I think FFXIV should be more political actually

[Nero-Voidstails]

keep irl politics out yes but the in game one I will take because they aren't the same in the slightest and I think it was better when politics was involved. even stormblood felt infinitely better then DT

[Hallarem]

But I don't actually love or cherish these at all, so now what?

Tetris is a good option

[Hallarem]

People keep screeching that theres nobody who can beat the WoL because they are superman goku or whatever (which they arent, beyond being very skilled and plot-armored)

Politics. The WoL can't sort out a nations woes alone, they need to work together with the people. Hunger, poverty, injustice, invading forces and occupation, and its effects. Two factions who just have a different take instead of being good vs evil faction. The WoL can inspire and fight in pockets against big foes, but you cant swing a fist against systems.

Ffxiv is threathening to be stuck in the mire that WoW forced itself into "What flavor of thing is trying to end the world now" rince and repeat. And lose its one edge. Ffxivs nuanced and good writing.

[Kirutsuki]

It's not just "politics" imo. what 14 currently doesn't have is a villain that can actually cause harm to the general populace with an army or by rule of law.
We got rid of the empire, so now were left off with villains that have to find some "magic object" to cause havok with.

And Zoraal Ja was supposed to be this new threat since he was mocking the weakness of the Empire, but he didn't even have an army and Wuk Llamat made it sound like he was
this tyrannical leader, which he wasn't really a leader of anything yet.

So when you introduce these new villains to the story they always fall flat because we know they don't actually have alot of influence on people themselves, they rely on magical gadgets to rule people with.
But true villains are people who show up and have a massive army behind them and actually start to take take over areas in the world and turning them into some wastelands.

And through that, you can have political situation happen in the story because the opposition is literally in your direct opposition and actively tries to ruin the peace.
But if it's just a dude with magic crystal yelling "I hate people", it's never going to go anywhere deeper cause all we need to do is get that crystal away from them and they're just a baby without anyone supporting them after.

[PercibelTheren]

The political turmoil of Ishgard is what made that entire expansion worthwhile.

I enjoyed the conflict in changing an entire government system into something more fair and equitable.

Yes! The political intrigue in Heavensward was SO GOOD. I loved it. I loved the patch quests where it was shown how certain groups don't want the war to end because of their beliefs or agendas. I would love more of this in the story again.

I was really hoping we would get to go back to Garlemald and help their society rebuild itself, differently this time. It would be prime grounds for all manner of political tensions - revolutionaries, folks clinging to the remaining shreds of the old order, all of that. We even have the Twins there. I thought a "Garlean Restoration" crafter area would have been perfect, instead we got...an asset flip of the Moon.

[PercibelTheren]

I like a redemption arc, when it's well built and well thought of (reminds me of Fordola)... but I really think there are way to many "sudden" redemption arcs, especially in minor and side quests.

Same here. I love a redemption arc. I know it's fiction but that's kind of...part of the fantasy for me? I think making some villains see the error of their ways and pushing them towards doing better is a big part of being a hero for me. They can be done really well with a competent writing team, too. It's just that lazy, unskilled writers love to go for "redemption by death" where the villain sees the light and redeems themselves via a heroic sacrifice, or a "heel face turn" where the genocidal maniac is suddenly petting puppies and throwing tea parties with orphans with no explanation as to how this change happened.

[PercibelTheren]

I'm fine with a political intrigue in the story. But there's a line where it's used to write a compelling story and when it's used to further an agenda.

And, as we know, "agenda" is code for "political stance I don't like", especially when it comes to minorities. A lot of beloved games and movies are political as hell but reactionaries are either too dumb to see the subtext or are digging their heels in in denial because oh no, their fave disagrees with them.

[Hallarem]

Duskwight uprising from their underdark settlements and Gridanian civil war, elementals going berserk, Keepers of the Moon demanding to be treated better.

Power vacuum in bozja between resistance forces trying to form a new government

The general populace of Dalmasca who hated the royals getting to grips with returning royalty or wanting a people-lead nation

Any power vacuum the empire left. Heck there is a power vacuum in the empire itself.

They have tons of subjects they ALREADY WROTE. But they dont want to tackle them

[Kranel_San]

Have you tried candy crush?

Tetris is a good option

What's wrong? Did the political fans get triggered by the notion that stories can be enjoyed without politics?

Maybe consider that not every story element is for everyone and that there are people who enjoyed other genres, including cliches that you don't have to necessarily like?

And if you like politics so much, you may want to consider getting elected to an office. It should definitely help you gain more doses of these 'Politics' than this forum would.

[RedLolly]

The Empire's power vacuum was what I think was hinted as the inevitable Meracydia expansion. But I kind of feel like that region could end up being FFXIV's last hurrah in general since so many aspects of the established story and lore return to Meracydia in some way.

-Bahamut's kingdom, so we'll be likely working a bit with Tiamat and continuing on rescuing/mercy killing their poor children and capping off the final lingering threads of the dragon's stories. Might actually see a proper dragon settlement and not the ones built by people for both dragons and humans.
-Allag's worst war was there, and we could find the remnants or even meet the tribes that were associated with the Warring Triad a long with a ton more ruins and relics.
-The Garlean homeland is here, with some serious conflicts over the region as the the entire reason Garlemald started their hostile takeovers (or at least what Emet got them to believe) was to reclaim the lands they lost from the people that, apparently, still live there. That's a political intrigue goldmine right there. We barely know anything about the people that actually drove out the Garleans, for one.
-The G' tribe of Miqo'te with their direct ties to the Allagan bloodline is settled here. G'raha was specifically given to Galuf to raise because he was likely to be experimented on as a baby if the Garleans found him, and nothing is stopping another kid from having the red-eye. G'raha, of course, would have plenty of reason to be here, and he's a Allagan historian and archeologist precisely because of his heritage.

Basically every open thread remaining by the HZ story arc is there, and since DT didn't really give us more, Meracydia might just close out the whole game instead of just being a chapter.