions, the Dragonsong War, the loss of the Blessing and Midgardsomr as well as depositing us on Ishgard's doorstep with the promise that we would walk in as soon as the expansion started. It isn't surprising that people are more neutral on Stormblood, but Heavensward's story was largely well done so I'm willing to wait. Not everything has to be a cliff hanger (although I was admittedly waiting for the other shoe to drop right up though the post credit scene).

[ZachrielCL]

Did I understand it wrong, or did Yda and Lyse arrive together at Sharlayan? Cuz if so, I find it hard to believe that no one there said anything about Lyse dissapearing once she became Yda, or that Papalymo would tell everyone in town to let little Lyse pretend to be her dead sister O_o Wich he kinda did for everyone at the Circle of Knowing... I dunno, the whole idea seems so morbid to me...

[Theodric]

All of this is completely irrelevant right now. None of us know any of these things about their lands or their past, in-game; we just know that war with Garlemald is looming, and they haven't been especially open to bilateral negotiation in the past. Does the Eorzean Alliance even have communication channels with Ala Mhigo?

Is it really irrelevant, though? You don't go to war lightly - you research and pursue every available option at one's disposal before doing so. The Scions also have access to vast swathes of historical knowledge and are well aware of Eorzea's own history being rather unclean in both the past and the present. We've also had Cid, Lucia and Nero given a fair bit of screen-time yet none of them have really spoken of what drives them. They're just there, opposing Garlemald and ignoring the moral complexities of their aid resulting in their former people being killed or put at risk. Even if they've completely turned their backs upon their former homeland you'd think their eagerness to aid Eorzea would be reflected in acknowledging that not everybody in Garlemald is rotten.

Now, I don't want to spoil anything for other games but I recently played Tales of Berseria and Nier: Automata. Both solid RPG's in their own right and very enjoyable. They did an excellent job at making the antagonists very fleshed out and nuanced, driven by their own reasons and motives that weren't entirely difficult to sympathise or understand even if one does not agree with the methods used. FFXIV seems to be doing the same thing to Garlemald in the lore book yet that hasn't really been the case in the actual game yet...other than with Regula who has now been swept under the rug as if he didn't exist.

I just want some consistency. A lot of plot points were dropped abruptly or never referenced again after they were resolved. You're right in that we don't know what is in store for us in Stormblood but it's hard not to be wary given how things have been handled thus far.

[Chewy2nd]

From Garlemald's side, they already think Eorzea has attacked them (even if it was the Griffin's men), I doubt they're in the mood to listen to any diplomacy after such a strike against them, Eorzea has no option but to go to war, if they don't, Garlemald will rain hellfire upon the shroud. Yes, there are some decent Garlean people, but as a whole, the Empire is quite aggressive, year after year they've launched attacks in Eorzean territory, built fortifications on Eorzean soil, even tried to force the Alliance to surrender.

For a long time the Empire has been bearing down on Eorzea, yes, Regula might have been a decent person, but that doesn't change the reality of the situation. There is still thousands of Ala Mhigans trapped under Garlean rule, they destroyed Doma, they tried to drop a lesser moon on Eorzea. Is the Alliance supposed to just keep turning the other cheek, every time the Garleans slap them? Just because Regula and Gaius had a good side to them? I have no doubt we will meet more good Garleans in 4.0 and 5.0, but the Garlean Empire as it is, is a huge threat to the whole of Hydaelyn.

The war began when Ilberd launched his attack, this is just the formal declaration.

[DamianFatale]

For a long time the Empire has been bearing down on Eorzea, yes, Regula might have been a decent person, but that doesn't change the reality of the situation. There is still thousands of Ala Mhigans trapped under Garlean rule, they destroyed Doma, they tried to drop a lesser moon on Eorzea. Is the Alliance supposed to just keep turning the other cheek, every time the Garleans slap them? Just because Regula and Gaius had a good side to them? I have no doubt we will meet more good Garleans in 4.0 and 5.0, but the Garlean Empire as it is, is a huge threat to the whole of Hydaelyn.

The war began when Ilberd launched his attack, this is just the formal declaration.

Your explanation made the whole thing much more desirable.

[Theodric]

To be fair, Ala Mhigo brought Garlemald's wrath upon itself and Eorzea's own history is not without some very questionable acts in both the past and present. Again, I'm not saying that Garlemald shouldn't endure reform - I'm saying it feels contrived for Eorzea to be the aggressor now and striking back when in reality they shouldn't stand a chance given all we know about Garlemald as a whole. A story where the Warrior of Light defeats every single threat put before him isn't a compelling one. A story where the Warrior of Light's hand is stayed by complicated politics, nuanced characters and moral greyness on all sides is much more satisfying overall.

It's about the whole picture. Final Fantasy games have always attracted a considerable number of people who prefer the antagonists to the protagonists. FFXIV is no different in that regard - so it makes sense to ensure that the storytelling isn't one-sided. For everybody who likes Dante in Devil May Cry there's someone who prefers Vergil. For every Sephiroth fan there's that guy who fawns over Cloud Strife instead. In short, we need more than just throwaway lines of text and sacrifices if the antagonists are going to be nuanced. Even if they die, their demise needs to mean something - otherwise it's a kick in the teeth for the character in question. I'm sure a lot of people around these parts will agree that it's frustrating to see a character introduced, abruptly killed off and then never mentioned again.

...and, if nothing else, consider the simple point that the Scions, City State Leaders and Warrior of Light aren't everybody's cup of tea. Thus, having characters given focus and development who aren't the Warrior of Light and Scions and City State Leaders makes sense for a game that strives to reach out to as many Final Fantasy fans as possible. We knew a conflict with Garlemald was coming at some point, it was inevitable, yes. That doesn't mean the build up couldn't have been smoother and with more impact, though.

[thegreatonemal]

Actually no, the whole of the game thus far from when 2.0 launched has existed in a sort of time bubble - everything we've done so far, including the events of this patch, took place 5 years after 1.0.

Yda died a year before 1.0 players entered the scene, and the only interaction players have with her is via the Echo.

As for the overall thing - I quite liked it, and taken with the rest of the story beats, it does feel like it's the proper pacing for this part of the story, at least to me.

That time bubble is more for people who are starting the game now times been moving forward as far as anyone currently on this patch is concerned.

[Kallera]

Your explanation made the whole thing much more desirable.

The fact that SE doesn't have the capacity to render Eorzea under the hardships of a war gone wrong kinda blunts the trepidation of waging war, doesn't it? How convienient we don't have to worry about the prospect of failure, and are instead handed toy soldiers and fights we cannot lose by SE.

Not exactly the effort worthy of a continent spanning empire, but it seems war, a winnable war with utter confidence while the enemy quakes in their boots, is the goal here.

At any rate, i can see why people are feeling underwhelmed by this part of the story. Its basically a poor man's rehash of bahamut's awakening, sans the surprise and the mystery.

And in the end, Ilberd, though dead, comes out the winner. And Laurentius gets play of the game! What wonderful people to start our glorious march to the hell of war, By all means, provide more people to keep our hands clean along the way. /eyeroll

Even if Ilberd is dead, even if shinryu is silenced, he has his war; a war the alliance will assuredly win, and result in us casually walking through the gates of a Garlemeld conviniently ripe for chaos leading into democracy, huzzah.

One more thing I do not get.

Nidhogg is dead, and his soul gone
The soldiers were praying for Rhalgr.
The eyes do not have nidhoggs soul, and are just reserves of aether.
Why did Ilberd get shinryu?

How is this Shinryu any resemblance of Rhalgr?

[Hinoto-no-Ryuji]

To be fair, Ala Mhigo brought Garlemald's wrath upon itself

Wait, what? How? All that happened was collapse due to internal politics totally unrelated to Garlemald, who then took advantage of the chaos to conquer the city and establish a foothold. It was a shrewd move on Garlemald's part, to be sure, but it's not like Ala Mhigo did anything to antagonize the Empire, other than physically exist between it and Eorzea.

I'm saying it feels contrived for Eorzea to be the aggressor now and striking back when in reality they shouldn't stand a chance given all we know about Garlemald as a whole.

We haven't struck yet, and I thought the game made it pretty clear that we were playing right into Zenos' hand. Give it time. I know 2.55 set the expectation that we'd end Heavensward in open war with Garlemald, but that's clearly not the case, and I think judging the portrayal of war with a massive empire (a difficult thing to navigate as it is in a game like this) before that war has begun is premature.

One more thing I do not get.

Nidhogg is dead, and his soul gone
The soldiers were praying for Rhalgr.
The eyes do not have nidhoggs soul, and are just reserves of aether.
Why did Ilberd get shinryu?

How is this Shinryu any resemblance of Rhalgr?

It's called Shinryu by the Domans - that doesn't mean anything other than that's what those witnesses immediately associated it with.

But to answer the question: Draconic aether, and a direct invocation of a draconic primal by the summoner when dictating form. I thought the game was pretty clear on the matter. Honestly, I thought it was a neat new angle of Primal summoning lore, a look at what happens when desperate, erratic dying prayers are harnessed, rather than specific focused ones. I guess it's something you either buy or you don't.