Starting up 5.0 quests in New Game+, and I was struck by a detail that seemed mostly like inconsequential world building: The Crystal Exarch, during your introduction to the Crystarium, tells you that the people of Norvrandt are unaware of the existence of other stars. Basically, that the entire "source and thirteen reflections" stuff is completely alien to them. As such, we need to mislead them about where we are from.

I believe that is part of the wedge Elidibus will push to get us and the newfound "Warriors of Light" to fight. He will give the new heroes as much knowledge about the true nature of the reflections as he needs to in order to convince them that the Rejoining is a good thing, and that we came to Norvrandt to prevent the Rejoining. Believing that the Rejoining will happen after we leave, the Warriors of Light will attempt to force us to do so, with Elidibus leading the fray under the appearance of good intentions when it fact he means to kill us by casting us out of the First and into... whatever you call the space between the Source and the reflections.

I have to wonder how the Crystal Tower raid stuff could tie into that, however. Perhaps Elidibus actually succeeds in getting rid of us, and this necessitates drastic measures on the part of our friend on both worlds? They could also do these as an A-Plot B-Plot sort of scenario, in which they're separate plot threads that resolve in succession, but are otherwise unrelated. IE: We deal with Elidibus and his Warriors of Light, and then end 5.3 by being sent home with the Scions. But I think interweaving them into a single plot thread would be more interesting.

Also, I am holding out on the admittedly dim prospect that Minfilia will return before Shadowbringers runs its course, if only because I miss her dearly of her promise to do so in her last Heavensward appearance. Don't get me wrong: Shadowbringers has handled Minfilia's death so well that it'd be a shame to roll it back a second/third time. But even so, it's not necessarily a permanent retirement for her character. That said, I'd be very unhappy if bringing her back meant killing off Ryne.