Crystal Tower: idle speculation on the future

[Fenral]

I remembered a point in the post-game MS quests where Minfilia remarks about Alisaie staying behind at the Waking Sands with Urianger. At the time it made no sense to me, because I had yet to start the Binding Coil questline. So while it may have simply been a continuity error, there's already a small precedent for side-stories being referenced in the Main Scenario quests regardless of their completion.

The Crystal Tower is probably the most prominent new landmark of ARR, so seeing it written off, along with a promising new character, simply to tell Cid nan Garlond, of all people, to "build a brighter future" seems like a bit too much wasted potential, especially since the "close ties" it was hinted to have to the main storyline have seemingly yet to materialize. Seeing it play a major role in Cid's motivations in Heavensward seems likely, at the very least.

[ColorOfSakura]

I was going to say, I'm curious about the final sequence after Nero walks away. Does it portend the existence of Eureka still buried underneath the Crystal Tower? Or is there something else down there in the abyss?

[Talia_Hailwind]

Once we get to ilvl 150 stuff I can see them putting the Crystal tower stuff completed as a requirement for part of the main story just so they don't create a time paradox by having cid appear when he is meant to be at crystal tower if a player has not completed that story, same for coils.

[Eltaire]

I was going to say, I'm curious about the final sequence after Nero walks away. Does it portend the existence of Eureka still buried underneath the Crystal Tower? Or is there something else down there in the abyss?

You mean the fact that his device started beeping after he threw it and walked away? I wondered about that, myself.

[RickiFake02]

You mean the fact that his device started beeping after he threw it and walked away? I wondered about that, myself.

Yep. Dying to know that that was about!

[Fenral]

We all are! Though some of us admittedly more than most. XP

Going by Yoshi-P's Famitsu interview on 2.5, he reiterates that Eureka still remains, and maybe unintentionally hints that this is only the ending "for the time being." I'd like to believe that that beeping, combined with the abrupt nature of the current ending, is a sign that they've decided to go through with Eureka after all, in some form or another. Hopefully as part of Cid's storyline in the expansion, and maybe with Nero returning just in time to return the favor.

[ruskie]

Well they have already said that the expansion will feature an original raid. But I could see CT and ST becoming a riddle type questline around it or something to figure stuff out about the Allags and such. This reminds me the other day when I was in keeper friend goes... what's that light over there... and I look and go hmm... ahh that's the tower! So technically the tower is already part of the main story in that way. I guess it's one of those hints that it exists and that you can do it.

[Baithin]

I don't think it'd be too far beyond the realm of possibility that they'd make the CT questline required for future story developments. I mean, most people do it anyway. Not so much for G'raha, but because Cid and the rest of Garlond Ironworks are major players in the main storyline (and will most likely continue to be) and it'd be weird to see them again without referencing anything that happened in CT. The CT quests mention things about the main story (such as you felling primals and being the Warrior of Light), so why can't it be done the other way around?

Though it is interesting to note that the main storyline does mention Frontlines even if you have never participated or even unlocked it. Frontlines are even pretty important to the plot, what with the Carteneau Flats being the location of Omega... This leads me to believe that participating in Frontlines at least once will be a requirement for story progression. They made us to a bunch of guildhests and the story has us revisiting old dungeons (Qarn) so why not Frontlines and CT?

I loved the post above about Eureka being an underground storehouse for Allagan Weapons... As in the Diamond, Ruby, etc weapons. Though I can't imagine us fighting all of them one-on-one (or 8-on-one) in duties. Considering how they roam around in FF7, though, I can see them being FATE bosses or just being eliminated in the storyline.

[Fenral]

For all we know, Eureka could be the resting place for Omega Weapon, and while he is somewhere underneath Cartenau, they're simply looking for the entrance in the wrong place.

[Naria]

You can edit your first post Fenral to bypass the character limit.

The impression I got was that CT and any plots connected to it were basically done. We undoubtedly will see Cid again, and possibly the other free members of NOAH, but the events of the storyline have any impact on other storylines I think it will only be referenced obliquely like how Coil is in the MSQ. I hope they don't gate any post game in Heavenward behind ARR as I feel the gates are becoming silly. At most there might be something like the Lunar Transmitter check for 1.0 players, where if you completed it you get slightly different dialogue in quests if they do anything definitively post CT.