My issues with Ishgard predate Garlemald. The exiled WoL essentially does everything for them, but then Aymeric consistently acts like he owes a debt to the Eorzean Alliance. I miss isolationist Ishgard. I actually hate seeing them on every warfront, especially because Aymeric will probably remind me somehow that he feels perpetually indebted to the other city-states for what I did. I love how we ended the Dragonsong War for them only to drag them into literally every other possible conflict.

As for the Steppe, it may have been allowable but it wasn't honorable. We gamed the Nadaam with the WoL trump card (reminder the person who Thancred credits as single-handedly winning the Grand Melee for Ishgard) so Hien could recruit the Xaela into a war that didn't concern them and near as I can tell didn't benefit them in any way. Unfortunately, this was just one more in a series of traveling around the world pressuring people into joining the fight and, worse, because the aforementioned Eorzean Alliance decided to grant Ilberd's dying wish. I still don't understand how we won against Garlemald. It should've been an absolute slaughter with Ala Mhigo and Doma being crushed under magitek foot.