"Mayhap"

[alimdia]

In all seriousness, Koji Fox actually talked about this before, (paraphrasing) he explained his choice of language by comparing plain English to eating normal meals every day and the dialog in this game to having a dessert every now and then.

What Koji Fox overlooked there is that instead of having regular meals every day, now we're having desserts every day for 4 years + however long this game will last, having dessert in place of every meal is as bad if not worse than plain meals, and I really hope the people in Ilsabard or the New World at least use plain English so we can get a break of the same old dialog.

[Noshpan]

"Must needs" has always triggered my "that's not grammatically correct" part of me. It forces me to inform my brain that, yes, "must needs" is grammatically correct usage. I'm learning to cope with it.

[Lukha]

None of those words are any more overused than their more modern equivalents would be, though. 'Pray' as a replacement for 'please', 'mayhap' for 'maybe/possibly/perhaps'. 'Anon' ('later'..ish...) you could make an argument for, but only because the way it's used isn't how people typically construct a sentence these days?

I would have liked to see the Domans written differently; if not slightly more modern, than at least a somewhat simpler form, to show that while they're fluent, it's not their native language. I can live without it, though!

I'm also deeply disappointed that (early SB spoilers)

the Garlean national anthem was in English (Even with the Japanese track on) rather than Latin, since everything else about them is so Romanesque it hurts. In my heart it's only because The Echo is translating it for us, though.

[Daralii]

In all seriousness, Koji Fox actually talked about this before, (paraphrasing) he explained his choice of language by comparing plain English to eating normal meals every day and the dialog in this game to having a dessert every now and then.

What Koji Fox overlooked there is that instead of having regular meals every day, now we're having desserts every day for 4 years + however long this game will last, having dessert in place of every meal is as bad if not worse than plain meals, and I really hope the people in Ilsabard or the New World at least use plain English so we can get a break of the same old dialog.

I assume he meant in regards to XIV versus other games, instead of within XIV as a vacuum. It definitely uses a lot more quasi-Shakespearean English than most. I also don't know if that was before or after the recasts they did for 3.0, which I vaguely remember replacing some characters' American dialects.

[Aquaslash]

Psssh...Skohh...Uplanders can always fill braincases with gobbie speak if elder sayings cause too many head hurtings

[Tsvai]

I'm also deeply disappointed that (early SB spoilers)

the Garlean national anthem was in English (Even with the Japanese track on) rather than Latin, since everything else about them is so Romanesque it hurts. In my heart it's only because The Echo is translating it for us, though.

I guess I should put my response to this behind a spoiler quote too...? Spoiler alert for fairly early Stormblood MSQ.

I'm embarrassingly fixated on the similarities between Garlemald and Ancient Rome (we all had that one ancient culture we were obsessed with as teenagers right? right??? mine was classical mythology and culture), so this kind of thing is something I've actually paid attention to too.
If you listen carefully, at the tail end of that cutscene the anthem actually stops being in English (I don't know about with the English voice track, but when running the Japanese, the subtitles also stop at this point). It's difficult to make out clearly, but it does sound like it switches to Latin or faux-Latin. I'd like to take a whack at translating it, but I can't pick out what's being said well enough to do it. It could be because I'm terrible at picking out lyrics from choir vocals, or it could be because it's faux-Latin like with Ultima - which I'm still (jokingly) salty about. I really wanted the lyrics for that. I felt so betrayed.

[Lukha]

I guess I should put my response to this behind a spoiler quote too...? Spoiler alert for fairly early Stormblood MSQ.

I'm embarrassingly fixated on the similarities between Garlemald and Ancient Rome (we all had that one ancient culture we were obsessed with as teenagers right? right??? mine was classical mythology and culture), so this kind of thing is something I've actually paid attention to too.
If you listen carefully, at the tail end of that cutscene the anthem actually stops being in English (I don't know about with the English voice track, but when running the Japanese, the subtitles also stop at this point). It's difficult to make out clearly, but it does sound like it switches to Latin or faux-Latin. I'd like to take a whack at translating it, but I can't pick out what's being said well enough to do it. It could be because I'm terrible at picking out lyrics from choir vocals, or it could be because it's faux-Latin like with Ultima - which I'm still (jokingly) salty about. I really wanted the lyrics for that. I felt so betrayed.

I don't know about anyone else, but I basically exhausted my local library's stock of books on mythology, as well of that of every school I ever attended. I have a slight preference for the Greek versions, but only slight. Took Latin and Greek in highschool, too, and you have no idea how much I regret not taking it seriously at the time...

I actually hadn't picked up on that; I was trying to listen, but also paying attention to the scene itself, and I really thought it was still in Englis, just too drowned out to hear clearly. I'll have to give it another listen when the servers are back up, maybe with the music volume turned way up and everything else turned way down. Or maybe we'll get a clearer version or official lyrics released eventually, like for the other vocal songs?

I'm really glad to see I'm not the only one thrilled with the Garleans and their incredible Romaness, though.

Probably being paranoid at this point, but I wouldn't want to ruin anyone's day with a spoiler.

[Ryldaun]

is it just me? dose this word over use in main scenario

I know this thread topic is from 2017 but damn they really say mayhap in every single cutscene and almost every longer text. I played the game in german language for all the years but recently playing it in english. The voices are great and all, but that word is so overused that I sometimes skip a scene just because of that xD

[Fyrebrand]

I love the writing in FFXIV, but Minfilia says "Is aught amiss?" so often that I am convinced it's purposeful trolling.

that word is so overused

I think you mean it's used much and more.

[Iscah]

Old replies, but whatever.

I absolutely hate how they use thee/thou, etc, all over the place, because they use it to mean formal speech when it is actually the informal/personal when it was in use in English? Ugggh. They do overuse mayhaps, ere, must needs, pray, but I just chalk that up to the local dialect.

Depending on time period and context, it can be as simple as thou=singular, you=plural. Then it somehow became a thing to address someone with the plural form as a way of showing respect, and it slowly took over everything.

Also I don't think Urianger is doing it to be formal. It's either the simpler single/plural or perhaps it's just how he speaks to his friends. He does use "you" in the formal sense at least once, late in Shadowbringers –

to Feo Ul during the scene with Bismarck, using the formal version to address the king of the pixies. He also possibly uses it for Bismarck as well, a bit cloudier due to translation convention in effect, but Bismarck uses "thou" in reply.

Mayhap thee could try another game?

* thou couldst

'Anon' ('later'..ish...)

It means "soon".