Once more, unto the breach.
MSQ - Tackling this first
Nerva got his third mention in the story now. Seems he's either dead or tempered—most likely by one of the towers. Not looking good for his future appearances. And the Imperial Palace is being remodeled into a nightmarish building... just like it appears in the 6.0 trailer.
Y'shtola's absence from the meeting is explained: She chose not to go, that she might look into another matter. At Krile's behest. I know a few details about Krile that could hint where this is going, but... no expectations as of yet. Y'shtola is not forthcoming on what that is, either.
As an aside: Do you remember how late Heavensward and Stormblood made it important to have Thancred lag behind the group or put himself to use elsewhere due to having to take the long way to every destination? This quest starts in the Rising Stones, then takes you to the Ala Mhigan Quarter, and Thancred arrives before you do.
Arenvald! He brings out the best in Alphinaud... apparently. I mean, I certainly enjoyed their dynamic together, but... knowing how involved he'll be in the conflict to come, this seems like a red flag to me. I hope it's not.
Urianger notes that it wasn't until he was twenty years old (and some change?) before he began growing into a man. Alphinaud and Alisaie still have a few years to go, then.
Arenvald and Fordola are still working together, and Alphinaud believes their next mission has something to do with the towers. We already know about the whole "towers tempering" thing, but it's interesting to see Alphinaud connect the dots.
Raubahn is skeptical of Fandaniel's "Final Days 2" plot, but is otherwise taking him seriously. Lyse drops the bombshell that is "our scouts were tempered", but it seems she managed to save them offscreen.
The scouts don't remember what they were doing while tempered—the last thing they do remember was approaching the tower and hearing an earsplitting roar. I like to think this confirms my belief that the de-tempering process involves forcibly removing memories, rather than fiddling with them.
Which carries implications for the sundered Ascians, whether the memories restored to them are truly their own or if they're Emet-Selch's ideas of who they once were.
Urianger is pretty disturbed by the whole "tempered to a nation" thing. I wonder if we'll actually get a primal out of this, or if that's as far as it'll go.
The Amal'jaa aren't the only ones being kidnapped—the Ixal are as well, and to Dravania at that. And black robed figures are involved. Might be that the Black Masks are making a reappearance. Or it might be that the other Overlords are working with Fandaniel.
… and they were promptly dealt with offscreen, and had Garlean weaponry and armor under their robes. I guess my previous speculation is moot, lol.
Arenvald and Fordola! Fordola is still wearing her slave collar, poor girl. Alphinaud seems shocked, but why? Interestingly, the way Fordola is angled and the scene is shot makes it look like she's glaring at Alphinaud. Or perhaps it's just everyone present. But I digress.
Arenvald name drops J'moldva and V'mah in a voiced cutscene. Neat.
Ah, Alphinaud is worried about Arenvald's safety. He also asks if Fordola wants to go, too. Good boy, Alphy. Seems like Fordola was given the choice to go. Her visible vexation is because of the whole situation with Garlemald, and for me at least it's an interesting hook for her character.
The Gyr Abania tower is tightly guarded, and Arenvald and Fordola are setting out for the one in Paglth'an instead. Which is the destination of our next dungeon, obviously. Wonder how our Trusts are going to be involved if the towers themselves risk tempering any who approach.
Alphinaud wants to take another trip to Loch Seld with Arenvald when this is over, and that he's become a capable swimmer since... 4.1? Aside from being a bit of a lie, this feels like another red flag for Arenvald.
Arenvald and Fordola have a good moment after that—and Arenvald throws up another red flag, citing his lack of ability and the need for improvement for what's to come. He's quite a bit frustrated with that, it seems.
Alphinaud wants to hunt down Lunar Bahamut. Tataru immediately calls us on our linkshell to tell us they found Estinien. But then he ran off on his own to Ishgard upon hearing of Bahamut. Alphinaud suggests sending the Bonanza to Ishgard if we need it to give chase. Looks like Ishgard and then Azys Lla will be our next destination. Tiamat soon?
Thancred and Urianger will be heading back to the Rising Stones instead of joining us. To inform the others, of course. The fact that he'd take much more time than anyone else to get there is not mentioned.
As an aside, it seems like Thancred didn't really do anything in Ala Mhigo to warrant his appearance there to begin with. Urianger was just as capable of delivering his report as Thancred, after all, and had already done so. I have to wonder what purpose having him be present there, but not Ishgard, will serve.
G'raha is excited to meet Estinien. I don't think he knows what the last thing Estinien did for us is. I'm expecting G'raha to drop a pile of bricks in his pants soon.
G'raha remarks that he's been to Ishgard before, and that he's happy to see it in its original glory. I'd taken ill with a sinus infection as of late, and so the headache I received immediately upon reading that may not be because of my frustration with how the Exarch's survival was handled.
The group splits up to search for Estinien, with Alisaie and G'raha heading... somewhere... and Alphinaud heads to the Skysteel Manufactory. If you go there instead of your proper destination, you can even talk to him. Makes me wonder if Alisaie and G'raha can also be found in the city.
Nobody can find Estinien. And then he just... walks in on us. I mean, to be fair, we're out on the airship landing, where anyone can see us. And he mistakes Alisaie for Alphinaud and pats her head... lol.
Alisaie snaps at him, and G'raha… fanboys out over him. It was a bit of a spectacle.
Estinien is proud of Alphy. D'aww. And apparently Alphinaud's desire to be in charge extended to the friends he made while he was growing up—no boys. First WoL dialogue option in the story: You get to respond to that! I picked option #2, I wonder what she says in the others.
Alisaie is still angry with Estinien, and frustrated that he's not what she expected—what she expected seemingly being herself, but taller and male. G'raha is less frustrated and more bemused that Estinien as a person is more blunt than he expected. There is no sign of bricks in his pants.
It's off to Azys Lla immediately. And we get our second WoL Dialogue, in which we get to talk about our first encounter with Tiamat. There's an option to say absolutely nothing. What an odd choice. I picked #2. It doesn't seem to have produced any interesting nuggets of conversation.
Alphinaud surmises that Estinien wanted to meet with Tiamat to discover if she'd been forced to summon Lunar Bahamut. Neat. Estinien says Nidhogg became a part of him. Err... OK?
Second quest over. Intermission time! Alisaie declares that they must be prepared to follow in Louisoix's footsteps for Lunar Bahamut. Dark. G'raha goes on about the Azure Dragoons. And Alphinaud comments on how the entire conflict between Allag and Tiamat was by Ascian design. Poor Tiamat.
Third quest time. Tiamat seems unaware of what's happened, so we inform her. And here it's dropped that the dragons of Meracydia were tempered when Bahamut was summoned. Which, of course, would have to be the case. But now it's explicit. Both Tiamat and Alisaie give a nod to the events of the Binding Coils—I wonder if they beat around the bush instead if you haven't finished that questline.
Whatever surviving Meracydian Dragons there are, it seems they were the ones used to summon Bahamut. I suppose that means Lunar Bahamut is a primal after all.
Estinien provoking Tiamat was unexpected, but honestly pretty welcome. As much as I hate to say it, I was kind of sick of the Great Wyrms and their "no mortal can understand my pain!" schtick.
Tiamat retorts, and Alphinaud interprets: Tiamat can't help because she's tempered by the primal Bahamut. Interesting to note that the strength of her soul is brought up, indirectly, as the reason for her retaining her own will. Might this be the reason why the Ascians… mostly... don't seem to be tempered, despite Emet-Selch's declarations to the contrary?
Proximity to Bahamut may be the trigger to bend her will. That Zodiark is divided up and sealed into the moon may also be the reason why the Ascians have such leeway.
Alisaie offers to cure Tiamat of Bahamut's influence. Good girl, Alisaie. Alphinaud in turn offers her a chance for redemption. Tiamat accepts, but...
She, somewhat indirectly, brings up the pact Hydaelyn made with her sire. For those not familiar: In exchange for allowing Midgardsormr's children to live on the Source, he surrendered his life to Hydaelyn and became Her undying servant.
In any case, Tiamat feels she owes a debt to Hydaelyn, and so offers to aid us. Mission accomplished. But as G'raha points out, she's on an entirely different level from other tempered thralls, and so we'll need to do some legwork before attempting to cure her. In contrast to 5.4's clumsy attempts to make the Exarch's survival key to curing tempering, his involvement here feels more natural.
It seems Estinien is not truly aware of who G'raha is... and narrowly skirted around finding out. Hm.
… G'raha just so happened to be carrying a spirit vessel with him. He explains that he, Rammbroes, and Urianger have been researching the use of spirit vessels to preserve/transfer bloodlines as well as memories. OK, when exactly did Urianger have time to do that? In between the end of 5.3 and 5.4?
Its use here is basically just to act as his surrogate. Like a key card, I guess.
"Clamorous Node: <blip> <bloop> WARNING. Scheduled dragon restraint maintenance due in: -2,020 years. Failure to verify system integrity may result in unscheduled specimen release." I always get a kick out of error messages like this.
WoL Dialogue option #3: You get FOUR options here. Two irrelevant/silly, one on the nose, and one to outright lie and say you found nothing. I... am curious, but went with the obviously correct choice.
WoL Dialogue option #4: You can choose to identify yourself as yourself, Alphinaud, or Estinien to a node. The quirky music is playing here, so this is probably going to be silly no matter what I pick.
WoL Dialogue option #5! How many has this been in the same quest? In any case, the node requires a system update. Estinien can be talked to after the third quest, dryly remarking on how the nodes survived their creators.
Fourth quest begins... seems the node doesn't like Estinien, deeming him a security risk due to his brimming frustration. Fair enough. The node seems to be wildly out of date, horribly inefficient with data management, or bugged. Obviously we're not going to be waiting here for five years, so...
While Alphinaud decides to stay behind and operate the restraints remotely, Estinien remarks on how both the Allag/Meracydia and Ishgard/Dravania conflicts were orchestrated by the Ascians. But in the present day, despite being resolved to fight against the Ascians, he also notes that we've made attempts to find common ground with them, and wonders if we'll do the same for Fandaniel.
WoL Dialogue option #6: Yes, Yes but I'll kill him if I have to, or Yes, but after I've beaten him up. I mean, he's wearing Asahi's face... went with choice #2, though. Estinien sees the effort as pointless when it comes to Fandaniel, and hopes it doesn't cost us in the future.
Back to Tiamat! G'raha notes that her tempering to Bahamut seems very mild, but thanks to her vast quantities of aether, detempering her will take a lot more effort than usual. Estinien suggests the former is due to seeing Bahamut as an equal, rather than a god. It's speculation, but it makes a bit of sense. Throwing this in the ring of "bending to the primal's will doesn't always mean fanatial devotion", meaning the Ascians could still be tempered despite not acting like previous enthralled.
Tiamat is beginning to reminisce on ancient memories, and seems surprised at that. G'raha speculates that this may speed up the process. And so we get WoL Dialogue option #7: Tell us of Bahamut, or Tell us of Allag. I went with the second choice.
G'raha, upon hearing Tiamat's tale, notes that man only began to settle in Meracydia towards the end of the Second Astral Era. So... before the rise of Allag, perhaps?
The men arriving to Meracydia began to crowd each other out, and so made war. They then turned to Bahamut and Tiamat, and Bahamut came to preside over the affairs of man in Meracydia. Sounds a bit like a rose-tinted way of saying "Bahamut took over". And also, there doesn't seem to be any mention of the Warring Triad's followers. Perhaps they came into prominence after Bahamut's death?
Tiamat seems to be cured, and doesn't have amnesia. Perhaps the loss of memory is due to the overbearing will of the primal, rather than true memory loss. IE: The Kobold Priest and the Scouts enthralled to Garlemald could not form memories of those events due to Titan/??? controlling them so completely.
Tiamat asks if her children can also be cured, and G'raha points out that those twisted into abominations can't be saved. Notably, he attributes this to "Allag's dark arts". I wonder if that means they used Bahamut's power to alter them. Tiamat, in turn, offers her children who won't heed her call the peace of death.
And so Tiamat is free. But Urianger swiftly calls G'raha, pointing us to our next destination: Paglth'an. It seems Lunar Bahamut is headed that way, with a vast army under his wing. Dragons included. Estinien departs with Tiamat, rather than join us.
Quest 5 sends us right to Ul'dah, and they make short work of setting things up. Seems Pipin is leading the Immortal Flames' efforts in dealing with Lunar Bahamut's attack on Paglth'an. Nanamo calls the Amal'jaa friends—I feel like we're brushing a little too hard on the idealism now, honestly.
Apparently the entire Syndicate voted in favor of intervention. Yep, definitely too hard on the idealism. Even accounting for them notoriously pursuing their own interests, being wholly on board with this is just a little too much for me. But OK. Limsa Lominsa, Ishgard, and Gridania are also sending trops, which is a bit easier to swallow.
OK, hold up. The might of an imperial legion? I feel like I missed something here. Yes, they have arms and armor marking them as such. But... really, a whole legion? I feel as if they're overblowing Lunar Bahamut's army.
The Amal'jaa of Paglth'an show no signs of tempering, despite Lunar Bahamut's proximity. Y'shtola finds this strange, and believe Lunar Bahamut is incapable of tempering on its own. Thus the excuse for why we can bring our Scion companions with us, I gather. To be fair, we kind of needed this sort of edge against him, or else sending an army against him would only bolster his own.
If I may offer a supposition: It could be that the towers are linked to Zenos's will, and that he is the one tempering those who approach the tower. It seems like a stretch when I put it like that, but the link between Zenos, the Echo, the obsession with Garlemald, and Lunar Bahamut being in service to Garlemald and Fandaniel rather than follows his own will seems substantial to me.
Seems we're not just going to Paglth'an to stop Lunar Bahamut, but also to aid Arenvald and Fordola, who previously departed for a scouting mission there.
Thancred speculates that one of the city-state would have made a better target than Paglth'an if death and destruction was Fandaniel's aim, and that there must be some other purpose for going after them then. One related to the abduction of Amal'jaa. Lunar Ifrit is a distinct possibility.
Urianger brings up Louisoix's sacrifice to contain Bahamut. I can't help but feel like this being brought up twice is going to be important.
Note that the optional dialogue the Scions give changes before and after unlocking the dungeon, so any loremongers would do well to talk to them twice! Anyways, dungeon time.
EDIT: MSQ 2 - Dungeon and Post-Dungeon
It was pretty cool to the Kobolds involved in the assault? on Paglth'an. This feels as a whole like a redux of the 4.5 dungeon, only this time the developers are actually going forward with what's being set up here instead of gong "suddenly, Isekai!" with our journey to the First.
And we dealt with Lunar Bahamut in the dungeon, rather than Lunar Ifrit as expected. Shame, I'd have figured Lunar Bahamut would last a little longer.
As the Amal'jaa war chief approached and offered words of peace, and I considered WoL Dialogue Option #8, I had a chilling thought. This may not pan out, but this may be Fandaniel's "Thamasa" moment. For those not familiar with Final Fantasy 6's plot, I'd be happy to elaborate, but suffice to say I expect Fandaniel to do something horrifying right now.
Well, something like that has happened. It's not what I expected, but as Alphinaud lingers on the tower, we get a "meanwhile, in the Imperial Capitol the tower before we arrived" scene. The Amal'jaa embedded in fleshlike prisons and the squelching noises Fordola's boots made when she turned gave me chills.
Ah, there we go. Lunar Ifrit! It seems that the towers function similarly to Dalamud did, though in addition to using the tortured and preserved bodies of its victims to sustain a primal, they also have the capacity to summon one. This is just a guess on my part, but this suggests to me that Lunar Bahamut's defeat may only have been temporary. So long as the tower used to summon him remains, he can be called into being as many times as Fandaniel wishes.
As an aside: Damn it, Arenvald! YOU HAVE A SHIELD! Don't throw yourself uselessly in front of Fordola to block an attack. Quest Five completed.
Onto Quest 6. Seems we're due to reunite with Arenvald and Fordola, the former of whom has been gravely injured, but is alive. Alisaie's remark that Alphinaud needs someone other than herself to support him struck me as... odd? Mature, but in a funny way. Not funny like a joke, but more... self-effacing, if that makes sense. Probably due to the shared bond Alphinaud and the WoL have with Estinien and Arenvald, which she is not truly a part of.
Alphinaud is despondent, and Fordola (you can talk to her!) is annoyed at him. For good reason, as making demands and fretting the way he is isn't won't help. WoL Dialogue Option #9 pops up here: You can agitatedly tell him to stop, or reason with him.
Alphinaud thanking Fordola... I don't know what to say, other than she deserves as much. He follows it up with some "I should've done something", and she rightly calls him out on it, pointing out that he'd have only made things worse. And that nobody can save everyone, not even the WoL. She's not wrong.
Interestingly, this feels like a callback to Matoya ripping into him over being despondent over Minfilia's death, back in Heavensward. Back then, that felt a touch undeserved, in large part because Minfilia's death back then also felt undeserved. The writers just sort of shuffled it in there unexpectedly, tried to treat it as a huge and meaningful sacrifice, and largely failed to do anything with it until several patches later by undoing it entirely.
… but I digress. It's far better executed here, is what I'm saying. Also, Alphinaud has an actual rebuttal to the logic Matoya/Fordola uses: Refusing to simply shrug off the losses suffered, even if they're necessary. It's an emotional response, to be sure, but I can't help but admire it.
Fordola snaps at him, echoing Estinien's earlier remarks on our desire to understand Fandaniel. Estinien, in turn, remarks that it's the idealists who go on be remembered as heroes. Funnily enough, that's not quite the case for you, isn't it Estinien? Perhaps "history" filed off his bluntness and realism to make a hero out of him, then, and that's why G'raha was surprised that the Azure Dragoon didn't live up to his expectations.
… y'know, I can't help but worry that could actually happen to someone in this setting. If such fervent belief in a person or ideals and the wish/prayer to empower them would transform them into a primal (see: Ultima, which went from unthinking ruination to a thinking primal out of worship), could that happen to a person? Could their identity and very being be reshaped into an ideal figure?
I guess what I'm trying to say is this: Could the WoL be turned into a primal, and in doing so, become shaped by the wishes of those who had faith in them? Would they lose their sense of self as its replaced by what those newfound worshippers believed them to be? Just some "existential horror" brand food for thought.
Fordola is not moved, and neither is Estinien moved by her. Oh well. You can talk to Estinien after this, and he comments on Fordola being full of sorrow despite her anger. A fitting description of Fordola in general, and one I hope folks remember instead of dismissing her as just a war criminal.
Moving on, we have a meeting between the Sultana and the Scions, in which they learn about the events Fordola and Arenvald witnessed. Urianger and Y'shtola key in on the towers being the means by which individuals are tempered, and the latter suggests that the twisted forms of the "Lunar" versions are because of this. Thancred, in turn, connects the appearance of the towers to the Imperial Capitol's new visage.
Also, there's more Lunar primals out there than just Ifrit. Of course. WoL dialogue option #10: You can suggest sending yourself to deal with Lunar Ifrit and the others yourself, or criticize Nanamo for sending the Grand Companies instead. Either one makes sense to me. Even with the caveat that the primals aren't able to temper anyone, the WoL is still far better equipped to deal with them.
But no, she says. OK.
While Nanamo talks about how we've made new allies out of the Amal'jaa, I can't help but think something feels wrong here. Namely: We haven't dealt with the tower threatening them. Just like we didn't deal with then in 5.4. It's just... weird, that there's a big threat sitting right in everyone's back yard, and we're being told to wait and see how things play out.
It seems like most of the Scions present are in agreement with me: This outcome and planning is far too idealistic. We might have formed an alliance with the Amal'jaa, but it'll be fleeting if we don't strengthen that further in the future. And telling the WoL and the Scions not to help with dealing with the primals is just asking for the primals to be a bigger problem further down the line.
Alphinaud using Estinien's begrudging attitude to mask his suffering is cute. Estinien in turn using that selfsame begrudging attitude to mask his concern for Alphinaud is also cute. Unless I'm reading too much into this. But they make for good brothers.
Upon our return to the Rising Stones, Krile recaps the latest turn of events for us. She then propositions we turn to Sharlayan for aid. Sharlayan, the nation that totally abandoned its colony and Eorzea rather than risk confrontation with Garlemald in the past. I suppose the potential end of the world might change their minds this time around.
Urianger shares in my skepticism. As does Krile, at least as far as acknowledging it. Seems like she'll be departing to Sharlayan soon. G'raha suggests being a Student of Baldesion will aid her, though Krile seems to think it won't due to the Isle of Val/Eureka incident.
G'raha, despite also being a Student of Baldesion, does not elect to join her. I don't know whether or not to be happy the writers recognized he doesn't have to be involved in every Scion's story, or disappointed that he'll be sticking with us.
Krile also wishes to look into the true nature of Hydaelyn's Blessing. It's a little too late for Minfilia, and possibly too late for Ryne, but FINALLY SOMEONE ACKNOWLEDGES THAT HYDAELYN BEING A PRIMAL MEANS THE BLESSING OF LIGHT IS SKETCHY AS HELL.
"When was the last time Hydaelyn spoke to you directly?" That's an interesting question. I don't recall her doing so during the events of 2.1-2.55, but we did get words from her during the events of Heavensward: Once around the time we defeated Bismarck, and once after meeting with Tiamat.
But in both those cases, she had Minfilia as a vessel to speak through. So maybe they don't count. In which case, wouldn't the last time be all the way back in 2.0, when we took on Lahabrea? I'm not sure.
WoL Dialogue Option #11: "Near the end of the Dragonsong War" - 3.0, but that was with Minfilia. "That day in the Crystarium" - 5.2, but that wasn't directly to us. "..." - I dunno, lol. I went with option #1. Y'shtola points out that this was when we regained Her blessing, but that she's never once spoken directly to us since.
Krile points out that Hydaelyn appears to be non-intervening, and only pushes Her chosen to Her will on first contact. Urianger speculates that this is because She trusts us, but Y'shtola argues otherwise. While this is happening, I can't help but speculate.
Minfilia is the one most in tune to Hydaelyn's will, and the one most in contact with her. At the end of the Praetorium, Hydaelyn Herself beseeched Minfilia to pray for our safety while we fled the exploding tunnel. Might there be some connection between Hydaelyn's ability to speak and assert her will, and Minfilia herself?
I got chills at Thancred's line about the Oracle of Light and Minfilia, and I lost my breath. I don't know why, save perhaps that I feel like I'm onto something.
Acknowledging that Minfilia acted on her own will and spoke with her own voice—I feel as if this is being brought up for multiple reasons. Truth be told, I'm just thankful the writers are acknowledging her existence.
Krile suggests that something is outright stopping Hydaelyn from communicating with us. I can't think of anything that happened after Hydaelyn called upon Minfilia to sacrifice herself, but before we met them both after the Antitower, to have done this. And given that Hydaelyn needed Minfilia to act as Her emissary to begin with, I thought the answer was always "She had grown too weak from protecting us".
I don't know. Something is off about this, but I can't put my finger on what.
Estinien gives a big speech about the Scions, and my thoughts turn back to "WoL primal?" instead of being moved by him. Though the way he puts it, we sound more like the inverse of a primal. Rather than forcing belief on others and drawing strength from it, we encourage it in other and they draw strength from it themselves.
Also, Estinien joined the party! And Krile has left the party. I hope she doesn't die. I'm getting the sneaking hunch that she might.
MEANWHILE, IN THE IMPERIAL PALACE . . .
Zenos expressing an emotion. I missed that. Thank you, writers, for acknowledging that he has them.
Lunar Bahamut might not make a reappearance after all, if the lack of Meracydian Dragons to enthrall is any indication. Zenos believes himself ready to control "You-Know-What"... beating around the bush seems a little pointless here, unless he's not talking about Zodiark.
Zenos finally picks his new weapon, which "seems rather apt", and it's kept conveniently offscreen. This is no doubt meant to fuel speculation, and my money is either on Masamune (as a Sephiroth reference) or a Scythe (because Death itself/Endbringers/etc.), but honestly, I don't care.
And that's that for the MSQ.
Sorrow of Werlyt - EDIT: Keep your hands and feet inside the cockpit at all times
The story acknowledges that the current events make it hard to justify the Werlyt stuff. It's a bit harder to take seriously with the end of the world being in play elsewhere. C'est la vie.
Hey, is that M'naago? I'm only asking because I can see she is, but the game doesn't seem to think so. Still, I'll take it. She's an unexpected sight—I'd have figured it would be Cid or Gaius.
… ah, it's a repeat of the "WoL forgets people" gag. And now I'm being accused of having forgotten her. Listen, Naago, I've already completed your crafting stuff. There's this new NPC now...
"He is far more reasonable and pragmatic than his predecessor (the Mad King) or successor (Zenos)." I imagine this line caused FFXIV Twitter to bristle with rage. And in all fairness, it made my headache flare up again. Gaius's expertise, and the bulk of his leadership capability, lies in his military achievements. But as a state leader? The man is an abject failure, and saying "he's not as bad as Theodric or Zenos" is damning him by faint praise.
Thankfully, this decision seems more focused on his military achievements than anything else. And it does offer Gaius his chance at atonement. But if Gaius ends up being the de facto ruler of Werlyt after this, I can't say I have much faith in him. But I digress.
Naago joining us for this round of the story is a welcome development. Frankly, I always thought she should've been the face of the rebellion after Conrad died, not Lyse. But then I've always been critical of Lyse's character, so maybe I'm being unfair when I say that.
Naago acknowledging that Gaius was the conqueror of Ala Mhigo to his face? Color me impressed. This feels a bit like the even-handed approach they went with Fordola back in 4.1. Not forgiveness for his actions in the past, but acknowledgement of his actions in the present. It gives me the impression that he can be forgiven later down the line, but only if he steadies the course.
Which I'm fine with. Honestly, I'm not opposed to a villain or antagonist pursuing or receiving atonement. Instant forgiveness or retroactive continuity to absolve one's sins are bad habits in writing, as is treating an antagonist in atonement as a disposable character.
So to have Gaius continue taking his first steps here, acknowledging his past crimes, and doing his best to fix them? I love this. I hope I continue to love this story, too.
Gaius acknowledges the strangeness of Werlyt's conqueror becoming their savior. Though once again, the story swerves hard into the "At least he's not (insert villain here)!" territory, which—no, please. You were this close to Gaius acknowledging the error of his means. There is no righteous way to subjugate multiple sovereign nations, stamp out their religious beliefs, and enslave those who aren't fit for military duty. Valens being worse because he's racist doesn't make Gaius "good". It just makes him the lesser of two evils.
*sigh* Even Vegeta had Piccolo acknowledging that he'd go to Hell despite his heroic sacrifice in the Buu saga. And it took a sequel series decades down the line to have him confront his actions on Namek and their consequences. But I suppose it's a bit hypocritical of me to snip at FFXIV Twitter over doing exactly what I'm doing here. And I digress.
Allie taking matters into her own hands was... well, foreshadowed. Wholly expected. Not much to say about it, save that I expected her to steal away with the G-Warrior.
Gaius making the pragmatic choice to put the Resistance's future over Allie's life is entirely reasonable. Not much more to say about that, other than I appreciate the maturity in the 56-year old military veteran not running off or screwing over the people counting on him to save one girl, even if it's his daughter.
Seems like one of the Weapons has gone berserk. Diamond Weapon? I think, if the G-Warrior was stolen, it'd be acknowledged by now.
So this serves as the impetus for launching a premature attack on the VIIth Legion. Striking while the iron is still hot. OK, it makes sense. And Gaius playing this cautiously when it comes to the Resistance is understandable, too. Diamond Weapon would be a threat to them as well, after all.
The G-Warrior was not stolen. Since it's explicitly confirmed to be in our hands, and Allie has left, I suppose that means she'll be piloting Diamond Weapon. But if that's the case...
MEANWHILE, IN-
Valens continues to be Valens, as expected. The acknowledgement of hunting down primals is also appreciated.
Sapphire and Emerald Weapon, having fallen into our hands, meant their combat data was unavailable. Allie retrieving it was necessary, of course, but I sincerely doubt this turn of events is what her brothers and Milisandia planned. So I must ask: How, exactly, did they expect to use that data if they knew they wouldn't survive fighting against us?
Allie expecting Valens to keep his word is... lol. But she's definitely not expecting it, considering that this is a flashback and Diamond Weapon is on a rampage in the present. Or maybe she does. I mean, it takes a lot of balls to request what she did from a man like him.
She plays to his ego, which works. But frankly, I don't expect him to make good on anything he promises. He's already backed out of releasing Alfonse, after all.
Allie in the Diamond Weapon, ready to be sacrificed for her and her brother's ideals. And of course, she betrays Valens upon its activation. Valens claims to have not been fooled by her, which I'll believe on the basis that Valens is not stupid.
But if Diamond Weapon was deactivated before it could deal any real damage, I have to wonder how it could go on to rampage as it does.
… OK, Allie spontaneously activating the Overmind system by shedding a single tear on the console was ridiculous. And Torn from the Heavens playing is a bit much, too. Isn't that basically our theme song?
So I guess Allie is dead now, having had her mind overwritten by (Redacted)'s. Or maybe she's not. From what I remember, the system used for the previous Weapons was called "Oversoul", so perhaps this system is made to preserve the pilot rather than kill them. With this in mind, I recall an observation I made to myself back at the start of this storyline: Five children, four mechs. Diamond Weapon could conceivably end up having two pilots: One to sit in the cockpit, and one to be fused to the core. So I suppose that's where Alfonse is right now. Time will tell.
Goodbye, Valens. He was a villain I loved to hate, and seeing him get his comeuppance from Allie+Possibly Alfonse instead of Gaius was nice.
Severa believes Gaius would have gone into Werlyt alone if not for my presence. Which... OK. I suppose he would have taken advantage of the chaos there after all.
Cid is here. Cid is always welcome in my eyes. And so is Avilina—I had faith that she was an ally, not a saboteur, and I'm glad to see that faith rewarded. The G-Warrior being rechristened the G-Savior seems a bit hokey, but I can dig it.
Trial time.
EDIT: Sorrow of Werlyt 2: Sorrow Harder (Trial and Post-Trial)
So the combat data is obviously Alfonse. And the way the combat data of the previous Weapons—and their pilots—is incorporated into this fight is really cool. It reminds me of an shonen trope I particularly love: The hero incorporating a fallen friend's abilities or affects into his own, and using them to defeat the enemy who killed them. Being on the receiving end of this did more to make me feel like the villain of Werlyt's storyline than Vauthry and Ran'jit calling me one ever did.
Diamond Weapon having an Alt Mode, which is a remodel of Ifrit, was unexpected. This being used to incorporate previously seen mechanics was a nice touch. But I have to wonder where Allie was during this phase. It didn't seem like there was enough room for the cockpit there.
With Diamond Weapon defeated, it falls from the sky, landing outside Werlyt. We race down with Gaius to recover Allie, and learn that the VIIth Legion had been largely dealt with, or so I gather. And Allie seems to be alive, though given the distinction between Overmind and Oversoul, I don't feel as if we played any part in that. More's the pity.
Gaius has unfinished business to attend to...? But Valens is dead. You can't un-laser him just for Gaius.
Valens was un-lasered just for Gaius. I'd say you can't have a character miraculously survive their own death just for the sake of killing them again, but the writers seem to disagree.
"Why, he's right in front of you!" Valens says, while pointing behind Gaius. OK. And yeah, I figured Alfonse had become the Diamond Weapon's core. Valens' gloating over it is par for the course with him, and as much as I'd love that... dude. Allie+Alfonse incinerated you and your command room with a laser.
So if Valens had already sacrificed Alfonse to be the core, who was he expecting to pilot it? I can't believe that he was counting on Allie to return to him, considering that he was planning to use Zenos's combat data beforehand.
Gaius... that rot did not spread throughout the Empire. That rot was there from the start. BY DESIGN. The ideals you claim the Empire once held were falsehoods from the very beginning! It's frustrating to see that the MSQ will acknowledge this, but Werlyt seems all too willing to ignore it.
Gaius calling his attack by name is hokey, but I dig it. Valens frantically searching his combat data for the attack... OK, I laughed. But I still believe Valens already got his earned end, and that this is just-
"Who are you to judge me, Gaius?" OK, never mind. Valens actually has a point. And Gaius's rebuttal...
FINALLY. That was all I'd ever wanted from this storyline. Thank you, writers.
I suppose this conversation would not have happened if Valens hadn't lived. Nor would it have finally made GOOD on Valens being a foil to Gaius. Like Valens, Gaius was also oblivious to the suffering around him. The suffering that happened because of him. While Valens' ignorance was born out of not caring, Gaius's was born out of the belief that he was sincerely a force of good in the world during his time as a Legatus.
He was not, and in acknowledging those sins (not just the Weapons project!) and acting to ensure they can't be repeated, in my eyes he earns his atonement. Some folks are not going to be satisfied with that, and I understand that belief, but for me... this is it. This is what I'd been waiting for.
*POP* Ew. Honestly, couldn't you have just hit him with the laser again?
Ahh, it's raining. Alright, but only because you deserve it. And Gaius's hand quivering as he moves to put down his last son... I did not expect this storyline to make me cry, damn it. Goodbye, Alfonse.
Valdeulin and Severa provide a realistic take on this outcome. The Resistance suffered heavy losses (offscreen) and it will take a lot longer than a single fight to undo decades of oppression from the Empire. Those lost along the way will never return, no matter how much one tries to atone. It's interesting that this is how Valdeulin makes peace with his desire for vengeance against Gaius—not through some newfound appreciation for a man who Did Nothing Wrong, as so many were expecting, but through shared suffering over the loss of their loved ones.
That is why the Werlyt children were necessary for this story. Gaius would not have been able to grow as a character with losing something precious to him—such loss was necessary to shock him into self-realization. In my eyes, at least, the Sorrow of Werlyt writers had to create something new for him to lose. Because he'd already lost the XIVth Legion, and all he took from it was "I shouldn't have trusted an Ascian".
That's not a knock on the writing of Stormblood. Gaius having this character arc wouldn't have been possible if he'd entered it a wholly changed man to begin with. So... it's fine.
The follow-up quest has us meeting with Best Girl, Avilina. The Terncliff monument is completed, and it's time for a little mourning. She offers a prayer for her fallen friends—I can appreciate this scene a little more, knowing that under the old Gaius's rule, funeral rites of any kind were outlawed.
Allie is intensely traumatized, and may not recover. Poor girl. I'll refrain from making any further judgment calls on the rest of her siblings, but suffice to say she did not deserve this end.
Severa and Cid discussing the discrepancy between Allie's survival and the other children's deaths through the Oversoul process, and Gaius chips in that Alfonse protected her. I guess that works.
Gaius seems to be in the same position as Lyse/Raubahn in Ala Mhigo. A military commander, and one with significant influence going forward, but NOT the de facto ruler of the newly freed Werlyt. I appreciate this separation, as it plays to Gaius's strengths rather than his ideals.
Once more, I feel as if FFXIV Twitter will bristle over Valdeulin and Cid forgiving Gaius. And that's fine. Not everyone is going to enjoy every story, and for some folks, it can be hard to let go of what someone's done in the past even in the face of sincere atonement. But for me, this moment was cathartic.
And so everyone is moving on. Gaius will care for Allie in the hopes that, one day, she'll recover. He'll also aid Werlyt's reconstruction efforts. Valdeulin has found something to live for other than hatred, and has found a kindred spirit in the man Gaius has become. Severa has found her home once again, while echoing a sentiment Ryne held in the level 77 Quest Crossroads.
Oh, hey. The kids Valens was abusing were rescued. It seems they survived the destruction of the VIIth Legion's HQ.
… huh, that's a lot of kids.
Gaius wraps the whole thing up by showcasing his character development, and we're sent back to Ala Mhigo to report what happened. And that seems to be the end of it. All in all, I enjoyed this storyline.
… but wait, there's more. It seems the Diamond Weapon's core can be used to project the memories stored within. The whole scene is, well... something special, I feel. I'm not ashamed to admit I cried a second time.
The memory of young Alfonse takes the memory of the Black Wolf's hand. As he does, so too does Allie take the Diamond Weapon's core from Gaius's hand. And then...
Poor Allie. But it seems she's started to make her recovery, thanks to this.
According to the report list detailing the other characters in the story, Allie is 16 years old. That would make her the same age as Alphinaud, Alisaie, Ryne, and Gaia. It also suggests that Au Ra physically mature faster than Hyur, as Allie uses the same model as playable Au Ra and does not appear to be scaled down the way Ryne is.
Gaius's dossier has been updated as well, reflecting his growth as a character and his newfound position.
YorHa: Dark Apocalypse - The Color of Depression is one hell of a track name
Nothing has changed since our last time here. The villagers are still fuming, Anogg is still missing, and Konogg is still holed up. Which is to be expected, since dealing with that stuff offscreen would be, well, anticlimatic?
We have to play mom to Konogg again. I won't say no—going from beleaguered assistant to dwarf mother is honestly my favorite part of this story.
Konogg has a fever, so we take off his helmet and put him in bed. D'aww. Though that may have been a faux pas on our part. He doesn't seem to mind, perhaps because of the fever—and he's still worried about Anogg. Poor kids.
For those who may have forgotten: It's strongly implied in an Echo vision from the last segment that the real Anogg died in a rockslide, and the one we've met is a doppelganger of sorts produced by a mysterious white orb. Said orb is from Drakengard and was called both a Seed of Resurrection and Seed of Destruction, though it might not specifically function like those.
We report the fever to the Chief, who then immediately sends up back to Konogg. I got the feeling this was going to be used to have Konogg disappear on us, and wouldn't you know it—
While we search for Konogg, the scene cuts to 2B, standing over the unconscious body of 9S. They're met by an unknown figure. Probably either Anogg or Konogg.
As usual, the village dwarves are completely useless, and most care more about casting blame for past events than taking responsibility (emphasis mine).
The Chief had similar results, but one miner did see Konogg wandering towards the crater. To the Puppet's Bunker!
The Chief seems perplexed by the ruins of the bunker, and we can choose to tell him two different things. I suspect they provoke the same response, but I picked the second one, "technology from another world".
… ah, Konogg went back to the Seed, didn't he? We immediately have another dialogue choice, and both options suggest it. Well, I like it when the writers let the WoL be even a little insightful, so I'll take it.
Hah, they're just dumping orchestrion rolls on us.
The Chief says "let's get going", and we actually get a dialogue option in response to that. Seems we can take exception to him coming along? Either that or we're confused that he's helping. I picked it, and he excitedly declared that he's coming with us, because he can't continue to stand by and do nothing.
I imagine some people would take exception to having to walk through the entire Puppet's Bunker a second/third time. Personally, I have been enjoying the sights. These YoRHa: Dark Apocalypse instances have been quite well made. I've also taken a moment to reflect on just how empty the place is.
We really did kill everyone present, didn't we?
At the very end of the Alien Ship, Konogg lies unconscious beside the Seed. It promptly spits out dozens of copies of 2P. I suppose this is how the Puppet series androids were produced, then.
2B, 9S, and Anogg arrive on the scene. Anogg quickly insists we destroy the Seed.
And then the 2Ps all scream, and are... deleted? Teleport away? The Seed disappears, too. And then the whole place starts rumbling. Time to escape. And we succeed, only to bear witness to the apeparance of a giant white spiral tower.
Apparently preventing this is what Anogg wanted when she ordered us to destroy the Seed.
"I feel I'm owed several explanations..." YES, PLEASE.
"There is no time." Look, I'm sure I'll be running in there immediately after one dialogue box or ten. Just tell me SOMETHING. ANYTHING.
Ah. 2P is planning to use the Seed to consume the whole world. OK, that is something.
2B and 9S came here to save this world, and 2B feels indebted to us for saving 9S (despite also being the reason 9S needed to be saved). OK, I'll take it.
I suppose I should be thankful that my WoL can be annoyed at how little anything has been explained. Anyways, Anogg apologizes to the Chief, and asks him to take care of Konogg. The Chief agrees and also wants some explanations, but is considerably more polite about it than I am.
Talking to Anogg and 2B before the instance just reiterates that we need to do this now. 9S wishes he had time to do some scanning first. OK.
Let the duty commence, I suppose.
YoRHa 2: Tomorrow and Tomorrow
Given the dialogue 2B and 9S have, I am completely confused as to when this could possibly take place during the complicated timeline of the Yoko Taroverse. Both of them are reiterating the "machines aren't alive" rhetoric, which suggests neither of them are totally aware of the events of Nier Automata. On the other hand, given what I know of 2B, that may—well, I digress.
Suffice to say, though my grasp on Nier lore is not the strongest, I don't think being 100% fluent in it would help at all.
Anyways, spending most of the dungeon inside the hacking interface was pretty damn cool, as was seeing the Puppet androids transform into Nier bosses. Though I can't say I understand the significance, if there is any.
The presence of the Red Girl is practically a given, since the Puppet androids are products of the Machine lifeforms. And her transformation into what is clearly a reference to Drakengard's Watchers is... on the nose, I suppose? The second half of that fight featuring a Drakengard 3-esque design calls to mind the protagonist of that game.
In order to close the gateway 2P/Red Girl opened, Anogg sacrifices herself. She beseeches us to take care of Konogg. I would, but I get the feeling I won't be able to take him home with me. Sorry, Anogg. She also gives us a letter to give to him, which I assume will be more about their siblinghood than anything else.
The portal closing knocks us out, and either knocks out 2B and 9S as well, or outright killed them, I guess. One of the pods brought along with us plays back a recording of 2B, which seems to have been made while we were fighting?
Apparently almost all of the YoRha Dark Apocalypse stuff came from the Seed, including 2B and 9S themselves. (No word on whether the Puppet's Bunker or Copied Factory did, too.) The Seed is also a gateway between worlds, and the means of the First's destruction. For what purpose? Nobody seems to know.
2B says they'll save their memories of their reunion—I think she's speaking of 9S—and of the time spent on the First, and with us. But since we barely got to interact with her and the plot was both confoundingly dense and empty at the same time, it feels hollow to me.
"So... thank you." I'll take it.
Their bodies and the pod disappear, and the tower begins to collapse.
The Chief is glad to see us and Konogg alive, but is worried about Anogg's fate.
The Chief's understanding of this turn of events is just as confused as I am, but in layman's terms: Big White Orb and White-clothed Androids bad, so we beat them up and they're gone.
He asks us where Anogg, 2B, and 9S are. We have the option to remain silent (implying their deaths) or to apologize (implying their deaths). We close our eyes and look away as we apologize, and the Chief is distraught. He says it doesn't seem fair that she's dead, and that he'd hoped everything would turn out fine and go back to normal. I know it's unrelated, but thinking about this, I couldn't help but call to mind Thancred's last moments with Minfilia.
The Chief elects to tell the villagers what happened, and asks us to tell Konogg. He feels like a coward for not having the strength to do so himself, and thinks it would be better if we did. And so, for perhaps the last time, I play mother to poor Konogg.
As an aside, I wish the /Hug emote was a little less stiff.
Konogg does not take news of his sister's death well, to say the least. We give him the letter, and...
OK, so Anogg has been to the world on the other side of the gate before. And apparently that world is also a construct? I am every bit as confused as poor Konogg now.
Konogg gives us the Chief's wife's watch, which he found and fixed at some point, and says he needs to go somewhere and do something. My money's on "mourn his sister", but I wouldn't count on him not trying to find a way to go to her either.
We can ask him if they'd be happier to have it delivered by the one who fixed it—and I know exactly why he thinks they wouldn't. I'm torn on this. A mother would prod him to make that choice himself, wouldn't they? But at the same time, it's rather insensitive to ignore how he and the villagers perceive his relationship with them.
I went for it, and he stumbled and stammered his way through a non-answer before apologizing. Goddamn it, I feel so sorry for this kid.
Konogg thanks us for all our help, and wishes he was as strong as us. Maybe someday...
The Chief is surprised to see the watch, as it had been lost for a long time. And after we tell him why Konogg won't deliver it in person, he runs off after him. It seems we have to comfort another distraught dwarf. I mean, OK...
Konogg is gone. He left a letter of farewell.
The Chief seems well aware just how badly the villagers failed these two children, and is taking it very hard. Believe me, Chief, you're the only Dwarf who cares.
We get an odd dialogue option here. "What do you plan to do about it?" vs. "What is 'right', in the end?" The latter seems downright cynical, and reminds me of how... dissatisfied the WoL turned out to be after Elidibus was dealt with.
I suppose on an emotional level, this raid storyline has been hitting a lot of the same notes as Shadowbringers did. Which is to say Yoko Taro is pretty good at reading the room when it comes to that.
The Chief doesn't know what he should do, or how to make things right. Neither do we, and I'm not just talking about the dwarves. But he does understand that something needs to change—the villagers need to start acting like adults and taking responsibility for what happened. Even if they aren't technically at fault, holding such massive grudges against children like Anogg and Konogg, and pushing all the blame and responsibility onto them, will only serve to crush their spirits.
"How much does the position pay?" I laughed, but holy hell that's an awful dialogue option.
The Chief informs the villagers that the danger has passed, and tries to get them to look to the future. But all they care about is punishing someone for what happened.
For some reason, while talking to the villagers, I thought about the Convocation selecting Elidibus to be sacrificed and become the Heart of Zodiark. And I can't help but wonder if things might've been different if someone else had been chosen, or if more or even all members of the Convocation had come together to act as the Heart. Or if that would even be possible.
It also called to mind why, exactly, Azem refused to take part. What reason did they have? Seeing that reflected here, with both Konogg (who ran away) and the Chief (who is trying to turn the villagers around) feels almost intentional.
Talking to the villagers also drove me to tears. I feel if I got into why, it'd be really personal. But a small part of that is that I've written my WoL to have inner feelings very similar to what these dwarves are saying.
It's nice to see that, even though everyone shares some part of the blame here, nobody is actually villainized in the process. Except maybe Glagg. And 2P/Red Girl?
Glagg and the Chief turn to us for an answer after all the talking is done. We get to choose between admonishing them by insisting they stop this before it's too late, griping about having to listen to them, or turn the question back on them. "How am I supposed to know better than any of you?" This honestly feels like a heavy choice to make, even though I know it won't amount to any real difference.
The villagers side with us... and promptly blame Glagg instead. Damn it, fellas. Funnily enough, apparently Glagg actually did give them useful advice on this. "Listen to other's perspectives." I don't know whether Glagg is a hypocrite for not practicing what he preaches, or if the rest are too up their own behinds to recognize what that means and instead have been relying on Glagg—the village elder—to be their "other perspective".
The Chief comes to Glagg's defense. Nobody could have foreseen what happened. Nobody is right every time. Everyone makes mistakes. They all failed each other, and no one person is to blame for what's been done.
And then the Chief runs off. Naturally, all the dwarves are frustrated over that—gods, I have never related to people who frustrated me quite so much. Funnily enough, while the rest are frustrated, the doomsaying dwarf has become introspective.
The Chief apologizes for running off, saying he's not cut out for public speaking. I can relate. But he's dedicated to putting Komra back together any way he can. He doesn't know what should have been done before, however, and all he can do is try to do better going forward.
Day by day, moment by moment.
The Doomsaying Dwarf! I knew there was something different about them. He knows he hasn't been particularly helpful, but he's choosing to try harder, and offering to help the Chief in any way they can. Reminds me a bit of Ryne, honestly.
The Chief is counting on us in the future, and—wow, I was expecting the story to be over. How stupid of me. Of course there's a continuation.
"Not yet. I still have worlds to save and packages to deliver." Hah.
Next quest: The Chief wants us and Doomsaying Dwarf (I wish he had a name) to begin rebuilding, and suggests we can use parts the Machine Lifeforms left behind. That's actually a good idea.
And so I've unlocked the weekly quest to rebuild Komra. But I am really, really exhausted at this point, so I'll stop for now and summarize my thoughts.
The Dwarf Plot? This is top quality stuff, and definitely worth experiencing. And as it seems to be ongoing, I eagerly await the conclusion, which from what I've heard comes over the course of the next four weeks.
The Machine Plot? I went into this expecting to have answers for why any of this was going on, and by the end I received absolutely nothing. It felt less like a story being told and more like a sequence of events that served as the backdrop for the Dwarf Plot.
Which, to me, sounds a lot like the events leading up to the Final Days. So hats off to Yoko Taro for that, at the very least.
Having said that—I really would have appreciated answers. I'm sure a lot of people feel the same way. Ah well, c'est la vie.
YoRHa 3: Week 01
Konogg sent something to Komra for us. I suppose this is how we'll get our data archives from the third raid, since we can't actually visit it.
The Chief hopes that, even though Konogg has yet to return, he hasn't given up on the village. Further cementing the Azem parallel for me. Or maybe I'm just reading too much into it.
Dear Lily,
I hope this message finds you. I'm going on a journey—to learn the secrets of the white spheres for myself. Maybe some of them will be of use to you...
I'll keep a record, just in case.
- Konogg
It seems we'll be getting something in the way of answers after all. Color me intrigued.
YoRHa 3: Week 02
The Doomsaying Dwarf finds himself pulling himself out of his negativity by focusing on work, but bemoans the fact that getting anything started is so difficult. OK.
The Chief hands over another recording device from Konogg, only for Glagg to interrupt us before I could peruse it. As usual, he's being a rabble-rouser rather than put himself to work. Or perhaps he believes rabble-rousing IS his work.
… He just accused the WoL and the Chief of conspiring to take over the village. I mean, if it'd shut him up for a while, I'd be happy to. But no, it seems he's just drunk, or so the Chief says. OK.
We get to ask if there's anything (more) we can do to help, or how the rebuilding is going. Considering the way these go, I suspect picking the first one will have him refuse to let us help for now. So I went with the second one.
… But before the Chief can even respond, the Dour Dwarf interrupts. Seems he's wanting to pitch in, just like the Doomsaying Dwarf.
The Dour Dwarf says they try not to get involved with anything, and prefer to keep their distance and occasionally remind others that they exist. A dwarf after my own heart, sad to say. But they've been inspired by our Getting **** Done squad and—well, yeah.
I get the sneaking suspicion that, by the time this is done, all of the dwarves will be on our side except Glagg.
Anyways, yeah, our choice didn't matter. There's no work to be done for another week. But the Doomsaying Dwarf seems done for now, and next week we'll be fetching stuff for the Dour Dwarf instead.
Dear Lily,
I forgot to mention—I brought a pod with me. It assures me that the spheres came from a different world, and their purpose is to invade others by duplicating the machine lifeforms.
It's weird to think that to someone, ours is the "other" world.
- Konogg
This is stuff we already knew, or could infer. We knew the spheres came from another world (due to the events and dialogue in The Tower). We knew they could duplicate the machine lifeforms (because that's what they'd already done). And we knew the purpose was to invade the First (because that's what it did).
We still don't know why any of this happened, why it could also duplicate the Androids, why it created its own enemies (2B, 9S, Anogg), why its creations spent such a significant amount of time contemplating their own existence when their only purpose was to invade the First, and why a significant portion of its creations did not disappear (the Puppets' Bunker, the Copied Factory, the 2B corpses, and the Machine Lifeform corpses).
YoRHa: Week Three
The Dour Dwarf wants to sell objects from another world. Once more, I am beside myself with bemusement. Anyways, into the Bunker... and back out again with stuff. Not much to this one, really.
Once more, the Chief has a message from Konogg. Once more, Glagg accuses us of scheming. And once more, he has an... episode. Seems he doesn't even know why he did that, or why he's so angry. This reminds me of a particular thing from the Drakengard/Nier series, but... eh.
Dear Lily,
I found out that 2B and 9S accessed the spheres before this all started, which is why they knew about the machine lifeforms' plans to take over our world. They added their own data to that of the machine lifeforms when copies were being made—like some sort of technological virus, apparently—so that they could come here and stop the machines.
They were our allies, from beginning to end...
- Konogg
Well, that explains why and how 2B and 9S were here, and reinforces the whole "the machines wanted to conquer the First" thing. But honestly... getting an answer for that wasn't all that satisfying. This is like the Noctis/FFXV Event, but with all the interaction with the Isekai'd characters (2B and 9S) getting cut while the event itself is stretched out over a three raid story.
I think I've said this before, but despite accepting how barren this story turned out to be and finding enjoyment in the dwarves for actually being fleshed out, I'm still pretty disappointed with this. If this was the most they aspired to do, I think they should've just had a repeat of the Monster Hunter event with a single Trial, and instead dedicated the Alliance raid to... I don't know. Something about Ronkan ruins, maybe.
YoRHa: Week Four
Second verse, same as the first. Another recording device, and Glagg is once more being Glagg. This time he's accusing the Dig Site Chief of spreading rumors about him and trying to drive him out of the village. Then he runs off, confused over what he just did. This is getting grating.
The Chief paid a visit to him offscreen, but it seems like it didn't help at all. Oh well. Looks like the Decisive Dwarf is our next quest giver.
Dear Lily,
The white spheres have ties to 2B and 9S's world, which is almost inconceivably advanced. I've found that data there is stored by machines bearing the names of gods, and even the tiniest glimpse of the smallest portion of it reveals memories by the hundreds—people's memories.
What does it mean? I need to know.
- Konogg
OK, so... the orbs are from Earth, circa Nier Automata, it seems. I mean, obviously they'd have to be. Likewise, the "machines named after gods" is a reference to all the important Machine Lifeform characters being named after real world philosophers—humanity is treated as akin to the gods in Nier Automata, as I recall. We received a glimpse of that with the Copied Factory (Marx and Hobbes) and the Tower (Xun Zi and Meng Zi). The Machine Network having access to humanity's memories, is, of course, something that happened in Nier Automata. This does, at the very least, explain how the final boss was able to do such notable things as throw the Square-Enix building at us.
Worthy of note is that, assuming this only lasts two more weeks, we'll only have half the dwarves on our side. With the dwarves split perfectly between the Chief and Glagg, I can't help but wonder if a conflict will rise out of that. But since this is wrapping up the story, that'd be kind of strange, don't you think?
YoRHa: Week Five
Decisive Dwarf apologizes for his behavior at the meeting. Good for him. He wants us to beat up a dwarven automata. A bit of a relief to have some variety, though I say that knowing "go and subdue the thing" has been a quest type since forever.
This time it's the Doomsaying Dwarf approaching for a chat. And of course it's about Glagg. Seems he's been behaving even more odd than before, and his behavior is reminiscent of machines/androids infected with the Logic Virus from Automata. Or maybe he's just having a psychotic break, and Norvrandt needs more psychiatrists and better healthcare.
Dear Lily,
I know all along, really.
I knew that Anogg was dead, and that thing with me only looked like her. But being with her, whatever she was... It kept me alive. It made me want to go on living.
If the spheres can create anything—rebuild it in our world—then surely they can grant me this.
- Konogg
For those familiar with Drakengard, the white sphere is a Seed of Resurrecion, otherwise known as a Seed of Destruction. And in Drakengard, a woman was placed inside of one, only to emerge as a chimeralike nightmare of a monster. Though it bore a physical resemblance to the woman placed inside, it was incapable of human speech and exceptionally hostile. Not only that, but hundreds of other such seeds also began pumping out identical copies of her after this version of her was killed.
That leaves me wondering why the sphere reproduced an exact copy of Anogg instead, with the only major difference being that she initially could only speak in an alien tongue.
I suppose we won't be getting an answer to that. But it does seem like Konogg is set on recreating his sister a second time. What's really strange to me, though, is the implication that there are still other such spheres left in Norvrandt. I'd have figured that the one that produced Anogg and the one the Red Girl used were the same. But if there are actually more out there, then this crossover might not actually be finished.
Or maybe it'll remain a mystery. I dunno. back to Neptunia.
YoRHa: Week Six
Do the thing. You did the thing. Congratulations. If you listen to this post closely, you can hear the sound of a party horn.
But it looks like Komra is finally back to normal, which feels nice. The Digsite Chief hands over another E-Letter from Konogg, then takes us aside to tell us about Glagg. Seems he turned up missing lately. And then he turned up all the way down in the Alien Ship, completely ignored the dwarves sent to find him, and returned to the village. He's been normal ever since. OK... something is wrong.
The Digsite Chief has declared Komra to be my home. Does that mean I can finally go into the houses?… No? Damn.
For as long as I can remember, it's been just the two of us. Hardly anyone even bothered to be kind to us. But we always had each other. When I was with Anogg, there was nothing to fear.
What my sister wanted most was to get revenge on the world that had done this to us. I can't accept that the world got her first.
I won't.
No greeting, and no signature. Konogg seems to have gone off the deep end, blaming his sister's death/s on the world lived in. Even though her first death was an accident, and her second was a willing sacrifice on her part to protect that same world and her own brother from the end.
I have to wonder if there's some sort of parallel there between Konogg's survival and a similar dark, inwardly brooding individual burdened with the weight of the world on his shoulders. I doubt my poor little boy is going to go building an empire or two any time soon, though.
Well, that's it for now. I can't say for sure what'll happen next, but I can't imagine Konogg or Glagg will make it through the Epilogue alive. Which is to say—I barely knew ye, Glagg, and if I have to pick, I'm gonna save my little boy. But seriously, I do hope Konogg will be OK.
To be continued in 5.55...
Originally Posted by Whoever
And that
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