Mysterious monsters without much explanation?

[Rannie]

I don’t know the details, but I am of the understanding that fae creatures are at least somewhat extra dimensional. As an example, as our fairy friend Feo Ul can communicate to our retainers in the source. It doesn’t strike me as out of place that Bismarck either existed at one time in the source, or a source-version of him existed. I hesitate to say he was a creation of Elpis…but we can probably say everything that exists that isn’t a plane-Jane animal is probably at least ancient-influenced. The facts are we just don’t know the natural state of the world before or outside the ancients.

Why the need for constant new concepts to release in the wild? Is/was the planet barren of life pre-ancients? Why the need to essentially unbalance the ecosystem?

I think they were alluding (or atleast trying) to Bismark in elpis when during the msq Hermes (I think it was him or Hythlodaeus) made mention that the Words of Mitron created a flying fish and it started the fad of giving aquatic life, up to and including the cute little axotle thingies or abystoma, the ability of flight.

[kaynide]

I think they were alluding (or atleast trying) to Bismark in elpis when during the msq Hermes (I think it was him or Hythlodaeus) made mention that the Words of Mitron created a flying fish and it started the fad of giving aquatic life, up to and including the cute little axotle thingies or abystoma, the ability of flight.

Could be; could also be why there are so many fish-like mobs that float (Tempest/Violet Tides/really any beach).

Considering Bismark is intelligent and not just a beast, it seems very likely the case.

[Enkidoh]

Could be; could also be why there are so many fish-like mobs that float (Tempest/Violet Tides/really any beach).

Considering Bismark is intelligent and not just a beast, it seems very likely the case.

And another thing to remember is the fae were also shown to have existed back pre-Sundering, and presumed to be an Ancient creation too - a certain sidequest in Elpis shows a fairy (an Il Mheg fairy, not a SCH fairy which is not the same), under study, with the puzzled Elpis researcher assigned to study it at a complete loss to explain it or knowing who even who created it in the first place. And their puzzlement turns to utter bewilderement when said fairy soon turns into a beaver, causing the fed-up researcher to throw in the towel and tell the WoL "Now let us never speak of this again". So the mystery remained! (Presumedly the Ancient researcher quickly swept the records of it under the rug).

Even the infamous shoebill that popped up throughout ShB shows up under study in Elpis in another sidequest, and like the aforementioned fairy no one knows who created it or where it came from, and that in particular "resisted all forms of study" according to it's assigned researcher, but it did kind of pour cold water on the fan theory it was Emet's familiar (or at least a creation of his), as EW made no link of it to Emet in Elpis at all (if Emet did create it, the Bureau of the Architect would have naturally known about it, Emet did seem to be a stickler for following official protocol if nothing else, even reluctantly), so why it was shadowing the WoL throughout the First in EW is still unexplained.

So if the fae are Ancient creations, is unclear, but EW definetely makes the case for it.

[Tsiron]

Ultima.....

[JeanneOrnitier]

We still don't know where Ultima came from beyond that Ajora called her from another realm. Is she a space alien like Omega and Midgardsormr? Is she something summoned from one of the shards? Somewhere else beyond the rift?

Gigants? I'm not sure if we saw any in Elpis or not; regardless, we definitely still don't know why they worship Crystal Tower.

We don't actually know where most of the beast tribes come from either, though a lot of the ARR ones existing on multiple shards means they were pre-sundering so are probably Ancient creations. But I think the only one we know for a solid fact is Ixal being Allagan chimeras.

[RyuDragnier]

We still don't know where Ultima came from beyond that Ajora called her from another realm. Is she a space alien like Omega and Midgardsormr? Is she something summoned from one of the shards? Somewhere else beyond the rift?

My personal headcanon is that Ultima's a shard of the Ascian Altima who went out of control, and the WoL of that time was the one who sealed her away originally.

[Absimiliard]

The game calls Ultima extradimensional. That could mean a lot of things, but the wording and surrounding context lead me to believe it's probably got nothing to do with the thirteen reflections.

Originally Ultima had no mind to speak of. She was simply a thing summoned to the Source by Ajora to destroy Mullonde. It was sealed away by Ramza several centuries later, when it reawoke. The description of her included with her collectible statue says people began to worship her out of fear, which in turn fed her in much the same way prayer might feed a primal. The process awoke in her a sense of self. She had effectively become a primal with an actual living body. The text on Ultima's in-game TT card corroborates the statue's description and adds that she was once the "embodiment of pure ruination."

[KageTokage]

I'm curious as to what heck those umbrils in the Tower of Zot were supposed to be, given that all of the other enemies there are either tempered Garleans or magitek.

Even Estinien questions what they are if he's in your trust party.

[Alpheus]

I'm curious as to what heck those umbrils in the Tower of Zot were supposed to be, given that all of the other enemies there are either tempered Garleans or magitek.

Even Estinien questions what they are if he's in your trust party.

An FFXI cameo (part of a number of XI cameos in EW via monsters and NPCs) , but yea I haven't found out what they might be in a XIV context anywhere in game either. Glad they're still bothersome for the most part, very on brand for them.

[KageTokage]

It is kind of funny that the fire concept in P8S part 2 is represented by the modern day Ifrit instead of something more...mundane but still possessing an affinity for fire like a drake.

We also already know at least one of the primals likely has a mundane origin as Garuda was theorized to simply be a general of Allag who commanded the iksalions that would eventually become the ixal.