6.0 Story Speculations

[KageTokage]

With a genuinely world-ending threat on the horizon, I'd be surprised if they didn't get virtually every major character involved in the story somehow.

I'm hoping we get another dungeon like Ala Mhigo, Ghimlyt Dark, or the Heroes' Gauntlet where they help to clear a way for us and the Scions to reach our goal.

[JeanneOrnitier]

This one feels like a gimme since Yoshida already teased it in the announcement event, but Hummingways will be the beast tribe on the moon. There's already a Namingway minion whose description says he's rumored to hail from a tribe on the moon.

[Kesey]

If this was a single player game, I'd want the crystal to summon every ally we've met and fought alongside (still alive) on the Source and on the First to join us in one giant war-ish cutscene. But since this is an MMO and such a thing would be outside their budget (most likely), I'd settle for it summoning the souls of those we've lost on the way to help do the final blow. Moenbryda, Papalymo, Haurchefant, Ysayle, Ardbert's crew, Yotsuyu, etc.

This is most likely going the FFIV route, where in the moment just before our defeat, all of the characters we have met and changed their lives over the course of the story will become aware through some strange means (the aether will feel different?) and all of them will start to pray for our protection (either directly empowering us or charging Hydaelyn to empower us) which will lead to a changing of the tide and the final trial where we can deal with the final incarnation of the big bad on equal footing.

Regarding budget, this is easiest scenario to recreate because the minor characters will be in there places already. Yoshi-p even said they were going to try to involve as many characters as possible. This path makes it so they don't need much story time over 6.0 just the moment when they are really needed.

[Vyrerus]

Thanks for reminding me of that, Kesey. Time to playthrough 4 again, so I can make more predictions that won't come true!

As far as my speculation goes... It sort of depends on if we go underground sooner, rather than later.

1. We're going to go underground to actually enter Pandaemonium. They won't pass up the chance to reference both FFIV's underworld, and also the Jade Passage from FFII in one stroke. This is if it's sooner.

2. The raid will have us delve down a deeper path that the MSQ doesn't have time for us to see about.

3. The Moon won't be the last zone. We will get there and battle Fandaniel, who will have set Zenos on his course to absorb Zodiark. Fandaniel is no match for us, a trial or dungeon boss maybe, but he gives Zenos enough time to unshackle Zodiark, which causes a large tower like structure to rupture free from the moon, and crash down onto Hydaelyn, smashing a hole into the underground. This is if it's later( and is honestly just me wanting an accurate rendition of the Tower of Babil in game).

4. Y'shtola dies this expansion.

5. Per Kesey's reminder, all dead characters will show up in the finale, much like all of the side characters showed up in the ARR finale. Only this time, rather than being manifestations of the WoL's will to overpower Lahabrea to have Light prevail and save Thancred, it will be the spirits of everyone come to empower us. We'll get Papalymo, Ysayle, Haurchefant, and all the other fan favorites, alive or dead, come to envigorate us with life force, so we can bring down whatever horrible monster Zenos becomes.

6. Everything Moose said comes true, except for the thing he actually expects to come true most. :P

7. We going to Sharlayan, baby! They gonna have the Devil's Road!

[Kesey]

snip.

I hope I'm wrong, but that seems to be the way this is heading.

If we go to Sharlayan we have Mysidia (a city of mages and scholars).

Those mages have knowledge of where to get the space ship to get to the moon (Lunar Whale) its not a stretch if Sharlayan is the city to have the knowledge or legend on where to find said shape ship (it might be the ark in Gyr Abanion, as it already has a lore connection to Sharlayan).

The WOL of Light, has become a paladin after being a dark knight, much like Cecil does, the only thing missing is a quest/dungeon to prove ourselves worthy and the WOL proving themselves to be worthy of Sharlayan knowledge isn't much of stretch either.

An underground area teased in the New Years poem also exists in FFIV. I'd also like to point out that Thavnairia on the big world map has a volcano that is so big it warrants being put on the big map but the voclano in Ruby Sea does not. This is how they get underground in FFIV by going through the giant volcano on an island.

The Magus Sisters, a pretty popular boss from FFIV, was spotted in one of the dungeon concept art. Not to mention 3 pixies in Il Mheg also reference their famous Delta Attack. They also make an appearance in FFX and FFX-2 which is also has the summon Anima, which was confirmed to be a boss at the announcement showcase.

Lunarians are to Ancients as realizing Earthlings are just as strong as Lunarians are to fractured souls of Hydaelyn are just as strong as Ancient full souls (via Fandaniel and possibly the remaining Ascians).

Alphinaud and Alisaie are the spiritual successors of Palom and Porom. They are literally party role and sex inverted. And are from said city of mages and scholars. They were also presented as main players of 6.0 at the announcement showcase alongside Zenos and Fandaniel (note: none of the other scions were mentioned or made the trailer!)

Fandaniel has been presented via announcement showcase as holding a "secret" and if we see him as Fusoya and Zenos as Golbez (I'm almost positive Ancient Zenos and Ancient Azem are connected, although they might not be brothers like Cecil and Golbez) but "secret" might just be the only way to truely defeat Zodiark is defeat him at full power, only for them to fail at the final moment. To be followed by the emotional gut punch of all of the beloved characters we've left behind physically and spiritually assist us so we can discover that the key to defeating Zodiark was the crystals of light the WOL has been carrying around since the beginning of the game. You know, the FFIV final sequence of events.

But really though, having played this MMO for years and interacted with all the quests and all the characters we've met and to have them somehow matter at the final moment when we have egressed the planet to save all their lives is strongest emotional moment we could have within the context of this game, in my opinion. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

[KageTokage]

If they do decide to pull the whole "power of friendship" thing at the finale and show people whose lives we've changed for the better offering up their hopes and prayers for us to save the world, I'd be thrilled if they actually changed it to reflect how many of the major side quests you've finished.

Granted, it could end up making for an excessively long cutscene (I'd want to see everyone from the DoW/M job quests, the raid/trial series, and the beast tribe quests at minimum), but it would certainly leave a heck of lasting impression.

[Kesey]

If they do decide to pull the whole "power of friendship" thing at the finale and show people whose lives we've changed for the better offering up their hopes and prayers for us to save the world, I'd be thrilled if they actually changed it to reflect how many of the major side quests you've finished.

Granted, it could end up making for an excessively long cutscene (I'd want to see everyone from the DoW/M job quests, the raid/trial series, and the beast tribe quests at minimum), but it would certainly leave a heck of lasting impression.

I agree as well. Although many could be easily mixed together like all the DOW/M characters from Gridandia gravitating to the aetheryte.

[EdwinLi]

Considering this story will literally be defined as "Hell on Earth", expect alot of destruction and potentially a lot of death.

We're going to be facing a lot of things from massive amount of voidsent invading the entire planet, a epidemic of people becoming tempered by the Towers causing them to go on a mass murder spree, and etc.

[JeanneOrnitier]

As much as the Lahabrea->Mateus->Emperor Mateus->Pandaemonium connection really is some gigabrained thinking, I actually feel like Pandaemonium won't be an FF2 reference, it'll be an FF9 reference. Beyond just the Void Ark resemblance, Fandaniel's architecture is also heavily reminiscent of Terran stuff from 9. Maybe it's just my bias toward my favorite gave in the series, but my very first thought in the trailer was it looked like he was in the Iifa Tree.

9's Pandaemonium was also underground, as Terra was within Gaia.

[YianKutku]

This is most likely going the FFIV route, where in the moment just before our defeat, all of the characters we have met and changed their lives over the course of the story will become aware through some strange means (the aether will feel different?) and all of them will start to pray for our protection (either directly empowering us or charging Hydaelyn to empower us) which will lead to a changing of the tide and the final trial where we can deal with the final incarnation of the big bad on equal footing.

Regarding budget, this is easiest scenario to recreate because the minor characters will be in there places already. Yoshi-p even said they were going to try to involve as many characters as possible. This path makes it so they don't need much story time over 6.0 just the moment when they are really needed.

On one hand, this already happened, so it would be repeating a plot point.

On the other hand, this happened at the end of 1.0, so it would still be a cool callback to Louisoix's attempt to use the power of prayer and belief to seal Bahamut away again. Just because he failed at the time (possibly due to being too cautious) doesn't mean we'll fail now, especially since we've figured out more details about what Primals actually are during the course of our adventures.