#bestways burrow

[mimble-sparklepudding]

FFXIV Housing Poll

[melissa-robin-ultros]

Adventures on the moon

[autumnslance]

More Moon lore. Reasons for the moon's barren nature, and how it causes the elements and magic to react. Alt text in image.

[roegadynroost]

OH GOD LIVINGWAY! ZERO NO!!!

[phoenix-flamed]

I dozed off at my laptop and left Elwin standing on the moon...

[gunbun]

FFXIVWrite2024 Day 1: Steer

It was a Windsday on the moon.

That Tiona could say and do such things and have it be a normal Windsday spoke volumes about where her life had gone after saving the entirety of the known universe. It was a matter of a few pieces of paperwork - Sharlayan may have turned back their noninterventionist policies but their love of bureaucracy died hard. So, she had to fill out forms in triplicate to obtain access to the teleporter, go through all the requisite security checks (which were always made less serious when conducted by a loporrit) and then arrive in Bestways Burrow, where everyone knew her name --

But she wasn't here to see a loporrit.

She'd been a full-bore Archon for a handful of years now, having developed a novel starship propulsion system. And she had done it with the help of the star's best minds.

She needed them again.

After a fuzzy onslaught of inquiries about Alsault's primary school grades and Urianger's latest endeavours in pudding, Livingway led Tiona to the person she'd really arrived to speak to.

"Sharlayan wants a new starship," she said once she entered the sparse quarters that Livingway had pointed out. "And they asked me because they know I work with the best. You game?"

Nero Scaeva smirked at her behind his spectacles. "Well. Someone's got to steer those bureaucrats straight."

"May as well be us, aye?"

"…aye."

[yloiseconeillants]

my favorite (most hated) detail about the built environment in bestways burrow is those fucking floating platforms that are supposed to serve as stairs

how are the fucking LOPPORITS moving around these things

the fucking way that even using a mount to jump is probably less efficient it is INSANELY hostile, top interactivity between game design and story beats about how fucking jank this area is (to be 100% clear i love this as environmental storytelling)

[voidsentprinces]

Actually, the entire Hydaelyn/Zodiark Arc feels severe and tenseful. A Realm Reborn is coming out of a global calamity, the music feels ominous and tense especially in Mor Dhona, Heavensward is a secluded nation locked behind snow peaks and isolated from the world and their long standing holy war feeling grandiose and haunting in its tone except in the Sea of Clouds far away from the dangers below, Stormblood is the beat of the drum and the marching forward and somber music of a fallen nation in Yanxia and the majesty of the Steppe, the occupation of Ala Mhigo and Doma feeling so far away in the Ruby Sea it feels whimsical somewhat, Shadowbringers is atmospheric to a haunting degree, each area feeling somber except Rak'tika which is hiding from the light with its massive boroughs and Il Mheg which is a different kind of unsettling, Endwalker is about the uncertainty and tragedy unfolding, the only joy to be found is in Bestway Burrows who seem naively oblivious to the dangers we've witnessed. But the music thus far in Dawntrail, is lively and wondrous, and there doesn't seem to be any like tense or danger on it. Truly a new dawn is breaking. Light in tone and happy.

[exploringcastleoblivion]

Junelezen 2024 - Day 14: Waystop

Stopping by the Watcher's Palace on the way to Bestways Burrow

[ainyan]

He’d been told about the changes wrought in the Empty by the final confrontations with Eden. He’d been told that life had come once again to that which had been beyond dead. He’d been told many things, but he’d never expected to actually see it with his own eyes. And yet here he was, standing amidst the waving grasses, perched on the edge of a short cliff overlooking waters of a vibrant blue. Around him he heard birdsong; flickers of butterfly wings danced amidst the patches of flowers scattered along the edges of the lake. A giant multicolored crystal speared upwards from the waters, reminiscent of some of the structures found in the Bestway Burrows upon the moon.

And in the distance, Eden itself was barely visible within the sprawling branches and verdant leaves of a great tree rising in the distance. He’d been reassured that the sin eater - the Ascian - was no more, and that its pale hulk was inert and inoperative, the life-giving aether it had stolen from the world slowly dispersing back into the ecosystem, revitalizing it one steady ilm at a time.

At his side, Kal’istae stood with him, her fingers tangled up together as she held them before her, a faint tension singing through her small, slight frame. Distracted from the view, he glanced down and noticed that her tail-tip was twitching madly, lashing the backs of her calves without cease. “What’s wrong?” he murmured.

She flinched at the sound of his voice, then looked up, dark eyes wide and guileless, her smile patently false. “Nothing at all. What do you think of the miracle that Ryne and Gaia have wrought here?”

“I think you had as much to do with it as they did,” he replied steadily, “but it is magnificent nonetheless. That does not explain why you’re so tense, Kali.”

Wincing, she made a visible effort to relax. “I’m sorry, Thancred - I’m not trying to steal from this moment. You shouldn’t worry about me - look out there! You and Urianger had as much to do with it as we did; be proud,” she whispered, “of what you have achieved through your love and belief for your daughter.”

He reached out and buried his hand in her hair, tugging lightly until she fetched up against his side. “I am proud of me, and Urianger, and you and the girls, I swear. I look out over this miracle and I wonder what it will look like in a year’s time - in ten years, in a hundred. What will it look like when the aether has stabilized enough that people can begin moving out here, building here, living here?” Kal’istae wasn’t able to stifle the soft sob that rose in her throat, and Thancred turned, alarmed. “Honey!”

She turned into him as his arms came around her. “I’m not - it’s just…” She trailed off, fighting for enough breath to speak. He said nothing, merely stroked her head and crooned comfortingly. Finally, she pulled back, scrubbing at her eyes. “I’m so happy for you, Thancred. I’m so happy you get to be happy.”

Confused, he took a hold of her shoulders and shook her lightly. “Of course I’m happy. I’ve been happy for a long time, Kali.” When she frowned at him, he shook her again. “I’m with you. I love you, and you love me, and knowing you’re by my side has gotten me through a lot of rough spots.”

She rubbed the heel of her hand across her eyes, peering up at him. “But not all the way happy. You haven’t had Ryne. Now you can have her.” His continued confusion must have shown in his face, because she exhaled heavily. “You’re going to stay.”

“Ah.” The word whispered out, carried on a gentle puff of air. “I’m considering it,” he admitted steadily, and watched her tail and shoulders droop, her gaze fall away. “It’s been a long, hard fight for all of us, but Garlemald is on the mend, and they no longer have need of my especial services. Riol is more than capable of handling what little need there is for intelligence and espionage amongst the Scions. You yourself have laid rest to the great threat against which the Scions were formed to stand.”

Her hands shot out to capture his and she lifted her face. “Then do it,” she said urgently. “Stay here with your daughter, watch her grow up, help rebuild this shattered world as you helped rebuild a shattered nation. There’s no reason not to!”

His fingers curled around hers. “If that is the case, love, then why are you so sad?”

Her lip trembled, but she neither pulled away nor looked away, and he was impressed; so often she sought to flee uncomfortable personal conversations between them - this, then, must be very important to her. “I will miss you,” she whispered.

Ah. “Kali, even were I to remain here, it would change nothing about what is between us,” he said firmly, drawing her closer. “The bridge across the Rift is open and stable; I need only walk through the mirror in the Ocular to return home whenever I wish. And you need not even do that; your aetheric connection to the First means that you can Teleport here on a whim, from anywhere.”

Lavender-edged eyes blinked in incomprehension. “We will live on different worlds.”

Laughing gently, he coaxed her the rest of the way into his arms. “Have we not practically since we met, love?” he teased gently. “The distance between us would be no more than it has ever been as I have served the Scions’ interests and you have followed your wandering heart.”

Biting her lip, she leaned into him, brow furrowed. “You’ll have a life here.”

“And will your life there exclude me?” he wanted to know.

Indigo eyes flashed wide, filled with indignation. “Of course not!” Then she flushed. “Oh.”

Overwhelmed with love, with adoration, he laughed again and dropped to his knee, keeping his arms firmly around her. “Oh, indeed. Sweetest Kal’istae, my own love, I have tried to show you in every way I know that I am yours, as you are mine. Even should I make a life here, you will always be a part of it. The biggest part of it, and the best part of it.”

She gazed down into his upturned face and reached out to frame it with her hands. “You’re my everything,” she said simply.

It hadn’t been how he’d planned it. He’d had it mapped out in his head, from beginning to end. But as she gazed down at him, eyes shining with love, with adoration, her hands soft against his cheeks, he knew that all of the planning in the world would not have given him as perfect an opportunity as now.

He dropped one arm away, keeping the other snug around her hips to prevent her from leaving. When he went digging in one of the copious inner pockets of his jacket, she frowned curiously and canted her head to one side. “Where did I… ah! There.”

When he pulled out a small enameled box, she tilted her head to the other side, her perplexity growing. “What is that?”

He thumbed open the lid, his arm sliding from about her as he took her hand in his, clenching the box lightly in his fingers. “Promises,” he told her, gazing up into her puzzled eyes. “A promise asked, and a promise offered.”

For a moment, a breathless moment, she still didn’t understand. Then her gaze dropped from his to the box, and what was inside.

The stone was violet, a rich, dark bluish-purple that shone with an inner light. Upon the faceted surface of the stone she could see was etched the same meteor symbol that was inked between her shoulder blades. It was set in platinum, and the pale silvery metal gleamed against the dark blue gem and the black velvet in which it was housed.

“I - Thancred,” she breathed, and when her eyes lifted to his, they glistened with unshed tears and gleamed with a terrible, glorious hope. “You can’t mean…”

He gazed up at her, and for once did not bother hiding his nerves or uncertainty behind a cocky smile. He allowed her to see what no one else was ever permitted; his doubts. His fears.

His hopes.

“Please, Kali,” he whispered. “Marry me. Be my wife, my bondmate, my partner from now until eternity ends. No matter how far apart we may be, let us be bound together as completely as any two people may be.”

Her mouth opened and closed, but she seemed at a loss for words. The silence stretched between them, growing ever more brittle before she finally managed to take control of her brain. “Thancred,” she croaked, voice gone hoarse, “are you sure-”

“Yes!” His affirmation was explosive. “Gods, yes, never more sure!” Sucking in a breath and easing his grip before he hurt her, he continued, “I have had this in my pocket since you first said you loved me. I just needed the right time, the right place.” He hesitated. “The right words. Kali, please!”

There were no words more right. “Yes!” The word exploded from her, and her eyes grew wide, unfettered hand rising to cover her mouth as she stared at him. Then she dropped it away, revealing a brilliant, if unbelieving, smile. “Yes, gods - yes!”

He didn’t question it. He didn’t confirm it. He merely dropped the box away, uncaring as it struck the ground and rolled away. The ring remained in his fingers and he slid it onto hers in the same gesture, sealing their promises in an unending circle. “I swear to you,” he said, staring up into her eyes, “you will never regret this.”

“I have never regretted anything about you,” she murmured as she leaned in to capture his mouth with hers. Against his lips, she smiled, and he could taste the sweet tears of her joy. “And I have no intention of starting. My love,” she whispered, and lost herself in his kiss as his arms came around her, holding her as if never to let go again.

[mimble-sparklepudding]

Mimble's Sparkly Pudding!

Endwalker Patch 6.35 Spoilers.

Mimble is very happy with how things are going in Patch 6.35!

[ecosystem-administrator]

Portentous

Timeline: 6.0, main story spoilers

Urianger's first day alone on the moon is not going the way he expected.

The air of the room was cool, and the bedding soft and clean but of a wholly unfamiliar texture. Urianger recalled, as his eyes slowly fluttered open, where he was: Bestways Burrow, the underground facility on the moon where its caretakers were busy preparing for the end of days. He was having trouble focusing, no doubt an effect of the long hours he’d stayed awake speaking to the tiny inhabitants before giving in to his body’s inevitable need for rest.

Gradually, he became aware that the other reason he was having trouble focusing was that the nearest surface, a stretch of textured blue cloth, was quite close to his face indeed. And above that was a small furred face with large dark eyes, waiting, placid and utterly unperturbed. “Oh good, you’re awake,” they said, as Urianger began to raise his head from the pillow, confused and alarmed by the sheer proximity. “We had some more questions.”

We? He raised his head further and realized all at once that it was not just one Loporrit: there was an entire line of tiny patient rabbits stretching from the head of his bed and half filling the little room they’d managed to repurpose for him to stay in while the living quarters were refurbished. Dear Thaliak. He closed his eyes again, forestalling any and all possible reactions until his mind could finish processing. There was not enough coffee on the moon for this; there was not, in fact, any, or at least not in a preparable form. He’d checked their stores yesterday.

“We know it’s important for mortals to get their rest,” said a second Loporrit. “So we waited for you to wake up.”

I cannot shout at them. Their actions are reasonable, for a race which requireth no sleep nor hath any contact with mortal society. Shouting at them for this would be unfair. Urianger took a deep breath, and then another, and answered only when he was sure he had regained his composure. “Thy consideration is appreciated,” he said, with at least an attempt at a smile. “I have some additional recommendations to make, for mine own comfort and that of future guests. Pray tell, who would be most apt to distribute this information widely?”

The Lopporits glanced from one to another in wordless consideration, as was their wont, and one of them piped up, “Managingway was the one who said we ought to get in line so you can answer us one at a time.”

“Managingway doth indeed sound an excellent choice for receiving this feedback,” Urianger agreed. “My thanks. As for thy questions, I shall answer each in turn once I have had a moment to gather myself. Mortals take time to ready for work in order to perform our best. May I have some privacy?”

Although the Loporrits clearly did not understand the purpose of privacy, they did understand the meaning of the word, and Urianger was given space to bathe and dress himself before tackling the line of questioners, which continued to fill even as he addressed their concerns; half the day had passed almost before he was aware of it. He was slicing a carrot into more manageable bites and wondering how long it would be before he grew weary of even the specially-bred vegetables the Loporrits had so carefully produced, when Livingway approached.

“I don’t mean to be a bother,” she said, “and Managingway has, um, cleared us up about personal space. But do you have a moment?”

“For thee, always,” Urianger agreed. “Thy needs in particular hold a greater weight, as the leader of this operation; that much hath not altered, nor will it. What aid can I grant thee?”

“We’ve had word,” she answered gravely. “The evacuations are to begin as soon as possible.” She pulled out a device which projected a globe, and the aether currents that overlay it. “There’s been a catastrophic thinning over Radz-at-Han already - see this gap here? It’s hard to know how bad the damage is, but apparently it’s enough that the Forum has been convinced to set their plans in motion.”

Urianger felt his heart drop. “So soon…” he murmured. “…I shall do everything in my power to ensure that we are prepared to receive the refugees.”

“Oh, I know you will,” Livingway assured him. “And the others have been told through our regular channels. I just…thought you should know as soon as I found out. Since it is your world and all. …Oh dear, have I made a muddle of things? Should I find Counselingway?”

“There is no need.” Urianger shook his head and smiled at her past the worry that was filling his thoughts. “…If truth be told, I have lived more of my life under the threat of impending doom than I have in its absence. I am accustomed to the weight.” That was a melancholy thought, but one to address another time. He rose from his meal. “Let us see to the preparations, that we may receive my fellows with the comfort they deserve.”

[autumnslance]

Redoing some Mare Lamentorum sidequests.

Image is text from "Over the Rainbow Crystal", alt text included.

The hows and whys of air and gravity on the moon.

[aotopmha]

I'm done with the Final Fantasy 14 MSQ for now.

It's so strange to see that "To be continued..." on the MSQ quest label.

And whenever I aim to talk about MSQ in a general sense, I face choice paralysis because there is so much to it.

It's partially why I said almost nothing about Heavensward before moving on to Stormblood.

I just wanted to keep playing AND there was a lot to talk about.

I think I would like to bring these posts full circle, though.

I started actually playing the game back in November of last year, but I stumbled upon and got invested in the story I think around six months prior to Endwalker release, somewhere in the WoW exodus window (around July of 2021, I think, by seeing a few playthroughs of A Realm Reborn).

I think it's the Coils of Bahamut raid series and then the patch content finale of A Realm Reborn that got me truly invested to be exact – I think I initially skipped through a lot of ARR, watching a condensed playthrough, but those parts I sat through in full.

Both had some really smart, consistent writing in them despite relying on quite commonly used tropes, which also shone through the awkward voice acting and tedious redundant questing.

And this continued and got better as time went on.

Heavensward and Stormblood further added character and thematic complexity and Shadowbringers and Endwalker in turn built upon that while much improving narrative pacing, leading to one of my favourite fantasy stories ever.

While Stormblood and Shadowbringers in particular much improved the game in terms of gameplay, as well.

This game remains one of the hardest games for me to recommend because of the redundant questing for much of the first three expansions, particularly in the base games.

Particularly Stormblood really is kind of just the same storyline with a different faction for six different zones and not even Shadowbringers and Endwalker are truly free of redundancy with sections like Il Mheg, the leadup to Mt Gulg, Bestways Burrow and Labyrinthos.

A Realm Reborn, Heavensward and Stormblood are now all free and can be played without playtime restrictions, so I can at least encourage just taking your time and not rushing through because meeting the game halfway, on its own terms lead to the most enjoyment on my part, but if you are really looking for a story/game that "never wastes your time", Final Fantasy 14 is not it.

It cares about even the smallest worldbuilding details to a ridiculous degree and at times does send you several layers deep into a quest to the point of the initial goal of it getting buried. I think it's the most frustrating with A Realm Reborn where it really gets in the way of pacing and no matter how neat the high points are, this can take the satisfaction out of any of the payoff you have because it took you so long to get there.

Almost everything you do will eventually matter, but to varying degrees, but it's still *almost* everything and sometimes it matters in relatively small ways.

When all is said and done, we have a complete web of a story with many characters and worlds, touching on many themes, which is in my opinion brought together and concluded in an incredibly satisfying way.

And I kind of see the same journey for the gameplay. By 90 all of the jobs I have unlocked and used feel complete and distinct, some simpler, some more complex, but complete and distinct, and most importantly fun.

So if I'm in the mood for chilling I play Bard, Sage or Dark Knight (the last of which I enjoy to the point of maining right now), but if I want more brain work and super satisfying rotation completion, I play Red Mage or Dragoon.

And Bard, Red Mage and Dragoon, for example, are very different from each other as well.

I've seen a bunch of talk about homogeneity between jobs now, but to me as a casual, the roles at least feel very different from each other.

Bard's DoT management and movement freedom is very different from Dragoon's constantly rolling GCD/OGCD management, which in turn is very different from Red Mage's dualcast and cast time management, which in turn is very different from Sage's shielding/healing (also healing via attacks), which in turn is very different from Dark Knight's mitigation/damage management and pulling/boss positioning role.

And to me the biggest proof of that is getting lost when I take a break from a specific job for a longer period of time. If they truly were all of the same, this would not be an issue.

I guess, as I said in one of the posts at the start of my journey, I found the one MMO I like in terms of gameplay.

The animations for the jobs feel satisfying, getting new buttons for the jobs feels satisfying.

People keep insisting Dragoon plays bad early on, but I still had fun as early as just getting my jump and base combo and before that (and after) I just had my hands full learning how the game works and feels in general. I had some brain work/fun happening since level 1.

And part of that feeling are the encounters themselves, I think.

They essentially just made single player game encounters within multiplayer context and I feel in general MMO-like games are beholden to a specific idea of what fight encounters look like, which just does not gel with me.

A huge part of me not really wanting to check out World of Warcraft aside from the story structure feeling off/strange, what the toxic elements of the community look like or the main selling point being the endgame hardcore raiding, which you need to basically dedicate massive amounts of time for to keep up with, is the encounter design and how that looks to me.

I'm told it definitely has better netcode than FF14, and I believe it, but it unfortunately doesn't look as satisfying to execute to me. On a casual level bosses also literally seem to die with a couple of attacks.

You never know before you play, but based on all of the research I've done on WoW, it just does not click with me.

And that's the reason Runescape combat doesn't do much for me, either. The encounters don't feel satisfying on the most basic level.

Runescape is the perfect grindy MMO; super great second monitor game, imo, but its combat is basically you just standing there. You click on an enemy and watch it die.

There is a skill to managing your stuff and it is quite complex in a high level setting from what I've researched, but it just doesn't do anything for me personally.

There is something about the simple visual language and indicators that feels good to me, even if you sometimes get blown away by an attack 3 seconds after it should hit.

So many MMOs are basically grindfests that involve you watching hundreds of mobs who do nothing die.

And so many feel like directionless sandboxes, which might be fun to be in for a bit, but don't get you invested, be it in terms of gameplay or story.

So FF14 is, in fact, the first MMO I like in terms of combat gameplay and encounter design because it has them to begin with.

But again, if you want jobs and combat to immediately feel complete and super complex, Final Fantasy 14 is probably not for you.

A more critical, negative perspective will say it starts off slow and pretty shallow, a positive perspective will call it a slow burn that will reward you.

I'm of the latter opinion.

The game does have an option to buy a skip to endgame, though and as much as I love the story and think the leveling process does teach you to play, I think skipping the story if it doesn't do anything for you is also an option if you just want to try playing.

It is always possible go back via New Game+ and even free trial accounts can make 8 different characters in total, so you can just restart with a new character.

In fact, I think clicking through and skipping cutscenes to skip the story is an option, too, to save that skip money if you don't mind spending a little more time.

But this game has so much different content aside from the story, your simple dungeons and raiding. Before Stormblood was free, some subbed just for mahjong in the Gold Saucer.

There are fishing/crafting mains, housing mains, glamour and RP mains, Deep Dungeon mains (which are big dungeons with 200 levels for the first one and 100 for the other two), Gold Saucer has many mini games in fact.

There is an entire solo class (and we are getting another one in Dawntrail), which is its own challange in Blue Mage (Beastmaster is set to be the new one).

Even having finished MSQ, there is so much I haven't tried yet.

So something might click even if the story or dungeons/raiding don't.

It is the first subscription for a game that has felt worth my money every month I've paid and played so far.

And an entry level one is just fine. There is a cash shop, but you don't ever have to interact with it nor is it shoved in your face all of the time.

I will say, the Mogstation/Square Enix site is awful. Everything worked out relatively painlessly initially for me to pay, but everything I've done there after that has been a headache.

In terms of buying the game, if you aren't invested already, currently I'd actually wait for the Dawntrail complete edition to get Shadowbringers, Endwalker and Dawntrail for the same price and I absolutely 100% recommend the free trial as the start despite some of the limitations.

It'll save a bunch of money.

All of that said, I absolutely do recommend the game. It's been an absolutely wonderful 6ish months for me, during which I've had a massive blast and generally really positive vibes, the asterix here is simply to expect a game or story that is more of a slow burn.

The flaws are pretty obvious and if they annoy you too much from the start, this game probably isn't for you, if they don't, I think you'll grow to like it or will have a great time to begin with because a lot of people, including myself, really do still like A Realm Reborn.

[tahri-nhupuju]

SIDEQUEST QUEST

And so the Moon is complete!

I actually struggled to pick a job and glamour for this one, and settled on Tahri in her more traditional Keeper garb as a Monk, the evolution of Pugilist, which is a favoured class of the Miqo'te. Gotta rep Keepers of the Moon on the moon, right?

There were two fun quests that stood out from the rest here: All Fun And Games has you test out a newly-invented game a Loporrit made, and Getting To Know You has the Loporrits asking a bunch of questions about the Warrior of Light, giving you a fun opportunity for some character building.

Mare Lamentorum Lore Facts:

The wildlife of the Moon is largely made up of escaped specimens that were freed from their holding cells when the Heimdall sattelite crashed. Over time specimens interacted with the various goops and fluids the Allagans used for bioengineering, and became the weird mushroom lifeforms and giant mantises we see today.

You can fish in the Bestways Burrow because Loporrits released fish there to entertain their passengers.

Urianger have been teaching the Loporrits about fortune telling.

The giant rainbow crystals are what produce air and cause a normal gravity in Mare Lamentorum.

The rainbow crystals are made of Fire, ater, Lightning, and Air-aspected Aether. It is not explained why Ice and Earth are left out, but I suspect Earth and Ice are already dominant elements on the moon. Which makes sense since they are the most Umbral elements, and Hydaelyn was a deeply Umbral entity.

[echoesofetheirys]

To the South Shroud! Urth's Fount is very pretty, and has a ton of shiny things. It reminds me a lot of the Greatest Endsvale, but I am starting to see the Warrior of Light's point about the importance of trees ... (reuploaded the image with a little colour correction because I checked it on a different (non-tablet) screen and the colours were really muddy. This would never happen back home in Bestways Burrow)