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My waifu is only rugged if you mean he’s rough. 
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Oct 21, 2022 02:11
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| # ? Jun 12, 2024 15:15 |
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I hope that, once this LP reaches the proper point (I think it is around post-Shadowbringers), we'll end up discussing the FFXIV Official Manga that reimagines all the characters as high school students. I'm sure that will make for some great discourse.
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Oct 21, 2022 02:35
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the only npc worthy of the warrior of lights love is good king moggle mog. I will not explain.
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Oct 21, 2022 02:55
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Yeowch!!! My Balls!!! posted:the only npc worthy of the warrior of lights love is good king moggle mog. I will not explain. No explanation needed. Leans out the window We have ourselves a moogle lover here! Get Sidurgu!
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Oct 21, 2022 05:54
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The horny level of this thread is off the charts
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Oct 21, 2022 16:37
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Feldegast42 posted:The horny level of this thread is off the charts what game are you playing
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Oct 21, 2022 16:54
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Feldegast42 posted:The horny level of this thread is off the charts I mean, have you seen Aymeric? That man can make anyone weak in the knees.
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Oct 21, 2022 17:05
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The only way to create a waifu worthy of the WoL is to go through an Allagan teleporter and end up with another WoL. They can be evil, but in a sexy way/have a beard if you so desire.
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Oct 21, 2022 18:11
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Feldegast42 posted:The horny level of this thread is off the charts pressure normalization across ffxiv threads
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Oct 21, 2022 20:09
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Pwnstar posted:The only way to create a waifu worthy of the WoL is to go through an Allagan teleporter and end up with another WoL. They can be evil, but in a sexy way/have a beard if you so desire. Evil sexy counterparts you say? I think we already had something like that: 
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Oct 21, 2022 21:11
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I don't consider Arbert to be particularly sexy but you're free to your opinion.
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Oct 21, 2022 21:37
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IthilionTheBrave posted:I mean, have you seen Aymeric? That man can make anyone weak in the knees. It's unfortunate that he has the charisma of a damp flannel to back it up though.
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Oct 21, 2022 22:53
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Mainwaring posted:It's unfortunate that he has the charisma of a damp flannel to back it up though. sometimes a damp flannel is just what you need on a sweltering day
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Oct 22, 2022 00:20
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Chapter 23: The Ronin's Road With few resources to counter Karasu's kidnapping of our allies, Oboro takes the liberty of reaching out to Princess Yuki. She's more than happy to join us, although Kheris is first forced to help her ditch her bodyguard Akagi, lest he drag her back home and force her to do boring princess stuff like paperwork instead of exciting ninja shenanigans. Before she came, she did some digging to uncover the real mastermind behind this scroll fiasco. Her best guess is that one of the Hingan Daimyo might be trying to gain an edge over their rivals by hiring Karasu to procure this legendary Doman weapon. She can't think of any other players in the region that would have the means and motive, especially since the Garnet League has been nothing but a catspaw from the start. Still, she couldn't turn up a name. Since we have nothing to go on, we have little choice but to let Karasu present his terms. After the standard Oboro mocking, he declares that we must fight the Garnet League to the death. That's the entire group, including Zakuro, a samurai who was reputed to have wiped out hundreds of Garlean soldiers during the rebellion. If we lose, we die, and he gets the scroll. If we win, he'll let us have our friends back and never trouble us over the scroll again. Also, he has a bridge to sell us. None among our band fail to see how obvious this trap is, but we don't have many options. It's either save our friends or die trying. Oboro finds himself a bit overwhelmed by our willingness to risk everything for each other.  …  Same old Yuki. The battle takes place on an island in the Ruby Sea. Oboro takes us in real quiet-like at first, avoiding a few patrols who talk crap about the cowardly ninjas that don't dare face them. It's enough to make me want to indulge Yuki's request to take out a perimeter guard as a warm-up. Once we're past the smart-assess, we find V'kebbe tied up under heavy guard. A little knifework sees to her captors, and she joins our infiltration (after complaining about being hungry, proving once again that children don't learn lessons if they get let out of time-out early). A large body of samurai forms a second perimeter between us and Underfoot, but it doesn't look like sneaking past them will be any trouble… until Karasu bolts in from nowhere and exposes us.  Oboro tries to get us to leave this fight to him and press on, but Jacke isn't having any of that crap. We all drop stealth and mow down the baddies, forcing Karasu to retreat. With sneaking no longer an option, we bull-rush Underfoot's guards, cut him loose, and then confront Zakuro. When we find Ms. Brightblood, she laments that she'll have to kill us since we seem like amiable people. Still, business is business. She's not a complete pushover, either. Both she and her bodyguards have exceptionally high HP, to the point that trying to help your friends kill their targets feels like a waste compared to simply focusing on taking out the leader. Her special attacks are all arena-wide AOE strikes in various patterns, but they're easy to avoid if you focus on fighting her rather than getting bogged down in your team's battles.  The real threat in the battle is Karasu. He observes from the shadows, and once in a while, he'll decide he's bored with your performance and spices things up with a Ninjutsu attack. This is a spread-out mechanic, and if you let yourself get caught in your party's blast radii, the damage will rip away most of your health bar in one shot. Fortunately, he limits his assistance to these dramatics, refusing to actually take the field. As a result, Kheris manages to deal Zakuro a debilitating blow, and her allies flee. Of course, even though we've won Karasu's little game, it turns out the only winning move was not to play.  Bird boy makes it clear that he'll cut Tsubame's throat if we don't hand over the scroll. But the shocking thing is that Tsubame asks Oboro to comply with this order. She's a Ninja to the bone, so the idea that she'd put her life before the mission was incomprehensible to me. I immediately suspected this was some kind of trick. I mean, he let her change into her armor, that's kind of weird, right? My suspicions rose even higher when Oboro handed the scroll over, and Karasu actually released Tsubame unharmed. Is she working with the crow to foil the real mastermind? Had she betrayed us because whomever Karasu works for is the 'right' side in this conflict?  …  …  Well, I guess we can discount that last possibility at least. Karasu doesn't let his shock at having his script derailed show for long. He addresses this new arrival as "Lord Hanzo," and immediately hands over the scroll. The guy seems pleased, which prompts Karasu to ask when he'll receive his payment: training in Hingashi's ninja arts to supplement his own Doman techniques. Lord Hanzo's first lesson ends up being more of a demonstration.  …  When the flames disperse, Karasu is gone, seemingly disintegrated on the spot. Hanzo addresses the lot of us as "The bastards of Sasuke the Shamed," and names himself as the 12th Lord of the Kagekakushi Clan, those who originated the art of Ninjutsu. He then says that we should thank him for not exterminating us for the crime of being Doman filth like he did his employees before taking his leave with the scroll. Oboro is in shock. After all, he did just see his friend blown up. Then again, this isn't the first time he's seen that. I was nearly certain the execution was a ruse, even with that look of surprise from Karasu when Hanzo showed his face. The only question is, was the show to fool us… or Hanzo? My teacher is also concerned that this villain seems to despise Doma's Ninja clan. The Sasuke he mentioned was the founder of their village. By sheer, hilarious coincidence, Kheris knows all about him. When she realized her tomestone collection was overflowing during her trip back to Eorzea, she started spending them on new Anima and Zodiac weapons. One of those weapons was a pair of Yoshimitsu daggers, and with their forging came a history lesson from Gerolt about the origins of Doman ninjutsu:   I was more than a little surprised to learn that Ninja were a Hingan import rather than something native to Doma. In terms of Hanzo's grudge, it seems probable that whatever Sasuke's orders originally were, they did not involve him staying in Doma forever nor passing on the secrets of Ninjutsu to a bunch of the locals. Yuki pipes in to say she knows the name Kagekakushi. They were indeed a Shinobi clan of singular excellence, having distinguished themselves through service to the Hingan Daimyo during the "Age of Strife." I'm not sure if that's the same thing as the Age of Blood, but regardless, their influence did not long outlive those days of war. One of the warlords they had fought against managed to locate their village, burned it to the ground, and slaughtered everyone living there down to the last child. That some part of their clan survived to pass down their Ninja teachings to this Hanzo is big news, and it's not the good kind. Thankfully we do have some good news. Tsubame explains that she feigned begging for her life and let Oboro hand over the scroll because it's useless on its own. Long ago, the village elders split the artifact in two. Unless both halves are united, the Summoning Jutsu cannot be unlocked. Oboro is glad the weapon isn't an immediate threat, but he feels certain that Hanzo won't be deterred, given his obvious hatred for Sasuke's clan. If anything, knowing he might have to kill many people in their village to finish the job might be an incentive. We'll need to warn the elders, which means it's time to go home.  Kheris would be happy to go with him, but Oboro makes it clear that she most likely would not be welcomed despite being his student. After all, these same elders were the ones who sent him a message that his presence was not required in the Far East and that he was free to remain in Eorzea indefinitely. To keep the risks on this trip to a minimum, he and Tsubame will visit the village alone. My sensei promises he will meet us in Namai Village when, or if, he is able. While she worries about what might happen to him, this plan does suit Kheris' goals. She'll pass through Yanxia on her way to the Azim Steppe anyway. But she'll have to cross the Ruby Sea again to get there. Perhaps it will be an opportunity to put her Samurai training into practice… ~*~*~ The Ronin of Light's first stop is the Confederate headquarters at Onokoro. This turns out to be an auspicious choice, as she finds none other than Princess Kurenai being chatted up by one of the local scurvy dogs.  Kheris tells the big galoot off, and when he recognizes that she's the hero who defeated Susano, he's quick to offer serious help. Kurenai explains that our goal is to learn if the fairy tale in her book about waking a sleeping princess has any basis in fact. We're directed to an old fisherman who's an expert on folk stories. We have to sit through some meandering, but he eventually relates a tale about a Hyuran fisherman who saved a Blue Kojin from a sea serpent. The Kojin thanked the fisherman with a magic potion, allowing him to walk under the sea as if on land. The pair went on a 'road' trip, exploring the Ruby Sea together, including the villages of the Raen Au Ra. There they heard the sad story of the Raen's princess, who had been locked in a magical slumber for years. The Kojin took pity on the woman and gave her a second potion mixed from a secret recipe passed down through generations in Tamamizu. The draught instantly broke the spell. When she awoke, the first thing she saw was that Hyuran boy, and she fell hopelessly in love. A short time later, they were married and lived out the rest of their days in a palace beneath the sea. Based on our last discussion of the Ruby Sea's inspirations, the parallels between this story and the folk tale Urashima Taro should be obvious. Kurenai is less interested in the fanciful notion of a princess falling in love with a commoner and marrying him on the spot than she is in that undersea castle. After all, she knows that's a real thing, so perhaps the secret of this awakening potion was right under her nose the whole time! We return to Sui no Sato and ask Shiosai if any of this jogs his memory. In point of fact, it does:  If the story of the marriage is true, the medicine might also be real. Shiosai offers Kurenai a sincere apology, coming clean about the fact that he didn't believe our mission would amount to anything more than gradual acceptance of Hisui's death. Now he's ready to put all his effort behind saving his ruler's best friend. We visit Tamamizu and track down the same Kojin who gave Kurenai the fairy tale book. His name is Inban, and he's a collector of rare tomes. When we explain the situation to him, he remembers that one of his many books contains a recipe for a potion just like the one in the story. The Kojin once used it to help their eggs hatch, and it is purported to have the power to strengthen a waning soul's aether. Considering that Shiosai deduced that the true nature of Hisui's sickness was damage to the soul, that's pretty darn lucky. But there's a catch: the main ingredient in this potion is a hundred-year-old sea slug shell and the type of slug that provides it has not been seen in decades due to overhunting. Kurenai refuses to give up after coming this far and personally swims out to gather a mountain of the creature's favorite bait, kelp, with her bare hands. Good on you, princess. Kheris takes the stuff to the old slug hunting grounds. Kurenai warns her to be careful, but she's faced plenty of these critters around the Ruby Sea, so she's not concer-  God drat! Despite the unexpected scale of the foe, Kheris puts the slug down and secures that magic-filled shell. While Inban prepares the potion, Kurenai takes the opportunity to thank Kheris for this whole adventure. Watching the battle against that slug, she realized how much she needed someone to help her make this journey. Without someone guiding and protecting her, it would have been over before it began. That can't be an easy admission for her considering she undertook this quest against everyone's advice with nothing but her faith in herself to keep her going. Kheris knows the power of that drive to take matters into your own hands and not rely on anyone can have, especially when a loved one's life is hanging in the balance. Discovering the strength to let that drive go so your ego doesn't get in the way of your goals is an impressive feat. Maybe she can learn a little something from the Ruby Princess. The potion is soon complete, and the moment of truth arrives. If the Voidsent destroyed Hisui's soul, she was gone before we even set out on our journey. But if it was merely wounded…   Congratulations abound. Kurenai thanks Hisui for enduring so much suffering to protect her. Hisui thanks her cousin for going on the journey to bring her back. Shiosai thanks Kheris for guiding his young charge into becoming a better leader. Most of all, Kurenai thanks Kheris for helping her realize there's a better way for the Ruby Princess to do her duty than sitting isolated in a palace. From now on, she won't be content to rule from afar. With the help of Hisui's perfect likeness, Kurenai plans to secretly take on many future adventures for the good of her people. It really is a fairy tale ending.  W-wait, are you implying… what is with all the Au Ra hitting on Kheris lately?! They even do the "We spent so much time together~ Can't you tell which one of us is which?" gag on her. Leave her poor, innocent catgirl heart alone, yah dang dragons!  Anyway, Kurenai's story was a little underwhelming in the end. I expected the quest for the potion to be a little more epic in scale, and I wouldn't have minded if the characters involved had more texture and were a bit less arch. Since Violet Tides was given a big spotlight in the trailer, I thought more would come from this. Still, it was a comfy little tale, and I feel like there's a thematic link between you being praised for doing a good job mentoring Kurenai and how the Warrior of Light is trying to mentor Lyse. Our girl is struggling. Worse, she's failing to recognize her successes. The average WoL might get down in the dumps about her efforts to help after seeing that happen. A story where you successfully aid another young female leader offers some assurance that Lyse will get there in the end. ~*~*~ Kheris next swings back to the fishing village of Isari. When the place was first liberated, she hadn't had the time to speak with its inhabitants and get to know them, as she usually does. Gosetsu's wounds and taking advantage of Yotsuyu's disarray encouraged her to press on. While the people are happy about the Empire's absence and are already working hard to rebuild, there's no doubt that the lingering effects of occupation won't be easily overcome. Isari was never an exceedingly prosperous place, even before the conquest. Still, older folks around town tell Kheris of the glory days when they would spearfish for giant ocean beasts, and their divers would bring armloads of shellfish back to shore with every change of the tides. They describe scores of villagers working together to harvest the kelp beds and collect the dung of the sea birds to trade with the rice growers of Yanxia. It was a simple but satisfying existence. With the Garleans came the extraction of their Fifth for the imperial coffers and the same laws forbidding weapons and forcing conscription that we saw in Ala Mhigo. We'd already seen the deleterious effects of these policies elsewhere. Yet, in Isari, we discover even more severe long-term consequences. The lack of fighting-age townsfolk and weapons allowed the monster populations in the Ruby Sea to surge. After more than two decades of decline, even a single Shiranui jellyfish or lava crab could jeopardize the entire village. More importantly, these beasts have ravaged the local fish populations, wiping them out or forcing them further out to sea. Add Yotsuyu's purges, her cold war with the Confederacy drying up trade, and increasing numbers of young people fleeing what they perceive as a dying settlement. The result is a group of people on the brink of disaster. The sidequests reflect this dire reality. Many involve trying to cope with the swelling monster populations. Others see the Warrior of Light helping various schemes the locals have concocted to make ends meet, like collecting shiny detritus from bird nests to trade to the Blue Kojin in exchange for their knowledge of fishing grounds. Ironically, the knife's worst twist might be the few tragically mundane problems thrown into the mix, like collecting ingredients for a sick man's stew or helping a boy regain confidence in his swimming abilities. It shows how these folks still have to deal with day-to-day troubles while living on a knife's edge. My favorite quest was helping a young boy on the beach track down a mysterious raven-haired beauty he saw singing in the moonlight. He's about to be placed in an arranged marriage, and his heart demands that he speak to this angel of the seas before he goes through with it, so he can know what his heart truly desires. At first, he suspects the singer might be a Confederate, but after several of the saucy piratesses make it clear they're not the one, Onokoro's head look-out reveals that the girl we're looking for is one of the Raen of Sui no Sato. Kheris sighs at the thought of another long swim. If only she had a more leisurely way of diving down to the village!  They all said I was mad for taking a Space Whale underwater! WELL, WHO'S THE MADMAN NOW?! (A friend of mine bought me that absurdly expensive mount as a birthday present last year. I just wanted to show it off. It has  unique mount music too!)As one might expect from the reclusive Raen, hearing that a surface dweller has been watching her sing prompts the woman to resolve never to sing near him again. "It could never work between us; we live in totally different worlds," she says—the old Reverse Little Mermaid. When Kheris brings the sad news to him, the young fisherman is forced to agree that his love is a hopeless dream.   Nooooooo, you dummy, he married the princess! Tragic.  The big sidequest for the village swings us back to that monster problem. A young Roe fisherman named Nayoshi has been reeling in nothing but various monsters for months now. Since we established that even one of these creatures could destroy the village, this has rapidly turned the populace against him. It also doesn't help that Inari's economic situation has gotten so bad that those who aren't contributing big enough catches are being ostracized. With no clue as to what is causing his misfortune, Nayoshi is increasingly desperate to prove that he can help his hometown rather than remain a hindrance. After Kheris rescues him from his Deadliest Catch, a crowd forms to confront Nayoshi about how his curse is putting everyone at risk. Only one person among the mob is on his side; Koruri, his childhood friend and Isari's finest spearfisher. Her word carries weight, and she manages to disperse the disgruntled townsfolk. That doesn't mean that she's not fed up with Nayoshi herself.  She informs her friend that if he can't prove himself by catching enough fish by the end of the day, he must give up fishing and find another way to serve the village. This is a crushing ultimatum to the big lad because he has a real passion for the sea and feels that only success in fishing can ever earn him respect. Nobody will appreciate him pulling up kelp or haggling with the trade ships. The guy's a bit of a doofus, but Kheris herself knows the allure of the battle between Man and Fish. She caught the Nepto Dragon, after all! Who is she to deny this kid his dream? Especially after that other dummy gave up on the dream of a cute dragon girlfriend! Not that she wants one of those… shut up! With Kheris to protect him, Nayoshi makes several attempts to haul in a catch of sufficient size to impress Koruri. Sadly, each time he just dredges up another abomination, no matter where along the shore we drop a line. His second plan is to convince the locals to share their most successful fishing techniques, leveraging Kheris' position as the village savior so they will teach her out of gratitude while he eavesdrops. Initially, their advice isn't helpful. Current circumstances make many of their old fishing techniques impossible to use. One village elder particularly laments the loss of the time-tested approach of oil fishing.  However, one young fisherman has found something effective, a new type of wooden lure. Koruri tries to offer some advice to go with the tool, but Nayoshi seems put off by her effort. He feels she's just there to make fun of and discourage him. What a Grumpy Gus. She obviously likes you, idiot! At first, things look promising. Something massive bites the new lure, causing Nayoshi to lose his pole. But when he tries again, he pulls up yet another sea monster.  The big dope goes into an emo spiral over this, lamenting his ruined dreams. Koruri tries again to convince him that he can simply give up fishing and find something else. However, he has decided that if he can't fish, he will leave Isari rather than be tormented by memories of his failure. Koruri is predictably distraught by this and departs to work on her evening quota (and no doubt steady her lovesick heart). She begs him not to do anything rash until they can talk again. Nayoshi, of course, does the rashist thing he can think of and immediately starts packing so he can leave before she returns. Just before he can depart, a commotion breaks out near the center of town. While out on her shift, Koruri met with some kind of accident underwater and nearly drowned! Her body temperature is plummeting, and if they can't warm her, she won't make it. Nayoshi immediately realizes that his decision to leave must be why she was upset enough to lose focus while diving. Desperate to save his childhood friend, he's suddenly hit by a flash of inspiration. Earlier, we'd disposed of the body of that Bombfish by burning it, so its blood wouldn't attract other monsters. It had burned so well that even a pile of wet driftwood near the corpse went up in a massive blaze. It turned out that most of the creature's body was made of lard, and lard means lots and lots of oil! Putting his monster-catching skills to good use, Nayoshi takes Kheris back to the same fishing spot and reels in a second Bombfish. She kills it, and we deliver its corpse to the shed where Koruri is being tended. The heat of the oil flame does the trick, and within a few hours, she's back on her feet. Huzzah! But hold onto those 'Huzzahs' because the good news keeps coming. The elder who told us about oil fishing and how lucrative it once was saw the whole thing. According to him, with Nayoshi's ability to pull up these oily beasts, the fishermen of Isari can afford to renew the practice. With luck, it will increase their fishing yields as much as tenfold!  This story was in a similar vein to the one we saw in Ala Ghanna. The hardships of Garlean rule create the circumstances for a low-key character story, and the opportunity of that story leads the Empire's victims to something that will change their fortunes for the better. On one level, giving these places silver bullets to drastically improve everyone's lives is a bit of a cop-out after how effectively the writing depicted imperialist exploitation. In reality, decolonization has always been a messy business, and one doesn't want to create the implication that it can be overcome easily with a couple of lucky breaks. On the other hand, I can't deny that it's satisfying to feel like you're helping to make a significant difference in everyone's after they've been through such horrible oppression. Plus, as we've seen going back to ARR, these stories do a solid job of avoiding the impression that the main character is a 'white savior' type. Most of the heavy lifting in finding and implementing these solutions is done by the victims of the Empire. You only help them along by providing muscle and an occasional comment. You can even remain silent in almost every dialogue choice and let the locals figure things out alone. I appreciate that they keep sticking to that. ~*~*~ When I completed that Major Sidequest with Nayoshi, something unexpected happened: another Major Sidequest appeared. Within a few minutes of starting it, I realized this quest had been unlocked because I'd already completed the series introducing Tsukikage and the Confederates to the East Aldenard Trading Company. This means Stormblood has added a little 'capstone' quest to tie together the individual plotlines across the zone. What a great idea! Ruby Sea is the first chance to see this since (I'm guessing) the half of the zone maps in Ala Mhigo that are still covered won't be visited until the plot takes us back to Eorzea. Our finale begins simply enough. Some time has passed since the villagers began oil fishing again. As to what Kheris has been doing in the days since then, I'll come back to that shortly. Anyway, Nayoshi is concerned about the inherent danger of subduing the Bombfish. They've been using traps and working in large numbers for safety, but he worries that it could be a disaster if anything goes wrong. He asks if Kheris will provide a bit of basic combat training to the townsfolk, Seven Samurai style. Sounds reasonable. However, bad news awaits them at the shoreline where folks have gathered for the lesson. An oil fishing boat has vanished, along with its entire crew. Everyone suspects that the Kojin of the Red are behind the attack. They've become even more aggressive since their schism with the Empire and their former masters' retreat from the Ruby Sea. If they are the culprits, the Domans have no hope of getting their friends back. But someone else might, assuming they're willing to help:   Despite the potential bad blood, Nayoshi decides he'll beg the Confederates for assistance. Kheris tags along to provide an introduction to Tsukikage. The village elder knows the treasurer's name, noting he'd been a frequent customer of Isari's fish markets before the war. Maybe he'll be more sympathetic than others on Onokoro. By the time we reach Secret Pirate Island, the Treasury Department has already found one of the missing fishermen. He confirms that the Red Kojin did the deed. At first, Tsukikage seems uninterested, commenting that it was foolish of Isari to send out torch-laden boats in the night where the Kojin can strike with impunity. Eventually, though, he comes around. After all, it is the Confederacy's duty to ensure that the Ruby Sea remains peaceful and safe for commerce. Now that the Garleans are gone, a little skirmish will give them a chance to put the Red Kojin on notice that they are, in fact, still the law in these here parts. That said, the old Au Ra isn't blind to the fact that the Confederates are still weak at the moment. To help make their rescue a success, he implores Kheris to undertake a diversionary strike on the Red's main village on the Isle of Zekki. She agrees, and with her help, the rescue goes off without a hitch.  Well, one hitch. But he's okay. We all reconvene on the Doman shoreline. Everyone is glad things worked out, but the fisherfolk are ready to put oil fishing back on the shelf after this incident. Before they make that call, however, Tsukikage pipes up. He suggests that the village increasing their catch size and the value of the Bombfish Oil they're producing are assets to the Confederacy as they attempt to reassert their control over the Ruby Sea. In exchange for a share of the oil, he would be willing to reopen the Confederate outpost on their shoreline, provide escorts to their fishing boats and even send troops to help bring down the Bombfish, ensure there's more than enough oil for everyone. The villagers are overjoyed and quickly accept this offer.  It's a nice finish to the Ruby Sea plotline, especially when taken as a companion piece to Kurenai's story. We're starting to see the folks of Othard breaking down the walls. The MSQ repeatedly hit us over the head with the fact that a huge contributing factor to Garlean success in this region is that nobody is helping each other. Everyone continually tacks toward isolation and self-interest because Doma's fall made them fear the Garlean war machine. Despite their hope that this will protect them, all it accomplishes is helping the fascist aggressor takes them apart piece by piece. Thanks to the Warrior of Light, that paradigm is starting to shift. The Raen help the Kojin rediscover the lost sea slugs, and the Kojin help the Raen with their secret potion recipe. The Confederates help protect the Domans, and the Domans give the Confederates access to more food and goods to trade. Everyone is stronger because of their unity. We're finally starting to make a difference in the Far East. ~*~*~ So what was Kheris doing while the Domans were starting up their oil fishing and getting kidnapped? Two things. The first was finding a missing girl. She's late returning from a trading mission, and her father fears the worst since her route passed near the Hells' Lid volcano. There are dangerous critters all over that island, and it's a hotbed (heh) of Red Kojin activity. Kheris investigates and soon finds the girl. But she's already been rescued.  Job done! Except not. This mysterious Blue Kojin warrior was badly wounded helping the girl, but the moment she mentions that it's too bad he couldn't also save her cargo, the dummy charges off to do precisely that. By the time Kheris finds him, his killed several more Reds, but he's surrounded and defenseless. She takes the attackers down. For the first time, the overconfident Kojin offers her some gratitude. His name is Kabuto, and he's… a little on the awkward side.   Still, our kidnapping victim resolves to thank her savior. She offers him anything he'd like out of her bags of goods. Most of them are full of broken trinkets. She buys them for almost nothing in Kugane, then repairs them for resale. We all know how much Kojin love random junk because it might have Kami inside, so Kabuto takes her up on her offer. One item really speaks to him.  Kabuto invites Kheris back to Tamamizu, which is fine because it will give me a chance to clean up the last of my sidequests in this zone. We've barely reached the village gates when Chief Bunchin appears. Kabuto has been going out treasure hunting without permission because he's a lone wolf. A rebel who plays by his own rules. You know, a teenage idiot. He refutes this like any good teenager would: by changing the subject. He shows the Chieftan his new doll and declares that our collaboration against the Reds leading him to such a treasure must be fate. He asks permission to add the toy to the treasure vault, which Kheris balks at. Bunchin explains that the lad means the one they're building right here in Tamamizu. With their service to the Empire in tatters, the Red Kojin issued the Blue an ultimatum: assist with raiding and mercenary work or be cut off from the Zekki Vault. The Blue refused, and now they have no access to the treasures they worship. To counter this underhanded move, they decided to start their own Vault.  When we go down to the village and add the doll to the Kojin's haul, everyone seems happy to see Kabuto. For all his attitude, he is a talented warrior who works hard to help out his people, so it's not surprising. They praise him but also make it plain that they want to help his mission. Unfortunately for them, Kabuto works alone.  See?   …Wait, what? Chief Bunchin announces that we are in the presence of a tsukunogami, and all the Kojin (except a stunned Kabuto) fall to their knees in worship. In Japanese folklore, a tsukunogami is an object with a kami inside it and thus has come alive. Medieval superstition held that any item that had existed intact for at least one hundred years could awaken in this manner. This also cross-pollinated with legends about magical animals like the Tanuki, which purportedly could become statues or other objects after reaching that hundred-year threshold of life. Some sociologists believe that despite the general abandonment of this belief in mainstream religion by the 1600s, many people in Japan still cling to the notion that objects can have spirits and a form of life. It's one explanation offered for why they, as a society, tend to take such good care of things other nations consider entirely obsolete and disposable, like old electronics. After praising the Kojin for the new Vault, the spirit identifies itself as Tsukumo. She also announces that Kabuto is the official leader of a new order of treasure hunters, the Divine Circle. It will oversee their operations personally until it's satisfied Kabuto has learned to be part of a team instead of doing everything himself. Also, Kheris is in this group too. It's nice to be wanted, I guess, even if it is by a bossy doll ghost. With another Beast Tribe Reputation unlocked, Kheris checks in on the remaining sidequests. It doesn't take long, as they're not very noteworthy. Some involve helping locals track down treasures. These illustrate how the Kojin can be competitive with each other when seeking objects of worship since they explicitly want Kheris' help to avoid sharing with others in the village. They also show us that what a Kojin thinks is worthwhile enough for a Kami to use as a living space might not align with other races' ideas of value. For instance, one guy gushes that the worn-out water-logged silk cushion Kheris digs out of a seaweed frond for him is the best treasure he's ever owned. The other quests involve doing activities in the underwater zones with the tribe's manta rays. Their keeper complains that the others don't appreciate the beasts and how much they do to preserve the Blue's way of life, which is pretty interesting. Overall though, these seem like they're just there to preview mount-based daily quests for the faction. Oh, and this happens:  She's really beating them off with a stick at this point. ~*~*~ The other thing Kheris got up to on the Ruby Sea before that final questline was a bit more noteworthy. A personal summons from Captain Rasho called her back to Onokoro for a meeting with a Confederate named Kyusei. The reason for the discussion is as straightforward as it is surprising: they both want her to enter Heavens-on-High.   So, the tower is full of monsters. That's a problem, especially if there might be more pathways out of the structure we don't yet know about. Except it's actually much worse than that. We already know that the tower is considered holy by many people in the region. Fear of angering the Kami keeps most folk away even though the Confederates claim the literal stairway to heaven as their pirate headquarters. But if word gets out that the blasphemers are compounding their misdeeds by going inside the thing, or worse, that the holy relic is full of horrible beasts, they might just have a crusade on their hands. Whether it's a crusade to kill all the pirates or to purify the structure, Rasho isn't keen on finding out. Kheris agrees to scout the place out since she's less likely to be noticed than an entire Confederate raiding party. However, the mission comes with a catch. Enchantments suppress most aether-based abilities within the building's walls, and the only way to counter-act them is with specially designed 'Aetherpool' Armaments. Awwww poo poo, here we go again…   Kyusei is so surprised that Kheris has faced this exact problem (and employed the same solution) in the Palace of the Dead that he accidentally lets slip that there's more to this than he's told her.  Smooth. The smart thing to do at this point would probably be the bow out. But regardless of what this shady guy might be up to, Rasho needs her help. Besides, she just finished putting the Ruby Sea back together; she won't let this tower tear it apart. Her objective is to reach the 30th Floor and then report her findings. The first floor… is not quite what she expected.  Glorious Japanese architecture aside, Heavens-on-High plays out almost identically to Palace of the Dead. Same procedurally generated rooms, same respawning enemy system to force you to keep moving, same chests dropping consumables, equipment rank-ups, and Pomander power-ups. As far as I saw, the Pomander options are the same as they were in PotD, and just like PotD, you start off having to 'level' your character to unlock your abilities, this time beginning at 60. I did notice a few differences. First, HoH seems far more forgiving for a single player than the few times I went into PotD alone. This is fortunate because after Floor 1-10 the group queues were not popping, even after over an hour of waiting. I guess this place isn't as popular as Palace for some reason. When going in alone, the respawns were slower than I expected, and the rank-ups needed for my armor and weapon to be on a fair footing with the tower creatures came very swiftly. Another difference is that the frog on the polymorph trap has been replaced by Shisui's pet otter. Nice. As Kheris climbs the first ten floors, the player is soon made privy to the fact that she's being watched. Thankfully, it's not by Edda's ghost.  Alongside his new wardrobe and knowledge of Kheris' history, Kyusei reveals an attitude significantly smugger than the one he put on while talking the Warrior of Light into the tower. The revelation that Rasho is in on the scheme is also not reassuring. The only bright side is that he seems to find Kyusei's demeanor irritating, hinting that they're not totally in accord with each other. Floors 11-20 start to reveal a small number of new mechanics. First was the addition of cute little Power-Up Buddies. If you reach one of them, they'll reward you with a beneficial effect that lasts several minutes. The much flashier addition is a set of items called Magicites. These summon a phantom of Ifrit, Titan, or Garuda from your memories, unleashing one of their iconic attacks in something akin to a limit break. Very useful for taking on the Floor 20 boss.  Upon this victory, we cut to Kyusei speaking to a mysterious figure. He starts to offer suggestions on how to handle the Warrior of Light when she arrives, but the unseen being brushes him off. Kyusei accepts this and wishes it luck in the fulfillment of its duty. Floors 21-30 represented a significant jump in difficulty, as was usually the case when you got a new tileset in PotD. I also saw another minor change, a new type of floor in the form of a single massive room with no walls. Still, it wasn't all that taxing compared to my trip to Floor 100 in the last mega-dungeon. All that was left for me to do was confront Kyusei's mystery partner:  Hiruko was actually a pretty stiff test. He hits hard on a non-tank, demanding careful use of defensive abilities and liberal application of all those potions I'd been picking up to stay at a safe HP threshold. He also has a neat ability where he summons stormclouds, then knocks the player into the air. You have to position yourself to hit one of those clouds to clear a safe space before they fire off their lightning, and then you have to run like hell as soon as you hit the ground, or his half-arena super-AOE will kill you dead. Two abilities I'd seen in Heavensward remixed together to create something new. I like it! With her job done, Kheris is greeted by Kyusei, who congratulates her on defeating the creature Hiruko, discarding all pretense that he needed her to scout for him. Rasho also comes clean, opening with an apology for the charade, before explaining who this fellow really is:  The name rings a bell. Hancock had mentioned them as the mysterious artisans responsible for Eastern-style Aetheryte design and construction when I first toured Kugane. Kyusei explains that their order is approximately a thousand years old and maintains a policy of strict neutrality when it comes to political matters. Their purpose is to uncover and repurpose the technologies of the Allagans to benefit modern society. Such studies allowed them to create Aethernets for several Far Eastern cities, much like the Sharlayans did in Eorzea. Unlike the Sharlayans, they don't conduct themselves this way out of priggish arrogance. Their order has foreseen a future doom upon Hydaelyn, and feels that their role is to unravel the secrets of our past as swiftly as possible without putting the means to cause another Calamity back into Mankind's hands. It's still pretty hubristic, but at least their hearts are in the right place compared to many other Science Nerds in this universe. Heavens-on-High was built by their order. It was intended to function as a training ground so that warriors with the capacity to oppose a threat to the world could learn methods of war the Onishisu have preserved across the centuries. This purpose led them to an alliance with the Confederacy after the first Captain of their union challenged the tower and reached Level 30 before realizing he could go no further. Since then, every Captain has faced Hiruko or died in the attempt as a right of passage. Those who succeed swear a secret oath that a part of their duty as the Confederacy's leader will be to guide potential champions into the tower to learn… or perish. It's a bit of a douchey ethos if you assume that they make a habit of tricking people into this death trap and telling them to sink or swim. Maybe Kheris was the exception to how they usually do things since they already knew she was a god-slaying super-beast. If not, this whole thing is pretty sinister. The Allagans would have been proud. I'll give the Onishishu this much, though: they hold themselves to a pretty similar standard because they believe 100% that they're doing this to save the planet. I know because Kheris is invited to view a holographic record of the scientist who brought Hiruko to life by sacrificing his own.  ...  …    I wonder if that girl is from Mide's tribe. She's got blue hair, and she's into science. Either way, the old man anoints her the new Master of the Onishishu and then whispers to "Princess Salina," and "Desch," that he'll be seeing them soon. I hope there's more to this plot if I climb the rest of the tower, it sounds interesting. Well, that's a question that'll have to wait for another day. Kheris' path next takes her back to Yanxia and then, at long last, to the Steppe…
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Oct 23, 2022 10:11
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Training montage? No, training mini-arc.
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Oct 23, 2022 10:42
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This brings up a bit of fanon that has only been circumstantially supported by the game at present. Typically it is thought that the various sapient species on Hydaelin can interbreed, or at least the playable ones, with any offspring being the species of the mother. Only some minor, usually largely aesthetic, variances from the norm are inherited from the father. The tale mentioned above and Hilda's background are some of those very few supporting details.
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Oct 23, 2022 11:02
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The above is meant as trivia only and is not necessarily intended to urge Kheris to get together with the lizardfolk
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Oct 23, 2022 11:05
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One important detail of that Ninja duty not mentioned is that at one point, Oboro shows exactly why he's the worst ninja and so often called the dim one by Karasu. Upon being caught, he yells for his still-hidden allies to go on without him, getting you all caught as well. 
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Oct 23, 2022 12:03
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Yapping Eevee posted:One important detail of that Ninja duty not mentioned is that at one point, Oboro shows exactly why he's the worst ninja and so often called the dim one by Karasu. Upon being caught, he yells for his still-hidden allies to go on without him, getting you all caught as well. Huh. You know, I checked my screenshots, and you're totally right. I wrote this: quote:Oboro tries to get us to leave this fight to him and press on, but Jacke isn't having any of that crap. We all drop stealth and mow down the baddies, forcing Karasu to retreat. With sneaking no longer an option, we bull-rush Underfoot's guards, cut him loose, and then confront Zakuro. Because when you do the job everyone is still in stealth when the entire squad of Samurai rushes Oboro, so regardless of the dialogue, in my head, they all dropped stealth to save him not because his dumb rear end got us caught. That's pretty funny.
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Oct 23, 2022 12:14
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Karasu probably gave Oboro so many swirlies when they were kids. Desch and Princess Salina are references to Final Fantasy III of course, because Yoshi-P apparently loves that game. All we need now is an excuse for the water maiden to show up, and I believe every character of consequence from that game will have a counterpart in XIV. Magicite are neat. Not only do they do significant damage to a boss, but if they're used on any regular floor, they just instantly kill every enemy there. Doesn't stop more from spawning in if you hit a trap or just passively over time, though. There is one other (very rare) magicite that is available at higher floors of HoH: that being Odin, who instantly kills EVERYTHING (bosses included).
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Oct 23, 2022 14:47
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Oboro really is the dim one.
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Oct 23, 2022 17:13
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More like Himboro am i right
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Oct 23, 2022 17:55
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We have heard of Princess Salina before actually. She was the last of Allag Royalty and gave to the G tribe the Allgan royal blood and eye to unlock the Crystal Tower.
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Oct 23, 2022 19:20
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There are a number of other new pomanders in HoH, such as: Concealment, which makes your whole team invisible. Somewhat limited usefulness since you need to kill enemies to unlock the next stage, but I could see it being very helpful solo if you manage to unlock the next stage but still haven't found the portal. Petrification, which petrifies every enemy on the floor, so that any attack kills them in one hit. But it only lasts for 30 seconds or so, so it might not be enough to let you clear the stage or find the exit before it wears off. Blueberry Pancakes posted:Magicite are neat. Not only do they do significant damage to a boss, but if they're used on any regular floor, they just instantly kill every enemy there. Doesn't stop more from spawning in if you hit a trap or just passively over time, though. There is one other (very rare) magicite that is available at higher floors of HoH: that being Odin, who instantly kills EVERYTHING (bosses included). Yeah, the fact that they can do big damage to the boss OR clear a floor of enemies makes it a bit frustrating when people use them all up to clear stages when they have a stack of Petrification pomanders, which are useless against bosses. A petrification pomander is nearly as low-effort and is generally plenty to let you clear a floor with a team.
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Oct 23, 2022 21:05
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grandalt posted:We have heard of Princess Salina before actually. She was the last of Allag Royalty and gave to the G tribe the Allgan royal blood and eye to unlock the Crystal Tower. drat, for real? If the guy in the hologram knew her, wouldn't he need to be thousands of years old? I don't know if we ever got a number for how long ago the 4th Calamity was, but I know it was way longer than 1000 years ago.
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Oct 23, 2022 21:40
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I think the collapse of Allag is roughly 3kya, but I could be wrong.
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Oct 23, 2022 21:44
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No, Allag was 6000 years ago. It likely that the hologram is that old. There are several countries in Othard that are in fact contemporary with either Allag or the Fourth Umbral Era. They don’t get slammed as hard as Eorzea does because calamities seem to originate in there.
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Oct 23, 2022 21:47
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New theory: Eorzea is Hydaelyn’s Australia
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Oct 23, 2022 22:02
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hopeandjoy posted:No, Allag was 6000 years ago. It likely that the hologram is that old. There are several countries in Othard that are in fact contemporary with either Allag or the Fourth Umbral Era. They don’t get slammed as hard as Eorzea does because calamities seem to originate in there. The Hologram should only be 1000 years old because that's when the Onishishu were founded and they built the tower. Hence my surprise that the princess who was alive in the wake the 4th Calamity and tried to help set her people up to survive knew the guy
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Oct 23, 2022 22:28
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Regallion posted:
This was the point when I realized that Estinien is basically Good Sephiroth crossed with Kain.
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Oct 24, 2022 19:08
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Jetrauben posted:This was the point when I realized that Estinien is basically
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Oct 24, 2022 19:24
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It's the whole lasting change to his very being as a result of direct contact with an otherworldly alien being's mutagenic influence.
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Oct 24, 2022 19:27
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Didn't they give out a wind up dragoon with preorders of Heavensward or with the Deluxe edition? I can't remember because I always get both when I'm able.
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Oct 24, 2022 20:20
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Kwyndig posted:Didn't they give out a wind up dragoon with preorders of Heavensward or with the Deluxe edition? I can't remember because I always get both when I'm able. You got a Wind-Up Kain for the Collector's Edition.
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Oct 24, 2022 20:27
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OhFunny posted:You got a Wind-Up Kain for the Collector's Edition. Yeah that's it, and his idle activity is to do a big jump.
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Oct 24, 2022 21:24
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Chapter 24: Beyond Thunder-Doma Kheris' return to Namai initially seems like it will be a low-key affair. Yotsuyu has kept her forces hunkered down beyond the Moon Gate, which has allowed the villagers to experience life without the constant shadow of fear. Namai's day theme, "A Father's Pride," suits the new status quo. There's a sense of joy to the pipes and strings one might find in a festival dance. Everyone is riding the high on the return of hope. You can even find Isse, confident that the day he'll be proud of Doma again is close at hand, watching his sister play hopscotch. There are a lot of sidequests on offer, but few offer much new insight into the affairs of Doma. Most retread old ground: the lack of young people and the ban on weapons have resulted in many day-to-day problems, and the village has to cope. You help slay wildlife that threatens their water supply and rice paddies. You tend to the fields because they lack the manpower to manage them. An aging stonemason asks you to help repair the farm terraces because his apprentice was drafted. A Liberation Front soldier provides you with disgusting goop from Ala Mhigo that deters dangerous beasts. Both provinces must resort to such unpleasant methods to secure basic safety. In one unusual quest, you discover a mangled corpse outside town carrying a letter to his lover. It laments his departure and explains how he's fought for years to return to Namai and see her again. You're given a photograph and told to find the woman without the UI's assistance. When you do, the one you find is not the man's love but her younger sister. Their parents died during the invasion, so the elder sister took on the burden of raising her younger sibling and working to pay the extortionate Imperial taxes. The man would have helped, but he was unmasked as a Liberation Front operative. If he'd stayed in Namai, they would have all been summarily executed. By the time he returned, his beloved had worked herself to death. Another senseless tragedy to lay at the Garlean's feet.  The most prominent points of interest revolve around Doma's native wolfmen, the Lupin. We already know that they served Doma's Royal House as sworn swords. This full role was not so limited. Various packs of Lupin served the Doman elite throughout the nation's history, fighting with distinction in every war and earning the respect of all in the process. They did not limit their aid to only the great warlords and nobles either. Many villages across the kingdom played host to individual Lupin families, their martial prowess making them invaluable members of any community. It's one of the first times we've heard of a truly harmonious relationship between the races of Mankind and a Beast Tribe on a society-wide scale. That makes what happened to them even more tragic. After Doma fell, the vast majority were forced to enlist in the Imperial Legions, probably to ensure their loyalty and military acumen wouldn't remain a threat during the occupation. We've already seen them serving in Zenos' XIIth, though the quest dialogue doesn't make clear if this impressment is unique to him or if they've been spread across the Empire like most draftees. I'd assume the former if I was asked to pick one. Most Garleans are not shy about their complete contempt for Beast Tribes, whereas Zenos respecting their martial prowess enough to make them another set of Katanas in his Golf Bag feels on-brand for him. To avoid the mass press-ganging, many Lupin resorted to banditry. We encounter a few of those, and their disposition is best described as bitter. The harshness of outlaw life has robbed them of the nobility the Domans remember. One bullies a Hyur child and steals some herbs from his garden. When Kheris asks for their return, he's willing to kill to keep the plants even though he considers them useless.   The only bright side is that the people of Namai don't begrudge the Lupin for what's happened to them. Many communities would be quick to blame the Non-Humans for their behavior, but the Domans recognize that their former friends are also victims. It's heartening. That said, their magnanimity is not without limits. The Big Sidequest of the village involves one local Lupin pushing tolerance to the breaking point. Kurobana's family has protected Namai for generations, and it seemed that his older brother would carry on that tradition. However, once big bro was forced into the Legions, the town learned that Kuro is kind of useless.  Now, to be fair, Kuro's mom is elderly and suffers from chronic illness. Taking care of her is an important job. But the locals are frustrated by what they perceive as laziness because the average Lupin eats three times as much food as a Hyur. This irritation echoes some of the things we saw in Isari. Garlean taxation and worker relocation have made food such a precious commodity that the scarcity fosters infighting in native communities—those who seem to be failing to "pull their weight" risk being ostracized or even expelled. We'd seen this in Ala Mhigo, but it appears to be an even more acute issue in Doma despite the region being more bountiful. Controlling subsistence resources is a particularly horrific pull from the 'Big Bag of Real World Imperialism.' The Lupin doesn't seem to appreciate his position, even after Kheris explains the fears of an elder, Fukudo, who's worried that the family won't be allowed to stay much longer. Kuro has heard this before and thinks the situation is hopeless. He demonstrates by picking up his spear and getting battered by some local monsters, forcing Kheris to rescue him. He'll never be a warrior, so he'll keep sleep-walking through life until it collapses because he sees no way out. drat, that's a mood. Fukudo is at a loss. Then Kheris suggests we find something besides fighting that will allow the wolfman to help the village. He kicks himself for not thinking of this. The stereotype of Lupin being warriors is so ingrained that he didn't even think about the fact that there is another Lupin IN THE VILLAGE who's a simple laborer. There's no reason why Kurobana couldn't help the same way. The most demanding physical job in Namai is hauling harvested rice to the storehouse. The bushels weigh hundreds of pounds, and given the absence of healthy young people, transportation has only become more onerous. Lupin have several times the strength of a Hyur, so this should be an ideal task!  Then again… Kheris cheerleads the guy into successfully hauling the bag. It takes everything he has but leaves him with a sense of accomplishment. He's not a complete slacker despite appearances. Even better, the storehouse manager admits he was wrong to doubt Kuro would come through for them. It seems like everything's settled. Then Kuro learns that he needs to lug three more to complete his quota. He quits on the spot. Way to make a good impression on people who want you gone for being a sponge, dummy! Fukudo scolds the wolf, though he admits some sympathy because he knows how rough all that rice lugging can be. Kuro is a bit abashed at his behavior and swears he'll make a real effort on his next task. We convince one of the rice farmers to let Kuro weed his fields. All seems well until Kuro makes a thoughtless comment.  The farmer takes great offense. Several NPCs mentioned that Domans think of their paddies like their children, and this fellow takes that more seriously than most. He tells Kuro to get his rude self back to town and not show that offending snout again. Disheartened, Kuro insists multiple times that he didn't want to offend. He is sure that one of those rice fields had an odor the others lacked, which he noticed due to his superhuman sense of smell. Fukudo suggests letting it go and apologizing, but Kuro can't do that. Despite being a lazy bum, his pride in his heritage as a servant of Doma is real. After comparing several other fields to confirm that the unusual scent was no mistake, we track the problem to the town's reservoir. There we find a Penghou, a deadly plant creature that has already slaughtered several animals that came to drink.  Kheris slays it, and when we report what happened, the farmer is quick to apologize for his earlier anger. His precious rice might have poisoned the entire town without Kuro's help. When Kuro suggests he sniff the rice in the storehouse to find any that might be dangerous, the farmer is inspired to offer the young Lupin a job smelling fields on a regular basis. If he can detect diseases in their earliest stages, it could be a great benefit. Soon other farmers are clamoring for this service. For the first time in his life, Kuro is truly needed.  ~*~*~ Another quest has a Namai local asking Kheris to visit one of their few remaining trade partners. These brave merchants, in defiance of the iron grip of the Garleans, ply the One River in secret. They gather fish and other valuables, then offer them in exchange for Namai's surplus rice, one of the only reasons the village has survived the occupation. As thanks, the Warrior of Light is to deliver a symbolic gift: a sapling, which in time will blossom so its tenders can enjoy the tradition of hanami, the ritual viewing of flower petals. Who are these noble people who defy the Empire?  Huh. I didn't see that coming. Unlike the last one I ran into, these Namazu seem good-natured. They're happy to have a visitor because they get to show off how sophisticated they are. They can read and write! Their shops are very organized! Most importantly, they have BELLS! Nothing makes a Namazu more civilized than a good bell, I am assured repeatedly. This group has taken up residence in Yuzuka Manor, named for the Yuzuka clan that once served as magistrates. Not only were they capable and well-liked administrators, but they were also masters of gunpowder weaponry. I wouldn't have guessed the Domans were into that sort of thing. After all, the tech is still in its infancy in Eorzea. Yet, I soon found the remains of defensive cannon emplacements along the river's shore, putting their development at least on our level and perhaps beyond.  When the Garleans first invaded, the Yuzuka were one of Doma's great hopes because their weapons could challenge Magitek constructs. After the conquest, the Garleans made life hell for them, subjecting them to even greater torment than usual while demanding that they keep the bureaucracy running. They were among the first to lend their banners to Kaien's rebellion. After the second defeat, the Garleans were not so merciful. The clan was "disbanded," presumably to their complete demise. The Namazu know the tale because they aren't squatters. They served the Yuzuka clan and were close to the last magistrate to hold the office. So close that one quest on offer is a dangerous infiltration of the Imperial barracks to reclaim a vase stolen from the manor. They want it back for no reason beyond that the magistrate was fond of it. That quest is also noteworthy from a gameplay perspective because it's the first example I've seen in the game of a true-blue Escort Quest.  The prompt warning that the quest would auto-fail if I got too far away was enough to give me some unpleasant flashbacks. That said, it turned out I didn't need to worry. The designers, very smartly, used the same AI as the Chocobo Companion for Escort NPCs, which I could tell because his movements followed my pet's precisely while moving around the field. He also doesn't try to help fight enemies, which makes the traditional escort fail states nearly impossible to trigger. Good work on making an oft-frustrating quest type tolerable. So, what were the Namazu doing working for the Doman government? As it turns out, a lot! At least when they're not getting wasted on tea.  Firstly, Namazu whiskers, or barbels, give them superior perception. After helping a group of youngsters practice their detection skills, their master tells Kheris how the Doman nobility would employ Namazu as living dousing rods to find fresh water and mineral veins. But their work is even more extensive and goes back to Doma's founding. As a reward for delivering a fresh supply of bells, one of the fish treats Kheris to the tale of Doma's first king, Ganen. I presume he was Hien's ancestor because his face is etched in stone above a temple called "The Swallow's Compass." Yanxia was a war-torn land of petty kingdoms during this era, but over time Ganen was able to consolidate power to the point that a single, decisive battle was all he needed to secure unification. The only problem was that he needed to coordinate two fronts simultaneously on opposite shores of the One River. His solution was the Namazu, already employed by his army as messengers. One Namazu was entrusted with delivering a crucial set of orders despite the river's shoreline being under the enemy's control. The little fish braved hails of arrow fire to deliver the note. Thanks to his courage, the battle was won, and the kingdom of Doma was born. As a reward, the new king gifted that Namazu the first bell their kind ever wore and further granted their people official status as royal messengers of the new nation.  It's a neat story, though probably not the whole truth since Namazu cast themselves as the lynchpin of Doma's origins. Still, it cements the fact that they contributed to the unification. The tale reminded me of Hien's praise for Yugiri's loyalty to the Raen. Everything we've been learning casts Doma as arguably the most pluralistic and cosmopolitan nation we've visited, including the others here in Othard. No other place has seen a Beast Tribe and Mankind living side-by-side in fully integrated communities, and Doma did it with two separate groups. Hein's family seems to have been central in promoting that ideal. Both tribes started by swearing service to the Royal House, then found places for themselves elsewhere over time. When Sasuke imported ninjutsu, he helped bring down a tyrannical ruler, but a Doman King also entrusted his clan with a magical super-weapon. That implies the defeated tyrant was a usurper who interrupted Hien's dynasty, a nasty member of the royal line, or that Sasuke and his students fought alongside Ganen in the unification. No matter which one it was, someone from Hien's family was open to letting this shifty Hingan continue to teach people how to be assassins even after he killed a ruler. That's pretty dang open-minded. Based on what we've seen, Hien embraces this way of thinking. He actively welcomes all to the Doman banner and has proclaimed diversity of convictions to represent the core of his nation's strength. Heck, we just heard that before the Garleans came, the Confederacy was operating a base in Isari, right on Doman soil. You don't see the Hingans letting that happen on their side of the border, but we DID hear about how they mistreat the Kojin. Other than a few traders, we have yet to meet any non-Xaela living on the Azim Steppe, not even a single Raen. After so much gritty political realism, which illustrated that every society has its troubles, it's strange that Doma comes across as so idyllic. Doubly so when we can directly compare them to Ala Mhigo. One could understand why the writers might want to gloss over the ugly side of a victimized nation which recently suffered genocide, but they deliberately chose not to do that with the other focus of this expansion. The fact that Doma is portrayed as this paragon of harmony between the races and the social classes stands out. This begs the question; did the writers make that choice for a reason? Or is it a product of something else? To answer that question, we need to address the elephant in the room: Why is Doma Japan, but also China? ~*~*~ Let's start by laying some groundwork to establish that Doma is, in fact, partially based on China. I didn't pick up on it at first. My initial assessment was aligned with one from the comments, assuming that Othard was a case of "Oops, All Japans." The Edo period's influence on Hingashi is evident. While I stick to my claim that the Ryukyu Kingdom strongly influenced the Ruby Sea, the lavish courtly existence enjoyed by the Raen is reminiscent of Japan's Heian period. Doma, in this lens, would reflect the Nara period, when their society was most overtly influenced by Chinese culture, language, and art. Seeing that the Azim Steppe was Fantasy Mongolia started to change my mind. After all, if Doma is on the continent south of Fantasy Mongolia and west of Fantasy Japan, it's not hard to conclude that geographically it might be Fantasy China. Add in the fact that its most important feature is a river. The region's name, Yanxia, is only a few letters from Yangtze, China's most famous river (although the One River's importance forms an even better parallel to the Yellow River, which is considered the cradle of Chinese civilization.) Then there's the fact that its most impressive man-made landmark is a giant wall, which is also the world's largest dam. Speaking of names, another thing that gives Yanxia a distinctly Chinese feeling are the monsters. I already mentioned the Penghou, named for a Chinese tree spirit, but there is also the Bi Fang (named for a mythological Chinese bird) and the Taoquan hounds raised by the Garlean conscripts. Someone flexing their Google muscles could point out that while Tao Quan is a Chinese name, it refers to a Vietnamese deity. Or they might note that Angada and Apsaras monsters are named for things in Indian myth. That is a fair point. But then there are the architectural features of the region. I repeatedly noticed circular geometric patterns and dragon motifs, from the banners in the House of the Fierce to the walls of Doma Castle when Yotsuyu was getting manhandled. Even the ruined bridges are dragons.  This iconography isn't unknown in Japan, of course. Still, dragons as an architectural flourish are primarily associated with China because they were an explicit symbol of Chinese Emperors for thousands of years. Then there are the actual buildings. When I first saw Yazaku Manor, I thought it didn't reflect a Japanese aesthetic. The wholly enclosed courtyard and the boxy, all-stone design were all wrong. But it closely matches a near-2000-year-old Chinese design, the Siheyuan.  …  If we jump into the future and sneak a peak at Doma Castle, we can see its unique ring-fort design is based on a tuluo. This is a protective, communal structure associated with the Hakka, a cultural and linguistic sub-group (possibly an ethnic group? I don't want to use the wrong term here) who live in China's southeastern provinces.  …  One small thing I noticed was that the primary color of Hien's kimono is yellow, another symbol of the Chinese Emperors. Japanese Emperors were typically linked with purple and white. Then there's that story the Namazu told me. As soon as I heard it, I thought it sounded like something borrowed from history or folklore. A bit of reading led to me The Battle of Hulao Pass, where a young Chinese prince established a new dynasty by wiping out the army of their last major rival. The prince in question directly commanded his army and led the cavalry in several engagements. That's a little unusual for Chinese rulers, who are mostly lauded for strategic oversight rather than battlefield prowess when their military experience is given attention at all. The critical moment came when the prince split a portion of his troops off and sent them to the far side of the Yellow River. This drew the numerically superior enemy into attacking despite their opponent's easily defensible position. The detached force then snuck back across in the dead of night and rejoined the ranks before the enemy struck. That prince became Emperor Taizong, one of China's most revered rulers. The dynasty he founded, the Tang, had a substantial cultural influence on early Japan. This isn't the only connection we can draw between King Ganen and China. If we look at the stone carving on the side of that temple I mentioned-  -we can see a whispy cloth floating around his shoulders. It's a garment often seen around gods and other divinely blessed figures in Japan, the hagaromo. However, my research revealed this concept first came to Japan through China. There it is known as the pibo, and it reached its peak popularity during… wait for it… the Tang Dynasty. The style was transmitted through the common medium of Buddhism from its origin point in India. Then there's this little nugget from the FF14 Cash Shop:  Red Hare was the horse of Lu Bu, whom I presume needs no introduction. The guy wasn't a king, but he's probably the most world-renowned figure of Chinese legend other than the Monkey King Sun Wukong. Looking at all of that, we can be comfortable with the claim that Doma is China. However, we equally cannot deny that Doma is Japan. For one thing, China doesn't have Ninjas. Granted, we have a lore-based reason for their presence, but we have yet to get such a reason for the even bigger weirdness: China doesn't have Samurai. The Samurai are not some minor part of Doman society, either. Multiple lines of dialogue refer to them as Doma's aristocracy. Even Hingashi has a separate noble class above them, but seemingly not Doma. A later quest mentions that Doma also had a Tairo, a high political position the last SAM quest mentioned which only existed in Japan. Hien is not just a Samurai in name; it's an ingrained part of his culture. His childhood name, Shun, is our proof. Giving male children one name during their youth and then a 'true' name during a coming-of-age ceremony around their 16th birthday is a storied Samurai tradition. I considered that there might be some ambiguity because Chinese rulers were also referred to by multiple names at different points in their lives, but there really aren't any similarities between the practices. And speaking of names (again), the biggest and most obvious oddity on display is that every single NPC in Doma, from their king on down, has a Japanese rather than a Chinese name. At this point, you might be asking, "So what?" Does it matter if Doma is a mixture of Chinese and Japanese cultures? The Ruby Sea blends different cultures to make their fantasy nations. So does every other place we've seen in this game, for that matter. Past Final Fantasy games have even blended Japan and China. To understand why it's noteworthy (and potentially problematic), we must discuss an ugly topic: The Greater East-Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. In the early 1900s, in the wake of the Meiji Restoration's modernization of Japan into an industrial power, the rest of Asia was not in the best state. The long reign of Imperialism and Colonialism had done generations of damage to the wealth and welfare of the continent and its people. Name any Asian/Pacific Island country, and you'll likely find a sordid tale of genocide, slavery, wealth extraction, and cultural erasure. But Japan was different, at least in their own eyes. They 'resisted' Western influence even after Commodore Peary's Black Ships forced them to open their ports. When the day came for open war with a European nation, the great bear of the Russian Empire, they shocked the world with an overwhelming victory. Off the back of these self-described triumphs, Japan pitched an image of the future to its neighbors. A future where the Western Powers were pushed back by the might of the Japanese military. Where Asia was for Asian people, and their resources would go toward building up their homelands and lives instead of being shipped off to London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Washington. They promised the others that Japan would lead them into a golden age where they would stand as equals to the West and receive the respect and fair treatment they deserved.  Sounds nice, right? Just one problem. It was all a lie. Japan's actual plan was to replace Western Imperialism with their home-grown recipe. All the oil, cotton, rubber, tin, and foodstuffs would go to Tokyo instead of those far-away lands, not back into the places producing them. Any country not on board with the plan was subject to annexation, which is why Japan and China were already at war when the Nazis struck Poland. And if you think this setup might at least lead to improvements because of a reduction in racism since the new overlord was also Asian, you're wrong there too. Japan was entirely on board with BS racial science, just like the Brits, Americans, and Germans. They just saw their ethnic group as the actual Master Race. I've made mention of how Garlemald's policies reflect real-world Imperialism. We can see echoes of things they've done everywhere in our history books, from British India to the Belgian Congo to the Caribbean Islands to the American Great Plains. But this expansion, in particular, has underscored the inspirations drawn from Imperial Japan. In one of the early chapters, I highlighted how biological weapon testing on prisoners of war references Unit 731, the Kwantung Army's most infamous den of war crimes. In this discussion, we can turn our focus to Korea. The peninsula was annexed by Japan in 1910 and ruled until the end of World War II. During that time, the Korean people were subjected to many horrors, but one of the most noteworthy was a level of cultural eradication that boggles the mind. Japanese leaders believed Korea to be a backward place full of barbarians and worked hard to reinforce that image at home through sociological "studies," and carefully curated media depictions. To fix this "deficiency," Japan worked to modernize its new province through rapid industrialization. Japanese nationals owned more than 90% of these new businesses. As workers left (more often were forced out of) the agricultural sector to fill the new factory jobs, their farmland was also appropriated by Japanese colonists. This labor force brought their families to the new industrial centers, where their children 'enjoyed' the new state-funded public education system. This education was not only of deliberately lower in quality than what was offered to Japanese children, not to mention fully segregated, but the curriculum eschewed many essential skills in favor of moral and political instruction intended to make Koreans into "model Imperial citizens." As time went on, these policies escalated. Toward the end of the occupation, the Japanese planned to virtually eliminate all Korean language instruction with an eye toward potentially eliminating the language itself over time. Other policies deliberately attempted to erase native social conventions, such as hairstyles and clothing. Korean families were even encouraged to rename their children with Japanese names, a 'suggestion' they complied with in a desperate attempt to avoid discrimination. I was told that during Stormblood, a controversy erupted regarding a new cash-store outfit. The design reflected the fashion, particularly the school uniforms, of the Taisho Era. These were the decades just before the World War, and thus the very same decades when Korea was first annexed. The clothes were the same ones Koreans were forced to wear as part of a plot to destroy their culture.  I'm sure we can all see why Doma blending Japanese and Chinese characteristics is uncomfortable by this point. The name thing and having the ruling class be Samurai when the Japanese military of World War II famously used the trappings of Samurai history to justify their atrocities is undoubtedly eyebrow-raising. But at the same time, I cannot help but notice that the Garleans are committing these same crimes. The writers of this game are not careless, even if whoever greenlit those outfits might have been. The decision by Japanese writers to foreground atrocities inspired by the behavior of their nation rather than the Brits, the Nazis, the Americans, or the Roman Empire was surely deliberate. The decision to make Doma Castle look like something Chinese and Doma's unification to reflect Emperor Taizong when they could have made them into clones of Osaka Castle and Oda Nobunaga was deliberate. So, what were they going for here? Three possibilities occurred to me. One is the decision to make Doma into Fantasy China came after they'd already introduced details that cast it as Fantasy Japan. It was too late to run back things like Samurai and Ninja, so they had to adapt. There might be some truth to that, but I don't remember Samurai specifically ever coming up in the ARR or HW Doma content. Indeed, the ARR Relic Weapon is where we first see the notion that Ninjas were imported to Doma from Hingashi. Surely they would have had time to adjust before they introduced Gosetsu, let alone before giving every Doman NPC a Japanese name with zero exceptions? Another possibility is fear. The writers may have always wanted Doma to reflect China, but contemporary political issues made them worry about a backlash from their most important audience in Japan. Hence they leaned into some Japanese elements and pushed the Chinese elements into the background. It would make sense. After all, despite the success of the relaunch, I'm sure the game has never been well-positioned to endure a large group of users refusing to buy into a new expansion. My third idea is perhaps a bit generous to the writer's intentions, but it's grown on me in the context of the rest of the game's general politics, as well as that original question of why Doma seems relatively idealized compared to other societies in this universe. I think they wanted Doma to be a cipher for the entire Asian colonialism experience. If you dig into the details, there are aspects of other nations beyond the main two of Japan and China to Doma. Yet, when I was playing through, I couldn't help but notice how muted much of the cultural world-building was compared to even the other Othard zones. In my view, the writers hoped that by keeping Doma a bit of a blank slate unless you're paying close attention, they would be able to speak to the historical experiences of audiences all over the Pacific. Several readers have talked to me about people of several nationalities they know who've felt a connection with Doma's story precisely along those lines. In this interpretation, the overt Japanese markings are the proverbial spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down for their main player base. Many Japanese people are willing to cast a blind eye to their country's past, helped along by efforts on the part of the conservative end of their political establishment. The FF14 writers might have been trying to get Japanese players to confront the realities of that past. They avoided making the victimized society fully Japanese, or indeed fully anything, to minimize the appropriation of the misery of their country's historical victims. Then, they made the villains into a totem of Japan's crimes and their victims into a society that would be easy for their players to sympathize with because they still saw a part of themselves.  ~*~*~ Among the Namazu, one stands out. Gyorin has a dream to become the wealthiest merchant in Othard. Why? So he can buy a unique and fancy apron to go with his bell, of course! He read a story about a man who found great wealth by taking advice from a wandering adventurer, and he thinks Kheris might be able to do the same for him. He starts by showing off his wares:  …  He said he wanted honest advice! Gyorin isn't about to be deterred, though. He tries fishing but gives up when he realizes all the Namazu he knows sell fish, and they're not rich. He tries dousing for metal with his barbels, but then we get them appraised:  Even trying to trap animals for meat and hides leads to him being caught himself. Despite these setbacks, he never lets his spirits dampen. His last idea is to ask other people for ideas. Gyofu, the same fish that appraised his garbage ores, mentions that the old Garlean barracks might be full of leftover weapons that weren't removed. They'd be worth a fortune! Of course, they might also not be there, and the Garlean's pet dogs certainly are. We'd be risking death and might get nothing for our trouble. So, it's Tuesday for Kheris. One guard dog battle later:  All Gyorin needs to realize his dream of wealth is customers, which is the subject of the Capstone Sidequest for Yanxia. Things kick off when the leader of the Namazu, Gyoshu, asks Kheris to take a message to a man in Namai: "I have your daughter." Naturally, he means that he rescued the girl from drowning in the river. Once the confusion is cleared up, the incident provides an opportunity to check in with Kurobana. He's been doing well since he started his sniffing service, but now he has a new worry. If more plant monsters appear, the village won't have any means to deal with them in Kheris' absence. They need proper armaments to even the odds. Lucky for him, Kheris knows a guy selling gunblades on the sly. When we get back to Gyorin's shop, he complains that most Domans have refused to purchase his wares because they consider the weapons of their oppressors to be dishonorable. I hope Yugiri gives those guys wedgies back at headquarters. At least Kurobana is no fool, especially because he knows guns are easy to use with minimal training. Even a loser like him might be able to fend off the local beasts with those bad boys. All they need to do is settle on a price.   My guy, you are bad at business.Kheris leverages her position as the Official Advice Giver to suggest the villagers should get to "try before they buy." This ends up being crucial because a whole swarm of plant monsters soon starts ripping up the villages' fields. We rush back to help, but they're already dead by the time Kheris reaches Namai! At Kuro’s hand no less! Garlean weapons are no joke. Seeing his wares' effectiveness, Gyorin again tries to extort his customers for a fortune. They manage to get him to understand that they don't have anything of great worth in the town, but he insists on substantial compensation regardless because he risked his life for the guns. That's when he notices something more precious than all the gold in Ul'dah:    These little fish bois are good eggs. About as bright as a carton of them, but still good. Which, I suppose, sums up Yanxia's sidequests. While they gave me some interesting insights and the opportunity to congeal my thoughts on some difficult topics, the actual stories were very light fare. There's nothing wrong with that, but it is surprising, given how many of them were on offer. I'm used to nearly every quest, even the most banal, giving up a juicy story morsel. Stormblood has had large chunks that are just there. There are still things of worth in them, but they're in even smaller pieces and require more sewing to put them together. It's a shift from where we've been before, and while it doesn't bug me that much, I'd bet it turned more than a few people off from clearing their maps. Even I needed a breaking point in the main story before I felt like indulging them. If it could happen to me, it could happen to anyone. The last leg of Kheris' return to Hien has arrived. Let's STEPPE over that threshold, shall we? … I'm so sorry.
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Oct 29, 2022 09:23
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I greatly appreciated that thoughtful rumination on Doma and its real-world inspirations.
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Oct 29, 2022 09:39
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The Namazu are a special lot. And yes, about as sharp as a turnip for the most part... Which interpretation of why Doma is the way it is, we may never know. But I do like that last option. (The uniforms did cause quite a stir at the time though.)
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Oct 29, 2022 09:51
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Even when Namazu are clever and competent they seem to do it in a stupid and incompetent way(see "I have your daughter"), but their hearts are in the right place and that goes for a lot. Aside from Gyodo, may he be beer basted with lemon.
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Oct 29, 2022 12:14
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| # ? Jun 12, 2024 15:15 |
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Yapping Eevee posted:The Namazu are a special lot. And yes, about as sharp as a turnip for the most part... I came across the expression "Charmingly daft" someplace a while ago and it suits the Namazu to a tee, yes yes.
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Oct 29, 2022 13:28
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