Revelations from Patch 4.56

[ShadowMeowth]

MSQ, regarding Solus and Enigma.

In regards to Enigma and Solus, both characters who flank Minfilia in the Shadowbringers artwork, rewatching some cutscenes I realized something that could be interesting.




Look at their gear. They share the same color scheme. Not just that, but also the white gems in their attires, mainly Enigma's staff and chest and Solus' coat ornaments.

I know enough to realize outfit choices are rarely random. This similarity probably means something. We do know Solus is an Ascian, so what could exactly relate him to Enigma?

I am convinced that Enigma has some connection to Zodiark. His call was tinged with Darkness and he is probably who will make us Warriors of Darkness. He might be even Zodiark himself, or his chosen vessel like Minfilia is Hydaelyn's.

Now, it has been pondered if Emet-Selch, the Ascian that most likely is Solus, might be actually two related entities, since Emet-Selch is the counterpart of Zalera, the esper associated with the Zodiac sign of Gemini. Could Enigma be an opposed part of Emet-Selch's being, trapped within the Crystal Tower? Or this similarity might underline something different? What are your thoughts?

[KarstenS]

We do know Solus is an Ascian

Maybe its a little bit to separated, but

Solus is a garlean body with an Ascian Soul.

I still see there a difference.

[Lauront]

MSQ, regarding Solus and Enigma.

In regards to Enigma and Solus, both characters who flank Minfilia in the Shadowbringers artwork, rewatching some cutscenes I realized something that could be interesting.



Look at their gear. They share the same color scheme. Not just that, but also the white gems in their attires, mainly Enigma's staff and chest and Solus' coat ornaments.

I know enough to realize outfit choices are rarely random. This similarity probably means something. We do know Solus is an Ascian, so what could exactly relate him to Enigma?

I am convinced that Enigma has some connection to Zodiark. His call was tinged with Darkness and he is probably who will make us Warriors of Darkness. He might be even Zodiark himself, or his chosen vessel like Minfilia is Hydaelyn's.

Now, it has been pondered if Emet-Selch, the Ascian that most likely is Solus, might be actually two related entities, since Emet-Selch is the counterpart of Zalera, the esper associated with the Zodiac sign of Gemini. Could Enigma be an opposed part of Emet-Selch's being, trapped within the Crystal Tower? Or this similarity might underline something different? What are your thoughts?

On the above...

The thing about "Enigma's" outfit is that it looks much closer to outfits associated with the Garlean Republic (e.g. the Signifier or Medicus set) than anything we've seen out of the Allagan Empire, but it could just be a similarity in design. There are elements in the design, such as the hood and the rod, which do appear to be Allagan, and given how long the Allagan Empire lasted, it could have been characteristic of what was worn in earlier time periods. Could even be civilian apparel that we simply haven't seen yet. If so, then maybe Solus's outfit's design draws on Allagan designs, given his own fascination for the Allagan Empire.

Given all that we know about the Allagan Empire, with the Ascians teaching them how to bind Primals, and the fact that the Heart of Sabik, powering Ultima Weapon, contained a sliver of Zodiark's essence, their ties to it are strong. We don't really know which Ascian(s) oversaw it, but there is every possibility it was Emet-Selch, especially as one of the Overlords tied to the Source. Although the Allagans were an ingenuous bunch, whenever they ran dry with ideas, the Ascians very helpfully stepped in, and I wonder if this also applied to the Voidgate itself, since they are intimately familiar with travelling shards and the Void itself, electing to then impart their secrets to the Allagan magi. Funnily enough, like Xande, he too was cloned, but by Varis, probably concerned about what would happen with the war of succession in Solus's absence, which makes the reasons a bit similar to Amon's for bringing back Xande to deal with the empire's stagnation.

This isn't necessarily G'raha we're dealing with, but a time traveler version of him does seem plausible - could also be something else, like a clone. Either way, a connection to Zodiark remains a possibility. A vessel of Zodiark would be an interesting prospect - also not impossible, since Elidibus plays a different role to Minfilia in his capacity as Emissary, and isn't her Ascian equivalent, leaving the role open to someone else, but I was expecting that to be Unukalhai, if anyone, which also acts as a reference to him being kept child-like in the Ivalice universe. The way he throws the question at you, as to how might you accomplish your goal on the First, when you're a Champion of Light, almost seems like an open taunt. It just seems like a fitting destiny for him. A link between this Enigma and Solus would certainly possible, given Ascian involvement in the Allagan Empire, however I'm reluctant to draw too much from a similarity in the outfits, since it could just be the usual Garlean love of all things Allagan - and Solus is no exception there, Ascian though he may be.

On another note, the Tower presumably has to be powered by something to allow it to function as a sustained portal to other worlds - if that's what it will be - and I'm guessing that will be whatever power source Nero had hoped to find beneath the Tower, which his discarded device picked up on. Probably won't require as much power as sustaining the Voidgate took, but still a considerable amount.

Emet-Selch's star sign being linked to Gemini is something I hope that they will embellish and draw on a bit more, since they do appear to inspire the Ascian Overlords' personalities a bit from their associated FFXII espers, but on a selective basis and only in certain regards. I've no doubt they'll make use of the Death Seraph aspect.

All that said, the destination of the expansion has me pretty psyched... the cutscene toward the end of 4.56, rising up with the Tower, evoked some old FF nostalgia, especially for IX. I'm hoping that the actual method of travel won't require the Echo and will allow travel between the worlds, assuming the end-game isn't them merging with the Source (rejoining them but without the destruction the commonly understood method results in), in some capacity. The interesting thing is that this time, the Tower will actually serve as a beacon of hope on the First, and fulfill that purpose.

I've always found him kind of terrifying in a more metatextual sense in that his motivations and style is basically that he's a bored player character and that's probably made it more interesting to me than any in-universe arc.

It comes across quite strongly, but I'd have to say I am far more intrigued by the in-universe arcs at this point.

[Fenral]

On the subject of FFIX, it always bugged me how G'raha had Zidane's hairstyle. They could definitely do interesting things if they decide to work the Allagan cloning angle, though. I got a sudden mental image of G'raha (and the entire line of Desch) not really being Miqo'te of the G, but a bunch of Genomes. Probably nothing, but still...

[Lauront]

Would that make the other one Kuja? The funny thing is, he did seem concerned about that (the cloning) at first, until Doga assuaged his fears... but who knows, given the Allagan predilection for messing with just about everything, maybe he didn't have the full picture.

[Chewy2nd]

Regarding Elezenos

When the cutscene opens on Elezenos, his eyes are glowing red like Fordola's do when she's having an echo flashback, does Zenos possess the same power?

[JeanneOrnitier]

On the subject of FFIX, it always bugged me how G'raha had Zidane's hairstyle. They could definitely do interesting things if they decide to work the Allagan cloning angle, though. I got a sudden mental image of G'raha (and the entire line of Desch) not really being Miqo'te of the G, but a bunch of Genomes. Probably nothing, but still...

I am absolutely always up for more IX references, if my character's last name didn't make that obvious enough. The Allagan cloning angle could certainly be a way to approach Genomes.

[Claymore65]

Regarding Elezenos

When the cutscene opens on Elezenos, his eyes are glowing red like Fordola's do when she's having an echo flashback, does Zenos possess the same power?

To answer your question:

Both Zenos and Fordola were given an Artificial Version of the Echo known as the Resonance. The Technique was pioneered by a Garelan Scientist named Aulus mal Asina. Creating the Resonant is apparently a very dangerous process for the individual undergoing it, as Fordola's success was apparently a bit of a surprise. It apparently involves someone with the echo to "copy" off of, since Krile was kidnapped for exactly that reason. Evidence from Stormblood suggests it also involves the execution of a lot of people in order for it to work. The Eorzean Alliance had to remove piles of bodies from the machine when they removed Krile from it at the end of Stormblood. I'm kind of expecting the Resonant to come up a lot more in the future.

The Echo can provide a wide variety of powers, including the potential to possess Primals (as shown by Zenos' possession of Shinryu and Ysale's control over Shiva). It can show visions of the past, allow you to interpret any language, and allow you to possess new bodies after death, as shown by both Zenos and the Ascians. Since the Resonance is an artificial version of the Echo, it can also (apparently) do most of the same things. When Resonant Users activate their powers, their eyes appear to change. We don't know for sure that Zenos gets visions from the past, but it's certainly possible, and would be consistent. It's also possible he can use it for that, but chooses not to since Zenos appears to have more control over his echo powers than we do.

[Iscah]

Regarding Elezenos

When the cutscene opens on Elezenos, his eyes are glowing red like Fordola's do when she's having an echo flashback, does Zenos possess the same power?

We already saw original-Zenos doing that in Stormblood - I think when he was taking control of Shinryu.

[LineageRazor]

Evidence from Stormblood suggests it also involves the execution of a lot of people in order for it to work. The Eorzean Alliance had to remove piles of bodies from the machine when they removed Krile from it at the end of Stormblood. I'm kind of expecting the Resonant to come up a lot more in the future.

Just a quick aside on this:

The impression I got was not that these people were executed to enable the process, but that they were other individuals who were slated to be given the Resonance, and the process failed. Lethally. Basically, out of scores of test subjects, there were only two (known) successes: Fordola and Zenos. The rest all died, instead in a risky experimental procedure with a ridiculously high lethality rate. It's not too surprising that Fordola would have been willing to try (assuming she'd even been informed of the risks at all). At the point where she agreed to be augmented, she'd just failed a major initiative against the Alliance and fully expected Zenos to execute her on the spot. The fact that Zenos gambled with his own life is a bit more startling - but then, he's not exactly the sanest of individuals. Possibly also his narcissism left no doubt in his mind that he would be among the gifted...