Wow, Wuk Lamat is really single-handedly ruining the DT story...

[Papayatar]

They could've, and should've, used the Final Days...if they actually delivered with the event in Endwalker. In Shadowbringers the Final Days were painted as this seemingly massive apocalyptic event, so much so that many of the ancients had to give themselves up to summon Zodiark, and even then the best it could do was just halt it instead of completely stop it. Unfortunately, Endwalker painted the final days as a minor inconvenience to us and pretty much everyone else by having it only affect Garlemald and Thavnair, with some small traces being felt in the other places with some blasphemies that you don't even have to worry about unless you do the role quests. We solved something that pretty much annihilated all of the ancients in a single day like it was no big deal. So for Dawntrail, there just wasn't really anything to use involving the Final Days given it was written as a "one and done, now moving on" plot progresser.

Granted, Dawntrail is just "FF14 WoL's greatest hits collection", so wouldn't be surprised if the attack on Tuliyollal that Wuk goes through is just her "Blasphemies attack Thavnair" moment.

The difference with the Ancients is they didn’t know why it was happening. And if, I’m remembering correctly, them having significantly more Aether than people who’ve been split into 14 parts, wasn’t doing them any favours either. It didn’t annihilate them in a day, it slowly spread with them too. At least long enough for them to decide on the Zodiark plan, have enough people to sacrifice to it multiple times, and also long enough for a counter faction to make a Hydaelyn plan.

Though agreeing that we kinda speed ran solving the final days. But I think that was the point, because we didn’t want it to spread, and I think it was unknown how fast/slow the spread was going to take either. I’d say it’s a more of a calling it the Final Days when it only majorly effected it like two places. It’s not exactly “Final” unless it’s already the apocalypse on a global scale imo. But I guess saying Prelude to the Final days is too wordy, and pre-Final Days or Final Days Eve doesn’t have a ring to it either.

[Hallarem]

Because it didn't, really. The sky went black in two places, Garlemald and Thavnair and we fixed it in like a day.

This a hundred times, because Endwalker had to be rushed for this half-baked disney DT story, we lost a chance of the world actually facing a disaster and all areas having to cope with it. It was all sorted in an afternoon. Hell even the epicenter of Thavnair wasn't damaged? Satrap died, some other civilians died and the leader of the Radiant Host got offscreen killed? woopdidoo

Not to open an EW thread, because that's when my Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance five stages of grief for this game began.
I've been wondering with a friend for a while now, HOW if the ancients can't observe Dynamis, interact with Dynamis, did Hermes CREATE something out of DYnamis that can USE Dynamis.

[Allegor]

Because it didn't, really. The sky went black in two places, Garlemald and Thavnair and we fixed it in like a day.

I meant that the news of the Garlean empire falling reached their ears, but not the literal end of the world? granted, it only affected Thavnair and Garlemald, but it would've surely been the hot gossip in all 3 continents for weeks, heck it's partially why Wuk took interest in us in the first place.

[gumas]

why Wuk took interest in us in the first place.

You know, the game never state it why wuk interest us in the first place, definitely not endwalker (it didnt happen in their island), also not because garlean stuff, primal killer? Do they even have primal over there?

Even errenvile didnt exactly tell wuk why she should pick us, from the very start the whole thing just "you look strong, let see your combat" and then continue to eat together and suddenly we are in

[Allegor]

You know, the game never state it why wuk interest us in the first place, definitely not endwalker (it didnt happen in their island), also not because garlean stuff, primal killer? Do they even have primal over there?

Even errenvile didnt exactly tell wuk why she should pick us, from the very start the whole thing just "you look strong, let see your combat" and then continue to eat together and suddenly we are in

Actually she does mention she knows exactly what we did, and why we got her interest, because Erenville told her. It's our very first interaction with her in 6.55 (at least in the english dialogue, no idea what she actually says in japanese)

"I was searching for champions to join me when Erenville told me about you. A mighty warrior who knows no fear! Who sweeps aside terrible fiends as if they were reeds! Who flew to the edge of existence and saved our star!"

[gumas]

"I was searching for champions to join me when Erenville told me about you. A mighty warrior who knows no fear! Who sweeps aside terrible fiends as if they were reeds! Who flew to the edge of existence and saved our star!"

is that the exact quote she say? because that mean she knew about the endwalker then? though i wonder how she knew that we fly across the stars, either koana told her or the ship launch cutscene actually can bee seen even from tural lol

but yeha its a bummer no single person in dawntrail acknowledged us, in previous expansion, some major npc at least knew us somewhat either primal slayer, or eorzea champion, here in dawntrail... not a single npc knew us

[Shibi]

We were poochies retainer. They pretty much said it in Tobli's village, I think, one of the blues. A name on the marketboard.

Edit: Come to think of it... "would you mind holding this" in the paperclip to car quest, and then being told you are pretty much her retainer... and so early. Wonder if the writers were pre-warning us that not only would we be poochie's fawning cameraperson, but also of the self-playing instances around Otis?

[ArcturusWhisper]

I still can't get over Wuk Lamat having everyone call her Llama Tea. I REALLY REALLY hate that. I don't know, it's just having a person you barely know telling you to call them something that has no meaning to you. It feels so forced, like she forced us to call her by that and it's just so aggravating.

She just goes "call me this" and it's like I've only known her for like a few days or week and now I have to do something that I don't want to. It's so weird in the context of FFXIV, because we don't really do that. Then having everyone change and call her that, even though we barely care about her because we barely know her.

Wuk Lamat making people change in weird ways to adore her and whatever, just feels terrible and makes a lot of everyone else's characterization feel weird and awkward. Makes me worried that more characterization is going to get screwed up because it has to adhere to Wuk. Hopefully with the poll that push more for those 10 characters and ditch Wuk.

Everybody else around her will be tempered. She's a primal I guess.

[ArcturusWhisper]

I'm slogging through MSQ and...the kidnapping beat was so poorly executed. It also made me realize that the writing improves when she isn't on screen -- probably because my character actually exists again -- so I felt nothing but disappointment when we rescued her so quickly with little to no resistance. Seriously, some of the extremely minor story beats were more (uselessly) drawn out than our supposed leading heroine being kidnapped? The setup was completely contrived too - as if we'd ever let someone who's a prime target for ransom and potential violence (this is a political contest!!) walk off ALONE with some random person while we stand around like lemmings. The writers must have known it was stupid and unbelievable as well since the only way to pull it off was to make us wait in place three times over. Comical.

That quest was the first time that I was fuming at the MSQ. The beginning has been slow, and the bartering quest and Hanuhanu quest was really silly and I rolled my eyes. A lot of eye rolling all along. But this is the first time that I really say "WTF" out loud even though I already know this is where they are going when she said she's going back, I still can't believe they really make it this ridiculous. Like really? You are just going to come up with such a stupid kidnapping attempt that only morons will fall for, and decided that you want to make everyone around Wuk Lamat morons to have this plot point?! Can't come up with any better scenarios?

My main problem with it isn't even that it was obvious. My main problem is that literally the instant she's gone, characters remember how to be competent again. Koana devises a plan, uses the Scions and us in roles according to our skill set, orchestrates a rescue, and the very second the house cat is free... Everyone becomes dumb again, and lets him escape. We could literally overpower him and his goons with even just one of the Scions. We canonically have that much power each, when we're not being nerfed for the Mary Sue, of course. It doesn't even have to be us. Thancred alone has dealt with far worse in his time on the First.

Yeah she has a nerfing aura that turns everyone around her into incompetent morons. Part of why I am SO glad Thancred and Urianger were not in her team. Sorry for the twins, you gotta take one for the team!

[TaleraRistain]

^ This is absolutely what should have happened. the Final Days should have left a mark, GJJ as a national ruler should have had some intel on what happened overseas and Koana should have had information if not from his Sharlayan contacts then at least Thancred and Urianger. Just have them acknowledge "oh this person escorting around our princess is the godkiller champion of all existence, let's not act like dicks" and leave it at that, no one else needed to know, other than some commentary on the actual Final Days and blasphemies. We could even have a quick 5 second intro as to how GJJ and the Landsguard put down the blasphemies until they suddenly stopped appearing.

Even without Gulool Ja Ja or Koana there wouldn't have ever been a random sailor on these ships that was like "Yeah, Leroy and I were sitting there drinking because his wife left him and suddenly he just turned into this giant monster! I barely escaped with my life!" It's absolutely ridiculous that a busy port city like that wouldn't get information about what's going on across the salt.