I just don't like the pacing of Stormblood's opening act in general. The zones are great and the Reach is a pretty cool hub in universe and function. It just felt like it dragged like the old ARR post chain used to, though nowhere near as egregious. I still love the expansion overall and it has my favourite EX trials by a decent margin too. Every time I get one on mentor roulette I crack a smile because most of them are super easy and fun to teach sprouts in.