Revelations from Patch 7.2: Seekers of Eternity

[Cleretic]

Zoraal-Ja is a great example for this, as arguably many players were unable to connect with him as a character and villain. Are they wrong for failing to make that connection, or did the writers simply not do enough to set him up? (Not to mention: What exactly was Calyx thinking when he practically let Zoraal be king and have the key for 30 years until we showed up? But that's an entirely different can of worms)

This is just a different discussion entirely, but to start with the second point: Calyx was probably thinking something along the lines of 'hell yeah, convenient ally/patsy' about Zoraal Ja. Guy turns up with that key they've been wanting, and wants nothing more than to wage war against the Source that they already want to turn their crosshairs on? Great! Make him king, let him do half the work for them, absorb all the bad PR that comes from declaring a war, and then just pick up and do the rest whenever he inevitably bites it, which they were kinda setting up to happen anyway. During the events of 7.0 Calyx essentially just wanted everything Sphene wanted, and Sphene's outlook on this was pretty clear.

As to the first point: Zoraal Ja's really interesting to me, because while you're implying a scenario where the writers failed at what you're implying was required, I think they completely succeeded, because he was not written to be connected to. He is designed to be the villain in the most brute-force, 'no further information needed' way possible. He's comparable to someone like Exdeath from FFV in that way: you don't need to feel anything other than a fervent desire to kick this guy in the grill, so they only give you reasons to kick him in the grill. As a result, he stands interestingly counter to how FFXIV usually tells its stories; we usually get big elaborate emotional monologues about a character's truth, and Zoraal Ja upsets our expectations by simply refusing to speak, and often being openly wrong whenever he does. I remember I compared him to Yoshikage Kira in JoJo, or Gul Dukat in Star Trek: characters that disrupt our usual way of understanding those stories, by being people who refuse to directly explain themselves in a series where that had become a given. The writers needed Zoraal Ja to be a villain: they didn't need you to like him. It's not a failure that they succeeded at the thing they were aiming for.

What's interesting about that, is that in 7.1 we had Gulool Ja's story of trying to learn about his parents. Only after Zoraal Ja's death did we get a story that needs him to be a person, so the humanizing scenes of him only come posthumously, and only in relation to what needs to further Gulool Ja's story. It really demonstrates that it's not that they failed to make Zoraal Ja relatable at first: it's that they refused to, until it suited the story they were telling.

[Thighland]

What's interesting about that, is that in 7.1 we had Gulool Ja's story of trying to learn about his parents. Only after Zoraal Ja's death did we get a story that needs him to be a person, so the humanizing scenes of him only come posthumously, and only in relation to what needs to further Gulool Ja's story. It really demonstrates that it's not that they failed to make Zoraal Ja relatable at first: it's that they refused to, until it suited the story they were telling.

While I doubt that it was the writers' intention for Zoraal'Ja to be completely unrelatable in 7.0 (and even if it was, it didn't really work for most people I've talked to), I personally completely agree with you that 7.1 retroactively helped make Zoraal'Ja a more 'real' character.
In my opinion that is the same thing Calyx needs. He's arguably a complex character with a very long history and plenty of influence, but we've only known him for one patch, which is not a lot.

[Carin-Eri]

While I doubt that it was the writers' intention for Zoraal'Ja to be completely unrelatable in 7.0 (and even if it was, it didn't really work for most people I've talked to), I personally completely agree with you that 7.1 retroactively helped make Zoraal'Ja a more 'real' character.
In my opinion that is the same thing Calyx needs. He's arguably a complex character with a very long history and plenty of influence, but we've only known him for one patch, which is not a lot.

I feel that is one of the interesting elements where he is concerned though. As you say, we haven't known him long but it's made clear that he's been watching us for quite a while. Difficult to pinpoint exactly when we caught his attention but I'd argue it has been at least since we rammed a train into Everkeep's front door and defeated everything Vanguard threw at us.

[Cilia]

I feel that is one of the interesting elements where he is concerned though. As you say, we haven't known him long but it's made clear that he's been watching us for quite a while. Difficult to pinpoint exactly when we caught his attention but I'd argue it has been at least since we rammed a train into Everkeep's front door and defeated everything Vanguard threw at us.

I mean, that's the earliest point he could have known about us since our contact with Alexandria was nonexistent until then.

That said Calyx's interest in us seems to have been piqued by our defeat of Queen Eternal at the end of 7.0, if his comment during the Valia Pira fight ("I'm beginning to understand how you were able to defeat Queen Eternal.") is anything to go on. Our indomitability is clearly something he hasn't accounted for so far.

[Thighland]

I mean, that's the earliest point he could have known about us since our contact with Alexandria was nonexistent until then.

That said Calyx's interest in us seems to have been piqued by our defeat of Queen Eternal at the end of 7.0, if his comment during the Valia Pira fight ("I'm beginning to understand how you were able to defeat Queen Eternal.") is anything to go on. Our indomitability is clearly something he hasn't accounted for so far.

Technically, if Calyx is capable of controlling alexandrian sentries like Endless Sphene was (which is likely), he could've known about us since the attack on Tuliyolal.

[Cleretic]

Technically, if Calyx is capable of controlling alexandrian sentries like Endless Sphene was (which is likely), he could've known about us since the attack on Tuliyolal.

Plausibly, the literal very earliest time he could've known to look out for us in the first place was after Zoraal Ja crossed through the gate and presumably shared his experiences. That wouldn't be an especially informative experience on us, but he was at least around to see us in the Valigarmanda fight.

[Carin-Eri]

Technically, if Calyx is capable of controlling alexandrian sentries like Endless Sphene was (which is likely), he could've known about us since the attack on Tuliyolal.

Not certain on that front. Whilst you're correct about the Sentries, I don't recall 'us' coming into direct contact with any during that first attack on Tuliyolal. We didn't participate in defending Tuliyolal during that attack as our goal was to reach the palace.

[Thighland]

Not certain on that front. Whilst you're correct about the Sentries, I don't recall 'us' coming into direct contact with any during that first attack on Tuliyolal. We didn't participate in defending Tuliyolal during that attack as our goal was to reach the palace.

We did look at some broken sentries close-up, though I suppose it's not certain if their visors were still active