Revelations from Patch 5.5 (Part 2)

[Alleluia]

MSQ Anger (But not like because it's bad or anything)

Fourchenault needs a swift kick in the ass. A solid punch to the face. A knee to the gut. His entire demeanor and expression is contemptible to me, and by the time he disowned his children that was barely a consideration in the vitriol stew that was brewing in my beating breast. That man is no father, though they may call him such. And if he is a reflection of the other 98 members of the Forum, then they are no better. I really hope they let us have a little more than, "words" with him, by the end of Endwalker. I have never hated a character so totally, and never so immediately.

Pretty much my exact reaction.

MSQ Thoughts:

So, the argument Dad makes for disowning the twins: He basically calls them warmongers, claiming they seek conflict as a solution to situations that could be solved by more "enlightened" and peaceful means. Now, you could, theoretically and with great stretching, accuse Alisaie of this. I'd argue against it, but she *is* at least more aggressive than she is passive. But Alphinaud? When it comes to the boy, the accusation is completely irrational on the face of it.

I see 3 real options here.

Option 1: Dad is a jackass, and he (and Sharlayan) is inflicted with plot-induced stupidity. I say this b/c the argument he makes for disowning the twins is irrational and stupid, and he should know that but apparently doesn't. I think this option is possible, but less likely given the quality of writing we've seen lately.

Option 2: Dad does love his kids, but he is choosing duty/loyalty to his nation over his personal feelings. This would explain a bit how he could enter the meeting and speak so warmly to them at the start, but then flip to give everyone present whiplash with the disowning over irrational straw-man accusations. (Admittedly, this can be considered a subset of Option 1.)

Option 3: Dad is attempting to protect the kids, and/or prevent them from being used against him, by keeping them from coming back to/having anything to do with Sharlayan. Its extreme, but if its not safe for them there, and he can't just TELL them that for some reason, the disownment plan is a possible solution. Possible thinking being: if they're disowned, they'll think there's nothing back home for them and won't try to come back. This also explains how he could have greeted them so warmly, talking about their mother and being happy they're healthy etc., while also knowing the whole time he was going to disown them in that meeting. Also explains the irrationality of his accusations; it didn't matter if they made sense, as long as they gave him the excuse he needed for the outcome he wanted.

Also, as Lauront said, we have this:


Regardless of what ends up being true, I do hope for a (Punch him.) option at some point. He upset my kids. /cracks knucles

[KizuyaKatogami]

Why do people keep acting like alphy and alisaie are their irl kids? :think: that’s really weird to me. Irregardless, even Graha comments that something is up with their dad. The way he acted in the patch is unlike what both the EE and Alisaie herself comments on in SB,so i’m pretty sure he’s trying to protect them. Don’t see any reason to be aggressive towards him. Especially because we’ve literally only seen the man for 5 minutes. If the WoL acted like some of the people want to...i don’t think we’d be much of a “hero” lmao.

[Alleluia]

Why do people keep acting like alphy and alisaie are their irl kids? :think: that’s really weird to me. Irregardless, even Graha comments that something is up with their dad. The way he acted in the patch is unlike what both the EE and Alisaie herself comments on in SB,so i’m pretty sure he’s trying to protect them. Don’t see any reason to be aggressive towards him. Especially because we’ve literally only seen the man for 5 minutes. If the WoL acted like some of the people want to...i don’t think we’d be much of a “hero” lmao.

I feel protective over them and it angers me that someone attacked them for no reason, particularly someone they love and trust. The "my kids" is just shorthand to express that attachment, I think. "My friends" doesn't feel strong enough. They feel most like adopted siblings for my WoL at this point, really.

About the acting:

The performance comments could be taken two ways: that Fourchenault was putting on an act as himself, or that Fourchenault was putting on an act for Sharlayan as a whole. He was there as an emissary, so is what he was instructed to say the act or is his seeming support of it the act? I was assuming G'raha and the others meant that Sharlayan's response, via Fourchenault, was perfomative; not his disownment of his kids. The disownment seems to be being taken seriously.

[KizuyaKatogami]

Well yes but the disownment could very well be to protect them. The family name could be in the face of danger if he is indeed planning something. It’s just weird to me people are so quick to assume things on someone we’ve literally seen for 5 minutes and have no knowledge on other than that he disowned the kids. We don’t have the proper reason yet. Besides maybe it’s for the best for them. Maybe now they’ll start to think on themselves and reflect a bit more.

[Bright-Flower]

My thoughts on elf dad:

We won't know until 6.0, but I have a feeling his feelings on the subject are probably genuine. Sharlayan is being set up to be proven wrong, so the whole showing disdain for the twins attitude is probably true. The fact that we can't call him out on it for being dumb is a limitation of the writing, just as we can't call out Emet Selch during his rants in Aumoraut for the ascians being the root cause of many of the conflicts and wars he judges us for. Yeah, there's a lot of violence between us sundered people but the unsundered are manipulating things to cause a lot of it.

Similarly, there is no peaceful solution to the current problems. There wasn't when Garlemald was a tool of the ascians to create calamities and it isn't now that Fandaniel and Zenos are in charge, and the story knows that Sharlayan is wrong on this.

And with it being likely that Sharlayan is intending to survive this while the rest of the world burns it doesn't seem likely to me that keeping his kids out of Sharlayan is somehow keeping them safer than trying to win them back over.

[Alleluia]

Well yes but the disownment could very well be to protect them. The family name could be in the face of danger if he is indeed planning something. It’s just weird to me people are so quick to assume things on someone we’ve literally seen for 5 minutes and have no knowledge on other than that he disowned the kids. We don’t have the proper reason yet. Besides maybe it’s for the best for them. Maybe now they’ll start to think on themselves and reflect a bit more.

I'd argue that that last bit about they need "to think on themselves and reflect a bit more" is the sticking point for some. I don't think they do.

Fourchenault, presuming his disownment was genuine, seems to think that. But I'm of the opinion the twins have done nothing wrong, certainly nothing worthy of that reaction. So if he's serious, then he just disowned his kids over assumptions he's made from a place of ignorance. He clearly doesn't know what his kids have been thru or how they've handled situations to make the judgment he's made. He thinks he knows, but he clearly doesn't. Now, if the disowning is some kind of play he's making that is ultimately meant to protect them, then I can possibly forgive him later. But right now, for all we know, he was serious. And if he was, my desire to yell at and/or hit the man is justified, imo.

[Fenral]

a character named Zhangli

Good writeup, but it's spelled Zhongli, with an 'o'.


Sorry...

[Alleluia]

My thoughts on elf dad:

And with it being likely that Sharlayan is intending to survive this while the rest of the world burns it doesn't seem likely to me that keeping his kids out of Sharlayan is somehow keeping them safer than trying to win them back over.

True enough.

Personally, when I mention the possibility that he's protecting them, I am thinking that he's dealing with internal politicking in Sharlayan (likely over the plan go all Vault-Tec and bunker down while the world burns), and he is afraid they'll be targeted to get to him or be used against him. If he's actually fine with the bunker and he's keeping them out of it by disowning them, then yeah, that's not protecting them at all. lol

[EdwinLi]

Good writeup, but it's spelled Zhongli, with an 'o'.


Sorry...

it's fine.

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Now back on topic....


I still heavily suspect Sharlayan been planning for the Final Days for a very long time. We know that we my even enter a Ark that Sharlayan made in 6.0 as a Dungeon which looks almost or is already complete.

I still suspect, they have always planned to be the only surviving civilization after the Final Days or maybe they always planned to start the Final Days themselves so they can create a world they believe will be a better one under the rulership of their chosen few raised and born in Sharlayan.

We have always known and seen that Sharlayan see themselves as superior than other civilizations to a point they consider everyone else savages and themselves civilized people.

[BlitzAceRush]

My issue with it being a "I'm trying to keep you out of harm's way!" is, all he's done is make them want to go straight there, so unless it's a reverse play and he's actually really evil and wants them to come running, or trick them into coming home so he can keep them there, his plan doesn't seem very thought out. 9 times out of 10 the "I've no time/ability to explain, let me do something shocking and out of character without explanation, don't try to figure out why and stay out of it." does not work.