Regarding 2.1 story (HEAVY SPOILER)

[Zfz]

This whole post is a spoiler so I'm putting it into a hb tag:

Since we are now distancing ourselves from all three city states, i.e. all three Grand Companies, is there going to be a fourth Grand Company for adventurers? It seems to make the most sense if some of us want to belong to a "neutral" GC.

Just curious.

[Duuude007]

Ishgard gc. 3.0- please be excited.

[Urthdigger]

I imagine it's that, while the Scions as a whole may be an independent organization, the individuals will of course have their own ties and preferences.

[Zfz]

Yeah, I suppose that's how the story was written.

I'm actually quite interested in joining Cid's workshop. :3

[Skyhound]

I'm pretty certain we will be able to switch allegiances and join new factions soon enough. If you notice, SE continuously mentions the ramifications of changing in allegiances in regards to the new content. Yet there is no way to switch yet.

I'm expecting the next faction to be Garlemald with their starting point being Ala Mhigo. Honestly, none of the GC are much better than the Garleans. I would much rather have magitek. Lol

Ishgard is a good possibility too, they may be willing to open their doors a bit to adventurers after the Stone Vigil campaign. Maybe that's where those big gates will lead to.

[Enkidoh]

Actually, you already can change allegiances between Grand Companies - you just need to be at Second Lieutenant rank before you're allowed to do so.

As for the thing about the Scions 'distancing themselves', that's just because

Minfilia got sick of various factions trying to manipulate her organization for their own ends after the Alliance's victory over Gaius and the XIVth Legion, particularly the members of the Syndicate in Ul'dah, and she wanted the Scions to be truly neutral in all affairs. Because Mor Dhona is centrally located in the middle of Aldenard and is regarded as 'no-man's land' so to speak unclaimed by any of the city states, it was the perfect place to relocate to. That doesn't mean they're turning their backs on the citystates however, just that Minfilia feels they're better off being truly independent.

As for being able to play as a Garlean, I seriously doubt that will ever be possible - the Garleans are constantly stated as being antagonists in the lore, and after the main scenario is completed, their power base in Eorzea is broken so they lost a lot of their clout anyway. Not to mention the internal power-plays stated as taking place in Garlemald itself - quite frankly it will be a miracle if the whole country doesn't collapse into civil war.

And besides, this is a Final Fantasy game - rarely, if ever, do you play as an 'antagonist'. This isn't like TOR or WoW where you have two opposing factions fighting each other. In Eorzea, we're all on the same side really, so if you're hoping to be able to play 'the opposition' you'll be sadly disappointed.