7.0 FATE changes you want?

[VentVanitas]

Make them more dynamic on top of actually challenging (or more accurately make it so all of them can't be mindlessly solo'd by anyone). In GW2, some of its world quests (which are pretty much just FATE copies) can actually effect the zone, the most notable ones probably being the events in Caledon Forest, where one can prevent you from using Morgan's Spiral, or how enemy camps can occupy certain waypoints therefore preventing you from teleporting there so you have to take it back. It's not an ideal way to handle it, especially when having a waypoint being suddenly unavailable is inconvenient more than anything, but they do make the zones in GW2 feel more dynamic and alive. What if certain shortcuts on a map could be occupied by enemy forces, that could be temporarily cleared by beating its FATE? What if there was a FATE that suddenly made enemy beast tribe areas deadlier, so you had to storm it with a Grand Company to prevent a summoning? Again, they're not perfect suggestions, but I feel like tiny things like these would come a long way in making the areas in the game actually feel lived in.

XIV zones always feel so empty, because they're just set pieces for stories. I feel like the Ruby Sea (as much as I love Stormblood) is one of the more egregious examples of wasted space because it has an entire underwater section full of literally nothing but one minor settlement.

[Fyrebrand]

Make them more dynamic on top of actually challenging (or more accurately make it so all of them can't be mindlessly solo'd by anyone). In GW2, some of its world quests (which are pretty much just FATE copies) can actually effect the zone.

Yeah, GW2 is basically the king of open world PvE content like this. Calling its dynamic events "FATE copies" feels a little insulting considering how above and beyond GW2 is compared to FFXIV in this regard, if anything FFXIV FATEs feel like a pale "we have dynamic events at home" imitation. GW2 did come out before ARR, after all. Did FFXIV 1.0 have FATEs? I honestly don't know.

But anyway, I completely agree, it would be amazing if we could get the kinds of open world events like GW2 has. Especially the big "map meta" style ones that run in a cycle and require lots of people coordinating and communicating, and when you succeed it unlocks a special area with a bunch of treasure and stuff. Sadly, FFXIV doesn't really design their maps with these sorts of goals in mind. There's no verticality with different "planes" to be on. The maps aren't even large enough to accommodate the scale of such events without possibly getting in the way of MSQ objectives, and I highly doubt the engine can handle it. Plus, I don't know what the rewards for completing the event would look like, the "loot economy" is way different in GW2.

having a waypoint being suddenly unavailable is inconvenient more than anything, but they do make the zones in GW2 feel more dynamic and alive.

Yeah, but in GW2 the maps have so many waypoints, it's really not that big a deal when one gets contested. It became even less of an issue after mounts were introduced and we can zip around the map at lightning speed.

XIV zones always feel so empty, because they're just set pieces for stories. I feel like the Ruby Sea (as much as I love Stormblood) is one of the more egregious examples of wasted space because it has an entire underwater section full of literally nothing but one minor settlement.

That's the thing about being underwater, there's no combat there. So unless you're talking to a quest NPC or spearfishing, there is literally nothing to do. It's just a big void of nothingness. In order to let us fight or do any sort of action they have to place us in a domed playpen that is basically "on dry land."