What's the point with that quite lackluster story in Endwalker?

[Rulakir]

I posted a personal headcanon on the lore forum that, without Hydaelyn, the sundering will eventually correct itself. Much to my surprise, there's evidence to support this?

Hydaelyn Sundered the world and Zodiark altered the aethercurrents...since Zodiark being gone currently has the Aethercurrents repairing themselves back into their original state (as shown by the FSH Studium questline), then Hydaelyn being gone means there's nothing keeping the shards separated anymore, they're going to combine.

This is potentially promising and probably the most hopeful I've been since the end of EW. Short of an AU, I love the idea that everything will 'right' itself eventually. I might even be able to find some forgiveness in my heart if this whole sundering mess turns out to be a blip in the history of Etheirys.

[CrownySuccubus]

I posted a personal headcanon on the lore forum that, without Hydaelyn, the sundering will eventually correct itself. Much to my surprise, there's evidence to support this?



This is potentially promising and probably the most hopeful I've been since the end of EW. Short of an AU, I love the idea that everything will 'right' itself eventually. I might even be able to find some forgiveness in my heart if this whole sundering mess turns out to be a blip in the history of Etheirys.

I doubt this because Emet-Selch challenged the player character with exploring the other reflections and seeing the civilizations there which "may surprise [us]". Thinking of this from an IRL standpoint, merging the reflections back would drastically hinder the amount of content they could create and sell to their customers.

For that reason, while it's certainly not impossible, (especially if we get another ARR-style reboot), I don't see it as probable.

[Lauront]

I posted a personal headcanon on the lore forum that, without Hydaelyn, the sundering will eventually correct itself. Much to my surprise, there's evidence to support this?



This is potentially promising and probably the most hopeful I've been since the end of EW. Short of an AU, I love the idea that everything will 'right' itself eventually. I might even be able to find some forgiveness in my heart if this whole sundering mess turns out to be a blip in the history of Etheirys.

Hmmm I've not done those. I might go read up the lore on them later since I'm stuck at low levels on FSH and that isn't apt to change soon. Oda has referred to the state of the shards as unstable in the past - I wonder if this is what he means (and also in part what Lahabrea was getting at in the Praetorium), along with the fact that they'd perish without the Source. Still, I could see that rectification becoming something to 'stop', sadly. Unless it were to take place over a long time frame...

I doubt this because Emet-Selch challenged the player character with exploring the other reflections and seeing the civilizations there which "may surprise [us]". Thinking of this from an IRL standpoint, merging the reflections back would drastically hinder the amount of content they could create and sell to their customers.

For that reason, while it's certainly not impossible, (especially if we get another ARR-style reboot), I don't see it as probable.

Yes, had they not destroyed a number of stars in pushing the plotline they did, that may have been less of an issue. Now they've pretty much just got the reflections and maybe more distant stars.

[Skyborne]

Hmmm I've not done those. I might go read up the lore on them later since I'm stuck at low levels on FSH and that isn't apt to change soon. Oda has referred to the state of the shards as unstable in the past - I wonder if this is what he means (and also in part what Lahabrea was getting at in the Praetorium.) Still, I could see that rectification becoming something to 'stop', sadly. Unless it were to take place over a long time frame...

Yes, in the FSH studium quests we help a catboy with his thesis and while doing so find out large amounts of fish and other sea life were washed up/lost due to their senses being disoriented from the huge influx of aether. We then casually drop by into the past to wave to all the people who will soon die in a terrible fiery disaster that we can't and won't do anything about, then fish up something to compare. Catboy then comes to the conclusion that aether levels are going back to the way they were before Zodiark. Of course, I don't recall them mentioning the shards...

That said, we can only hope they do eventually collapse back into the Source. Better work on that shardhopping so we can evacuate those inhabitants, eh, Shtola?

[Iscah]

I haven't done the Studium quests, but before you can claim that statement as proof of an eventual natural rejoining, it's important to define the "original state" that the currents are supposedly returning to. Are they talking about the pre-sundered state or simply the state immediately before both the pseudo-gods who have been stabilising the currents for millennia dissipated into the aether?

Also, if the aether currents are unique to each shard, then their state wouldn't directly have anything to do with them rejoining or remaining apart.

Narratively I think a natural rejoining would be very unlikely after they've staked so much on the value of the individual souls of each shard and that it would be a tragedy to lose them.

[Rulakir]

Thinking of this from an IRL standpoint, merging the reflections back would drastically hinder the amount of content they could create and sell to their customers.

I doubt we're going to visit every reflection, especially since they'd need to come up with reasons as to why we'd be limited to small areas of them. It worked for the First because 9/10 of it had been consumed by the Flood, all that was left was Norvrandt. We still have at least 2-3 continents on the Source we haven't explored too.

I also doubt a full rejoining would happen within the WoL's lifespan either, so it's likely a moot point. I suspect we're going to be spending at least one expansion dealing with the 13th in some capacity. I'd be surprised if by the time FFXIV reaches 20 years of age that they don't already have a new MMO in the works if they decide to make another one. Does FFXI still get expansion-like content updates?

[CrownySuccubus]

I doubt we're going to visit every reflection, especially since they'd need to come up with reasons as to why we'd be limited to small areas of them. It worked for the First because 9/10 of it had been consumed by the Flood, all that was left was Norvrandt. We still have at least 2-3 continents on the Source we haven't explored too.

That last sentence is why I can't see them needing any more reason than "The world is, like, really big, man."

The Source alone got away with being the sole setting from Expansions 1.0 - 4.0, being limited specifically to Eorzea for the first three of those, and even as of 6.0, we still haven't explored all of it.

The other reflections could provide content for dozens of future expansion. They have no reason to rush.

[Theodric]

If narratives aren't applied consistently across the board, then I don't consider them to have much in the way of weight or relevance. Especially when the writers themselves frequently backtrack in interviews and insist that players should come to their own conclusions and come up with their own head canon.

As a role-player, it has long been a frustration of mine that the game doesn't have any real consistent elements in play. In many ways, I see the same trajectory that World of Warcraft decided to go down with large swathes of established lore being sacrificed in the name of whatever the writing team decided was 'really cool' at the time.

[SeverianLyonesse]

I doubt we're going to visit every reflection, especially since they'd need to come up with reasons as to why we'd be limited to small areas of them. It worked for the First because 9/10 of it had been consumed by the Flood, all that was left was Norvrandt. We still have at least 2-3 continents on the Source we haven't explored too.

I also doubt a full rejoining would happen within the WoL's lifespan either, so it's likely a moot point. I suspect we're going to be spending at least one expansion dealing with the 13th in some capacity. I'd be surprised if by the time FFXIV reaches 20 years of age that they don't already have a new MMO in the works if they decide to make another one. Does FFXI still get expansion-like content updates?

I think the Thirteenth is the only shard worth visiting at this point. They could contrive a similar reason why we can only visit parts of it. The Void been part of the lore for far longer than any other shard. It would serve as a good balance to the First. I would feel happy and I think the world would feel reasonably complete if we went there and didn't bother to visit the other remaining shards.

[CrownySuccubus]

If narratives aren't applied consistently across the board, then I don't consider them to have much in the way of weight or relevance. Especially when the writers themselves frequently backtrack in interviews and insist that players should come to their own conclusions and come up with their own head canon.

As a role-player, it has long been a frustration of mine that the game doesn't have any real consistent elements in play. In many ways, I see the same trajectory that World of Warcraft decided to go down with large swathes of established lore being sacrificed in the name of whatever the writing team decided was 'really cool' at the time.

Yeah. I think it's a symptom of long-running, high budget franchises. Saw the same thing happen with older FF games (especially XIII and the VII Compilation) and Kingdom Hearts.

Eventually, the writers stop going for "a theme" and start shooting for "ALL the themes". Why make players contemplate one emotion when you can try to make them feel all of them all at once?