Thread: Revelations from Patch 5.5 (Part 1)

Originally Posted by Cilia

Tidbits, kiddos!

After 5.5 yielded little in the way of answers, I did remember the white sphere (Seed of Creation / Destruction, or just "Seed" for short) had Drakengard-verse angelic writing on it, so I looked up the script and tried to translate that... but it was just repeating the same character(s), so the effort didn't seem worthwhile. Interesting that the characters translate to the base code for DNA, but I don't see what value that knowledge is.

On the other hand, there's lots more "angelic" script used in the fights against the False Idol and Her Inflorescence. I doubt it would provide any additional context, but if someone wants to translate it that's a good lead. (I'm not quite that dedicated, lol.)

One last note is that when Her Inflorescence summons trains to run over the party, the text box doesn't use her name. Instead the line(s), which include stuttering and trailing into Japanese characters, are "spoken" by what translates from hexadecimal to "Voice" (766F696365). I don't recall seeing this happen elsewhere, and it doesn't provide any context, but it's a neat little thing to notice.

One more week and we'll see if there's any big payoff in Konogg's last datalog, I guess.

Oh yeah, regarding what's in the spoiler tags.

Originally Posted by Nestama

Just some more NieR Dark Apocalypse stuff I noticed that also applies to Puppet's Bunker (so it may have been mentioned back in 5.3 lore thread).

The angelic script is exactly the same as the Black Scrawl text in NieR Replicant... and 2010 NieR, though the angelic script used for T was what looked like a T and not a U. From the wiki:

The four Angelic Script characters that compose the Black Scrawl are Aleph, Cheth, Gimel and Thes, or A, C, G, and T. These characters likely represent the DNA nucleobases of Adenine, Cytosine, Guanine, and Thymine, indicating that the Black Scrawl represents the breakdown of a Replicant's DNA.

Honestly beginning to think Red Girl is/was Sleeping Beauty from NieR Replicant/Gestalt at this point.

The exact same angelic script characters also appear during the final boss fight in Drakengard 3

Originally Posted by Cilia

Tidbits, kiddos!

One last note is that when Her Inflorescence summons trains to run over the party, the text box doesn't use her name. Instead the line(s), which include stuttering and trailing into Japanese characters, are "spoken" by what translates from hexadecimal to "Voice" (766F696365). I don't recall seeing this happen elsewhere, and it doesn't provide any context, but it's a neat little thing to notice.

So NieR and yet so far

It's pretty obviously a Tokyo station platform announcer (OMG Drakengard ending E!), but our characters presumably wouldn't know that. Not sure why the speaker tag needed to be hex encoded if deciphering it leaves us at, "Yep, still a disembodied voice," but that goes for 90% of this raid series. Just another red herring from the red girl, I guess.

It didn't really occur to me until I did a run-through of Amaurot in explorer mode, but I now cannot help but question whether or not there is some connection between that ominous, glowing red haze you can see hanging over the world at the end of the dungeon and the similar substance the towers seem to be sending into the sky.

Though more important is the question of what it is. Some kind of aetherial "pollution" generated as a side effect of summoning/creation magicks, perhaps?

I'm also starting to think that Zodiark may not actually be involved in the return of the Final Days and his awakening may simply end up being in response to that, seeing as it's the very reason he was brought into existence in the first place.

Originally Posted by Fenral

So NieR and yet so far

I assumed as much.

It's just odd they'd put that behind hex coding. Most of what's behind hex coding is... pretty unimportant; the Knave of Hearts and Hansel and Gretel both feature lots of dialogue in hex, though it's nothing more than faux-philosophical musings like we get from the Puppet units in the Bunker. The Compound and False Idol both feature hex subtitles that are informative, but that's just about it.

Her Inflorescence's dialogue is otherwise... pretty suggestive in terms of narrative, but the hex dialogue having no real impact is kind of perplexing.

Originally Posted by KageTokage

I'm also starting to think that Zodiark may not actually be involved in the return of the Final Days and his awakening may simply end up being in response to that, seeing as it's the very reason he was brought into existence in the first place.

I don't see why waking up Zodiark wouldn't be part of the plan, assuming Zenos doesn't just go up to the moon and snatch him before everything goes to Hell in a handbasket. Zodiark is way too big a factor for Danny Boy to leave unaccounted for.

Originally Posted by KageTokage

It didn't really occur to me until I did a run-through of Amaurot in explorer mode, but I now cannot help but question whether or not there is some connection between that ominous, glowing red haze you can see hanging over the world at the end of the dungeon and the similar substance the towers seem to be sending into the sky.

Though more important is the question of what it is. Some kind of aetherial "pollution" generated as a side effect of summoning/creation magicks, perhaps?

I'm also starting to think that Zodiark may not actually be involved in the return of the Final Days and his awakening may simply end up being in response to that, seeing as it's the very reason he was brought into existence in the first place.

A lowkey reference to FFXI/a common trope sort of, when it comes to apocalyptic settings. In FFXI, the world of Abyssea was a mirror world to Vana'diel where the heroes failed to save the Mothercrystals and lost to Promathia in the Empyreal Paradox, who then consumed Selh'teus and became Shinryu. I can't remember the exact details, but to oversee the final destruction of the world, six mighty automaton like beings very alien to Vana'diel were set upon its surface.

They become known as the Caturae, which is a word relating them to Caturanga, one of the original versions of Chess. You fight a knight, rook, pawn, king, and queen all in Abyssea, each with their own zone. In related content called Voidwatch where you open portals to fight extra dimensional hostiles, you fight the Elephant piece(later Bishop).

I'm not sure if it was ever expounded on, who made these Caturae. It's been so long since I delved into FFXI's story, too, that I can't rightly remember. I do know, and very much remember, that they are similar in appearance and shape to Hades in FFXI, once he takes on his true, Supreme Being form. Though they lack his energy wings, which are similar in shape to Promathia's. Hades in XI is a being who comes from the plane of Tartarus, which is contained within what I always took to be a downed alien craft of sorts, Ra'Kaznar. Though it could also be an ancient civ's "ruins." Within Ra'Kaznar that same red eerieness is ever present after a certain point.

Basically, I see it as an artistic choice for a malevolent, oppressive atmosphere. Like the very air is bleeding, ignited with pain.

Also just a neat image aside:

And we have confirmation there will be epilogue quests for YorHa made available in 5.55
Goody. They extended the story by 5 weeks with the weeklies and just as we were about to finish they give us more.

EDIT: Not that I'm adverse to this approach, but the content of the story itself leaves so much to be desired I find it difficult to believe the epilogue quests will make up for it.