Dalamud in a scene

[HeroLogarin]

Hey i have an question lore wise.

I've gotten far enough to understand that our story takes place 5 fears after the calamity. The calamity being bahamut's release and being thrust forward in time. ( i thank youtube videos of the end of 1.0).

Here's the question: was Bahamut resealed away and thats where the coil raids come in?

there's a scene with your respective scion when you start the game, when the echo first occurs for your character, but Dalamud is in the sky. If you look around the sky after the scene, day or night, you don't see Dalamud.

Additional Questionfor understanding the scene better) when does the scene take place in the timeline?

The scene is after the golem fight with the Ascian in the MSQ's and makes it appear that the scion was running to the location that you first meet the scion.

[HeroLogarin]

These questions might have been answered before, but could be buried deep in the forum, so if you guys know the asnwers, or know if this was answered previously and have the links to the posts that would be awesome

[Belhi]

Ok so you saw the end of an era cutscene right? When he broke free? Well what happened after was a mystery. Bahamut disappeared an no one knew why. We find out in the story of the Binding Coils of Bahamut. Its a pretty big spoiler so I will use spoiler tags.

After Louisoix (the old guy) teleported everyone away he was hit by Bahamut's megaflare but didn't die. The failed sealing ritual left a huge amount of aether around him and combined with the prayers of all the Eorzeans at the time it cause Louisoix to be turned into the primal Pheonix. Using that Aether Louisoix/Pheonix attacked Bahamut, defeating him but Bahamut managed to capture his spirit before he could disappate. The remaining functioning parts of Dalamud where designed to keep Bahamut in a constantly summoned state so he couldn't be resummoned so they began to restore him deep under the ground. However Bahamut at this point had tempered agents in the coils and so was less a prisoner and more of a master at this point. He is eventually beaten at the end of the Binding Coils when the Internment hulks keeping him summoned are switched off.

This video has the GCI scene of what happened immediately after the End of an Era cutscene. It will show the lead up that you have seen first though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xOOFCltZuc

This event happens 5 years before the start of ARR. The Binding Coils story plays out after the defeat of the Ultima Weapon in the 2.0 story. Echo visions are usualy visions of the past.

[HeroLogarin]

Wow! That was heavy hitting

So the Echo scene occurs before the that event? I'm curious because of Dalamud being in the scene and that the story that we see leading to Ultima is part of the 2.0 story. Is it a form of foreshadowing to let you know this is going to be a big story point in our characters future? i mean, Dalamud is a big deal in the history of Eorzea and for it to be part of your first Echo seems significant to me.

I guess I'm just trying to understand the story points at the beginning that i some how over looked and didn't understand until recently.

[Balphagor_]

Wow! That was heavy hitting

So the Echo scene occurs before the that event? I'm curious because of Dalamud being in the scene and that the story that we see leading to Ultima is part of the 2.0 story. Is it a form of foreshadowing to let you know this is going to be a big story point in our characters future? i mean, Dalamud is a big deal in the history of Eorzea and for it to be part of your first Echo seems significant to me.

I guess I'm just trying to understand the story points at the beginning that i some how over looked and didn't understand until recently.

The main reason that Dalamud is in that first scene is part forshadowing and part to show you it is quite far in the past.

[Anonymoose]

Here's the question: was Bahamut resealed away and thats where the coil raids come in?

As Belhi laid out, not quite. To zoom in on one thread of that tale: (Binding Coil spoilers.)

In 1.0, Louisoix sent a great number of people on a pilgrimage to pray to the Twelve to save them from Dalamud and the Empire. (He carved the symbols of the Twelve into the random stones you can still find littered throughout Eorzea.)

He planned to cast a summoning spell to use the strength of the Twelve to send Dalamud back into the heavens, but Bahamut broke out of it. The free-floating aether from the failed spell, as Belhi said, combined with uncountable prayers focused on Louisoix and turned him into a primal. He punched through Bahamut and assumed he killed him, so he was going to return all of the aether to the land so it could be reborn (his sentiments of "rebirth from the ashes" are probably why, as a primal, he took on attributes of the phoenix, an image that was probably salient in his mind).

The key point here is that Louisoix was wrong. Bahamut's core, a heart of crystal, had not been emptied or broken; he still had an anchor to the corporeal world. Bahamut tried to re-absorb as much aether as he could, including that of Louisoix, which is why the land recovered so quickly but the job looks half-finished and kind of warped.

Those big sword looking things (internment hulks) that fell out of Dalamud were holding Bahamut in place. Most were disabled in the fall, but four still functioned to some degree. Those four hulks sought out Bahamut's heart to do their job - binding and restoring him to keep him in healthy stasis.

That's why Bahamut is bound in the Coils.

there's a scene with your respective scion when you start the game, when the echo first occurs for your character, but Dalamud is in the sky <...> when does the scene take place in the timeline?

The Echo you see after fighting the Golem actually his little to do with any of that. It's the second time you're meeting your Scions, and the Echo resonates with them and gives you a bunch of random, rapid-fire flashes of their journey prior to that - they're not even in the same year.

Full Explanation of Scenes in the Echo

SCENE 1
It's 1562 (15 years ago). Louisoix (a Sharlayan) has interpreted the Divine Chronicles of Mezaya Thousand-eyes (a prophecy) to divine that the Seventh Umbral Calamity will put an end to the Sixth Astral Era. It's been 5 years since the Garlean Empire took Ala Mhigo and they have now fortified their foothold in the realm to the point that they can begin their war for the Eastern theatre in earnest. He fears that this war will give rise to the Calamity.

Negotiations between Sharlayan and the Empire are falling through, and the Sharlayans are engaged in a mass-exodus back to the motherland (a northern island) from the Eorzean colony (in the Dravanian Hinterlands). Louisoix is defying their orders and their way of life by interfering in other nation's affairs rather than observing history take its course. He has gathered twelve of his disciples and is scattering them across Eorzea to determine whether the city-states plan to make war on Garlemald or not and, however the Calamity is to come, forestall it.

This first flash is his disciple in their assigned city-state, having the sudden realization that it's not just the Empire that puts Eorzea at risk of Calamity. Somehow, the beast tribes have learned to summon primals - great aetherial demigods that have historically appeared in the twilight of an Astral Era. (Disguised Ascians taught them, tricking them into think they were doing the right thing by summoning them to protect themselves.)

BETWEEN SCENES 1 and 2
The Battle of Silvertear Skies (fall of Midgardsormr into Silvertear lake, the destruction of Mor Dhona) takes place while the Scions are investigating the coming Calamity, and soon after the primals indeed begin to appear (a feat facilitated by the broken seal on the lake's aetherial confluence). However, those blessed with the Echo also appear, another phenomenon that the histories say occurs on the cusp of Calamity.

The Empire, having dealt with primals in their conquest of Othard, knows that they are extremely costly to fight and will only be resummoned if defeated. They retreat to Ala Mhigo and for ten years do nothing, as they have no plan. Eorzea settles into a deceptive calm, giving Louisoix's circle time to study and try to get the realm prepared to fight.

In 1572, Nael van Darnus (whose true identity is complicated and explored in the Coils) promises the Emperor that he will restore ancient, lost Meteor magicks by way of technology, bringing Dalamud down upon Eorzea and annihilating it. Gaius van Baelsar disagrees with this, but is placed under Nael's command and ordered to supplement him (having "failed" Silvertear and accomplished nothing for ten years). The VIIth and XIVth Imperial Legions invade Eorzea, Dalamud begins to fall...

SCENE 2
It's 1572 (5 years ago). Dalamud's fall is wreaking havoc on the aetherial rivers that flow under Eorzea. Louisoix's fears were well-founded, and they're hoping that it didn't take them too long to convince the city-states to resurrect the Grand Companies. There's nothing left to do but put faith in Louisoix's plan for the Battle of Cartenau.

SCENE 3
It's about 10 minutes before you first meet the Scions in the first quest. There have been reports that a mysterious stranger (really an Ascian) has been stirring up trouble in the area, usually accompanied by some kind of aetheric disturbance (Ascian void-warping, Darkness magicks, voidsent summoning, who knows. ODDITIES.) This mysterious stranger keeps getting away, but they're ever in pursuit. This is how they came upon you in the first place and how things have changed since 1.0.

Fun Fact for Ul'dahns
With the 1562 scene, you're actually seeing a moemnt that was in 1.0 from a different angle. Remember the parade, where Thancred walked by in the background with a woman in each arm asking "And where are you two lovely ladies staying?" before the Goobbue broke loose? Same moment, different perspective.

[HeroLogarin]

This is awesome! thank you guys so much for this clarification, and the fun little history.

More reasons why I'm starting to love this Lore. \o/