The Legacy of Alexander and the Xaela [Spoilers]

[LystAP]

The primal Alexander was born of the Hotgo, a tribe massacred by the Dotharl, whom recently received a fair bit of attention in the MSQ. I wonder exactly when did the massacre happen and why?

The Dotharl raise a number of questions with their beliefs that seem rather close to descriptions of the Echo, and their relationship with the Hotgo that they slaughtered, creates more questions to be asked. This also may tie in with the House of Crooked Coin, which allegedly contains a essence of Nhaama, and figures into the Dotharl act of ending their cycle of rebirth.

Mide Hotgo and her lover Dayan, alongside her comrades summoned Alexander the first time about three years ago past Heavensward. Key to this story is the horn stuck in Seal Rock, the plot of which took place in 1.0, about seven to five years ago. It was retrieved by an Ascian agent and spirited away to where Mide lived as a child - presumably the Azim Steppes. This might place the massacre around the time of the Calamity, when Ascian activity was at a peak. Then again, with the Echo visions in 1.0, it is unclear when the Ascians acquired the horn.

The larger question is why did the Ascians give the horn to Mide? Did they know that the Dotharl were going to massacre her tribe, or did they have a personal hand in it? The Dotharl in-game are strangely hospitable, a far cry from a tribe that would massacre an entire tribe to the last woman and child. However, Cirina did note that the Dotharl of the past used to reign and they have lost power recently. Could this be tied to the massacre of the Hotgo?

Another point of interest is the Enigma Codex, supposedly completed in 1740, about 102 years since the start of 1.0. The Enigma Codex contained knowledge and information that could have made its owners powerful beyond their dreams, yet the knowledge inside was never used pre-Garlean Empire. More over, at the end of the Alexander series, it is said that Mide and Dayan were reborn in ancient times as founders of the Hotgo tribe. Does that mean the Codex existed even earlier in various forms before evolving into the Codex as seen in-game? If it existed among the Xaela tribes, why didn’t its owners use the Codex to uplift the Xaela?

[Belhi]

Not just anyone can use the Codex. Its possible a certain cultural mindset might have lead to the Codex remaining dormant for a long period of time. While it might have been tied to the actions of the Ascians its not clear without knowing exactly when the massacre took place. Was if after Mide left?

The Au Ra have a lot of mysteries introduced and very few of them given any answers. Its clear that someone built all those structures and the current Nomadic Xeala don't seem to have the skillsets. We also have had them hint at a third clan before now out of game. Who are the gods the Mol listen too? Those who have done the WAR story would know of the Qorel and the Will of Keresh. Who was Keresh and why does one specific tribe seem to have it manifest?

Alexander very much has a chicken and the egg thing going on. Its really hard to be sure what causes what. Hell Alexander might have even set up the Massacre if it served his goal of permanently removing himself from the timeline.

[KageTokage]

One of the Dotharl mentions that they suffered heavy losses in their battle with the Hotgo as though it happened fairly recently, so that's likely the cause for the loss of power Cirina mentioned. I wouldn't be surprised if that resulted in them becoming less aggressive towards the other tribes and outsiders because the last thing they'd want is to make more enemies when they're in danger of being wiped out.

As far as all the structures in the steppe go, it's known that there was a time when the Xaela were a united people so they were likely constructed then, or perhaps even earlier while the Raen were still living on the steppe. I hope that sidequests and/or the MSQ will shed some light on what led to the two clans separating, as well the Xaela dividing into tribes.

[Naria]

Personally I think that the Dawn and Dusk Throne probably were constructed in a time when the Raen and Xaela shared the Steppe, and the destruction of the Dusk Throne (and possibly how the Xaela came into possession of the Dawn Throne) might have something to do with how the Raen became a diaspora. I haven't yet finished all of the side quests on the Steppe though so I might be missing some info.

[Cilia]

The Ascians gave the horn to Mide because, like always, they wanted primals summoned - and with the Alexander Project being a thing they could have known about, as well as Alexander's conspicuous consumption of aether, having him summoned would be very beneficial to their goals.

In the larger scope... they had to give the horn to Mide because they had already done so. All time in which Alexander exists is a closed loop, so anything that would cause him to not exist in that time frame would be a temporal paradox. Travanchet had - well, has, I guess - to give Mide the horn, because he had already done so and continues to do so in the time loop Alexander is confined to.

[LystAP]

The Ascians gave the horn to Mide because, like always, they wanted primals summoned - and with the Alexander Project being a thing they could have known about, as well as Alexander's conspicuous consumption of aether, having him summoned would be very beneficial to their goals.

In the larger scope... they had to give the horn to Mide because they had already done so. All time in which Alexander exists is a closed loop, so anything that would cause him to not exist in that time frame would be a temporal paradox. Travanchet had - well, has, I guess - to give Mide the horn, because he had already done so and continues to do so in the time loop Alexander is confined to.

But does that mean that Mide's tribe and descendants are trapped in a endless loop? That's a really sad fate SE gave them.

However, one thing that bothers me; the Hotgo were known for their vibrant facepaints according to the Lorebook and Naming Conventions; nevertheless, in the Alexander chain, they became the tribe with blue hair. Did they alway have blue hair? Neither Mide nor Dayan nor their allies had face paint, although they did have blue hair. The Ascians are known for their mastery of temporal magicks. Did the closed loop always exist or did it come into being because of Ascian manipulation? Things always go wonky with time magic is involved (although it could just be SE mixing up the tribe characteristics).

Alexander has existed conceptually within the Enigma Codex for at least a hundred years, if not longer in a incomplete but still accessible state (since the legend said that the first two could call upon it in the past); all one needs is a innocent (or insane) mind to access the contents. If it has existed longer, why didn't the Xaela use the information inside? If Mide and Dayan were the first Hotgo, why didn't they do anything to forestall the Dotharl massacre in the future?

The Hotgo are a interesting tribe - it's also of note that they also use gunblades. Mide and one other Hotgo in a flashback use a gunblade, the same gunblade design also drops in Bardam's Mettle. I wonder if they introduced the concept of gunblades to Garlemeld or vice versa. Was it one of the designs stored in the Enigma Codex?

[Cilia]

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In effect, everything from the time Alexander returns Mide and Dayan to (exact date unknown) until the point when he actually does so is stuck in a temporal loop. Nothing within it can be changed - meaning yes, Mide, Dayan, Quickthinx, and even Alexander himself is stuck in and endless loop. They're all prisoners of time - we would be as well, if we didn't have an exit after defeating Alexander. It is kind of sad, but at least Mide and Dayan got to live out their lives in the past. Which is their future. (Don't think about it too hard.) It arguably makes Alexander himself quite pitiable, since despite having power over time and space he is more a prisoner of time than anyone else.

The history book Y'shtola provides following Alexander's defeat does mention Mide's distinctive blue hair, so it can be safely concluded that the blue hair was always a thing (since Mide was both a progenitor and the last survivor of the Hotgo). As for the face paint... can't account for that one, lol. The time loop's start is indeterminate - it exists in a "Time Zero" beyond our ability to observe. One can only speculate where and when it was set into motion, and how the events played out.

Who knows? Maybe the Xaela did use the Enigma Codex and information in it to help build the Dusk and Dawn Thrones, and other such things. Maybe they didn't. Mide and Dayan couldn't have stopped the Dotharl massacre - it's part of the time loop, and besides, they were likely in Eorzea when it happened, so they probably didn't even know about it.

The Garlean Empire is a very proud nation; I doubt they would have taken weaponsmithing advice from "savages" like the Hotgo. The Empire doesn't even want to go after the Steppe, for whatever reason. I would be very surprised if there were no gunblade designs in the Enigma Codex (it has cheese recipes, of all things, so...), and I would wager that if the Hotgo were using gunblades the design for said gunblade would be in the Codex. I'd need to rewatch the cutscenes with Mide and go get that weapon from Bardam's Mettle to see for myself; what class weapon is it? MCH?

[LystAP]

In effect, everything from the time Alexander returns Mide and Dayan to (exact date unknown) until the point when he actually does so is stuck in a temporal loop. Nothing within it can be changed - meaning yes, Mide, Dayan, Quickthinx, and even Alexander himself is stuck in and endless loop. They're all prisoners of time - we would be as well, if we didn't have an exit after defeating Alexander. It is kind of sad, but at least Mide and Dayan got to live out their lives in the past. Which is their future. (Don't think about it too hard.) It arguably makes Alexander himself quite pitiable, since despite having power over time and space he is more a prisoner of time than anyone else.

The history book Y'shtola provides following Alexander's defeat does mention Mide's distinctive blue hair, so it can be safely concluded that the blue hair was always a thing (since Mide was both a progenitor and the last survivor of the Hotgo). As for the face paint... can't account for that one, lol. The time loop's start is indeterminate - it exists in a "Time Zero" beyond our ability to observe. One can only speculate where and when it was set into motion, and how the events played out.

Who knows? Maybe the Xaela did use the Enigma Codex and information in it to help build the Dusk and Dawn Thrones, and other such things. Maybe they didn't. Mide and Dayan couldn't have stopped the Dotharl massacre - it's part of the time loop, and besides, they were likely in Eorzea when it happened, so they probably didn't even know about it.

The Garlean Empire is a very proud nation; I doubt they would have taken weaponsmithing advice from "savages" like the Hotgo. The Empire doesn't even want to go after the Steppe, for whatever reason. I would be very surprised if there were no gunblade designs in the Enigma Codex (it has cheese recipes, of all things, so...), and I would wager that if the Hotgo were using gunblades the design for said gunblade would be in the Codex. I'd need to rewatch the cutscenes with Mide and go get that weapon from Bardam's Mettle to see for myself; what class weapon is it? MCH?

I would think they knew of the massacre. In fact, the massacre may well be the event that made them desperate enough to try to summon Alexander as a primal. The Ascians ever excel at exploiting the desperate, as well as causing said desperation.

It is MCH. The weapon from the Mettle is called The Coming Storm, and it shares a model with another gun called Blue Steel from Stone Vigil, which shares the design with Mide's gun (which makes sense, probably a confiscated weapon from Ishgard's *history* with the Au Ra.)

The Hotgo is a tribe that shows up in the name generator, so there are a few PCs (me included) with Hotgo characters; whether or not Mide and Dayan were the last survivors is vague, given the Xaela predisposition to wander and the bit about survivors being away from the tribe. Thus, there is a measure of investment in seeing how their story plays out, if it continues. And with the Dotharl having such a presence, especially such positive one, it feels strange to think that they're the same tribe known for massacring an entire tribe (both combatants and non-combatants).

[PhantasticPanda]

It should be noted that exploiting Alexander's powers tremendously drains Hydaelyn of her aether. According to Dayan, who we know was trapped within Alexander's soul, Alexander went through countless calculations of different "best potential" future for the world, but it all ended with the same result; his continued existence would end Hydaelyn, and so began his orchestrated timeline of events that would ultimately lead Dayan and Mide to his core, and with their 'sacrifice', placed themselves and the primal in a time stasis. We can't really tell what sort of mindset Alexander truly has, other than him being summoned to create a better future, a perfect world. To which he can't. But maybe he was able to give both Mide and Dayan a future for themselves, to begin all over again as children in the past. That way, his hand didn't touch the future as he had placed his faith onto the warrior of light as the key to that better future.

I still believe that the start of events (not counting the whole birth of the Hotgo tribe), was starting at the massacre of the Hotgo. Desperation does tend to be abused by the Ascians to summon primals into the world. Maybe Alexander couldn't change this fate, because it require more of his power that he didn't wish to use to change the lives of all those affected, like the entire Hotgo tribe. While Mide and Dayan are stuck in a time loop, I think it was all Alexander could spare without changing the course of history to such an extent.

And to talk more on the Hotgo and the Dotharl. I believe the Hotgo would be one of the more "stronger" or "influential" tribes in a sense. Speaking with Dotharl NPC's and their behavior towards obviously weaker tribes (trading with the ... tribe in the cave, and ignoring the Mols as worthy of a fight), it seems that the Dotharl seek to fight and kill strong foes because that is when their soul would burn brightest and ensure their reincarnation. Even the child who died to the Hotgo in their previous life seemed to be proud of that fact and wants to become as strong as they once were. I really do hope they cover more Hotgo lore, seeing how half of it seems to be connected with the Dotharl with the other being inside of a whole raid.

[Cilia]

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The Dotharl massacre of the Hotgo is only timed as "recent." Mide and Dayan were in Dravania and summoned Alexander what was it... three years ago? Their exact reasoning for summoning Alexander wasn't elaborated upon, to my knowledge, beyond the same reason the goblins gave (making a perfect world - the vision of what "perfect" meant was different though). Of course they didn't actually summon Alexander, but... time travel is confusing.

Hmm... well, those aren't gunblades of the same type the Empire uses. Those are emphasis on the gunblade; the Imperial version emphasizes the gunblade. Still, there are probably gunblade designs in the Codex.

While the Dotharl's massacre of the Hotgo is terrible, remember that they are Xaela; strength is the way of the Steppe. It's cultural thing.