Quote Originally Posted by CazzT View Post
Lore - they cover this in one off the very early quests that has you attuning to a crystal.
Gameplay - money sink. I agree it doesn't seem like much, but a gil here, a gil there, it adds and helps keep the economy from going insane.
It still serves a purpose and always will.
There is related lore given in game, but it still feels kind of shaky to me. The teleportation system comes across as a developer invention rather than a part of the world. It would have made more sense if aetherlytes worked like airships where you pay an attendant to use them. If you go solely by what we see in game they're practically unguarded and anyone using them could simply cheat the system by holding their money upon teleporting. Not to mention that if your departure and arrival points aren't in communication with each other, how do they know the correct amount to charge a traveler? Do they just ask? Surely many people would lie.