#why does he want the m.e.'s power?

[borrelia]

shoulda just matched up finetivus and zachary. cut out the fluff: who's the best evil old white echidna.

[descientia]

FULL NAME: Ignis Stupeo Scientia

PRONUNCIATION: IG-niss stoo-PAY-oh see-EN-tee-ah* ( *I don’t care if this is canon or not and that will continue to be a trend here so bear with me. this is what flies for my muse. )

NAME MEANS: “I stun with fiery knowledge” or some such. *cracks knuckles* HEADCANON TIME.

So, relevant headcanon #1: All these Latin names are “Old Lucian.” It’s the language they used to speak in Lucis before Niflheim’s globalization efforts made their native language the dominant one worldwide ( which I call “Common” or “the Common Tongue,” but a.k.a. English ). It’s a dead language, now only studied by the Insomnian educated and elite ( à la actual Latin ). Lucians outside the Wall don’t speak it and that’s why even Insomnia came to start using Common, only teaching and clinging to Old Lucian as a formality and matter of custom, really. The common class in Insomnia also don’t have much use for it, except doctors, lawyers, and such. The only people who actually speak it fluently are pretentious shits like Ignis and his tutors ( or other rich kids who just really, really paid attention to their fancy elite educations ).

Relevant headcanon #2: The last names of noble families were either chosen to embody qualities that they wish, as a house, to champion, or else they gained these surnames descriptively ( like IRL surnames such as “Thatcher”— someone in your ancestry probably thatched roofs ) and came to adopt them due to pride in whatever they were espousing. The Amicitias were always friends to the King, the Scientias pride knowledge, etc. ( I have headcanons for a few other noble surnames too, like Lucre, who were probably bankers. )

Relevant headcanon #3: The custom among the noble class is to name their children something in Old Lucian that embodies qualities that you wish them to have. ( See below. )

So, given all that, Lord and Lady Scientia didn’t sit down and go, “Hmm, what kind of complete sentence can we build around the exact word ‘scientia’ that will spell out something grammatically coherent?” The last name was already there and they really only chose the first and middle names. Furthermore, his middle name was given to him more in honor of his paternal grandfather than because they were like “he should stun people,” but even then, grandaddy Stupeo Scientia was given that name probably more with the idea of it meaning “stunning” or the idea of stupefying others or besting them in some way, not the super literal, conjugated translation of “I stun.” They’re not concerning themselves with declensions and conjugations here, or complete sentences. Just ideas. ( —Mostly, though you do have those parents who will try to be “clever” by giving their children first and middle names that compose a complete phrase. )

WAS NAMED BECAUSE: “Ignis” because they wanted him to embody qualities of fire: passionate, transformative, powerful, etc. “Stupeo” after his grandfather, although in doing so they also wished to pass on those qualities as well. If Grandpa Scientia was named something they didn’t want to pass on to their son, they wouldn’t have.

BONUS: His father’s name is Veritas Invictus Scientia ( veritas = truth, invictus = undefeated ). His mother’s name is Lauretia Honneur Scientia ( lauretia tweaked slightly from laurea or laureata, meaning a literal laurel leaf or being designated as an accomplished and noble person with one; Honneur is her maiden name, meaning “honor” in “Tenebraen,” which is where her ancestry is from. ) I’ll stop at regaling you with his children’s names ( again ) but yo I’m so ready to talk about it.

NICKNAME(S) AND WHY HE HAS THEM: Iggy = bestowed upon him by 4-year-old Noctis, and it stuck. Specs = bestowed upon him by a teenage Noctis who was too cool for “Iggy,” and it stuck. Iggs, Iggster, Specky, etc. = endless variations of the previous two. He accepts them, though may raise a brow at some of the more creative ones. Mom = bestowed by the gang on the road trip probably. He appreciates that they think of him fondly as a sort of parental figure but is not a huge fan of feminizing nicknames tbh. Doesn’t see why he should be “mom” instead of “dad” just because he does the cooking and cleaning when he is, in fact, a male. Four-Eyes = Aranea. Not wholly different from “Specs,” he supposes, but feels a little more pejorative. May take some getting used to ( although I imagine she must go with a different nickname after he loses some eyes, seems gauche ).

Other titles and honorifics: Lord Scientia, Advisor, Royal Advisor, Hand of the King

BIRTHDATE & STAR SIGN: February 7, M.E. 734. Aquarius.

Tagged by:  @nigralucis​ Tagging:  @totustuumegosum​  @somnusvincitomnia​  @gaudiacertaminis​  @cookignis​  @commodorearaneahighwind​  @khresme  @eigeru  @aegisregalis  @marie-dufresne

[dozingcarbs]

FFXV-2 Ardyn Story

↼ Read Lunafreya story concepts

Ardyn Part 1

Ardyn’s journey won’t be solo. His companions could consist of all the guys that potentially betrayed him and were tying him up (as seen in the official Artbook).

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I wonder if those black hoods have any connection to the one you find in Pitioss Ruins. Ardyn’s era is after Solheim. But their technology should still be around and reinvented. Just like how Ardyn introduced Magitek Troopers to Niflhiem once he joins them.

I based Ardyn’s story mostly on what was available from the timeline released in the Ultimania. 

Let’s start with a timeline piece from the Ultimania:

Ancient History

Ancient civilisation of Solheim flourishes - Solheim, prospers in machine technology like Airships and Magitek Armor

The Six watch over everything

The Astral War breaks out due to Ifrit’s betrayal

Solheim falls

Humans are given special powers, granted to them by the gods. - These power included, “King” with the power to summon weapons, Oracle with the power to heal. - The Oracle is also granted power also commune with the Gods, serving as liaison between Gods and mankind.

2000 Years Ago

Before falling into eternal slumber, the Six bequeathed unto man the star’s Crystal and Ring of Light. The king at the time founds Lucis. - The Six create the Ring of Light. And grants the king the Crystal, which he was to guard at all costs.

12 Statues built in Lucis. - Each of the 12 is to serve as a coffin to hold the soul of a dead king. The successive kings, from these coffins, await the emergence of the Crystal’s Chosen king. Also, these kings will serve as a magical barrier (Knights of the Round) to protect the Kingdom.

The plague is suppressed through the efforts of the Lucian King.

2000 - 755 Years Ago

The world stabilises and new nations are founded. - Tenebrae where the Oracle’s family lives, the commercially prosperous parliament of Accordo, the Empire of Niflheim ruled by the Aldercapt family who try to reconstruct the ancient technology of Solheim.

See the fully fleshed out timeline here. It’s in more details than the above.

And yes it does say "Knights of the Round" 「 第一魔法障壁 ( ナイツ オブ ラウンド ) 」 even though there are only 12. And the barrier it is referring to is the Old Wall, not the magical barrier Wall protecting over Insomnia.

I’ve added a few of my own translations in the ancient era timeline piece above. 

Translations do vary slightly due to cultural differences. But the premise remains the same.

Ardyn Part 1.2

Eos' history implies there were other kings with the power to summon weapons. The Lucis were founded unknown years later. Ardyn Lucis Caelum is such a king, acknowledged by the Gods, he was given the Crystal and the Ring of Light, soon dubbed Ring of Lucii.

"12 Statues built in Lucis." We've seen a few of them in the Kingsglaive movie. And we've seen all 12 + Regis in Lucis/Astral form in the game. I think the 12 coffins do not represent the kings of Lucis but 11 kings of all around the world and former Solheim. (Implied that the nation of Lucis = Solheim before it fell. We've experienced Solheim dungeons first hand on Lucis before: Steyliff Grove, Costlemark Tower and Pitioss Ruins.)

The 12 coffins had an exception. One statue represented the Oracle as it held the Trident of the Oracle. We've seen her in the movie and in the game. The guide explicitly states the coffins house the souls of dead kings. So it can't actually be something like it holds the souls of dead Oracles. (It would've been ideal if it did state that one statue was for the Oracle. Would explain why Luna was kinda there in the Beyond too unless that was just Ardyn hallucinating.)

We know the souls of dead kings enter the Ring. The statues may have been a legend to tell the citizens of Insomnia. But it does look like Kings of old can temporarily enter those protective statues of them.

Ardyn Part 1.5

Keep in mind there were only 11 Royal Tombs built. There were no tombs for the Trident and Sword of the Father.

Assuming one statue is supposed to represent Ardyn, the remaining 10 honour the kings and queens (star and shield). They're foreign kings; their weapon descriptions may allude to such. They all just feel like they're from different cultures or regions:

A king performed great feats of arms, expanded his realm, and made his people prosper. This was his halberd.(Conqueror)

A queen spurned the public eye and took to the shadows. This was her shuriken. (Rogue)

A king was built like a mountain, towering over all others. This was his greatsword. (Tall)

A king was quick like the wind and went where no man had gone before. These were his blades. (Wanderer)

A king rose to protect the world with the Oracle. This was his sword. (Mystic)

They just strike me as if they were kings or leaders of a group at the time before Lucis and were given the power to summon weapons. Each befitting their title. No weapon states "Lucis King/King of Lucis" either.

The story could go in a way of the kings all sharing a comradery over time. But Ardyn will trick and kill them, for their power is needed to eradicate the Starscourge.

Ardyn was Chosen. He had the power of the Crystal and the Ring. He would use their souls. This may be the first time a king initiated the Power of Light (Noctis vs Leviathan in XV), absorbing each of their weapon and soul into the ring.

Ardyn Part 2

A piece from the Ultimania:

The Power of Kings ——The mighty ability bestowed to modern kings. The power of newer kings is derived from the spirits of the line of kings. Essentially, this refers to the Royal Arms (the Armiger) of the ancient kings enshrined in the Royal Tombs scattered throughout the world. Most of the Royal Tombs are located within Lucis, but they are occasionally, if rarely, found constructed in foreign lands. Weapons favoured by those of the royal line house special abilities, and they once also had the function of sealing out daemons in the vicinity of the tombs. Still yet, if the combined Power of Kings and the Crystal are unleashed, they should exhibit power enough to eradicate even the scourge eroding the planet.

The power of the kings at the time was not enough. Around that period could be when Ardyn became corrupt. He had absorbed too many Deamons. The Crystal or Bahamut deemed him no longer worthy. Perhaps it could have gone like: Ardyn was explained about the plan to accumulate Kings with Power of Kings, and how many generations it would have to take. Ardyn wanted to accelerate the process by slaying and absorbing those with power already present. This very action was his downfall.

The jealous king who is likely related by blood took this opportunity and shamed Ardyn's despicable act to the public. Ardyn was stripped of his weapons and ring, he was powerless. His execution followed.

Who knows, maybe his execution was at the Stone Prison, chained up and left to rot.

Just giving that island more relevancy as to why Noctis miraculously appears in that specific location 10 years later. And in the loading screen after Noct leaves you can see a crystal-like rock spire with what rods that resemble Bahamut's swords. Nothing is explained but maybe it's like a warp for the Crystal. My guess is Ardyn’s powers were sealed by those rods and his powers of Light were being sapped out, returning to the Crystal, which formed the spire above the Stone Prison. Unfortunately, we have no way of ever knowing unless a dlc explains it.

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Up to par with Bahamut’s swords size wise I’d say.

Strange Crystalite strings?

To add to the above theory, Ardyn could have had entered the Crystal before. But the Crystal's Light harmed him because of all the Deamons inside of him. He started to reject the Crystal as well and was thrown out. Based on his quote "Unharmed by the Light. Chosen King, indeed." and "Come back soon." was as if he knew it would take a while to absorb the Crystal's Light.

Knowing he could not use the Crystal's Light, he sought for a different method which led to the absorbing the power of other Kings.

Ardyn Part 2.5

As for why Ardyn can still use the Power of Kings. It’s probably because nobody knew, including himself, that he became immortal. He “died”. Maybe with his body rotting and starving. But the scourge resurrected him along with the Power of Kings, whether intentional or not. He then escapes. It could be a weird mutation caused by the Crystal’s Light. No other daemon was ever immortal. For a virus that eats light, it wouldn’t be surprising the ones within Ardyn mutated into something more advanced. 

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I've seen theories of Ardyn suffering from a split-personality. But it's not that cartoonish split-personality where you are completely different this one time and back the other time. Ardyn's a lot more realistic. He gets evil but has still a good side. He gets good but still has an evil side. One overpowers the other every now and then, but it's still Ardyn; one individual.

The Deamons absorbed and formed inside of Ardyn shouldn't be sentient. It's technically not the Daemons that are absorbed, it's the scourge; the virus itself. It's a parasite, they do not have sentience and act only on instinct. In this case, the scourge's instinct may have been something like to eat light and disseminate; infect others.

Ardyn has always been in control. The only time I can think he let the scourge take him over completely was the ending of XV. He was at peace and all that was left was eradicating the exposed Starscourge.

Ardyn Part 3

Ardyn's place then got stolen by the jealous king, including his royal arm and his place in the KotR.

There was one specific Royal Arm that was quite intriguing to me: The Sword of the Wise.

A king built a mighty wall and protected the realm. This was his sword. 

Could this be Ardyn's sword? The wall it is referring to can not be Insomnia's wall, which erected only at the year M.E. 606 (150 years ago). And yet all 12 statues were built 2000 years ago which already had their Royal Arms (+ Orcale's Trident) replicated onto them. The Kingsglaive movie shows the first statue with this exact sword briefly before it focuses mostly on the king wielding Sword of the Mystic (the one that follows Nyx the most.)

I believe when the Wise was bestowed upon the power of King to summon weaponry, he did not solely fight the daemons. He used that power for summoning building material. (Noct has a fishing rod, Gladio a shield, neither are really weapons, so it's not limited to that). The Wise built a mighty wall quite literally. He perfected the warp-strike by doing this. (The Sword of the Wise has several warp-strike attributes in-game.) The wielder was then dubbed the "Wise" because of this.

His sword got upgraded blessed by the Divine. All the Royal Arms have a similar design to them. One of such is having angelic wing aesthetics attached to them. 

The Gods acknowledged this and chose him for his peculiar act and achievement. He was given the Crystal and the Ring of Light. The Crystal has chosen this King to purge the Sarscourge.

That could be why the first statue had a design with 12 wings. The only statue with wings and chosen king. A Warrior of Light healing and saving people. He was Chosen King and brought other Kings of Power together.

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The jealous king who was the closest relative to the Chosen took his place, however. He may not have been necessarily malicious but he was jealous. (In chap 13 cutscene, Ardyn mentions the jealous king not yet chosen.) Perhaps the relative had an opportunity to be chosen soon as well. Unfortunately for him, that ended up never happening. 

He was gifted power of kings but not blessed with a title. He was jealous of the Wise and other kings from other lands. But, he had the chance to inherit the Crystal’s power because of his relation to the Wise. However, such reasoning is unasked for. Or so that’s how I imagine the story of the jealous king.

Also, in the final battle against Ardyn, the first weapon he uses is the Sword of the Wise. Though, that could be just because it's the first Royal Arm. But at the final phase, Noct is left with only his Father's sword for a while. And Ardyn can only use Sword of the Wise until the final barrage. Perhaps that could serve as a little connection why they only had that specific weapon after they were fatigued from using the Crystal Armiger.

(Not sure what to call the "Super Armiger", Power of light, Light Armiger, Complete Armiger, Crystal Armiger, etc.)

Ardyn Extra: 13th Statue

And regarding the Sword of the Father, Ardyn did not once use it. However, you can see it in phase 2 albeit in Crystal/Light form. Which could be either a design flaw or it's just part of the Light Armiger now because Regis had become the 13th Knight. Same goes for the Trident not being seen. And we know that you don't need to have the weapon physically to use the complete Armiger as shown by the Leviathan battle.

As for why Regis got to be the 13th knight instead of any other Lucis King. It could be because they preserved the 13th spot specifically for the Chosen King's father or mother. There was never a 13th statue built. The kings of old knew of the day when there would be enough souls of kings absorbed. The Crystal would decide and gauge so. The Crystal then chooses a king who would have to fight the Accursed and sacrifice his own, ridding the star of its scourge. Who else would suit the role of the 13th knight other than this chosen king's very own parent?

I believe Noctis was chosen simply because it was time. He would become the King of Kings. Regis was the last king of Lucis needed. He knew of this and mourned for the fate of his son. Which gave him the reason to raise Noctis not as king, but as a father.

Inspired by: -The Dawn Trailer which could imply the Old Kings told Regis. -The Omen Trailer's ending when Regis talks to Bahamut via the Crystal. -Regis Lucis Caelum CXIII (loading screen) stating he spent the next 15 years nurturing Noctis not as the future king, but as his beloved son.

From the Ultimania: Regis was told Noctis is the Chosen King by old kings of Lucis 15 years ago. (Noct was 5 years oldthen.)

Including Noctis, there were 114 Kings of Lucis. I suspect that all other dead kings' souls are not in control when their souls are absorbed. It can't be the last 13 either. It has to be first kings as they are called the "Old Wall" or "Original Wall" in Japanese. The souls and power of successive Lucis Kings become part of them and divided among them.

In Kingsglaive, when Nyx called forth the Kings of Lucis, they did not care for Insomnia. You'd think if it were the last 13 kings they would at least mind its fate. Regis' father specifically scaled back the Wall to only protect the Captial: Insomnia. But the old kings only fight for the future which is the theme.

I'd like to add that Nyx and Noctis both called them Kings of Lucis. I'd say these Ancient Kings of past times becoming part of the Ring of Light are technically Kings of Lucis in the truest sense, even if they weren’t born after Lucis was found. Perhaps when all kings came together in Lucis, the kingdom was temporarily shared amongst them and not just Ardyn. 

The Lucian King then founds the Kingdom of Lucis.

The daemon plague started from a meteor shower ifrit (impliedly) brought down. It wouldn't be odd for Kings of Power to settle near an active one and investigate the meteorite Titan caught. Still burning at that. They could not get rid of it.

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Official art of Titan catching the meteorite. He held it since Ancient Era which is way before the 2000 years ago, Ardyn’s era.

Perhaps Ardyn invented a new magic that absorbs daemons into him. Inspired by how one's own weapons can be summoned once they claim it. And believing the light of the Crystal could purify it. Ardyn would then live up to the name of the Wise again. But alas that's how he got corrupted.

However, that same act of Ardyn's may exactly that what made the Crystal realize its current power was not enough. Which led to the act of absorbing other kings of Lucis' nurtured powers.

From the Ultimania: 

Obtaining the Power of Kings is also a duty assigned to a king. As he acquires the power within the various Royal Tombs, Noctis’s fighting ability also dramatically increases.

Perhaps successive kings have to clear the tombs as if they were trials, hence most of them being built inside dungeons and other dangerous places like a volcano. (Reminder that Costlemark is not a Royal Tomb, Deamons stole the Sword of the Tall from its tomb.)

Modern kings absorb the strength of past kings, that strength returns to the Ring as ruled by their Lucis bloodline, and then possibly multiplying its essence. I can only imagine this is how the Providence can surpass the Six as stated by Bahamut.

I think absorbing all of the Crystal's Light into the ring, which had to take 10 years, was required to deliver Providence. Perhaps a Ring of Light waxed full of Light, allowed the Knights of the Round to manifest for a short time. This is the "Providence". The Glaives of Rulers past = Power. But they are dead. Crystal's Light = Manifestation, a temporary resurrection of all the power nurtured over 113 kings. Together, it brought power greater than the Six to purify the Starscourge.

Ardyn Part 4

Two descriptions of two Royal Arms could debunk my ancient kings of the same generation theory:

A king rose to protect the world with the Oracle. This was his sword. (Mystic).

A king ruled the realm according to divine law and worked hand in hand with the Oracle. This was his staff. (Pious).

However, I do not think it's entirely debunked yet. We can think of both Mystic and Pious had their own relationships with the Oracle. Mystic and Pious could be father-son or brotherly rivals (more likely). Nothing alludes to the kings all being of similar age and vice versa.

We've had a similar FF story before where two of our heroes are crushing on one girl. I think Mystic won in this scenario but they both get murdered so it don't really matter now. Just from their descriptions, I feel like Pious was flamboyant or overly religious douche, but still righteous.

And then Mystic was the main hero. We see him the most Kingsglaive. And the camera follows Mystic's sword first in the ending cutscene when they were summoned in the "Beyond". You see Pious is right behind Mystic. Mystic's tomb is also located in an unusual but also an honourable spot: at the Archaean, right in front of the meteorite. His ambitions sound bigger too by protecting the world, instead of just ruling the realm like Pious.

The Trident is also nearby, top right between Pious and Mystic.

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For some reason, Mystic is the only one who descends from above rather than from the ground like all the others during the summoning scene. And the camera follows his sword first during the Beyond scene before showing all the KotR. I guess he was just an amazing hero.

There should only be one Oracle at a time. Ardyn can’t be the first Oracle either. His power of "healing" the scourge is his own version of it but still similar by absorbing. And the Cosmogony refers to the first Oracle as she.

If we go by the theory of the King on the Cosmogony book truly being Ardyn, then we see an Oracle right in the corner too. Which many believe to be Gentiana since her eyes are closed and holds a bouqet of sylleblossoms (fictional flowers) which are based on gentiana flowers.

However, there was a cutscene in chapter 4 that shows a page of the Cosmogony with both the Oracle and Gentiana present. On that same illustration, you see the chosen king, and five other Messengers/Angels besides Gentiana. Two of them being Pryna and Umbra. The remaining three look like humans.

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Ardyn Extra: Cosmogony's false history

A page from the Cosmogony:

The Oracle (found at Wiz Chocobo Post): In the distant past, Bahamut, the Draconian, descended to the mortal realm and graced the people of Tenebrae. From among them, he handpicked a pious maiden and bestowed upon her the power of the Stars and his trident. Using these gifts for the good of all, she became the first Oracle - she who joins heaven and earth.

However, this can not be. According to the Ultimania, an Oracle was chosen since the Ancient Era. Tenebrae was only founded in the "2000-755 Years Ago" era, governed by the Fleuret Oracle family when the world stabilized thanks to the efforts of King and Oracle.

The Cosmogony tells Legends concerning the origins/structure of Eos A book that speaks of the legends of the Six and the Oracle. In addition to the original, it has been republished in various forms, such as an annotated version and a picture book for children, and is familiar to many people living in Eos.

I do not think the Cosmogony we read in the game is a false publication. Rather, it is the author who wrote a false legend. Whoever that was, there is no way of knowing. Could be Bahamut, or maybe the Fleuret family. The tale of the Accursed is nowhere known except for Ardyn himself and the Gods.

They practically wrote Ardyn out of history. Preventing the world from finding out the Gods were fighting with -and responsible for such an impure Chosen King.

Ardyn Part 5

From the Cosmogony: "It is said that, in the beginning, the six fought side by side with mankind."

From Ignis: "Legend has it the King once stood alongside the Six in the battle to banish the darkness."

Either way, the beginning the Cosmogony is referring to is most likely the Ancient Era when Ifrit betrayed the other Gods and released the Starscourge (not create). It laid the old civilization Solheim to waste. And we've seen in-game what the aftermath of the Astral War was like around the Disc of Cauthess (Titan's area, meteorite, and all those impossible arching rock formations).

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And Taelpar Crag (A giant ravine or rift in the earth starting from down near Lestallum to... Well, quite far and deep.)

The meteor the Titan caught wasn't the only meteor, but it can be assumed that it was the most destructive one. It is said it broke pieces too when it was caught. There are small craters around it as you can see. But there are other areas a meteor fell too.

Lestallum is built on a crater. Which may be a larger piece that fell off theone Titan caught.

Altissia is built on a water crater.

Gralea is built on a crater in the desert.

Except for Tenebrae, everything else used to be pure desert but it’s now covered in snow by a perpetual snowstorm thanks to Shiva.

If the Astrals fought with mankind once, it must have been during the Astral War (Ancient Era). But Ignis' quote doesn't necessarily have to refer to the same era. He could be referring to the 2000 years ago era. A king at that time stood beside the Gods against darkness. He was then found worthy by the Gods and given the Ring and the Crystal. He founds Lucis. He was the Chosen King to save Eos from the Starscourge. The Gods went to sleep soon after.

"The Six bring the ring of light, King of men at the time founds kingdom of Lucis".

The quote implies that Ardyn has always been king or at least a leader of a group that had to fend for themselves. The Gods deduced him a worthy king and bestow upon him the Ring of Light and the Star/Planet's Crystal.

The Ultimania does use 6 Gods, which in English localisation translates to "The Six"

"六神 が 光耀 の 指輪 を 作り 、 星 が 生み出し た クリスタル とともに ルシス の 王 に 授け 、 王家 に クリスタル の 守護 を 命じ た 。"

So did Ifrit join in for the Ring's creation? Wouldn't really make sense if he's not fond of humankind. Then the Ring of Light had to be created a time before Ifrit's betrayal.

A stretched out idea of mine is that the Astrals had always tested humans with trials, but one day they decided they should stop it and leave humankind alone. Ifrit wasn't fond of that. FFXV's Ifrit also reminds me of an Ancient/Tribal Warrior with his top naked body, large sword, long hair, and gold jewelry on his wrists, ankles, bicep, and crown, and even two on his horns. A God of war has no desire in bidding farewell to the battlefield. And thus betrayed the other Gods by drawing in a foreign object; a meteoroid. He may or may not have known about the parasitic virus; the Starscourge. I am leaning towards incidental effect.

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Also, the left side of Ifrit’s body is “scorched”. It could have happened during the Ring’s creation -when it yet had to become a human sized ring- and he wanted the Crystal’s power for himself but it denied him. 

Or it was simply just Shiva’s magical ice during the Astral War.

It could be pretty cool to have all the Six except for Ifrit come and join Ardyn's fight against Deamons in human form via Messenger hosts while still able to be summoned as Astrals. But they went to sleep shortly after finding a king worthy of the Ring and protecting the Crystal. So it would have to be before that. Though, I'd imagine Bahamut is the only one not truly asleep with him being in the Crystal and all. Has "seen many deaths". So he knows what's going on.

Nearing the end of Ardyn's past story is where the Gods went to sleep. The ending is his banishment and execution.

One little detail that could be implemented is that Ardyn's Armiger, over the course of his story, transitions from blue to purple to red the more daemons he absorbs.

Ardyn Part 6

Ardyn became Accursed from the countless absorbing of Deamons. The Crystal deemed him no longer pure, Bahamut finds him no longer worthy, and his own brethren betray him. Ardyn's story could very well be similar to Jesus Christ.

Had a brotherhood, communes with godly figures, healing people, getting betrayed, "crucified". Now that reminds me, did Ardyn tie Prompto in a crucified state for a reason other than just a twisted look?

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Probably just the contraption.

I feel like Ardyn and Noctis' stories are complete parallels. Noctis' brothers stood by him no matter what while Ardyn got betrayed. Noctis' dad tries to save his son. We don't know who Ardyn's father is, or if he even is relevant in any way since the first Chosen King; Ardyn founded Lucis.

But it could still be symbolic seeing how those closest to Noctis never left his side. Going off Ardyn = Jesus-ish, then maybe Bahamut could be a fatherly figure in the sense of God. Obviously, Bahamut would never be anything like a father but just a Godly figure. It's not like Jesus' God was much of a typical fatherly figure either.

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Reminder, that Lucis is that entire continent, not just Insomnia. When Solheim had fallen, it wasn’t really Solheim anymore. So a king at the time named it Lucis. The 12 statues built are located in Insomnia. If you’ve watched Kingsglaive then you may have noticed they’re just all over the place.

Built in something that could be an old church. Can’t make out which king this is supposed to be Those are not wings but just flairs like you see on the back of the wall and at the bottom. The picture comes from the Kingsglaive Art Book Program. Perhaps it was an old scrapped concept of having more than 12 statues, as it doesn’t even mention 12 statues for the description. 

The closest one to it is the statue with the Trident which has a similar helmet.

Built just standing there. Everything else built around it comes from a king’s decision of the modern era.

Ardyn Extra: Wall

The magical barrier wall we see above Insomnia did not come from the Chosen King.

 A little bit from the Ultimania timeline:

M.E. 606 (150 years ago) - King of Lucis erects a magic wall around the kingdom. 

M.E. 722 - Ardyn joins Niflheim and introduces Magitek technology.

M.E. 729 - King Mors dies, Regis is coronated King.

M.E. 736 - Noctis is born, Luna (4).

That's only 150 years ago.

Going by the history, we learn that the power of Kings has existed before the Lucis were founded. Maybe people who have a special affinity with magic like the Kingsglaive from the movie are descendants of these unknown kings. That could be what Ardyn was doing for over the 2000 years he was absent and borrowing different names. Killing anyone with any affinity to magic abilities, while waiting for when the Crystal was ready to choose. Magic never existed on Eos before the gift of King and Oracle. Ardyn's spite could span to even their descendants. Leaving no trace of a King's power behind for the new era after the Starscourge. (I mean, why did Crowe from Kingsglaive have to die just like that and so mysteriously. Only Ardyn can use magic from the Empire's side.)

Ardyn killing off the Empire could make sense in the way of him not wanting to leave information behind of ancient Solheim technology. It was as if Ardyn wanted to erase the past and let the people start anew once the Starscourge has been eliminated.

Ardyn Extra: Kingsglaive

An alternative setting for the other kings of power gathering concept is that just like the Oracle, there is only one King with the power of kings a generation.

The Chosen King set out to travel the world fighting daemons and saving those in need. Along the way of travelling to these foreign lands, he finds potential in certain men, women, and even youngsters. They follow the king on his journey.

Each and every one of them, they have come to admire the king’s wisdom and power. They had become brethren and sistren. Their faith unwavering, the king had once more realized a new method of using the Power of Kings. Living up to the name of the Wise, indeed.

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Read Concepts Part 4 ⇀