Endwalker Story sucked and it's time to admit it

[Iscah]

Nothing in the lore shows this to be true with how time travel is handled. The lore shows two types of time travel. Branching alternate time lines, based on large decisions that change the future, and small self contained loops that do not change the future significantly.

Shadowbringers was the former and EW and Alex the latter.

Yes, those are the two types of time travel (or more accurately results of time travel) that are shown in the narrative, although I would disagree with using "large" and "small" labels. Elpis is the temporally largest instance of time travel we've seen, spanning 12,000 years, and yet is a causal loop rather than a timeline-splitter.

There is NO evidence that events in an alternate branch timeline affect the other branches without some kind of time travel device (Alexander, The Tycoon.)

I never claimed that different branches could interact, although I suspect you are using "branches" differently to me in any case.

To my understanding, we cannot directly cross timelines in the game with our current technology. There is no way for us to make contact with the 8UE timeline.

I'm not even sure exactly what you're referring to with this statement, because I don't believe I've made any reference to time travel that does not involve a time machine.


The closest thing to someone affecting another timeline is G'raha's timeline-breaking efforts, but that was achieved by travelling backwards along a single timeline and then being naturally carried by the flow of time into the beginning of a different branch. There was no jumping of timelines involved.

Gra'ha changes his future by stopping the 8UE, so he can no longer return to that timeline even though it still exists. Elidibus' warning is that if we try to change the timeline by stopping the End of Days in the past, because we and everything we're fighting for exists because of the Sundering, will not exist when we return, thus creating another branch. This is the whole reason for the closed loop paradox and the convergence with Venat/Hydaelyn.

In the scenario that we altered the past by preventing the Sundering, the thing that would create a branch would be our actions in the past, not our return to the present. A second timeline would branch off starting from the time of Elpis, and we would be permanently stuck in it (unless the nature of the time portal means that it remains tethered to the timeline from which we started).

We are currently on a branch timeline, but the game, by factor of we're the main character, is shown from OUR POV.

Timeline 1

Ancient world -> Meteia -> Zodiark -> Sundering -> ARR -> Crystal Tower Raids -> HW -> SB -> B -> We Die -> 8UC -> Tycoon Created -> Time Travel -> A ->Midgarsormr Sidestory

Graha leaves at A ends up at B.

Timeline 2

Ancient world -> Meteia ->B -> Zodiark -> Sundering -> ARR -> Crystal Tower Raids -> HW -> SB -> Graha ends up on First -> SB -> EW -> A -> Current Patch

We leave at A end up at B, but return to A.


In Timeline 1, we do not EXIST to be able to go back in time. Without Graha, going back in time we can NEVER go back to Elpis. Our actions in Elpis are irrelevant to the timeline from the Ancient World up to EW, because things happening in Elpis would have happened anyway. The Metia, the summoning of Zodiark, and the Sundering, all happen whether we show up there or not. Elidibus all but straight up says this in his line about not meddling.

So what changes with us going back? The knowledge that Venat has, but refuses to act upon, and the knowledge we gain and DO act upon.

I'm not following your explanation at all. If these are branches, where do they branch off? Why does it need two complete timelines starting from the ancient world just to diverge at Shadowbringers?