[SPOILERS] Revelations from Patch 4.01

[Alberel]

So setting aside the debate on whether or not Omega is the very same one from FFV or simply a fan-service re-imagining, I've been trying to think on how Midgardsormr fits into all of this.

• He seems to be intimately familiar with Omega, knowing where he comes from and the nature of his abilities.
• He also comes from another world, and came to Hydaelyn bearing the eggs of his brood, wherein he made a pact with the Mothercrystal. This always seemed like the desperate act of a refugee...
• Omega was found having been buried for an unknown amount of time, covered in damage that he was repairing through the use of aether.
• Omega's traditional rival, Shinryu, was summoned as a primal by Ilberd but the name was not bestowed by Ilberd himself. The primal was named Shinryu by the Domans who recognized it from folk lore. This implies the possibility of a true Shinryu existing somewhere in Hydaelyn's history given the game's habit of tying mythology to real events.

To be blunt, I'm becoming convinced that Midgardsormr may actually be the real Shinryu. His familiarity with Omega is enough to argue the case that they came from the same world. Omega was clearly fighting something when he crashed on Hydaelyn and I would suggest that Midgardsormr was either fleeing the destruction of his world at Omega's hands OR has remained on Hydaelyn to stand vigil should Omega wake. The Doman tales of Shinryu were likely inspired by some actual interaction with Midgardsormr in the distant past.

With all this in mind as a huge 'maybe', I wouldn't be surprised if we get to have a rematch with Midgardsormr as part of Omega's little experiment.

[Akonyl]

I think a lot of people get too hung up on Exdeath looking the same, when FF at its core is a series that lives a great deal by its nostalgia (second only to DQ probably). This is kind of like some people claiming Spiderman: Homecoming takes place in the same universe as Star Trek because there was an actor cameo based on a role he played in Star Trek IV, it's just there as a bit of fanservice to people who liked the older thing. The new Magitek armor from Ala Mhigo is a carbon copy of the FF6 in-game magitek sprite (where the level 50 mount was just concept art that never got into the game), does that mean FF6 and FF14 are connected, or just that the devs wanted to include something from an older game as nostalgia fanservice?

Is it possible Omega knows Exdeath from the FF5 universe and FF5's canon in the FF14 multiverse? Maybe. Is there any reason to believe that's actually the case, over the current explanation of Omega reading a few too many fantasy books? I don't think so yet.

[Cilia]

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My current hypothesis is quite similar - Midgardsormr is a refugee, who came to Hydaelyn fleeing from Omega. Midgardsormr made a pact with Hydaelyn for sanctuary, while Omega crash landed and had to shut down for repairs until the Allagans found it. I figured Middy was on the run from something when Tiamat first mentioned how he came to Hydaelyn from another world... just needed a culprit as to who or what he was fleeing from.

As for Shinryu being based on Midgardsormr? Ehh... plausible. He is much more serpentine than other dragons, and Midgardsormr does call Shinryu a "vile simulacrum" (simulacrum of what?). It should be noted that people do call Shinryu by name in the JP version without mention of the name coming from the Domans, though given Shinryu just translates to "New Dragon" or "Spirit Dragon," how much that matters is open to interpretation.

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I want that mount so bad... and not because it's VI fanservice, just because I like mechas... but I haven't even seen it drop, and DPS queues suck...

There was a Star Trek cameo in Spider-man: Homecoming?

[Okamimaru]

About the multiverse....
The multiverse is every possible outcome for every event in every possible existence... which is why it's infinite...every ff exists in this way... hence why chocobos and moogles are in each but not the same... the representation of various entities from other ff games in 14 doesn't mean they came from another ff world... in 14 Cloud could be a simple farmer and sephiroth could have never existed ( hojo is in yanxia as a quest giver npc)... omega is simply using the database of villains it's aquired from reality and legend and recreating them to test heros. This is said outright. The rift exists between the multiverse. the other hero's he's testing may be the real deal but all the villains are created to test them.

[Eloah]

I dont think there is another Shinryu, as basing it on past FF would be incorrect. In the story Omega was going to be activated to subdue a new primal. Since Omega's classic enemy is Shinryu, and all future FF games pay homage to the past ones, naming the new primal Shinryu was expected. Though Midgardsormr's relationship to Omega is suspect

[Alberel]

I dont think there is another Shinryu, as basing it on past FF would be incorrect. In the story Omega was going to be activated to subdue a new primal. Since Omega's classic enemy is Shinryu, and all future FF games pay homage to the past ones, naming the new primal Shinryu was expected. Though Midgardsormr's relationship to Omega is suspect

My main reasoning on this point is that the FFXIV writers like to tie myths and legends to real characters and events in Hydaelyn's history. For every primal based on a character myth we have eventually received an origin for the myth itself or evidence that such an origin does indeed exist. We know the Domans have a myth of Shinryu, even if the primal summoned wasn't (as far we know) actually based on this myth, so it stands to reason that the writing team likely have an origin for that myth planned.

If Midgardsormr were to turn out to be the 'real' Shinryu and is helping us fight Omega then is it not still in keeping with the tradition of the pair as rivals?