The Raimdelle Codex Alces

[Anonymoose]

Just noticed that the Hippogryphs appear to have accidentally migrated over to the Voidsent category instead of the cloudkin one (not sure if that was intended?)

This is actually a point of contention between me and Moose, so I can assure you that it is wholly on purpose. I cannot recall his reasoning (nor mine against) but I have memory of the discussion.

Don't worry, the private version of the sheet has an extra tab for [Evidence For / Against] where I made sure to note everything from that debate, lol.

As you could guess: Hippogryphs continue to be a headache. They seem related to Griffins, right? Just very mangy cloudkin? And yet I couldn't actually find any evidence of that when I tried to support it. Rather, I found more to the contrary - that they're griffin-like voidsent - essentially voidhounds. For starters, if you look at a griffin and hippo side-by-side, their biology isn't as similar as you'd expect. Their wings are in different positions and have different structures, and they don't even have the same number of digits (griffins have 2 toes, hippos have 3).

Next, you have where they appear - almost always alongside voidsent. Primary, back to 1.0, you find them in Coerthas, where plasmoids, bogies, and ogres, and in 2.0, tauri, wisps, and vodoriga, too, are pouring out of the caves. This extends into Mor Dhona, where they appear alongside plasmoids and ogres and have a FATE called Another Day, Another Demon. Notice that they aren't really a common sight in Northern Thanalan, either, ... until the Chimera shows up. Hippos also appear during Necrologos levequests, going all the way back to being the bosses of Lords of Skyey Realms and The Moons' Mistress of 1.0, and also popped up during the Black Mage quests. They turn up in Copperbell Mines (alongside bombs, ghosts, slimes, and wisps), Amdapor Keep (alongside ... just everything), and the Dzemael Darkhold (alongside bogies, ahriman, demons, gnats*, ogres, skeletons**, and a gargoyle. When it comes to treasure maps, they're filed away next to taurus, bomb, grenade, vodoriga, and ahriman.

The real anomaly is the Dravanian Forelands, where they seem to have nothing in common with anything. And the FATE Cerf's Up, in that very zone, says "Not quite a hippogryph and technically not a griffin, the hippocerf is the awkward little cousin in the lion-eagle hybrid family."

Like I said ... a headache. I don't recall Eorzeans making a claim either way, but I found more evidence towards voidsent than away from it (for now).

* Gnats were vilekin for all of 1.0 and have been voidsent for all of ARR. It bothers me and I haven't worked it out, yet.

** Skeletons are not voidsent, but ashkin. However, I believe ashkin to be corporeal remains of the dead animated by any outside force, and I believe that, oftentimes, that outside force is a low-ranking voidsent. I believe this to be especially true of skeletons and fell knights. Time will tell!

Also, the megalotragus is in voidsent as well - I'd have figured it to be beastkin, but maybe not? I'm a bit curious about them in general - in the Aquapolis they're always grouped with an auroch, so I'm assuming the floors are trying to match like-creatures with like-creatures....

I strongly agree with you here. The megalotragus first appeared in Amdapor Keep, which is swarming with voidsent. But it did so at an early stage of the dungeon - the area where most dungeons are exhibiting mobs that just happened to wander in from outside. The only weird part was ... we've never seen one outside. They certainly look like "void-goats". Because there is now doubt on the nature of both the Amdapor and Aquapolis appearances, we must keep a very close eye out for the megalotragus' third appearance.

Funny story, Polis Griffin doesnt' appear with cloudkin, either. /tableflip

Since I'm in the voidsent section, I presume entities like Anantaboga in Amdapor Keep NM are also dahak, along with the Valefors in Labyrinth of the Ancients?

Correct. I called them Dahak at first, after FFXI, where they were summoned from the underworld by the Shadow Lord. However, I ended up changing the name to "Shadow Dragon" for clarity and because a Dahak had never actually appeared in XIV. One just showed up, though! \o/

Seem you need a name for the White Aevises. Since the Aevis mobs come from XII, how about Archaeoaevis?

Unfortunately, because Archaeoaevis is a name that was assigned to a red and black aevis in a Coerthas FATE. /tableflip

Alternatively we could call the subgenus Jura Aevis

Agreed. I'm caught between Jura (first appearance) and Bone (more accurate). I thought I was onto something when I noticed that black aevis mostly show up with the hate-filled minions of the Horde under Nidhogg, while the white aevis mostly show up relating to the heretics and their faith under Ysayle, who is closer-aligned (at last in her mind) with Hraesvelgr. But that doesn't seem to fully apply... Screw it, let's go with Jura for now. Meaning "one who has taken the oath", it seems fitting enough for now. [UPDATED]

I think the "Genus" of Kuribu would be a Golem (though more advanced then the usual rock monsters), the Winged Lion might be the same

Agreed. Even for the sake of my own chosen naming conventions for the like of zombies, verge dragons, and golems, those are better names. At the same time, it seems like a good idea to change it now (for clarity and consistency), but a bad idea to change it now because (for now) there's only one example of that mob in the game at all.