Ilberd

[Hinoto-no-Ryuji]

Much of the allegations against the Garlean army come from people who have escaped from their held territory, which is to say, from Ala Mhigo. That city is held by the XIVth Legion, which, far from being some rogue soldiers, is (was?) one of Garlemald's foremost and most-celebrated military forces*. Everything that's leveled against them - implied prostitution (not rape, actual prostitution), forced conscription followed by brainwashing via brutality, etc - speaks to ongoing military policy against a captured population. Furthermore, they've held the city for a long time - it was the first foothold in Eorzea, pre-dating van Darnus' arrival from Othard by a significant amount. And speaking of Othard, the picture painted of the Doman occupation by its refugees isn't exactly brighter, which would imply similarly brutal tactics being employed by the other conquering Legions. Now, these are obviously biased accounts, but nothing has actually been presented yet in-game that gives another view. That could obviously change, but until it does, the impression that the real-world storytellers want us to have of Garlemald-as-conquerors is pretty clearly not a positive one. As has been so astutely pointed out before in this thread, this game hasn't shied from giving shades of grey to its world and story before; if the dev team wanted us to view Garlemald with shades of grey, these accounts would have something balanced against them. We'll have to see as time goes on.

(As for citizenship, much of what we know comes from the Garlean hierarchy books in the Great Gubal Library, easily the most un-biased accounts available. We know that they don't afford the same citizenship considerations to the people of conquered territories, as Rome did; instead, they're fodder for the Garlean war machine.)
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*Yes, I know the XIVth Legion is effectively rogue post-Calamity. I don't think that's especially relevant; Gaius never lost his loyalty to the Empire, even after they abandoned him, and anyways they were occupying Ala Mhigo well before that.

[CyrusArjuna]

Eh, was just trying to play Devil's Advocate. Has the brainwashing thing come up since the 1.0 story? I honestly can't recall a mention of it in ARR...but I might have missed something like the Garlean citizenship thing I mentioned. And the forced prostitution thing? I know there was a mention of that one NPC who was birthed from rape but again, don't remember prostitution being brought up

[DroFrehter]

All I know about Ilberd is I am mad I didn't get to chop off his head.

[CyrusArjuna]

We probably will get to take his punk ass out eventually...or he'll do something idiotic and get killed from that instead. I kinda hope we get a Palmer (FF7) moment where he unceremoniously gets run over by a car.

[Enkidoh]

Eh, was just trying to play Devil's Advocate. Has the brainwashing thing come up since the 1.0 story? I honestly can't recall a mention of it in ARR...but I might have missed something like the Garlean citizenship thing I mentioned. And the forced prostitution thing? I know there was a mention of that one NPC who was birthed from rape but again, don't remember prostitution being brought up

Not specifically since 1.0 - but the zealous nature of most Garlean soldiers in ARR seems to suggest that it is still very much the case (remember that LNC who utterly butchered fallen Scions in the Waking Sands? The guy was utterly insane, so much so Livia shot him dead.

Either way, 1.0 clearly showed the brainwashing taking place (through an Echo scene, which, although it's unclear whose memory it was, it seems to have actually been Gaius's memory as he was the only Garlean around at that time):

(The player comes to in a darkened cave. Nearby are a group of frightened children sitting huddled together)
Shivering Child: "Where are we going?"
Terrified Child: "...."
Shuddering Child: "Mama..."
Cried-Out Child: "Where are you from? I'm from Ala Mhigo..."
Cowering Child: "Please... I'm so tired..."
(The player then sees a group of Garlean soldiers approaching, led by a Garlean Centurion. The player quickly hides behind a bush. The Garleans surround the children and the Centurion addresses them.
Imperial Centurion: "Believe thyself. Believe thy strength."
Imperial Centurion: "Know thyself. Know thy weakness."
Imperial Centurion: "Thou art alone. One amongst many."
Imperial Centurion: "The land is alone. One star in the Void."
Imperial Centurion: "See through the lies. See beyond the words of deceivers."
Imperial Centurion: "Follow the truth. Follow the whispers of verity."
Imperial Centurion: "Protect that which must be. Destroy that which must not."
Imperial Centurion: "For Calamity draws nigh. The end is upon thee!"
(A change comes over the children as they suddenly stop whimpering and start hissing angrily through clenched teeth)
Shuddering Child: "Kill the tribes."
Terrified Child: "Kill their gods."
Shuddering Child: "Kill the tribes."
Shuddering Child: "Before the Land doth perish!"
(The Garlean soldiers then lead the children outside to a hovering Garlean airship and the Echo scene ends)

Additionally, at other times during 1.0 it was stated how Ala Mhigan children would be taken from their parents by the Garleans and then sent north for military training 'never to be seen or heard from again':

Brutish Resistance Member: "The Empire is using Ala Mhigo as a breeding ground for new soldiers. Once children reach a certain age, they are taken from their parents and sent into the north for training, never to be seen or heard from again."

ARR might not have shown this though, but the conduct of Garlean soldiers in ARR seems to make this ring true, or at least, it does to me.

As for prostitution, there were several cases in ARR where it was mentioned Garlean soldiers were raping Ala Mhigans - firstly, at Revenant's Toll during the lead up to infiltrating Castrum Centri, Glaumunt mentioned this was the fate that befell his mother and sister after his family were forcibly imprisoned in a Garlean gulag, both of whom ended up being driven to suicide because of the sexual abuse they were being subjected to by the Garlean soldiers:

Glaumunt: "Like most folk, I used to have a mother. She was a sweet, carin' woman with a smile never far from her face. There was a sister too. Pretty little thing-gentle as a lamb, but tough as nails. We were poor folk livin' simple lives, but we knew happiness just the same."
Glaumunt: "An' then the Imperials came an' took it all away. When Ala Mhigo fell, they put my family in a camp. Bein' a lad, I was made to do hard labour, while my mother an' sister were made to do far worse.... They hid their sufferin' from me as best they could, but I knew, an' the thought of it drove me mad. We had to escape. An' so I hatched a plan to get us out o' the city."
Glaumunt: "We were pickin' our way around a gorge not far outside the walls when they caught up with us... An' rather than allow themselves to be taken again, my mother an' sister leaped over the edge before my very eyes. Heartbroken as I was, I didn't put up a fight when the Imperials clapped me in chains an' dragged me back."

Then, a short time later, while infiltrating Castrum Centri, there is a Garlean soldier who if you speak to him admits he's lusting after a female prisoner (naturally, one of the Scions), which the player makes the obvious conclusion it's Minfilia, but in actual fact, he's lusting after Tataru (for extra 'yuck' value, the Garlean is a Midlander hyur), and admits to what he wants to do to her (albeit using euphemisms to hide his true intentions under a 'benign' veneer, but he didn't fool me)...

Imperial Guard: "Greetings, comrade. Forgive me for asking, but you haven't visited the storage tower recently, have you? I only ask because I dropped something in there, and... um.. Oh who am I fooling? I've fallen for one of the prisoners, allright? I daresay you know the one I mean... Eh? The svelte blonde? Goodness no!"
Imperial Guard: "It's the lalafell lass I'm smitten with! She's so adorable, it hurts! I want to sweep her up into my arms and squeeze her to my arms ache! What do you think it will take to convince the Centurion to lend me the key so I could see her?"

.... I honestly could barely finishing typing that before a wave of nausea washed over me.... -_-

Needless to say, that alone shows just how 'benign' the Garleans are towards members of conquered nations, and no amount of sugar coating it can change that. The game makes it perfectly clear that they are not to be sympathized with and are the stereotypical 'evil Empire'.

[myahele]

The only instance where we get to speak with the conscripted Garlean soldiers was when we posed as on in the MSQ. It was an interesting take to see how they acted and to be honest, they seemed pretty normal. Which we subsequently kill to the the Magitek Reaper

Npca
My wife bore me a son not long after I was sent here. I can't wait to go home and meet him.

Npcb
Did you hear about these insurgents? Apparently, they've got their eye on the castrum. Personally, I'd like to see them try to take it. It'd serve to lift the tedium.

Npcc
Get moving, you lot! The quicker we march, the sooner this will be over!

Npcd
All the coin I make doing this goes to the wife in the country. If it turns out she's been squandering it on fancy clothes and gewgaws, I will not be amused.
pce
They say it's our duty to bring civilization to these lands, but what if these lands don't want civilizing?

Npcf
From another patrol, are you? When next you see your commanding officer, tell him that he leads a sloppy unit. If any of my lot forgot to salute a superior officer, they would be on their arse faster than you can say “latrine duty.”

Npcf
One of our covert operatives, I take it? In or out of uniform, you would do well to remember your courtesies.

Npcf
Carry on, soldier. ...Hm? Insurgents gathering to the east, you say?

Doesn't help the the only Garlean ally we have don't talk about life as a citizen. The only thing we know is that Cid is still celebrated as a genius despite defecting, at least according to Nero.

[CyrusArjuna]

I for some reason can't see the raping of conquered women as a state sponsored activity, but the only officers we really interact with at any point in the story are Luvia, Nero, Rhaehrlhaer (Roegadyn guy), and Gaius...and we aren't exactly going into the specifics of their military policy abroad when we encounter them. I'm not trying to whitewash it, but it hasn't really been referenced all that much outside of 2.0. It might play into the gray nature of a lot of the cities to counteract the soldiers that Myahele quoted above.

And for that guy who was smitten by Tataru...this might just be me personally but I didn't read too much into it. He might be another one of those normal soldiers who just so happen to have a soft spot for cute things? I mean, that's how I am IRL. Kittens, tiny turtles, puppies, lalafells, etc are enough to make me go all :3

[Theodric]

I think a lot of people just refuse to consider that maybe, just maybe, Garlemald is more complex than being another dull and stereotypical 'evil empire'. Very little in this game's lore has ever been presented as purely 'good' or purely 'evil'. Why would they make Garlemald the exception, especially when they've already taken steps to make the place morally grey rather than morally black?

I've also said this before but...Eorzea really isn't in a position to take the moral high ground. It's not as bad as Garlemald, sure, but that doesn't mean much when Eorzea is typically presented as a terrible place to live - and not just because of Garlemald being the 'aggressor', either, before that card is pulled out again.

Heck, the recent patch pretty much revolved around Aymeric refusing to address his people's legitimate concerns and ensuring that the flawed status quo of inequality continues...and that his people focus their attention on Nidhogg rather than each other due to 'national pride'. That isn't too different to how Garlemald operates - and it may very well have been how Garlemald first began taking the steps towards taking a more direct approach to acquiring more power and influence.

As for not being able to 'sympathise' with Garlemald, I thoroughly contest that. You don't need to approve of everything that a nation or society does in order to sympathise with them. For all we know there's a fairly good reason as to why Garlemald is so aggressive - if they were pushed around, for example, and it turns out that initially they weren't the aggressors and were pushed around back when they were a weaker nation then that changes quite a lot of things. Putting that aside, however, since it's only speculation...

...we can go right back to the clear similarities between the Garleans and the Romans. Say what you will about the Romans but for all the bad stuff they did they accomplished an immense amount of brilliant stuff that influences us to this very day.

[Alberel]

All I know about Ilberd is I am mad I didn't get to chop off his head.

Patience. I imagine we'll face him again either immediately before or during the next expansion (assuming it is indeed Ala Mhigo).

[Enkidoh]

I think a lot of people just refuse to consider that maybe, just maybe, Garlemald is more complex than being another dull and stereotypical 'evil empire'. Very little in this game's lore has ever been presented as purely 'good' or purely 'evil'. Why would they make Garlemald the exception, especially when they've already taken steps to make the place morally grey rather than morally black?

I've also said this before but...Eorzea really isn't in a position to take the moral high ground. It's not as bad as Garlemald, sure, but that doesn't mean much when Eorzea is typically presented as a terrible place to live - and not just because of Garlemald being the 'aggressor', either, before that card is pulled out again.

Heck, the recent patch pretty much revolved around Aymeric refusing to address his people's legitimate concerns and ensuring that the flawed status quo of inequality continues...and that his people focus their attention on Nidhogg rather than each other due to 'national pride'. That isn't too different to how Garlemald operates - and it may very well have been how Garlemald first began taking the steps towards taking a more direct approach to acquiring more power and influence.

As for not being able to 'sympathise' with Garlemald, I thoroughly contest that. You don't need to approve of everything that a nation or society does in order to sympathise with them. For all we know there's a fairly good reason as to why Garlemald is so aggressive - if they were pushed around, for example, and it turns out that initially they weren't the aggressors and were pushed around back when they were a weaker nation then that changes quite a lot of things. Putting that aside, however, since it's only speculation...

...we can go right back to the clear similarities between the Garleans and the Romans. Say what you will about the Romans but for all the bad stuff they did they accomplished an immense amount of brilliant stuff that influences us to this very day.

That may be, but SE themselves have never shown themselves as taking that view, always referring or depicting the Empire as nothing other than evil, all conquering warmongers utterly convinced of their own superiority, where as the Eorzean citystates at least, have admitted their faults and failings and stated that despite their differences and problems, they have only ever had their peoples' best interests, safety and happiness at heart. They only wish to be left alone to deal with their own problems themselves, to live and die by their own hand, their own will.

Garleans though (as in, those still loyal to Garlemald, I'm talking about those who have defected to Eorzea) have never once admitted that Garlemald's pragmatic view might actually be wrong and utterly self-serving, regarding themselves as smugly superior to everyone else, and that only they have the answers to the problems plaguing Hydaelyn - which is pretty clear they do not, save for occasionally digging up ancient Allagan relics that they don't even understand and bringing the entire world under their jackboot through both the olive branch and the sword. "Might makes right" is pretty much their attitude, regarding everyone else as "savages" (which, as Mark Twain famously mused, is the biggest hypocrisy out), I'm going to keep regarding Garlemald and their agents as clear-cut 'Evil Empire' antagonists who stand in the way of peace in not just Eorzea, but all of Hydaelyn.