Zodiark's Codex entry what do we think about it?

[Brinne]

You would think it would be the easiest thing in the world to state clearly and definitively, "Genocide is never justified."

So, yeah, it does get frustrating when the conversation twists itself into, "It's okay to do a genocide if you really, really didn't want to" or "My favorite character can have just a little genocide, as a treat!"

As pointed out, the problem is with the writing itself, sheepishly trying to cover up the stench of dog shit by covering it with a pretty rug.

The revelation of discovering the argument that not only can there be necessary genocides, there can be selfless, loving genocides.

Grim.

[RyuDragnier]

The revelation of discovering the argument that not only can there be necessary genocides, there can be selfless, loving genocides.

Grim.

Thinking on it, I can KIND of understand the logic behind Venat's decision, if we assume our going to the past didn't originally happen. She may have been looking at it through the lens of their civilization, that they were shepherds of the planet, and the planet's needs came first. It gave the new life souls, so it wanted that life to live. The Convocation was willing to throw that life away, ignoring their sworn duty, and depending on how long she had tried to reason with them before, she may have come to the conclusion that they threw away the very goal their civilization had. So she performed the last deed that followed that mindset...she Sundered all life and Zodiark to seal him away and safeguard the planet. No more would any dictate the planet's will, the planet itself would decide what it wanted, and life would flourish as needed.

She may have tried to lessen the mental load of it with the thoughts that it was essentially going to be fission, dividing the one into many that will ultimately resemble the original.

[tokinokanatae]

Thinking on it, I can KIND of understand the logic behind Venat's decision, if we assume our going to the past didn't originally happen. She may have been looking at it through the lens of their civilization, that they were shepherds of the planet, and the planet's needs came first. It gave the new life souls, so it wanted that life to live. The Convocation was willing to throw that life away, ignoring their sworn duty, and depending on how long she had tried to reason with them before, she may have come to the conclusion that they threw away the very goal their civilization had. So she performed the last deed that followed that mindset...she Sundered all life and Zodiark to seal him away and safeguard the planet. No more would any dictate the planet's will, the planet itself would decide what it wanted, and life would flourish as needed.

She may have tried to lessen the mental load of it with the thoughts that it was essentially going to be fission, dividing the one into many that will ultimately resemble the original.

Sure. Maybe that's what was going through Venat's head when she decided on her path.

But, to quote Alphinaud, "It doesn't matter."

It doesn't matter if she was gleefully rubbing her hands together at the thought of a brand new world, or sobbed for a million days and nights at the thought of ripping a single created butterfly in 14 pieces.

There is no "manslaughter" designation for genocide. We don't have to take into consideration her mental state, because the point is that the impact on the hypothetical individuals overrides that consideration. People seem to be able to grasp this just fine when it comes to (correctly!) pointing out the sins of the Ascians. It's only when the player character is the beneficiary of the same violence do people hem and haw and look for excuses.