#this is a regular thing they do post-Endwalker

[ubejamjar]

day 26 - standoff

"Ready, my dear?" She laughs. "Always -- are you?"

My Auraugust Masterpost Aymeric's pose in the first two shots is from this vfx mod

[sundered-souls]

FFXIVwrite2024 #5

Prompt: stamp

Rating: G Character: Hanae Spoilers: Endwalker Words: 630 Best read after this piece, but works as a standalone too.

Excerpts of Captain Corvus' journal

We're waiting for instructions. My spies at Father's estate talk of a tower appearing in Garlemald where the Palace used to be, bigger and more ominous than the one in Doma. We'll wait for another moon for our patrons' orders. Should they fail to contact us in time, I'll declare them victims of the civil war—or of that accursed tower.

[...]

Still nothing. If they're not dead, then they're useless. It's time to think of another plan of action. Those towers have disrupted every area of life. Many crews don't dare venturing close to them and rumors have it that those who do get tempered in the name of the Empire. What is going on here? I've sent Ratyasch spy on a group of adventurers who's trying to get at the bottom of this. We'll see what we learn.

[...]

1 malm. That's how close we can get before it becomes dangerous. None of the competition is back to full speed and the civil war still rages in the provinces. We'll use this opportunity to gather more treasures. If all goes as planned, Garlemald's reconstruction will be our chance to rise. We must be prepared.

[...]

As I thought, the savages are seizing the opportunity, too. There are talks of a contingent that will strike at the heart of the Empire to end the war and bring us to heel. I say, let them do it. What's left of us is in no state to fight back. We'll need time to get back on our feet and the Scions leading them are idealistic enough to help us do it. Besides, I have a mind to tail them to the capital. That should give us ample opportunity to figure out how to get to the warehouse safely.

[...]

I don't know how the machinas managed to stay functional this long without regular supply of ceruleum. There's something unnatural about it. Must remain vigilant.

[...]

Warehouse emptied and treasures moved. We found survivors nearby that explained to us how to escape the Tower's tempering. We took them in and healed their wounded as best we could. The men are talking of securing an area for ourselves and I think it's a good idea. Besides, the drove of tempered seem more bothered with the Contingent on the other side of the city. The machinas are still a problem though, but it's manageable.

[...]

Quintus van Cinna killed himself. That man was always too prideful to be pragmatic, but at least his arrest won't taint our honor.

[...]

The amplificator is working. We're safe where we are. Some of the survivors have joined the crew and are helping with the security and day-to-day management of the camp. We've also sent a few of the stragglers to Laterum since the savages found a way to heal the tempered. The men came back with food and a few more survivors who want nothing to do with the contingent.

[...]

Silence. The dark aura of the Tower is no more and the machinas are finally quiet. Whatever was powering them dried down.

[...]

Went to the post office a few blocks away from here. There were more survivors hiding inside, although in a pitiful state. We brought them back with whatever helpful loot we could find. Including stamps. I'm thinking of building back our postal services from the ground up, but we'll need a deal with the workers at the Jutuna Platform to keep the ceruleum flowing.

[...]

Deal done.

[...]

The Contingent finally deigned to acknowledge our presence. I've told the kid we wouldn't be allies, of course. The last thing I want is for them to put their nose in my business freely.

[...]

What is going on with the sky and all those monsters?!

All entries after that are burnt.

[sjofn-lofnsdottr]

Miscellaneous Alts

So there are Other Alts besides the main four, I just either don't play them very much so I don't have as much to say about them, or ... well. Or because they're ridiculous that they exist in the first place.

Random picture because pictures are fun, then I'll actually get to babbling:

First up is Levi, a hyur fella based on yet another post-apocalypse character. He ran a drug den. He is also a babyfaced cherub.

I asked my husband what he thought of this glam, and he told me 'Teen Boy's First Adventure.' He's actually in his mid-20s, but literally every single one of my friends refers to him as a teenager. So ... babyface achieved, I suppose.

Another character I wish I played more often, but don't, is Nellwen:

Part of why I don't play her more often is because I only play her when my husband is playing her husband, Pellian. Alas, during lulls, my husband does crazy things like 'play other games,' usually. They're based on a married couple we played in a Pathfinder campaign (this is rare for us, we usually don't play characters that are romantic with each other). She was an arcanist that set all her problems on fire and/or rattled the bones of annoying people. Obviously, she's a BLM.

I made bunny versions of all the boys, and where Bjalla was Bunny Dusk, Svend is Bunny Mercuriel:

I barely ever play him, but his fuckin' attitude cracks me up, and I know he'll pop up occasionally picture-wise, so why not acknowledge him. The main thing I decided about him, is he also left the woods after getting fed up with being a feral forest hermit ... but doesn't want to admit it, and tries to pretend that no, he's always been a city boy and no he definitely has no idea how to hunt, kill and dress wild game or anything of the sort. Who told you he did? He'll bite their faces off.

So I know this is absurd, but I have, on occasion, made other Dusks on other servers. The first Other Dusk I made during the interminable wait for 5.3 to finally release, on a server that had Road to 70. I wanted to see how far I got leveling everything before I got bored and stopped. He hit all 50s before I got tired of trying to level everything, but I sort of wound up playing through the entire MSQ with him.

So if you see a picture of Dusk with this hair, it's likely Bertrand. The funniest thing to me about ol' Bert is for some reason I think of him as the most focused of the Dusks. Something about his hair just makes him seem a little more put together to me. And yet whenever he's sad, like in the picture above, he more looks like he's trying to remember where he put his keys.

Seriously, he just had them.

The OTHER other Dusk, I made on Seraph with Farron. Dusk is going by his real name, Bellinor, and Farron is technically doing the same, using Kare. We're sort of treating it as an AU, where the boys met at the start of ARR instead of the end of Endwalker, but the reason they exist at all is a) Road to <number> makes my brain light up and b) Farron hadn't actually played the bulk of the MSQ as Farron, what with rabbit dudes not even being a thing until EW. Yes, he could do NG+, but he likes having me along to nag him to progress. And honestly, being able to spam each other with silly cutscene faces makes it all a lot more fun, imo.

I don't know what it is about THIS hair, but I think it makes him look like the biggest airhead on the planet. He is the Dumbest Dusk, and we love that for him.

Kare is relatively new to being civilized, by the way, but Bellinor is doing his best to help:

Kare doesn't really know how to read very well, for example.

Bellinor thinks the lessons are going great.

Kare still is a regular-ass adventurer dude, Bellinor is still the WoL. Kare keeps getting dragged into shit he doesn't actually care about because this big dumb ?roommate? of his keeps making big puppy eyes whenever he asks Kare to come with him.

[myreia]

what about rielle for the npc asks?

Thank you, Owen! 🥺

Febhyurary outtake I didn't like but look at how cute Rielle's face is ahhhhh

Aureia sees an echo of her younger self in Rielle—this young, quietly fierce girl who has been damaged by her family, hurt by those who should have been there for her. When she learns about Ystride, her immediate thought is “shit, not again, never again.” It awakens an extremely protective side of her that she has never had before, fuelling her desire to defend youth and children who have been harmed or abused by their birth families so they do not go through the same things she did when she was younger.

She loves Rielle deeply. Their bond isn’t quite familial or mentor-mentee, it is somewhere in-between. She wants to see her grow into her own person, forge her own identity, take her own path, and she gives her the space to do just that. But just as Rielle learns from Aureia, Aureia also learns from her. She was terrible at conjury when they met; white magic was fully outside her control, something she couldn’t grasp or understand. When Aur and Sid were in what I shall call A Bit of a Situation™️ (a fic that will exist sometime) and Aur was bleeding out in the snow, she drew on conjury she had seen Rielle use, strategies taught to her by Fray, and use it for the first time.

Aureia is very proud of Rielle and how far she has come. Post-Endwalker, she is in regular contact with her and sends letters whenever she can. She will often visit her and Sid when she’s passing through Coerthas; she’s very honest with them and they’re up-to-date on her adventurers and where she’s been. The three of them have settled into a place where there is a lot of love and respect between them; Sid and Rielle can’t follow her where she goes, but there will always be a bond there.

[OC feelings on NPCs]

[mimble-sparklepudding]

How does Mimble feel about each of the scions? Who does he hang out with the most? Is there anyone that seems to bother him? if so, how does he handle that? Does he do anything outside of work with any of them?

(You are such a beacon of light to this community!!!! Keep on being you, you are loved by many, many people!)

Awww thank you @healersadjust and so sorry it's taken so long to get this answered! Some information repeated from previous posts.

[Various Spoilers for Heavensward, Stormblood, Shadowbringers and Endwalker]

Alphinaud - Initially Mimble thought Alphinaud was somewhat condescending and rather too self-satisfied to be entirely likeable, although he was content to be tolerant for the sake of the Scion's aims and the good of the realm. As he spent more time with Alphinaud, especially after they sought refuge in Ishgard, he became increasingly proud of the man he was becoming and particularly admired both Alphinaud's integrity and his newfound humilty.

These days he tends to defer to Alphinaud in matters of strategy, or at least values his advice. This, however, does not prevent him from affectionately teasing the young lord on a regular basis.

Alisaie - Sometimes Minble winces at Alisaie's sharpness and lack of social graces (Mimble is very big on manners), but he appreciates her determination to do the right thing for those in need. He is also aware of the degree to which her snappiness can mask her internal struggles, so tends to be quite forbearing when it's aimed in his direction.

He does tease Alisaie occasionally, but she is happy to tease him in return. They often work together on curing the remaining Tempered. She also often brings food, which is always going to make Mimble happy.

Y'shtola - Mimble finds Y'shtola slightly intimidating, as she is usually the person most like to boss him around when he is avoiding tasks he doesn't want to do. However, he does rather appreciate having someone to chivvy him along and quite enjoys their tongue-in-cheek interactions. He is also appreciative of her academic learning, as his tends to be somewhat more organic, so he sometimes asks her to explain some of the more esoteric and technical issues he encounters.

Thancred - Mimble was close to Thancred and was saddened by (what he saw as) his despondency after Minfilia was called to serve Hydaelyn in The First. Despite his best efforts, it was hard for him to even raise a smile from Thancred until he had finally grieved for her and accepted Ryne as her own person. These days their relationship is much more how it was before, although Mimble spends less time playing wingman for Thancred's romantic misadventures than he did in the early days.

Yda/Lyse - "Yda" was the first Scion to whom Mimble became close, after they first met in Gridania. They were both somewhat daft and Mimble appreciated having someone he could be silly with (much to Papalymo's annoyance) - and who was equally prone to getting distracted and mildly confused. Later he found it cathartic to support Lyse with her grief over Papalymo's death, as a way of processing his own. Although Lyse is no longer an official Scion, Mimble remains close to her and is happy to assist with the rebuilding of Ala Mhigo as best he can.

Papalymo - Mimble definitely formed a close connection with Papalymo, despite (or perhaps because of) the fact that he was brought up to abhor the machinations of thaumaturges.

Initially they seemed to have little in common - and Papalymo already having his hands full with one quirky companion in Yda - but over time Mimble’s kind nature, and determination to help others regardless of personal cost, won a grudging respect, which eventually became a somewhat exasperated affection.

As to whether their friendship ever evolved into anything more - or if it ever held the possibility of doing so - is something that even Lyse is unsure about. Papalymo was always taciturn and Mimble, whilst usually anything but, is uncharacteristically reticent on the matter. It is apparent, however, that the loss of Papalymo affected him deeply and continues to do so.

Urianger - Mimble wasn't at all sure about Urianger on first meeting him, mostly because he couldn't work out if he just didn't have a sense of humour - or if he had one so sophisticated that he was play-acting the role of an eccentric scholar full-time. However they did develop a friendship over time, although Mimble did struggle somewhat with the occasions Urianger had been forced to deceive him, even though he was sensible enough to understand the reasons.

Currently they are much closer and Mimble is constantly making helpful suggestions on things Urianger might like to pass onto the Loporrits, especially Puddingway.

Tataru - Tataru is probably Mimble's closest friend and the person over whom he feels the most protective. In turn she strives to keep him organised and helps him manage things like finances, which he isn't terribly good at. They are both very good at networking and building relationships, albeit to different ends and often have tea and biscuits together and catch up on the gossip.

G'raha Tia - Mimble thought the original young G'raha Tia was a bit over-competitive and slightly bothersome when they first met, but he gets on extremely well with the newly young version, even though he doesn't always recognise himself in G'raha's lionizations.

Mimble enjoys spending time with G'raha and taking time out for adventures and excursions together, especially in Ishgard and Doma (he recently introduced him to the joys of floating around The Churning Mists on an oversized Cloud Mallow whilst shouting "Kupo!" at passing Moogles).

Estinien - Estinien is definitely the Scion who is most different from Mimble. It wasn’t a particularly foreseeable friendship, especially given the difference in their respective temperaments, but rather one that was established through their shared goals for Ishgard and later the rest of The Star. Estinien came to recognise that underneath his lighthearted exterior, Mimble was actually a man of great courage and principle and, for his part, Mimble came to accept that Estinien was not quite as dour as his stony-faced presentation might sometimes suggest.

Mimble does join in the time-honoured tradition of Lalafell Scions, by regularly teasing Estinien, but they have also had plenty of more serious discussions along the way - especially about working with Vtra to establish an orphanage for children left without their families in the wake of The Final Days.

Mimble has tried to teach Estinien some jokes, but Estinien is not terribly keen and his delivery leaves something to be desired in terms of pacing. Equally Estinien has tried to teach Mimble the skills of a Dragoon, but found it very distracting when Mimble would shout “weeee!” when doing the jumps…

Krile - Probably Mimble's closest friend after Tataru and certainly the one who understands him the best, due to their shared possession of the Echo. Krile is probably the only person who grasps how difficult Mimble found the loss of Hydaelyn and she has been supportive in helping him retain his sense of purpose without the Mothercrystal's guidance. Mimble also values Krile's academic knowledge and her bravery and compasssion for others.

Minfilia - Mimble misses Minfilia desperately, both as a friend and as leader of the Scions - in her gentleness and determination he saw an echo of Hydaelyn herself. He learned a great deal from her during the time they were together about balancing different personalities and factions. He has been alone to the edge of Amh Araeng and left Moon Daisies amongst the ruins in her memory.

[eorzeanpages]

Updated Pinned Post!

Hi! I'm Pages. 30-ish y.o. genderfluid person (they/them). I'm a huge fandom nerd, primarily in Final Fantasy XIV. My other fandoms include Myst and Mythbusters.

I write fanfiction over on AO3 as Chemystry! I have a longform FFXIV fic featuring Chel called "No More To Roam" and a small series of one-shots with the Exselch (G'raha/Emet) pairing.

We're gonna talk more about FFXIV now because that's mostly what I do these days.

I've been playing for about nine years across many characters. Here are my two main Warriors of Light:

Chel

Chel is about the equivalent of a 26 year old, in Viera years. She's a Machinist who works for Garlond Ironworks after the events of Endwalker and definitely yells and Nero on a regular basis (and definitely broke his nose during an argument). I primarily ship her with Y'shtola and Emet. Her tag is Chel Does Things.

Jelili

Jelili is a 30 year old Lalafell and my oldest surviving character. She is the second Azure Dragoon and mostly does travel writing these days. She's definitely Mom Friend and can be a bit of a bully if she thinks people aren't resting. Her best friend is G'raha and I ship her with Estinien. Her tag is Jeli Does Things.

Anyway, welcome to my blog where I mostly just gust about my favorite special interest! I spoiler tag for Shadowbringers, Endwalker, and Dawntrail.

[mmorpg-escapism]

How does your OC obtain money? Do they have a regular income? Or do they live off inherited wealth? Do they earn money from different jobs or quests? Or are they reliant on the kindness and charity of others?

Aw man, money is one of the things that Besany never really had to worry about. At first, it's because her family (both of them) were supportive enough that it wasn't a concern and/or she was too young to care, and then it was because survival as a street rat (cat?) meant stealing what she or her rag-tag group of lost kids needed for survival in the ruins took priority over doing it "right".

Even when the Resistance recruited her, they paid her mostly in equipment, regular food and a place to stay for said lost kids. They did end up helping her unlearn the "steal what I need" habit, so they did right by her even if they were operating in the shadows a lot.

She doesn't think much about money even in the main FFXIV eras; she'll fish for the fun of it, and has learned basic weaponsmithing to make her own gunblade cartridges in the name of self-sufficiency. Most of the time, she'll barter for what she needs for those hobbies. For the rare thing that can't be bartered for, she'll draw on the Scions' coffers... and yes, that does sometimes piss off Tataru because Besany is just as bad at understanding monetary value as Alphinaud starts out, except she doesn't improve... ever.

In the far off, unwritten post-Endwalker period, she'll end up exploring things that she enjoys to see if she can make any income from them, but for the bulk of the time that we know her she's downright dangerous to give a coin-purse to without explicit delivery instructions.

[boggleoflight]

11, 12, and 24 for the comfort ask meme!

Thank you so much! :3

11. What is an item of clothing/an accessory that completes them/makes them feel safe?

The first and most obvious answer is her coat/Ala Mhigan gown, but I've spoken at length about that one. For a while, she also found a lot of comfort in a carnation earring given to her by a merchant who would pass through her village. He was the only non-Miqo'te (a Dunesfolk Lalafell named Sosoliro) she'd see with any sort of regularity and was kind of an uncle to her and F'ystran when they were growing up. He was in the village when the Calamity struck and was unfortunately killed, and she wore the earring in memory of him.

It was unfortunately torn out of her ear during the battle with Zenos at the end of Endwalker, and she's since decided to forgo earrings going forward because of it. She still thinks of it, and of Sosoliro, very fondly.

12. What is their safe place? And what does “safe place” mean to them?

Paradoxically, on an emotional level, it's the vague concept of 'the road'. When she is given the chance to wander with no particular aim and no risk of the world ending (or of her being attacked by gods know what), she finds the most peace and security when she's on the move. On a bit of a sadder level, a part of it is being uncomfortable staying in one place too long at a time because she feels it makes her too easy to find for people who would wish her ill. Staying in Sharlayan post-EW was a bit of an exercise in understanding that things, for a while, were peaceful, and neither she nor her friends were too much at risk.

It's made all the more a safe place for her when travelling with friends (and G'raha).

24. How do they relax? Is that a solitary activity, a group activity, or both?

The two major ones are reading and bathing. The former, she loves to do with G'raha. Quiet, her snuggled up with her back to his chest and him reading over her shoulder, occasionally murmuring things to each other. Their favourite topics to read about in those moments are history and folklore. (There's also less-relaxing reading dates, though, where they're studying and very excitedly bouncing off walls over what they're reading.)

Bathing is mostly solitary when she very much needs to sit in her own head for awhile. However, as a Miqo'te (and a Seeker who grew up by a river to boot), she's no stranger to communal bathing and is not too shy about things like hot springs or bathhouses. It makes for a fun bonding activity, and is a good way to relax with friends.

[efrmellifer]

XVIII. Busy

Choose your own: Vellelty. Post-Endwalker, Spoiler-free. Suggestive.

Since Edmont had been wanting to do some grandfatherly things with the children, Etien took the opportunity to leave them in his care for the day and have an excursion of her own.

Though, this was hardly going anyplace new. Just visiting an old favorite place to spend her hours.

Handeloup waved as Aymeric entered the Congregation with Etien just a step behind, beating her boots against the doorframe to shake the snow away.

“Have we had any news from Lucia?” Aymeric asked.

“Yes, a regular update letter about the state of Garlemald. Progress is slow, but steady. The full letter is on your desk. The Leveilleurs and Maxima also send their regards alongside hers.”

A nod, and then Handeloup went on.

“Should we expect you to be busy and wishing not to be disturbed, Lord Commander?”

For a moment, he was silent, then replied, “No, such measures will not be necessary. Thank you, though.”

And off he went to his office.

Etien was setting down a cup of tea at Aymeric’s hand when there was a knock at the door.

“Come in.”

She pressed the cup a little closer to him, then stood up straight, ready to greet whoever it was.

“Lord Commander, we—oh, hello, Lady Borel.”

“Good morning, ser. Pretend I’m not here.” She picked up a book from the edge of Aymeric’s desk and sat herself in the chair just off to the side, trying to get engrossed in the story while a conversation went on just a few fulms away.

“If I may ask, ser, what is she doing here? Surely not Warrior of Light business?”

“No,” Aymeric confirmed. “She came along to advise me regarding the progress and needs some of our programs, actually.”

“What programs?”

“She has been working with House Haillenarte on their Firmament Restoration, as I’m sure you will recall, as well as being one of the field suppliers for Saint Vaindreau’s Grace. She was also the spearhead of the pen pal program between Ishgard’s children and those of Radz-at-Han.”

“I wasn’t aware she was such a busy little bee.”

She looked up and smiled. “Hard habit to break.”

“There is a pen pal program between Ishgard and Radz-at-Han?”

She nodded. “Aymeric, should we start one for the Temple Knights and the Radiant Host?”

He snorted softly. “Would it not quickly devolve into talking about Estinien?”

“I hardly consider that a devolution,” she answered, rising from her chair to sip her tea, left on his desk in her rush.

“No, nor do I.” He looked up at the Temple Knight. “Was there aught else to this report?”

“No, ser.”

“Excellent.”

The knight saw himself out, jingling as he went.

“But seriously, should we?” she asked.

“’Tis worth considering. I shall have to think about it. Has the new delivery come from Thavnair yet?”

“It should this afternoon,” she told him. “And everyone is already champing at the bit.”

“Good, good.” He looked up at her, and her eyes cast down, but not at him. “Is something the matter?”

“No,” she replied, laying a hand on the wood of the desk, but rather than springing up to sit on it, crouching down to get under it. “I never realized how room it was under here.”

“How would you have?” Aymeric asked with mirth in his voice. “You sit atop it, or in my lap.”

She slunk under the desk. “This has potential, too, though,” she purred. She laid her cheek against his knee, looking up at him. “Can’t you just picture it, darling?”

“All too vividly,” he murmured, squirming. It was a very pretty picture in his mind.

She crossed her arms to set them in his lap. “Perhaps someday we should make it real. Some late evening when you’ve sent everyone else back for the night, determined to finish your work before coming home… but I can come to you.”

“Etien,” he pleaded.

She giggled, then slipped out from under the desk, settling herself in his lap and giving him a kiss. “But today, we have work to do.”

[hirazuki]

Get to know me better meme:

Tagged by @dear-kumari (thanks for the tag!!)

Favorite color: black, red, purple; and I tend to go for silver, white, and gold for accents :)

Currently reading: ongoing series are Ao no Exorcist, Boruto, Spy x Family, Akatsuki no Yona (against all my better judgment at this point lmao), and D.Gray-man (like... 3-4 times a year when it updates T_T). Plus fanfic here and there, though I’ve become extremely picky about it.

Last series I watched: Hunter x Hunter (1999) -- almost done with it! I’ve been enjoying this version much more than I thought I would, thought it does leave a lot to be desired (esp the Greed Island arc OVAs >.>)

Last movie I watched: Ah. Hm. I can’t remember, if we’re talking non-animated movie. Animated movie would be the second HxH movie, The Last Mission. Super enjoyable, I gobbled up all the Hisoka & Kurapika crumbs it offered like my life depended on it XD

Currently working on: ... so much T___T  I’ve got a Winx Valtor/Bloom multichap fic plus six one-shots; a WITCH Phobos/Will post-comic series multichap fic plus a couple of Phobos/Will one-shots set in an alternate canon divergent timeline; a FFXIV post-Endwalker ZenosWoL multichap fic plus seven one-shots (featuring Zenos, WoL, Estinien, and Emet primarily); ten Hakuouki one-shots (Hijikata/Yukimura, but generally including the whole gang); two Hunter x Hunter one-shots (Hisoka & Kurapika; Hisoka, Kurapika, Illumi); eight Naruto one-shots (featuring an OC, Orochimaru, his snake family, etc.). And my Bleach longfic, which I really do want to finish. And now I’m contemplating a post-Shippuden through Boruto-Era Itachi-is-alive fic (: And that’s just the writing lmao. I have at least eighteen more FFXIV drawings and six HxH drawings I have planned out. I’m almost done styling Zenos’ wig, and I’m waiting for more hairspray to arrive so I can restyle Itachi’s bangs (I don’t like them X_X). OH, and maintaining my balcony garden through the summer heat!

(I tend to run around like a chipmunk chipping away at multiple things at once instead of focusing on one and finishing it before working on another, which is probably why I can never get things done and posted on a regular basis XD Though, if my brain would stop shoving new ideas down my throat, that would actually help a ton.)

Tagging @errantgoat, @baked-hylian, and @cruelfeline (only do it if you want!)

[autumnslance]

What was it like going from World of Warcraft to FFXIV? As someone who has never played an online RPG before FFXIV I am often :0 ?! when I hear that some people found getting into FFXIV hard because of the mandatory main quest when they just want to go to endgame content as soon as possible. Is going endgame ASAP a regular thing in most online RPGs?

Have a header image of a FFXIV version of my original WoW Main, Discipline Priest Lirriel F’sharri.

Me, a concise answer? Hahaha! Sorry. This got long, so behind a cut it goes and hopefully I answer to Nonny’s satisfaction, taking the questions and breaking them down:

Is going endgame ASAP a regular thing in most online RPGs?

In a lot of games it can be, yes. WoW doesn’t really have a linear overall storyline; each zone has its own story, and each expansion has its own story arc. Nowadays, with how long it’s been running and how big it’s gotten, WoW has revamped their questing so that you decide if you want to go through 1-50 in a specific expac (Burning Crusade, Cataclysm, Wrath of the Lich King, etc), and then catch up to the newest expac for the newest levels, since they also recently did a “level squish” as well as a stats squish, as they had gotten well over 100+ levels in the last couple expansions. Numbers are a problem for long running games (which is why experienced MMO players nodded and some even sighed in relief when the stat squish for Endwalker was announced).

I don’t think FFXIV will be able to do anything similar since their overarching story is so linear; it’s more like playing a single player traditional JRPG with some MMO features attached. I can see them perhaps scaling experience point gain with quests the way they have with the side quests in Shadowbringers, or with Beast Tribe dailies; that would work going forward I think. Unless we get the option to start with the new storyarc starting in 6.1; that could be interesting!

The only other time I had a linear story to go through similarly to FFXIV was early days of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, which I played briefly at launch. Even then, each planet had its own storyline, the overall storyline was the individual class questlines. There was, I think, an overarching plot, but it didn’t really come into play until level cap? I don’t even remember and never got to cap because the grind in that game at launch was awful.

And that’s a thing about many MMOs; the leveling experience is learning about the world, introducing characters and setting, but it’s mostly filler until you get to the endgame where the raiding is--and in WoW, the story is only completed via seeing it in raids (thank goodness for Looking for Raid) and was the main focus mechanically as well. WoW didn’t really have an overarching story in Classic, it was a lot of disparate elements setting up and holdovers from the original RTS games and led to random raid content. Burning Crusade gave us an overarching plot with going to Outland to face Illidan--which honestly wasn’t all that well done storywise. BC is remembered fondly for the quality of life changes and allowing smaller groups to raid, rather than requiring wrangling 40 people. And the raids were challenging and fun--or frustrating, but mileage varies there. But the impetus for “the Dark Portal opened and Illidan’s in Outland being bad” was...pretty much it? Later expacs like Wrath had much better story setup and throughlines as they went, and my one friend described Shadowlands as having something like an MSQ. There are, however, a lot of retcons and putting necessary plot information in supplemental material, which was always frustrating. I’ve likened it before to “imagine going from defeating Tsukuyomi at the end of 4.3 and all the separations and set up there...and then the next patch picking up with getting warped to the First because everything that happened in 4.4 and 4.5 occurs in a novel.” That’s too often been WoW’s method of connecting expansion stories while players languish for a year or more in the last raid content.

I wish I was kidding. FFXIV having a set, quick release schedule, that they keep to so consistently with such good quality--and cosmetic and RP stuff added too!--is astounding to me. I worry for the devs’ health at times--then I hear things like Yoshida turning down requests for crunchy overtime to keep said devs from burning out, hence why the next Ultimate is pushed to 6.1. I appreciate that greatly. Getting anything not pertaining to endgame raid and PvP content in WoW was often impossible, coming with complaints from the raiding community that frivolous additions for sheer fun cost them whole tiers, and seriously 18 months between patches was not unheard of.

What was it like going from World of Warcraft to FFXIV?

I started FFXIV at the beginning of Heavensward...but I was still playing WoW. FFXIV was my side game, as I was still invested in roleplay and raiding with my WoW friends. So I mostly enjoyed playing through the story at a leisurely pace, but I didn’t finish ARR for like 2 years. When Stormblood came out I was hitting burnout in WoW despite mostly enjoying Legion, and the quality of life changes for StB really invigorated my interest and ability to play. The longer GCD for FFXIV was actually one of the biggest challenges for me, especially since I had primarily tanked and healed in WoW. I am not an aggressive or competitive player, nor very manually coordinated, so DPS has always been a challenge for me. I find DPS easier in FFXIV thanks to the longer GCD--I’m still not great, but I don’t feel overwhelmed by trying to hit my rotation buttons instantly. It’s taken me a while to get used to tanking, and I still don’t do it in 8man content, except once or twice with my friends. Mostly cuz I’m just enjoying my DPS jobs, really, so haven’t invested in learning.

...And some of my old fear of random roulettes as a lone tank/healer; WoW’s LFG was a toxic pit for various reasons FFXIV has mostly avoided and even my worst day in FFXIV’s roulette is better than a good day in WoW’s, which gave me anxiety and I stopped doing without friends. FFXIV has no Public Test Realm that people expect you to get on pre-patch to not only spoil story moments, but also learn all the fight mechanics ahead of time and if you don’t know them Hour 1 Day 1 of a new patch release you’re deserving of abuse.

I won’t say never, but I just haven’t found myself interested in going back to WoW or feeling invested in that story, though I do sometimes miss my RP characters (and may write more stories for them sometime). I do keep track of certain beloved NPCs and events--a friend streamed a beautiful moment in Ardenweald for me because I did play through what happened to that character in Legion, sobbing the whole time. I’m tracking what’s happening to Anduin Wrynn closely; we’ve literally watched that character grow up in real time over the years from boy prince to king of Stormwind and I’m still a bit heartbroken about his father. But I play for story and characters, and Blizzard’s way of telling those stories and handling those characters lost me, and with how the Acti-Blizz execs and higher level devs act lately (Hazzikostas keeps striking me as out of touch), they don’t give me much incentive to go back. I may not even pick up Diablo 4 at this rate.

So FFXIV’s story hits the right narrative and character focus for me, especially when I buckled in and replayed...and then replayed again...and now have NG+...Anyway, I like how they build the lore and characters and while it’s far from perfect and they have their own flaws, coming from WoW, it’s a lovely change of pace. Not to mention just how Yoshida and his team interact and communicate with the player base, and see the players’ trust as paramount post-1.x.

...I hear that some people found getting into FFXIV hard because of the mandatory main quest when they just want to go to endgame content as soon as possible.

Some people play only to raid; they like mechanics, and challenges, and feeling powerful at max level with the best gear. They don’t care about the overall story--in some cases because they don’t realize it’s so in depth and linear and sensible after/compared to the constant retcons and revamps in games like WoW!--and are just here to play with friends. Cool for them, if that’s what makes them happy! If that’s how they relax and have fun, power to ‘em so long as they aren’t being nasty to others less advanced/able/willing to put in the time and effort for gameplay. But for me, story and characters are far more important, and I raided quite a lot in WoW at various levels of difficulty and raid size. I am old and tired and want to relax and have fun with friends and write stories that get away with me when my characters get a mind of their own. So I rarely do more than Normals, avoiding Savage and Extreme cuz that grind doesn’t interest me. I’ll do stuff I can do on my own to get my progress fix for my brain (like leveling jobs).

The trouble we’re running into now is FFXIV’s linear story is well over 100 hours long. Even with the ARR revamp cutting a lot of chafe, there’s a LOT to get through to reach HW, and then a lot to get to StB, and then to ShB. And there will be a bunch to get through to EW. That’s JUST MSQ, not counting all the side content a new player may also want to catch up on, like the Alliance and Normal raids, PvP, Relics, Hildibrand, side quest stories like Mail Moogle, Beast Tribes, Crafting...the list goes on and on!

Content in a successful MMO must be varied for multiple styles and preferences for the long term health of the game. Roleplayers and story-focused folks tend to be the ones who stick between patches, farming content at a slower pace to get rewards they want for RP or to see story info, as opposed to raid-focused folks who push new content at release for the challenge and glory. Some of those folks also RP or like story though, so go back to farm between blowing up new content. There’s room for all kinds, and there has to be, and while I am sometimes annoyed by people who skip story (or outright dislike it!) while demanding to know how X works or why a character did A thing, they play their way and pay their sub to keep things running same as me and my obsessive need to know the lore and see it for myself. I can certainly understand those players who story skip that much content to get to where their friends are, if that’s the primary reason they play is to raid with pals, and with New Game+ it’s easier than ever for someone to go back and catch up the story later anyway.

[eyetheguard]

🔥 Give us a list of general likes and dislikes, such as colours, textures, music, weather and other stuff! + Who does your OC absolutely hate, the one person who they’d sell to Satan for one corn chip? Why do they loathe this person so? (For Milo and Tatjenen!)

🔥 Give us a list of general likes and dislikes, such as colours, textures, music, weather and other stuff!

For Milo:

Milo likes pale blues, black, and white; velvet, linen, cold stone floors, cool loose dirt, wet dirt, silk sheets, polished wood, suede, dandelion seeds, tulip petals, rose petals, wool socks, bubble bath foam, incense, the smell of rolled oats, body butter, knitted blankets, jewelry, lacy/mesh fabric, gentle rain, the sun peeking through tree leaves, hot tea, layered clothes, cooking, sleeping, kissing.

He really only dislikes gelatinous/congealed textures, when it's too hot, vodka, waking up early, sea creatures, deep fried food (aside from french fries), wet clothes, deflated pillows, having to hide his accent/dialect/cant.

For Tatjenen:

Tatjenen is pretty simple in that he likes ice cream, overcast days (grey irises aren't all that common for him, so it's a nice change), warm dirt, fougère (shady, cool, fern-y smells), flutes/his panpipe, tomato leaves, caramel, campfires, petrichor, silk, satin, cold metal, marigolds, daffodils, martinis, doing his hair, public baths, burying his feet in dirt or sand, sunbathing.

He doesn't like wearing clothes/his mask, cold water, rumors (granted, he keeps up with them when they're about him), sleeping, being left on his own, taking notes, sitting cross-legged, lying/liars, using creation magicks, sparring, and group/work-related meals.

Who does your OC absolutely hate, the one person who they’d sell to Satan for one corn chip? Why do they loathe this person so?

Okay so disclaimer, big one, it takes a lot for Mi to genuinely hate anybody. There's been some strong dislike but he still wouldn't say he hated them. Sorry in advance because there's some popular NPCs listed, but the upside is that he doesn't feel like that anymore at the current part of MSQ (post-Endwalker) for two of the three. It only applies to him as a WoL, too. I'll put it under a cut, this is super long:

For Milo:

1 - In WoL-verse, Milo had a huge problem with Urianger's lying. Considering his involvement with the Scions usually means putting himself in a lot of danger, while he agreed to that, not knowing the details no matter how shitty, sucked. It's wild to Milo that any of them expect him to blindly trust them if they don't reciprocate that trust, but it happening more than once made it where by the climax of Shadowbringers he was definitely fed up with it. All that said, Urianger apologizing in Endwalker was literally all that had to happen to fix it! No justification of what had to be done, no talking about the greater good, just a regular old apology. That's it. They're not besties or anything just yet, but any grudge Milo held about all of that is completely gone. Milo is so huge on legitimate apologies that even if he understands your motive, he wants the hurt caused to be acknowledged. He knows Urianger always means well. 2 - The second is G'raha - it's a similar situation to how Mi was with Urianger - secrets and lying don't go over well with him. The bigger issue, and one he's still sort of dealing with I suppose, is that so much has happened between the first time they met/ the Crystal Tower storyline and engaging with him as the Crystal Exarch in particular. He was, and still is, very uncomfortable with assumed familiarity. He isn't the same person he was then, and already dislikes being put on a pedestal as the Warrior of Light.

ShB was an awful mess for him emotionally so being admired as someone he feels he is not while being kept in the dark about some things and not feeling as if his life mattered except to be sacrificed in some way made him pretty damn mad. Again, he doesn't hate G'raha - with the MSQ there's so much that was out of his hands and you have to draw a line when it comes to saving the realm so Milo would've just had to get the hell over it lol. I feel that ShB would've been a little harder on him than some other folk's WoL's, so it's just personal interpretation.

All that said, he does still keep G'raha at arms length - yes, even after Endwalker. There's respect there for sure, but Milo is quite guarded about what he struggled with as the story progressed so they probably won't be close any time soon, unfortunately.

3 - Third person! Milo can't stand Zenos. I wanna say it's nothing personal but this is the only person he's actually swung at with his bare firsts so maybe it kind of is. It not being personal is mostly about Zenos not taking no for an answer and assuming things about him just like everyone else seems to love doing. Yes he's an antagonist and they'd have to fight at some point - but there's something just really gross to Milo about interacting with him to the point he never wanted to do even that.

To add insult to injury, Milo has history in a certain line of work. Being forced to engage, him refusing/saying no not being respected, being straight up violated via body swap in EW - there's no way to come back from that for him, it's a very hard boundary. That last fight was a summation of his exhaustion, above all else. He got to the point that he stopped caring about the "why". It's all gone up in flames, there's nothing to salvage. He hates being like that but he'd hate dying atop his discarded agency a lot more.

For Tatjenen:

Tatjenen doesn't hate anybody. No one knows him well enough for him to feel any kind of way about them in return, at least not negatively I don't think. His questionable reputation is mostly about him talking too much and his struggles with narcolepsy that others aren't usually aware that he has. Being chosen as Venat's successor to the seat of Azem would have put a ton of eyes on him, so we'll just have to see if that brews bad blood between him and someone else.