Disappointed in one Endwalker Aspect [SPOILERS]

[Rulakir]

WoW changed a lot of the vanilla zones in Cataclysm and very few people look back at that fondly.

I was not a fan of the revamp. It wasn't because I was necessarily against the idea, initially I was excited, but it was poorly executed. Some zones retained their original charm while others bore no resemblance to their pre-cataclysm state. It'd be like turning Thanalan into an underwater zone, too much.

WoW would have had something like specialty Final Days FATEs around the world at minimum. FFXIV seems to handle phasing well, so I wouldn't think that beyond their capabilities. I haven't played GW2 in forever, but I remember one of their early Living Story chapters trashed the middle of a zone that was just an open field. Aside from the tower they put there being an eyesore, nothing else was lost.

[Rannie]

I'd honestly be fine on him/her refusing on the grounds of him/her not wanting to lose some of his/her dear friends. I mean Hythlodeaus volunteered, they chose Elidibus as the heart and Venat became the heart of Hydaelyn.

[Alleo]

I am of two minds with Azem. I of course am curious how they were and what they have done but at the same time I am like: Would it matter?

Even if they did search for another way they failed. They failed because history is as we know it is. (I guess one could argue that this would at least prove that these two ways with Zodiark and Hydealyn were the only solutions but even Azem is not all-knowing)

I also doubt that they just casually had a time machine. (Emet was really curious about the time traveling that Graha had done) In my mind Azem probably tried to save as many people from outside Amaurot as they could. No bigger evil, no plan to stop whats coming, just them going around helping as many people as they could.

[Shookbeast]

I am of two minds with Azem. I of course am curious how they were and what they have done but at the same time I am like: Would it matter?
(Snipped for space)

Azem could matter for a few reasons I suppose.

1) Azem (and their shards/pieces) are a clear game mechanic that the writers/designers seem pretty keen on continuing to use. Call them “Chekhov’s Soul Shards” in that they’ve been mentioned, (and we know how many there are) - so it’s likely we’re going to see more of them as the story goes on. It would be a very odd plot-line to abandon - given it relates directly to the player character.

2) Azem relates directly to the player character. There’s been some argument that somehow Azem’s closeness to the player character will mean we won’t see Azem included - because it could conflict with headcanon. This has never stopped the writers before (see almost every major quest where we have to make an important decision - or are simply not allowed to decide). We’ll likely get some dialogue options to help give the illusion of choice - but really Azem is all about the story the writer’s want to tell.

3) Azem is a story device that could be described as an “ace in the hole.” Azem is a character held back, on reserve - until the writers know when/how they’d like to use them. Right now, we can only really speculate what Azem was up to - but the writers have taken time to mention Azem again and again - with the likely intention to someday use Azem when they have a particular story need. As far as what that particular need might be - our clues point toward it having something to do with/during the Sundering - but not necessarily involving either Venat or the Convocation.

4) Azem is the Sundering POV. Our character only exists because Azem got split into 14 pieces. At some point we’ll likely find out how that happened to Azem, what they were doing when it happened, and how they felt about it.

5) Azem is a solution to failure, and possibly a narrative twist. Because we don’t know what Azem was up to - or even who they really were - the writers are in a position to use Azem as a “get out of jail free” card. It’s entirely possible Azem did not fail at whatever they were doing (whether it was monster punching - or searching for an alternative to the Sundering). We may just not know the solution yet - because we haven’t met Azem yet (:

Given the list I made above - I think it’s possible we’ll get a playable/play-alongside Azem storyline, where we run the whole gamut of Final Fantasy questing. We’ll likely beat up Big Bads, visit strange new worlds - and also wander around collecting fire wood for strangers.

As far as time machines go - that was in jest. We all know Urianger is the one secretly from another time (;

[Lium]

Azem could matter for a few reasons I suppose.

...I think it’s possible we’ll get a playable/play-alongside Azem storyline, where we run the whole gamut of Final Fantasy questing. We’ll likely beat up Big Bads, visit strange new worlds - and also wander around collecting fire wood for strangers.

As far as time machines go - that was in jest. We all know Urianger is the one secretly from another time (;

If Azem is ever actually shown in-game, like through a flashback or in a dream sequence where we actually play as them, they might do what BioWare did on Dragon Age: Inquisition. There's a scene where the Inquisitor (the PC) meets Hawke, the PC from DA2. Before the cutscene plays, you are taken to a character creation screen where you can create Hawke. This way, the version of Hawke that shows up in the cutscene is actually YOUR Hawke.

This way Azem could very much resemble our WoLs if we so choose, or we could make Azem look completely different.

[Cleretic]

"I do not believe we have ever met, yet I sense my magick upon you. Therefore if I wove the enchantment, I could only have done so at a later point in time." - Venat, Heart of Hydaelyn

"What manner of magick is this, if I may ask?" - Hythlodaeus, Local Busybody

"A traveler's ward, of course. It prevents the corruption of one's aether." - Venat, Inventor of the Blessing of Light, on the Blessing of Light

"Does it protect you from enthrallment by primals, by any chance?" - The WoL, Bearer of the Blessing of Light

"...Primals, you say? I'm not familiar with such beings, but if they "enthrall" by warping the balance of aether, then yes--the magick would afford you a measure of protection." Hydaelyn, Speaker of Plain English

The quest is Travelers at the Crossroads, so you can review the records.

And if you needed the additional help...

"This report seeks to provide an overview of the mechanism by which eikons corrupt and bend men to their will. The phenomenon we call "Corruption" refers to the alteration of the aether of the soul. Said aether normally exists in equilibrium; no one element being more prominent than another. But when a subject is exposed to the aether of an eikon, this changes, their soul taking on the properties of the entity in question." - Owen, Allagan Scientist Specializing in Aetheric Corruption, In a Report Heard by the Scions Themselves

We know exactly what the Blessing of Light is, exactly what the Blessing of Light does, and that it protects from exactly the thing that tempering is, from both an academic source and a personally knowledgeable one. Hell, Venat herself saying this is literally the Word of God about this subject.

Your opinion has absolutely no basis in the text of the story we're talking about. It's just straight-up false, I'm sorry.

[Veloran]

We know exactly what the Blessing of Light is, exactly what the Blessing of Light does, and that it protects from exactly the thing that tempering is, from both an academic source and a personally knowledgeable one. Hell, Venat herself saying this is literally the Word of God about this subject.

So how does that explanation account for the Crystals of Light and Ryne/Minfilia's supped-up Oracle powers, both of which are described as the Blessing of Light?

[Cleretic]

So how does that explanation account for the Crystals of Light and Ryne/Minfilia's supped-up Oracle powers, both of which are described as the Blessing of Light?

The Crystals of Light are some sort of amplification of the Blessing; it's not clear exactly how they work, but it's clearly directly connected, as pretty directly pointed out by Y'shtola when Ysayle uses her Crystal.

I think Minfilia and Ryne have both the Blessing of Light and additional powers on top of that; possibly Hydaelyn-provided, possibly unrelated.

[Veloran]

The Crystals of Light are some sort of amplification of the Blessing;

How do you amplify something that is simply a traveler's ward? What, is WoL supposed to be like eight times immune to tempering, with the ward and six "amplifications" and the Echo? That seems pretty pointless.

I think Minfilia and Ryne have both the Blessing of Light and additional powers on top of that;

I think the Blessing clearly imparts more than just a ward, since so much seems to fall under it's purview.