Fordola Lupis bastard child of...

[Cilia]

[I]t was still under [Gaius'] command that much of the original brutal treatment of the Ala Mhigans took place. I would be curious if this was part of a typical 'breaking in' of a conquered culture or if it was just side effect of Garlean views of Ala Mhigans as savages.

While the brutality the Domans and Ala Mhigans suffered under is often attributed to Zenos alone, I don't think that's entirely fair. For starters the Empire had 25 and 20 years, respectively, to improve the lives of the citizens of those territories; other than standard Imperial mandates (outlawing even the most basic religious practices, f'ex) and installing barriers on the Daiyu Moon Gates, absolutely nothing about life in the provinces we liberate during 4.0 seemed to have changed. It almost certainly got worse under Zenos, but... nothing suggests Gaius or the former viceroy of Doma did anything to help the citizens of their provinces. Their treatment was not "standard," such as it is (Baut notes that some provinces have things much better, others have it even worse), but... yeah.

Gaius, for his part, respected primarily strength. This is likely why things like leaving Ala Ghiri to fend for itself happened; if they weren't strong enough to survive on their own, they didn't deserve to live in his eyes.

[Anonymoose]

That said, it was still under his command that much of the original brutal treatment of the Ala Mhigans took place. I would be curious if this was part of a typical 'breaking in' of a conquered culture or if it was just side effect of Garlean views of Ala Mhigans as savages.

Imho, a little of Column A and a little of Column B.

Ala Mhigo was on the marches of the Empire, the last bastion before a corrupted land infested with primals, and its people never fully embraced the Empire or ceased resistance. Baelsar saw a polarized simplification of reality. It's as easy as black and white: the world is at stake; you are either supporting the righteous order of Garlemald or you're as good as actively warring against it. The enemies of order are fit for naught but slaughter.

That explains how he treated the Resistance and beast tribes, and I expect he would probably have spent another 5 years punching the city-states and yelling, "STOP RESISTING. EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE IF YOU STOP RESISTING." The Mission is all that matters, there's no room for people not doing their part, or worse, acting against it. You can lead a chocobo to water, but you can't make him drink. (And if he doesn't drink it's off to the rotisserie.)

I imagine that the best people could hope for if they didn't embrace imperial order was that somehow their settlement was seen as insignificant and somehow had the means to get by despite everything around them being under Garlean control (like, for example, the Qalyana clan of Ananta). If you wanted to be left alone, you had to be unworthy of attention. Most who try will live with very little to show for it.

Therefore, if people under his dominion were suffering, it was likely (in his mind) their own fault. I think, from his point of view, many Ala Mhigans would be clinging to the trappings of a civilization that had been too weak to stand - that had turned on and devoured itself at his whim. They held tight to worthless traditions, false gods, and unearned pride. If you're not willing to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps, glorify the ivory standard, earn your citizenship, and do your part to bring honor and glory to your homeland and salvation to the world, what good were you for except keeping the Imperial machine running?

It's like Lieutenant Rasczak's on the authoritarian side of history, lol.

For starters the Empire had 25 and 20 years, respectively, to improve the lives of the citizens of those territories; other than standard Imperial mandates (outlawing even the most basic religious practices, f'ex) and installing barriers on the Daiyu Moon Gates, absolutely nothing about life in the provinces we liberate during 4.0 seemed to have changed. It almost certainly got worse under Zenos, but... nothing suggests Gaius or the former viceroy of Doma did anything to help the citizens of their provinces.

If I read it right, Garlemald just didn't think Doma was worth much. It was on the fringes of the Empire; there are cities that they didn't even bother to conquer juuust beyond Doma, so Doma itself wasn't exactly a march or a fort or a prize. Judging by the scenes we saw, they took over the top tiers of government, instituted the basic civil order they expected, and then stuck Kaien back on top as a paper tiger for 25 years and left them to their fate. Looks like imperial academy students and cannon fodder conscripts were all they bothered with once they the territory under control. Until the rebellion, it wasn't a threat nor was it under threat. It just ... was.

[TogekissBough]

Thank you for your input everyone.
Just to clarify though a resource/ or thread for changes of dialogue based on (points in time, race, class, quests completed) (Like I've seen some of estinien and alisae ones but nothing really else aside from the crafter ones having completed other crafter lines mentioning they exist) specifically doesn't exist and I just need to review dialogue in Garland tools? Or is there a dedicated resource to these changes of dialogue?

[Cilia]

If I read it right, Garlemald just didn't think Doma was worth much. It was on the fringes of the Empire; there are cities that they didn't even bother to conquer juuust beyond Doma, so Doma itself wasn't exactly a march or a fort or a prize. Judging by the scenes we saw, they took over the top tiers of government, instituted the basic civil order they expected, and then stuck Kaien back on top as a paper tiger for 25 years and left them to their fate. Looks like imperial academy students and cannon fodder conscripts were all they bothered with once they the territory under control. Until the rebellion, it wasn't a threat nor was it under threat. It just ... was.

If Doma wasn't worth much, why was it conquered at all? I mean, the Xaela tribes of the Azim Steppe are, for want of a better term, less civilized; yet they are left alone, while Doma was crushed and put under the Imperial yoke. A less advanced civilization would probably be more likely to summon - this is, after all, why the Empire has a genocidal policy toward beast tribes. As noted when you get there, the exact reason the Empire hasn't conquered the Steppe is unknown - however there is clearly reason beyond stopping primals that goes into the decision to conquer.

Going by the Roman influence, it's probably just because whatever legatus conquered Doma thought it would heighten his or her political power. Either way, the point I'm getting at is that the treatment the Domans and Ala Mhigans got was not just to break them into Imperial service; it had been going on for 25 / 20 years. Got worse under Zenos, but we have nothing proving it was much (if any) better before him.

Thank you for your input everyone.
Just to clarify though a resource/ or thread for changes of dialogue based on (points in time, race, class, quests completed) (Like I've seen some of estinien and alisae ones but nothing really else aside from the crafter ones having completed other crafter lines mentioning they exist) specifically doesn't exist and I just need to review dialogue in Garland tools? Or is there a dedicated resource to these changes of dialogue?

You do have to comb through the dialogue for specific changes; fortunately, they are few and far between, and none really impact much (Yugiri mentioning your mad ninja skills by not wearing ninja garb when gathering information in Namai, f'ex. Yes, a ninja compliments you for not wearing an outfit that screams "I'm a ninja!").

... but no, there is no repository dedicated specifically to the differences in dialogue depending on various factors (job, race, Legacy player, etc).

[Anonymoose]

If Doma wasn't worth much, why was it conquered at all?

I suspect there's a lot we don't know about the war for the eastern theatre, and that the Empire just kept going until all known primal threats collapsed. Recall, for example, that Yugiri had heard tale of such beings but hadn't personally seen one; she was a one-year-old during the war and didn't leave her bubble (literally) until she saw the horrors wrought by the Empire. One potential indication: something made Susano a reality, and there are no indications that it was recent given that the Kojin believed he was already in the relics and seemed to have no idea what in the seventh hell was even happening. (I mean, all indications are that Kami are as unconfirmed as the Twelve and Susano is just a primal. I suspect it's the magatama's work at present.)

Doma's worth was from its location.

This is also a gppd point; control of Doma closes a few defensive vulnerabilities.

[VargasVermillion]

Therefore, if people under his dominion were suffering, it was likely (in his mind) their own fault. I think, from his point of view, many Ala Mhigans would be clinging to the trappings of a civilization that had been too weak to stand - that had turned on and devoured itself at his whim. They held tight to worthless traditions, false gods, and unearned pride. If you're not willing to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps, glorify the ivory standard, earn your citizenship, and do your part to bring honor and glory to your homeland and salvation to the world, what good were you for except keeping the Imperial machine running?

What I would like to note here is that it kinda made sense with ala ghanna since there only industry was stone, which as stated garleans had no interest in, from gaius's perspective it makes sense that he would believe they should find a new way to survive, adapt to the changes and prove their worth.

[Theodric]

It mirrors a situation seen within the real world, particularly here in the United Kingdom. Mining served as a very profitable - if dangerous - route for common folk to earn coin and stability. Over time, though, it became less profitable and many mines ended up being shut down all over the country. A controversial decision but one that happened quite a few years ago as of the present day. Despite the time that has passed, though, there's still people who are very sour about being unable to mine to earn a living. In certain areas which are fairly out of the way to begin with it served as the only real stable job around.