Sundering stuff established in the Q&A

[KageTokage]

If anything, the sort of mind control there reminds me of what Ultima was able to effect via her auracites in the Ivalice raid series, i.e. acting on the possessor's desires to corrupt them. With it predating Zodiark's summoning, my guess is the source would be something else.

I was thinking more along the lines of there being some manner of other primal-like entity that's tempering the wardens somehow, though auracite also seems plausible given that the Heart of Sabik was implied to be far older then even the Allagans and perhaps all these shenanigans came about as a result of Lahabrea's initial tests on it.

[Rannie]

I was thinking more along the lines of there being some manner of other primal-like entity that's tempering the wardens somehow, though auracite also seems plausible given that the Heart of Sabik was implied to be far older then even the Allagans and perhaps all these shenanigans came about as a result of Lahabrea's initial tests on it.

And this still takes me back to my theory that Lahabrea is just a crazy mad scientist and still see him standing over a desk with a petri dish, a lit bunsen burner and a test tube being heated laughing magically saying, "ITS ALLLLIIVVVEEE"

And can't forget his long winded monologuing to his assistant Igor they ALWAYS have an Igor....

[RyuDragnier]

And this still takes me back to my theory that Lahabrea is just a crazy mad scientist and still see him standing over a desk with a petri dish, a lit bunsen burner and a test tube being heated laughing magically saying, "ITS ALLLLIIVVVEEE"

And can't forget his long winded monologuing to his assistant Igor they ALWAYS have an Igor....

Now watch Pandaemonium reveal him to be incredibly handsome and well meaning, just to twist a knife in us and make us sympathize for him, especially if his madness was caused by the loss of Athena.

[Rannie]

Now watch Pandaemonium reveal him to be incredibly handsome and well meaning, just to twist a knife in us and make us sympathize for him, especially if his madness was caused by the loss of Athena.

I wont fall for a ... wait did you say he may have a pretty face? ... twelve be damned!

Annnyway yeah they do sometimes go that route and make the "villians" sympathetic (not that it's a bad thing mind you) but it wouldn't surprise me either...

[MikkoAkure]

Now watch Pandaemonium reveal him to be incredibly handsome and well meaning, just to twist a knife in us and make us sympathize for him, especially if his madness was caused by the loss of Athena.

I'm half expecting for there to be a twist and Eric is actually the Lahabrea we're familiar with, and that's why there's such a discrepancy by how competent Lahabrea seemed in the past to how he was in the present.

[RyuDragnier]

I'm half expecting for there to be a twist and Eric is actually the Lahabrea we're familiar with, and that's why there's such a discrepancy by how competent Lahabrea seemed in the past to how he was in the present.

I only doubt it because Erich is unskilled with anything other than binding magicks, whereas Lahabrea is skilled with fire and creation. If anything though, Erich may be the one whom The Watcher is based on, since The Watcher was there dealing with Zodiark's cell the entire time, something Erich would be incredibly familiar with having lived in Pandaemonium most of his life.

[Cleretic]

I only doubt it because Erich is unskilled with anything other than binding magicks, whereas Lahabrea is skilled with fire and creation. If anything though, Erich may be the one whom The Watcher is based on, since The Watcher was there dealing with Zodiark's cell the entire time, something Erich would be incredibly familiar with having lived in Pandaemonium most of his life.

On top of the uncertainty about 'could Erich be any good at the things we know Lahabrea to be good at', we also have the wrinkle pointed out to me before: that the Tales from the Shadows story that confirm a lot of Lahabrea's skills are also what introduced the Phoinix, thereby situating Pandaemonium as taking place after these, and confirming that the Lahabrea then and during Pandaemonium is the one we gave the smackdown in the Praetorium.

...unless we recognize and embrace that the start of a normal raid series never foreshadows how bonkers the end of it gets, in which case we can bet on both of these somehow being true, we just have to figure out how.


One thing is for sure, though: if we meet Lahabrea in Pandaemonium, he will be hot and sad. This is a Natsuko Ishikawa villain we're talking about, Ishikawa villains are always hot and sad.