Playing a female WoL feels so natural for the story

[SummonerSenah]

I don't know if playing a woman WoL feels any different, but I can say that being a Warrior main playing the WoL was really cool in this expansion.

[reivaxe]

I disagree. It's not as if there's a shortage of powerful female characters in this game or any other Final Fantasy game for that matter so I don't see it as being more 'empowering' for the Warrior of Light to be a woman.

Just like how I wouldn't find the story to be more 'empowering' if the Warrior of Light happened to share my sexuality.

Pretty much.

Cool if Ot sees it that way but I don't really see it. Just looking at your trust shows you how many strong females are in your group. They're all DPS ... the dudes are all support (Plus me cause I'm tank).

If ANYTHING I feel like the story feels most natural if you're a tank.
You're the leader going in, getting punched, being supported and giving support, taking ALL this on and still having the will to get up and keep going. Like, it's clear that the main protags are you and the Twins ... ones DPS the others a Healer. When you're the tank it just feels right. You're the holy trinity when put together.

Plus there's that moment in the end. You KNOW that moment. Our 1st counterpart is also a War.

[Dualblade]

Though now that I think of it, remembering how some of the male characters interact with the WoL, I feel like playing as a female character would make things seem way more heterosexual. So many dudes fawn over the WoL no matter which gender you pick, which I enjoy while playing as a dude.

Lets be fair here, plenty of women fawn over the WoL too and not just Alisaie. Heck while it almost certainly isn't canon if we WERE to consider it such then this video I'm about to post that was taken from the 5th year anniversary has Yugiri being one of the most forward in affection to our character since Haurchefant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzmMKtuEuVA

Personally I feel the game feels natural regardless of what gender your character is, but this comes part and parcel to the game keeping your character mostly silent and stoic and otherwise leaving all the details to your imagination. They are taking more control over that but its at a point where we have an idea of what we want AND are still given choices in how we wish to react to certain things.

[FoxyAreku]

I mean, personally I did think it's a little off for you to be the converse of Ardbert and not also be a man, but I don't think it really matters what gender your character is.

[BarbaricImpact]

Don't think it really matters.

Yours Truly,

~Warrior of Darkness~

[Alacran]

For me, it's enough that i'm able to play someone my skin color, even if my character dose not share my ethnic background (at least i have not found the equivalent to Latino in FFXIV). That being said i enjoy playing an older guy, who is confident in his skill and mature in his interactions, to that extent FFXIV provides me that fairly well i feel.

[Knahli]

For me, there are certain races and classes that just don’t really fit the role at all aesthetically, which is why I stopped doing the first MSQ run on my main - a (female) miqo’te - and instead started doing it on my Warrior midlander some time during the HW patches. It made the experience better for me and easier to take seriously, especially since the glamours I tend to give him feel like an appropriate mix of a veteran warrior/adventurer - practical and not too flashy.

I don't know if playing a woman WoL feels any different, but I can say that being a Warrior main playing the WoL was really cool in this expansion.

I agree! In fact, it was especially interesting because my warrior not only uses Ardbert’s hair, but one of his glamours makes use of the level 50 relic top(dyed black no less) and he has always used the Bravura too, albeit a version without the blood.

That scene where Seto awakens and briefly confused my character for Ardbert while wearing that gear was pretty cool to say the least.

[Gwenorai]

Gender wasn't an issue for me and has zero impact on the story. My character fits because I'm invested in them. Just like when I see a half naked character dressed like a muppet in my cutscenes who looks like they don't belong there at all. I'm sure that person their character fits very well with the story. While in my opinion, I want to expunge them from my cutscene.

From what I remember anyway the only difference there is between male and female is that Alisae has a crush on the male and not the female WoL. Can someone confirm if this has changed and she now seems to crush on both? And even then it's just the other scions teasing her a little on the matter.

Note; I'm a female playing as a male character. I'm not going to start fist bumping and talking about empowerment. It's not that deep.

On no she's had a crush on the WoL no matter what gender they are. Before SHB it was most explicit in the Tale from the Storm that involves her, Y'shtola, and Lyse having a get-together that the WoL is running late to, and the story stays the same regardless of which gender you choose for your character to be represented as. (It gives you an option at the top right of said story as well as other ones involving the WoL.)

Ah, thank you! Even better, so there are zero differences. Makes sense when in this world men and women are both strong warriors/combatants.

[Dualblade]

Gender wasn't an issue for me. My character fits because I'm invested in them. Just like when I see a half naked character dressed like a muppet in my cutscenes who looks like they don't belong there at all. I'm sure that person their character fits very well with the story. While in my opinion, I want to expunge them from my cutscene.

From what I remember anyway the only difference there is between male and female is that Alisae has a crush on the male and not the female WoL. Can someone confirm if this has changed and she now seems to crush on both? And even then it's just the other scions teasing her a little on the matter.

On no she's had a crush on the WoL no matter what gender they are. Before SHB it was most explicit in the Tale from the Storm that involves her, Y'shtola, and Lyse having a get-together that the WoL is running late to, and the story stays the same regardless of which gender you choose for your character to be represented as. (It gives you an option at the top right of said story as well as other ones involving the WoL.)

[Jaywalker]

I am very, very flexible with this sort of thing and actively love to see how my relationship with a story changes when the lead is filled with different characters. As a woman playing a dude lead for my main, I feel huge affection for him. There are aspects of how I imagine the WoL that stand out more and that I relate to more for him that don't have to do with gender. When it comes to alts, different things stand out. Another WoL might be very outgoing, clueless, kind, and prone to wild gesticulation. Another might be a blood knight who isn't sure if it's okay for him to enjoy destroying people in combat like he does. Another might be mainly a traveler who worries about putting roots down behind her and just revels in the freedom adventure provides. Etc.

For me, I think the sense of empowerment comes less from what a character is than who. And it can come in a variety of ways. Hope that makes sense!