Amaurot: Why there? (Spoilers ShB and EW)

[Enkidoh]

I have this head canon that it's in Labyrinthos since it's the only other place we've seen the flowers in Etheirys so far.

That doesn't work though given Labyrinthos is underground, and was stated was constructed in recent times inside an extinct volcanic cavern complex, where as Elpis was a series of floating islands. The flowers blooming there isn't much help either as the whole thing is basically a conservatory of every known plant and animal species on the Source so it's no wonder it even includes a sample of the Elpis flowers (which in the present day were known as 'Heartblooms').

Elidibus incidentally stated when he was spoken to in the Umbilicus that "scarcely a trace remains" of Elpis in the present day, so it's most likely it no longer exists at all like Amaurot, but... the Three Great Continents map does have a very suspicious set of unidentified floating islands just to the north of Garlemald's capital (and which are not concealed by the cloud cover that convinently blankets everything else on Ilsabard other than Garlemald's capital city), that has never been explained.... so...... *puts on darksteel foil hat*

[Lyth]

I have this head canon that it's in Labyrinthos since it's the only other place we've seen the flowers in Etheirys so far.

The most likely explanation is that the 'Heartbloom' (Elpis) flowers were brought to the underground facility at Labyrinthos by the Gleaners for study. Which makes sense, because you find them out on the hill by Meryall Agronomics, where the Gleaners are stacking crates of seeds and saplings. The botanist there tells you that it grows in several places and has different names in different cultures.

Elidibus seems to think that not even a ruin of Elpis remains, so perhaps it was destroyed during the Final Days. That's not to say that there couldn't be some particularly deep section of Pandaemonium out there in the present, buried under Labyrinthos. That would be a fairly fitting way of bringing things full circle.

[Shookbeast]

As far as why Amaurot and why for us to find on the first - I think it’s possible Emet was feeling more than a little nostalgic after recognizing our soul. Pure speculation, but perhaps he was testing our WOL to see if his old pal Azem might get shaken awake by a familiar setting, and a few familiar faces… (I’m not sure Hyth was an accident, as much as maybe a un-gentle prod by Emet to see if there was any Azem left in us).

[Lyth]

It's hard to say for sure. For good or ill, Emet is primarily motivated by his sense of duty to Amaurot above everything else. When you talk to Mitron during Eden's Promise, he explains that when Ardbert killed both Loghrif and himself in their combined Ascian prime form, the resulting Flood of Light warped his flesh into the first sin eater, Eden. He was subsequently trapped in a motionless state for the next hundred years, only capable of feeble whispering. When asked why Emet didn't free him from this locked-in state, Mitron's response is:

'Perhaps he could have, if such had been his wish. Far easier, however, to simply find another piece of my fractured soul to replace me. From his perspective, there was no need to intervene and potentially disturb with the balance of aether. And so here I remained.'

I don't think that nostalgia overrides what Emet perceives as his duty. I'm sure that he wanted to tell the story of his people and their legacy, but I doubt that the specific nature of the player character's soul mattered all that much in the end, especially when there are other Azem fragments out there. His main purpose in Shadowbringers to rejoin the First, and to achieve that, he needs the player character to become a Lightwarden, regardless of whose soul fragment they bear.

Mitron attempts something similar to what you suggested by re-enacting the fight between Ardbert's team and Cylva the Shadowkeeper (which is why the E10S boss uses her greatsword) in order to get Loghrif to remember her past. That being said, his end goal is to create a timeless paradise free from imperfection where he can live with Loghrif for all eternity.

Granted, when she rejects this, he forcibly enters into Ascian Prime form with her against her will and starts destroying all the memories of her current life. So it doesn't look like the Ascians need to be all that subtle about reawakening old memories when they choose to be.

[VigilanteXII]

I don't think that nostalgia overrides what Emet perceives as his duty. I'm sure that he wanted to tell the story of his people and their legacy, but I doubt that the specific nature of the player character's soul mattered all that much in the end, especially when there are other Azem fragments out there. His main purpose in Shadowbringers to rejoin the First, and to achieve that, he needs the player character to become a Lightwarden, regardless of whose soul fragment they bear.

The Lightwarden thing did seem to be more of a Plan B, given how disappointed he was in our failure to withstand the light. Not entirely sure what Plan A would have been, but his actions during Shadowbringers suggest to me that he was actually looking for a way out of his duty somehow. He certainly wasn't feeling it anymore.

In regards to Amaurot, I do believe he mainly built it for his own pleasure, probably long before we show up in the first. For one, I vaguely remember the Ondos mentioning that this wasn't the first time the "lights went up" in the ruins, indicating that he might have been visiting there before on occasion.

Secondly, he didn't actually want us to go there, at least not like that. He was pretty clear that we were only supposed to go there once we fully transformed into a lightwarden, and probably assumed that we wouldn't have been able to do so before anyhow, given how it was at the bottom of the sea. He was quite annoyed at the fact that we and the scions showed up there with all our faculties intact, and dare say almost a bit embarrassed for others to witness his little indulgence down there.

As to the exact location of Amaurot, I kinda believe it wasn't actually down there originally. All depictions of Amaurot indicate that it is apparently pretty.. high, what with the bottomless chasms everywhere. In the final cutscene after the Hades fight the ruins are even indicated to be above the clouds. So I guess it might have actually been a floating city similar to Elpis, that crashed into the sea at some point after its destruction.

[Enkidoh]

The Lightwarden thing did seem to be more of a Plan B, given how disappointed he was in our failure to withstand the light. Not entirely sure what Plan A would have been, but his actions during Shadowbringers suggest to me that he was actually looking for a way out of his duty somehow. He certainly wasn't feeling it anymore.

In regards to Amaurot, I do believe he mainly built it for his own pleasure, probably long before we show up in the first. For one, I vaguely remember the Ondos mentioning that this wasn't the first time the "lights went up" in the ruins, indicating that he might have been visiting there before on occasion.

Secondly, he didn't actually want us to go there, at least not like that. He was pretty clear that we were only supposed to go there once we fully transformed into a lightwarden, and probably assumed that we wouldn't have been able to do so before anyhow, given how it was at the bottom of the sea. He was quite annoyed at the fact that we and the scions showed up there with all our faculties intact, and dare say almost a bit embarrassed for others to witness his little indulgence down there.

Emet actually did want the WoL to go there, he outright tells you that in the cutscene after defeating Innocence in fact - he was annoyed not because the WoL showed up at Amaurot in the first place (remember, he outright invited them there, and the entire reconstruction was set up specifically to interact with the WoL themselves personally, like the AI that operated the lift from Achora Heights), he was grumpy because they didn't show up alone and emotionally and pyschologically broken.

They instead appeared with the Scions and Ryne in tow, showing that they were continuing to fight to the end for what they believed in, and thus not succumb to the light and become the most powerful Lightwarden, his plan B, or, more bitterly, also derailing his plan A, which was Emet wanting the WoL to accept that they were wrong to follow Venat's beliefs and vindicate Emet's superioity complex that the Unsundered's goals were right (and presumedly join him, although he never offered that in so many words, it's what the other Ascians insinuaited over the years - specifically Lahabrea).

It's why he drags the Scions through the themepark ride of the Final Days of Amaurot, to try and get them to see his side of the story and accept his side as the superior arguement and then join him (remember, his society regarded rhetorical debate as a pinnacle of culture), or break down in defeat and accept destruction (as in succumb to the enemies in there anyway).

Of course, because they didn't just curbstomp the enemies like Azem would have done, but still continued to bitterly struggle on even despite their chances of success slipping further and further away, he considered the WoL and the Scions "unworthy". (Which is also directly referenced in EW after all as arguing Venat's side as being actually the 'right one', but I digress).

[Rulakir]

Given how sentimental Emet is, he more than likely created Amaurot after he saw the WoL. The Ondo also indicate that the city appearing is recent. I think seeing the Azem soul again threw Emet for a loop and not much of anything he did after that point was the most rational.

[Nav_Fae]

Given how sentimental Emet is, he more than likely created Amaurot after he saw the WoL. The Ondo also indicate that the city appearing is recent. I think seeing the Azem soul again threw Emet for a loop and not much of anything he did after that point was the most rational.

I feel the ruins were always there but the phantoms were recently created. Considering only Hythos has any memory and the Crystal of Azem that isn't meant to exist, it's obvious the Amaurot was created to indoctrinate the WoL and remind him of his duty as Azem. After all, it is the first time in 12000 years that Emet found Azems soul. What really throws me off his how neither Elidibus and Lahabrea recognized us as Azem, the new old friend. I'm willing to give the devs a bone and say that us being Azem was probably not in the story script back in ARR and HW.

[Rannie]

It's never been stated that Lahabrea and Elidibus could see the color of souls. The only reason Emet and Hythlodeaus could tell the pc was Azem was because of that ability. Lahabrea and Elidibus' abilities most likely run in other directions.

Actually iirc it was said that Lahabrea was good with creation magic and then over the years it's possible that he started to go a bit cuckoo or guano possibly when his wife died as well as losing power from constantly switching bodies over the 12k years.

As for elidibus it was said by then he was already losing memories and such so he could t even remember Azem let alone who it could possibly be.

[Rulakir]

Considering only Hythos has any memory and the Crystal of Azem that isn't meant to exist, it's obvious the Amaurot was created to indoctrinate the WoL and remind him of his duty as Azem.

I think the fact that Amaurot was populated with shades, including that of his best friend, would suggest it was more an act of sentimentality especially as doing such a thing was ludicrous to him in Elpis. Had he wanted, he theoretically could've forcefully used the memory crystal to raise Azem, but judging by his recruitment of Amon to be Fandaniel that's not how he operates (nor did he force the crystals upon Elidibus). Azem also wouldn't have the same duty as the Ascians since they defected from the Convocation, so there's no telling what they'd even be like given the situation.

Lahabrea was gone too soon, but there's a hint Elidibus recognized Azem in the cutscene where he meets the WoL in the Crystarium. As he approaches he blinks (literally a blink and you miss it moment) and sees black-masked Azem standing before him.