Incorrect Port/Starboard Use During lvl 89 MSQ A Strαnge New World

[hellgiver]

During level 89 MSQ "A Strange New World" Estinien uses 'Starboard' incorrectly.

Text of the quest
https://ffxiv.consolegameswiki.com/w...1nge_New_World

Estinien says 'starboard' when referring to the left of the ship, he should say 'port'.

Explanation of port and starboard
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_and_starboard#Side

[Rongway]

He's not a sailor. Maybe he just doesn't know port from starboard. While the word usage is clearly wrong, I don't necessarily think it's inappropriate.

[Duskane]

Estinien has omega 11 brain rot

[Iscah]

I would not be surprised if someone wrote "larboard" in the script and a proofreader not in on the joke thought it was an error.

I would like to blame the same hypothetical person for landing us with the inexplicable "Stigma" instead of "Sigma" amid a horde of robots named after Greek letters. Doubly so when we had a whole raid subseries named after it.

[ActionZero]

I would like to blame the same hypothetical person for landing us with the inexplicable "Stigma" instead of "Sigma" amid a horde of robots named after Greek letters. Doubly so when we had a whole raid subseries named after it.

Stigma is actually also an obsolete greek letter (well, technically a combination of letters turned into a single character):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stigma_(letter)

[Iscah]

Stigma is actually also an obsolete greek letter (well, technically a combination of letters turned into a single character):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stigma_(letter)

The more you know... I did check the Wikipedia article on the Greek alphabet before making that post, but didn't think of looking for a page for the letter itself - though even armed with this extra information, you have to get a long way down the alphabet page before it's mentioned as a combination. Still it seems odd over just using a plain letter, especially when Sigma was important already (and sounds cool).


Anyway, I came back to the thread to say the original issue has been fixed. I replayed it the other night and Estinien is now talking about the port side of the ship.

[Shibi]

He's not a sailor. Maybe he just doesn't know port from starboard. While the word usage is clearly wrong, I don't necessarily think it's inappropriate.

I think you have the reason, he's not a sailor, and is just confused, it's so very common with these terms. It could even be on purpose to indicate a shakiness in knowledge.


As a general aside because I love the etymology of words; the word was originally bæcbord (side of the helmsman's back) with stéorbord (side the steering board was on) being the right side, the direction the helmsman faced.

Bæcbord changed into laddeborde sometime in the 1300s (possibly the side you load from), and a consonant shift to larboard in the 1600s - before being changed by the Royal Navy to port (side you load from) in the 1800s to stop the confusion between starboard and larboard in shouted orders.

For non-sailors who want a guide to remember which is which; port and larboard are shorter words than starboard, just like left has fewer letters than right.