What is Ceruleum?

[SannaR]

Besides being XIV's equivalent of crude oil. Does anyone think it's more than just that? Considering that the Blue Mage storyline has us stopping a guy from telling parties that would be interested that there's a huge amount of it in the New World. A lot of the time something that's used as an oil/energy source there's normally an unknown consequence in using it.

The most known one being Mako energy being the literal life blood of the planet. In some of the older ones using the various elemental crystals as energy sources ended up over time draining them and making the planet wither.

[Enkidoh]

As far as I understood it, Cereleum is a physical fuel rich in aether, but it's not literally aether, hence it can be burned in an engine, especially those that power airships, which is what the Garleans use it for (as well as heating and lighting - presumedly the later is what it's main use in Eorzea is for).

Because it's so enriched with aether, overuse of it may possibly cause some kind of influence on the overall aetheric density of the landscape, but if there is a direct aetherial environmental impact for it's use, it's not really mentioned to my knowledge.

[KageTokage]

As far as we know, the New World is largely untouched by modern civilization, and having numerous parties learn about the potential profit to be made from its vast ceruleum reserves would likely prompt an advent of colonialism that would undeniably end up being detrimental to the native peoples.

I don't think there's any deeper reason to it then that.

[MikkoAkure]

One environmental effect there is, is that the weather effects of Northern Thanalan are caused by excessive mining of Ceruleum as it evaporates in the air and its where Camp Bluefog gets its name.

It doesn't seem to be anything more special than fantasy oil that absorbs aether though and the Hearers in Gridania make an allusion to oil and say that no elementals reside in it and that it's made up of the remains ancient life.

[YianKutku]

Ceruleum is also only available through resource extraction industries, and from various questlines and dialogue, is implied to be either non-renewable, or so slowly renewable as to make little difference within any useful human timespan. This is in contrast to aether crystals, which apparently pop up frequently enough that there is no danger of shortage, even if there may be shortages of specific grades and alignments of crystals.

The Studium questline for BTN/MIN does mention that ceruleum is very efficient as a fuel source, especially when refined.

[SannaR]

Remains of Ancient life... That just paints a picture of actual Ancient bodies turned into blue gloop in my mind. There does seem to be some seeping out in the last part of Cutter's Cry. As those blue oil like pools when you get damaged by the short burst of flame is called Cerulean flame.

[Alleluia]

I agree its an oil allegory, but doesn't south Garlemald/Camp Broken Glass's sidequests mention its specifically water soluble? The extractor is extracting it from the ice (and you can often see a blue tint on the ice on the lake) or the lake water below it. Oil is not water-soluble, so ceruleum's actual form likely isn't oil-based. It seems almost more like heavy water to me.



Also, it seems it glows blue, cus of aether, I'm sure. Which is fun and I'm sure totally not carcinogenic at all, why do you ask?

[MikkoAkure]

I agree its an oil allegory, but doesn't south Garlemald/Camp Broken Glass's sidequests mention its specifically water soluble? The extractor is extracting it from the ice (and you can often see a blue tint on the ice on the lake) or the lake water below it. Oil is not water-soluble, so ceruleum's actual form likely isn't oil-based. It seems almost more like heavy water to me.

They drill it from beneath the lake. From what I understood, the parts of it in the ice itself are where it escaped/leaked, became unstable, and then exploded. Both the Garleans and the Ul’dahns drill for ceruleum in Thanalan, which famously lacks water.

With the writers also describing that it’s dug up from the ground and made up of ancient life, as well as the fact it needs to be refined, it’s just a fantasy version of oil that has absorbed aether. A Gridanian NPC even refers to it specifically as oil.

The most important attribute of ceruleum though, is being fantastical and fictional, it can be used for whatever purpose the writers need it for. From powering magitek, to heating homes, to being coated on relic weapons.