Zenos too stupid to be a villain?

[VirusOnline]

Zenos isn't really angry, he is apathetic; bored. Looking for a thrill, that only the WoL can give him. He is mysterious, highly intelligent, capable. Everything is simply a nuisance to him, just something between him and his quarry.

My main point isn't to say he's angry, but what things make him so. Rules of writing are to make your characters sympathetic - relatable through their reasoning and actions. What makes him human.
The traits you just listed are extremely one dimensional. He's bored and I'm bored. Being highly intelligent, bored, or obsessed doesn't equal amazing character writing.

I imagine if we did find one thing Zenos cared about, something that completely changed his directive for battle, he'd becoming so much more in-depth.
ahhh, but this is just my own frustration with Zenos. He can be so much more, and at this point of his writing I agree that he needs to be gone if he isn't going to evolve past what he is.

[Vahlnir]

He's bored and I'm bored.

Yeah, this sums up my feelings perfectly. At this point I feel like I'm sitting next to someone and asking them "what do YOU wanna do?" and having them reciprocate the same question with "I dunno, what do YOU wanna do?!", and this has gone on for years.

[AvenoMatt]

I wouldn't say Zenos is stupid. He knows the best way to get our attention is to cause mayhem and bringing about the end of the world is a big way to draw our attention.

If anything Zenos is just insane, psychotic and desperate. He has no issue killing anyone in his way be they family or friend. He doesn't care if the world ends or if he dies so long as he get's to fight us. He is hollow shell of a person who feels nothing but fighting us made him feel something and he is desperate to feel that again.

[SturmChurro]

My main point isn't to say he's angry, but what things make him so. Rules of writing are to make your characters sympathetic - relatable through their reasoning and actions. What makes him human.
The traits you just listed are extremely one dimensional. He's bored and I'm bored. Being highly intelligent, bored, or obsessed doesn't equal amazing character writing.

I imagine if we did find one thing Zenos cared about, something that completely changed his directive for battle, he'd becoming so much more in-depth.
ahhh, but this is just my own frustration with Zenos. He can be so much more, and at this point of his writing I agree that he needs to be gone if he isn't going to evolve past what he is.

What makes him angry are things that get between him and the hunt. Make no mistake, Zenos would destroy Fandaniel without a second thought, if he had the audacity to get between him and his "friend". I think he is fine as is. He is a good villain. I don't want to know "what makes him human". He is a monster; a predator, and he should remain as such. I think he is an excellently written character, in relation to the story we have had for the past several years. "Do what you will".

The trailer shows this off his character perfectly. When he is sitting in his throne, not even watching the destruction all around him, bored. Everything, his demeanor, the music, all well done.

https://youtu.be/7-bkJ2ZoW6k?t=136

The way he looks at the moon, his hunt is there.

[DracotheDragon]

My gripe with him is his single-mindedness while I thought he was brilliant in stormblood all his reappearances have not really added to him in anyway besides showing that he is strong and nihilistic to p much everything bar us, I am hoping with endwalker he becomes a very interesting antagonist or a taunting figure mocking us so we hate him more to drive the desire to fight but atm I have no drive to fight zenos or fandaniel until I get a bit more of the.

[Kikoten]

What makes him angry ? What triggers his emotions ?

I got a sense that he might have become annoyed, for a second, at Fandaniel, when Fandaniel boasted that he might've burnt the WoL a little bit when he made his appearance. "Do you want to die?" Of course, that could be taken different ways. Was Zenos jealous? Was he irritated? Or was he calling Fandaniel weak, in that he wouldn't be able to withstand the WoL's retaliation if provoked?

[Vahlnir]

I got a sense that he might have become annoyed, for a second, at Fandaniel, when Fandaniel boasted that he might've burnt the WoL a little bit when he made his appearance. "Do you want to die?" Of course, that could be taken different ways. Was Zenos jealous? Was he irritated? Or was he calling Fandaniel weak, in that he wouldn't be able to withstand the WoL's retaliation if provoked?

I think he truly sees the WoL as a friend in his own twisted way, so he was probably both irritated and jealous.

[Ultaniku]

I think it’s less stupidity and more a one tracked mind and boredom with life in general.

[DubiousDisk]

I like Zenos. He's refreshing. Single-minded. Doesn't care about the world. I think he is actually highly intelligent.

I thought the game at this point made it clear he IS very intelligent and downright cunning, but it's just that he is hyper focused on having the greatest duel of all time with the WoL.
Dunno why people always think he's dumb just cause he wants to fight us to the death, its not impossible to have a sole focus.

[Kikoten]

I don't know when it was that I started liking Zenos. I remember feeling complete disdain for him shortly after he came back. I even criticized SE for writing him back into the ever going play that is FFXIV. After Emet-Selch, I remember thinking, "Now we have to deal with Zenos again? Jesus Christ..."

I think Zenos is the only enemy we've ever had that we could even come close to calling an equal. It made me think about what I, the main character in my own world, am fighting for. What do I want more than anything? For the story to end? Of course not. I want resolution. I feel like I'm really connecting with Zenos here. I want something spectacular. Well, so does he. I want to fight Zenos because I want something spectacular. Zenos wants to fight me (us), because he wants something spectacular. In a crazy way, it's like a match made in heaven.