Midgarsormr

[kaynide]

A lot of this is revealed as the game progresses.

Beware spoilers, but I kept things as vague as I could.

Who or what is Midgardsormr (in game, not the real world name roots):

He is an ancient dragon from an entirely different planet. For reasons not entirely clear, he fled his home world with a clutch of eggs called the First Brood. This brood includes famous dragons you may have met such as Nidhogg.

Midgardsormr made an agreement to protect Hydaelyn in exchange for being able to live on the planet. His body was destroyed in a battle that destroyed Mor Dhona as we know it. His corpse can be seen wrapped around a massive airship in Silvertear lake.

You will learn more of his origins in the raid series for 4.0, but it’s not a lot of details.
The dragons overall story is of course in 3.0, but dragons/dragon related items are very central through the story up to the current patch.

Is Midgardsormr dead? (3.0 spoilers)

No, but it’s complicated. Elder dragons are complicated in this game. They are something akin to primals, but not primals. Their power seems to exist and persist beyond their bodies. Midgardsormr joins your group as a little guy; Nidhogg can reform using the body of another. Dragon blood itself seems to cause people to mutate.

Ascians? (Spoilers but minor)

The Ascians are major enemies in this game. The scene you are talking about with Moenbryda is a start of something bigger: team Scion has found a means to kill Ascians. The nature of the Ascians and what this means will become clearer as youmprogress. Short version: This will become a big deal.

[Yvresse]

A lot of this is revealed as the game progresses.

Beware spoilers, but I kept things as vague as I could.

Who or what is Midgardsormr (in game, not the real world name roots):

He is an ancient dragon from an entirely different planet. For reasons not entirely clear, he fled his home world with a clutch of eggs called the First Brood. This brood includes famous dragons you may have met such as Nidhogg.

Midgardsormr made an agreement to protect Hydaelyn in exchange for being able to live on the planet. His body was destroyed in a battle that destroyed Mor Dhona as we know it. His corpse can be seen wrapped around a massive airship in Silvertear lake.

You will learn more of this in the raid series for 4.0, but it’s not a lot of details.

Is Midgardsormr dead? (3.0 spoilers)

No, but it’s complicated. Elder dragons are complicated in this game. They are something akin to primals, but not primals. Their power seems to exist and persist beyond their bodies. Midgardsormr joins your group as a little guy; Nidhogg can reform using the body of another. Dragon blood itself seems to cause people to mutate.

Ascians? (Spoilers but minor)

The Ascians are major enemies in this game. The scene you are talking about with Moenbryda is a start of something bigger: team Scion has found a means to kill Ascians. The nature of the Ascians and what this means will become clearer as youmprogress. Short version: This will become a big deal.

So is he protecting Hydaelyn by stripping me of the warrior of light power?

[RicaRuin]

So is he protecting Hydaelyn by stripping me of the warrior of light power?

"Art thou a pawn, or a master of thine own fate?"
He is basically testing you, trying to judge whether you are string on your own or whether you were only able to accomplish things with Hydaelyn's help.

[kaynide]

So is he protecting Hydaelyn by stripping me of the warrior of light power?

Short version, yes.

Long version: he does not like you at first, and does not particularly want to help you…but he notices you are blessed by Hydaelyn, whom he swore to protect…so he seals your blessing to test your worthiness. Basically, can you be a hero and use your own powers without relying on hers.

[Hainiryun]

Or the Midgar Zolom?

Yes, actually but not in the way you'd think. The Midgar Zolom enemy in VII is named Midgardsormr in the japanese version. It was eroneously translated to Midgar Zolom. (Incidentally VII also features the first appearance of Nidhogg in the franchise. As a little yellow snake whose english name is "Heg").

Names aside there's no actual connection though. FF as a franchise just likes to make use of mythological names and concepts but as a general rule each title is standalone (XIV makes a lot of callbacks and alusions to other games in the franchise but they're still distinct and adapted to fit this game).

[Katie_Kitty]

Keep playing... I don't know why people come here begging to be spoiled. Play the game.

[Enkidoh]

Beware spoilers, but I kept things as vague as I could.

Who or what is Midgardsormr (in game, not the real world name roots):

He is an ancient dragon from an entirely different planet. For reasons not entirely clear, he fled his home world with a clutch of eggs called the First Brood. This brood includes famous dragons you may have met such as Nidhogg.

Actually,

we know why Midgardsormr fled the Dragonstar, it was because Omega arrived on the planet and laid waste to it - basically Middy is the last of his kind which is why he's so powerful. Basically dragons are aliens not native to Hydaelyn. He basically arrived on the Source Hydaelyn as a intergalactic refugee, but yes he was allowed to settle on the Source by Hydaelyn if he vowed to protect the planet and the people on it - presumedly this is why he led the Dravanian Horde to protect Silvertear Lake from Gaius's invasion fleet. A lot of the specifics of Middy's pact with Hydaelyn is a big unknown though, and the whole thing is still very murky.

As for why

Middy sealed the Crystals, it was because of the very Blessing's nature - every time Hydaelyn steps in to help the WoL she's weakening herself to do so - Middy mistook the player's character as not Hydaelyn's champion but just some upstart mortal that was stealing her powers, so he thought by sealing the Blessing it would show you for what you truly were.

The joke was on him though when you successfully relight the Crystals and re-create the Blessing yourself through your struggles in HW, proving without a doubt you really are who you say you are (actions after all speak louder than words). This is why he turns himself into your mount on Azys Lla, he feels sincere guilt for what he did and wants to make amends to you for doing so - a dragon willingly submitting themself to such servitude is a major honour, and for the dragon's Primogenitor to do that....

As for Middy is meant to be a reference to the Midgard Zolom in FFVII... it is, in a way, in that Midgardsormr is a reoccuring enemy/summon/character throughout many FF games, and FFVII wasn't even the first either (he first appeared as an Esper summon in FFVI, although like his FFVII appearence his name was originally mistranslated in the original 'FFIII' US SNES version - in FFVI's case, he was mistranslated as 'Terrato').

[SilverObi]

Some of these questions are giving me the impression you've misunderstood some aspects of the story you've already received and might be well served to rewatch some cutscenes. No shade and no insult meant, sometimes a story can come across hard to connect. And yes as others have already said, most if not all of your questions will be answered just by continuing to play the MSQ.

[kaynide]

Actually,

we know why Midgardsormr fled the Dragonstar, it was because Omega arrived on the planet and laid waste to it - basically Middy is the last of his kind which is why he's so powerful. Basically dragons are aliens not native to Hydaelyn. He basically arrived on the Source Hydaelyn as a intergalactic refugee, but yes he was allowed to settle on the Source by Hydaelyn if he vowed to protect the planet and the people on it - presumedly this is why he led the Dravanian Horde to protect Silvertear Lake from Gaius's invasion fleet. A lot of the specifics of Middy's pact with Hydaelyn is a big unknown though, and the whole thing is still very murky.

As for why

Middy sealed the Crystals, it was because of the very Blessing's nature - every time Hydaelyn steps in to help the WoL she's weakening herself to do so - Middy mistook the player's character as not Hydaelyn's champion but just some upstart mortal that was stealing her powers, so he thought by sealing the Blessing it would show you for what you truly were.

The joke was on him though when you successfully relight the Crystals and re-create the Blessing yourself through your struggles in HW, proving without a doubt you really are who you say you are (actions after all speak louder than words). This is why he turns himself into your mount on Azys Lla, he feels sincere guilt for what he did and wants to make amends to you for doing so - a dragon willingly submitting themself to such servitude is a major honour, and for the dragon's Primogenitor to do that....

As for Middy is meant to be a reference to the Midgard Zolom in FFVII... it is, in a way, in that Midgardsormr is a reoccuring enemy/summon/character throughout many FF games, and FFVII wasn't even the first either (he first appeared as an Esper summon in FFVI, although like his FFVII appearence his name was originally mistranslated in the original 'FFIII' US SNES version - in FFVI's case, he was mistranslated as 'Terrato').

I was leaving it intentionally vague to allow for as spoiler-free a read as possible, as OP seems to not have been through HW.
>> You will learn more of this in the raid series for 4.0, but it’s not a lot of details.

No worries though, I would just edit your post to let OP know you have big spoilers.

[Yvresse]

"Art thou a pawn, or a master of thine own fate?"
He is basically testing you, trying to judge whether you are string on your own or whether you were only able to accomplish things with Hydaelyn's help.

I see, so he thinks trading a life for death is equal.