Just how responsible for the Flood of Light was Hydaelyn?

[geekgirl101]

Hydaelyn wasn't responsible for the Flood. It's when aetheric balance tilts so far to one aspect that causes a catastropic disaster such as a Flood of Light, consuming fire, global tidal waves etc. Hydaelyn was responsible however for the sundering of the star and dividing it into 13 shards. The Warriors of Light were blamed for the Flood on the First because they battled and defeated Zodiark and the Flood happened right after, presumably defeating him tilted the Light balance out of proportion.

As for what happened on the first shard the Ascians toyed with whatever they did to it was such a major botchup that that particular shard could not rejoin to the Source. My guess is they discovered after they messed up that they had to orchestrate a catastrophe on both worlds in order for them to rejoin and their first attempt they only created a catastrophe on that shard.

[LindyFelmenia]

Her primary objectives seem to be twofold which is to preserve life by binding Zodiark. However, I know this isn't outright stated in the game since Emet was talking about binding and shackling. It's implied through Hythlodaeus since he talked about the opposition of sacrificing the new life.

We don't know that was Her primary objective, only something She did to achieve it.

Overall it seems more likely to me that Her primary objective is to protect life, and the Sundering was a means to that end - whether the exact consequences were intended or not.

You're both right. Hythlodaeus implies that she is summoned to protect life (and not only living beings), but also nature. The original plan of the Amaurot council was to nurture the life of the Star back to full health, then trade some of it to Zodiark in exchange for everyone who were sacrificed. But the people who summoned Hydaelyn argued that the Star should belong to the new species living there, and its living energy should not be offered to Zodiark.
So she was in a situation where she could either forsake the 1st shard and its living beings to strengthen the seal on Zodiark, or save them but risk a rejoining, which would weaken the seal on Zodiark, and she chose the latter. So her primary objective might not have been Zodiark after all, but to preserve current life and nature, and Zodiark was simply a threat to that.

Hydaelyn wasn't responsible for the Flood. It's when aetheric balance tilts so far to one aspect that causes a catastropic disaster such as a Flood of Light, consuming fire, global tidal waves etc. Hydaelyn was responsible however for the sundering of the star and dividing it into 13 shards. The Warriors of Light were blamed for the Flood on the First because they battled and defeated Zodiark and the Flood happened right after, presumably defeating him tilted the Light balance out of proportion.

As for what happened on the first shard the Ascians toyed with whatever they did to it was such a major botchup that that particular shard could not rejoin to the Source. My guess is they discovered after they messed up that they had to orchestrate a catastrophe on both worlds in order for them to rejoin and their first attempt they only created a catastrophe on that shard.

One detail : The sundering divided the Star into 13 shards and the source (14 reflections). The warriors of Darkness (Adbert and his team members) were blamed for the flood of light on the 1st shard not because they killed Zodiark (who is sealed). They figured out their companion Cylva was actually sent by Ascians Mithron and Loghrif in order to be killed by them so as to tip the balance of the 1st shard towards light. Instead, they killed Mithron and Loghrif, but in doing so, the balance towards light exceeded the flood's threshold. As said before in this thread, the flood is an accident. The ascians figured out a flood made a rejoining of the shard impossible after their failure on the 13th shard, so they wouldn't try to make a new one on purpose.

[geekgirl101]

One detail : The sundering divided the Star into 13 shards and the source (14 reflections). The warriors of Darkness (Adbert and his team members) were blamed for the flood of light on the 1st shard not because they killed Zodiark (who is sealed). They figured out their companion Cylva was actually sent by Ascians Mithron and Loghrif in order to be killed by them so as to tip the balance of the 1st shard towards light. Instead, they killed Mithron and Loghrif, but in doing so, the balance towards light exceeded the flood's threshold. As said before in this thread, the flood is an accident. The ascians figured out a flood made a rejoining of the shard impossible after their failure on the 13th shard, so they wouldn't try to make a new one on purpose.

Oh right. Where was this info from?

[QT_Melon]

Oh right. Where was this info from?

It's part of the final role quest when you do all of the ones in each job Tank, Healer, Ranged DPS, Caster, Melee

[LindyFelmenia]

Oh right. Where was this info from?

Those 2 quests:
https://ffxiv.gamerescape.com/wiki/L...w_Walk_with_Me
https://ffxiv.gamerescape.com/wiki/L...n_of_Knowledge

For some reason she is called "Cyella" in game. She tells you what happened to her. Emet Selch also confirms what she said in the 2nd quest. He also hints at Igeyorhm's failure over the 13th shard (which is also mentioned in encyclopedia eorzia) and how they changed their approach to rejoining the shards after it.

[Berethos]

It's a bit more nuanced than that. The Source does not actually have any kind of special protections that prevent it from succumbing to the same catastrophes that have been unleashed on its shards.

The Calamities are explained as events on the Source that are based on an affinity to a certain element, that are then augmented by the aether aspected toward that same element pouring in from a shard.

If you removed the shard from the equation, the events on the Source are simply not as devastating.

Per the Crystal Exarch's exact words on the matter:

At the same time, the element which held sway in the shard is unleashed in full, its energies amplifying the original disaster to truly catastrophic proportions. An earthquake thus magnified might strike with enough force to shatter continents; a tidal wave might swell to a size capable of drowning entire nations.

Now, it's potentially possible that pushing the Source far enough toward Light (stasis) or Dark (activity) could lead to a similar flood as seen on the Thirteenth (and which turned it into the void it is today) or on the First, but as the Source is not already leaning towards that status (unlike the First) it would likely take significantly more to tip it far enough...and the general nature of "Man" would probably prevent that from happening. On the first, all it took was the adventures of a select group who each earned a Crystal of Light. We've already surpassed that on our own (six, to their five) and did not suffer the same fate - and does not seem to be leaning toward it on its own, as it was the bleeding through of the effects on the First that was giving rise to the thinning/stilling of aether on the Source.

While that kind of event may be possibly, though almost certainly far more difficult, calamities of the sort that Eorzea has experienced thus far have only happened due to the specific nature of the interaction been the Source and the shard, carefully orchestrated to occur in tandem. The chance of one happening as a matter of chance is, as far as we know, an infinitesimally small chance.

For some reason she is called "Cyella" in game.

Not the first time she's gone by a different name, as even Cylva was just a name she chose to use among Ardbert and the others.

Cyella, in a similar fashion, is the name she chose for the "role" she decided to play, which in this case was to guide people to destroying the "Cardinal Virtues" (which, interestingly, is not her trying to seek redemption for herself, but is a decision born of despair and anger at the abominations made in the image of her former comrades...the same comrades whose souls she thought she was ultimately saving through her actions with the Ascians as the Shadowkeeper).

[Alleo]

What I don't really understand is why Hydaelyn would spend some of her power to stop the flood of light on the 1st shard. From what we know, a flood of light on the 1st shard would actually turn out to be in her interest, as it would make the shard unrejoinable to the source (just like the 13th shard which was flooded in Darkness). This would make it harder to restore the former Star, and thus, harder to unseal Zodiark. Her primary objective (for which she was summoned), was to kill / seal Zodiark after all.

Because she was created to care about "her children"by giving them a future. For me this includes the shards too.

[Tanker4444]

Do keep in mind that it has been implied on a number of occasions that the Source could meet the same fate as the First if the Warrior of Light continues like they have. The fact that Hydaelyn entreats (or compels, depending on whether or not you accept the possibility of tempering) the WoL to keep at it is intriguing, though we do not know for certain if Hydaelyn is even aware of the fact that the scales are starting to tip too far.

Are they? Are the scales tipping? So far all the WoL has done is reset a few things to their former state or prevent/defeat and dispell some primals. Unless the natural state is for primals to be running around all over the place and for calamity generating empires to go around crushing and oppressing everyone else.. then no, I don´t see how the scales are tipping "too far" the other way.

[RyuDragnier]

Are they? Are the scales tipping? So far all the WoL has done is reset a few things to their former state or prevent/defeat and dispell some primals. Unless the natural state is for primals to be running around all over the place and for calamity generating empires to go around crushing and oppressing everyone else.. then no, I don´t see how the scales are tipping "too far" the other way.

I agree, we aren't the ones causing the scales to tip. If anything, we're knocking off the things tipping the scales, preventing them from tipping too much. I don't think it will change anytime soon, considering a certain overzealous stalker of ours is keen on having another match with us again, on an even bigger stage using the power of Zodiark/Hydaelyn to do it.

[Edax]

Are they? Are the scales tipping? So far all the WoL has done is reset a few things to their former state or prevent/defeat and dispell some primals. Unless the natural state is for primals to be running around all over the place and for calamity generating empires to go around crushing and oppressing everyone else.. then no, I don´t see how the scales are tipping "too far" the other way.

If Hydaelyn is aspected towards Light, did why did she not notice the incoming Flood of Light until it was way too late?