#ffxiv story theories

[laeorinel]

It's finally happened. While I haven't touched patch content yet for endwalker, I have been slowly making my way through other misc questlines, one such being the studium quests for disciple of the hand/land, and there is some very interesting stuff there. When I start nerding about lore, I inevitably start trying to come up with theories about where the story/lore is going next.

Endwalker spoilers are under the cut for general MSQ stuff and the studium quests if you haven't finished them yet. The long and short of it, some stuff is mentioned in those quests that perhaps hints at future plotlines.

The two quest lines, in particular, that stand out are the Faculty of Archaeology (BM/ARM/GM) and the Faculty of Aetherology (Fishing)

We will start with the fishing quest line first because the stuff mentioned in this feels like it may have far-reaching consequences.

To summarise the questline, you aid T'laqa Tia in researching underwater aetheric currents for his thesis by catching fish and measuring their aetheric levels to back up his theories. The aether currents ebb and flow with the tides, and fish follow those patterns during migrations and such. Over the course of it, you discover that the death of Zodiark messed with the aether currents over Etheirys, causing various fish to get extreme aether sickness and end up in places they shouldn't.

This would make a lot of sense, given what we know of Zodiark. He was created to essentially control/restore the various forms of aether to restore the world to how it was before the Final Days. However, there is another arguably more important thing that will likely have consequences I believe we have yet to see. The death of Hydaelyn and the presumed draining of the Mother Crystal. It can be argued that Zodiark and Hydaelyn were a central part of controlling aether flows on Etheirys; the lack of one of them would throw things out of balance, but both?

Etheirys as we know it has never existed without the influence of both Zodiark and Hydaelyn. While we do not know the specifics of what they affected or didn't, it feels like their absence will likely have some tangible impact on things. What that impact will be remains to be seen, but it may have to do with the Lifestream. The end of the fishing questline mentions T'laqa Tia's research could go some way to helping understand the Lifestream further. Perhaps this new understanding will help with travelling between shards, or maybe making using spells like Flow less risky or possibly even finding a way to "heal" the damage done by those spells.

However, there is something else their absence could lead to. Less or more rejoinings, the one of importance being that of the 13th.

While we only have the word of Ascians to go by, and their lore has been rewritten and changed a few times already, the 13th was the first shard they sought to rejoin with the source, but for some reason, it failed. We know the 13th still exists, so it's not as if the rejoining happened but wasn't recorded in history. It still meets the criteria for a rejoining even now, but something is, or was, preventing that from happening. So we can presume there is either something in the 13th preventing it from happening, or there was something on the source. We could assume it was Hydaelyn's influence, light fending off shadow and all that, but she has not been able to stop other rejoinings, so why would she be able to protect against this one?

Regardless, energies of the 13th have been bleeding into the source for millennia, given the presence of voidsent. Before, it may have only been a little bit, but with the absence of Hydaelyn and Zodiark, it could potentially become a flood. We could start seeing more and more voidsent appearing in greater numbers.

Like I said at the start, I haven't started patch content yet, so some of this stuff may come up in 6.1/6.2 MSQ stuff; if it does, then tell me.

Now, onto the Faculty of Archaeology.

This is the more interesting, if vague potential hint for what's coming. In this questline, you help restore a relic called the Golden Dhyata, once at the end of the questline, you restore the weird little mammet and find that it is, in theory, a type of auto translator. It is a full NPC come the end but only has this to say.

This certainly sounds like a calamity like event…

As for who or what the sleeping serpent is, I cannot say, but the description sounds very much similar to the symbol of the ouroboros, which according to Wikipedia.

"The ouroboros or uroboros is an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon eating its own tail. The ouroboros is often interpreted as a symbol for eternal cyclic renewal or a cycle of life, death, and rebirth."

Now we know Azdaja is in the void, again I haven't played through the patch, so I'm unsure if we actually meet her or if she's still lost there; the long and short of it, though, this could mean we end up fighting either her or another dragon, perhaps one artificially made.

There is however another theory we can apply here. It is not a physical serpent at all but a metaphor. The Great Serpent of Ronka is a metaphor for the Lifestream in the first; if the Lifestream is now uncontrolled by Zodiark or Hydaelyn, perhaps it is doomed to become chaotic and has the potential to influence other shards as well.

As for the seven wedges driven into its back…well…there are seven remaining shards, and there are seven scions as of right now; it could be alluding to either, honestly. Could we have to trigger rejoinings ourselves? Maybe finding a less destructive way than the Ascians used? Or would bridges/connections between the shards be enough?

Writing all of this just makes me want to play the patch content even more, but I'm trying to be patient and wait for 6.3 at least T.T

#ffxiv #ffxiv theories #ffxiv story theories #6.3 can't come soon enough T.T #endwalker spoilers

[seaseren]

Ok also it's something that I've been thinking about and I think something that would have helped Gridania a lot is a rival faction. Like Ul'dah, you instantly have two factions that function pretty effective as good guys and bad guys. Limsa is less clear cut, but its made clear that while the Admiral is the leader, there's a bunch of pirate crews and trying to get them all to work together is like herding cats, because they all have their own priorities and rivalries and such. Gridania has...Kan-E-Senna, who's the boss, and then....nothing. Nobody for her to play off, nobody for us to contrast her against and go "oh, so this is what she's dealing with and why she can't just solve every issue." Like if there was some kinda powerful, entrenched Hearer community that was opposing her, or a faction propping someone else up as Elder Seedseer, or just any kind of force that makes us go "oh no! we're in your corner, Kan-E-Senna!" instead she's just the figurehead for a system where Bad Things Happen- and unlike everywhere else, where we can point to causes or reasons why solutions wouldn't work so easily, the takeaway from most of Gridania's issues has to be "Kan-E-Senna is just bad at doing her job."

#ffxiv #like I guess. I like the Elementals in theory and I think making them evil makes for a more boring story #but also they do a very very bad job of showing us why Gridania's issues cant be like. dealt with. #Like if the primary issue is prejudice against Duskwrights and Mooncats and Ixal and stuff leading to a negative spiral #of 'marginalized group needs resources' to 'elementals get angry that they're overstepping the treaties' to 'gridanians treat them worse' #then maybe like. address that. #and I just think if we had a face for more conservative gridanians #to say 'we should just drive those people out of the black shroud! the elementals will it!" #then we could have Kan-E trying to argue against them and find a more peaceful solution for everyone #and go 'oh! she sees the issues in her community and she's trying!'

[impossible-rat-babies]

no don’t like watching ultimate/savage raids for the mechs—it’s for the Music. It’s for the STORY

#they are so rich with story if you’re looking and youre looking for it #14 truly does a masterful job of putting together mechanics + music + story into a combat encounter #where the combat isn’t an accessory to story but it fits Into The Narrative #so often there’s parts in video games where the combat is second to the narrative and sometimes that works #but when the devs and writers can blend it into one is So Good #ARR struggles with it at times but I think HW is really where it Worked #and especially the post HW patches where it truly Shined #the last trial of stormblood has some of that feeling too #but ShB is really truly where it Shines in normal content #the dying gasp is so so so good #5.3 further builds on that and then into EW it was just #that and the pandamonium raids were Perfect #p8s where you make the Phoenix—what lahabrae wanted so badly to bring back athena #and then he kills you to test it to see if it works and it does! #or p12s watching athena arriving at conclusion after conclusion that her theories are flawed #and all of her attacks are these theoritical concepts of what built the universe #all for her to arrive at the conclusion that she is perfect and the world is flawed #GAHH I love big boy raiding in 14 for lore and plot and music #endwalker spoilers #Owen plays ffxiv

[estinienbestinien]

I have been riding the end-of-endwalker emotional high for like a week now and I NeED MORE BRING ME BACK MY FRIENDS HYTHLODAEUS AND EMET-SELCH THEY WERE MY BUDDIES MY PALS MY HOME BOYS I WANT TO SEE THEM AGAIN

#endwalker #endwalker spoilers #i just wanna chat about game theories and write lil happy stories #imma do that #emet selch #hythlodaeus #ffxiv #ff14 #final fantasy xiv #final fantasy 14

[devotedlystrangewizard]

character hyperfixations suck actually because theyre the only way i can be invested in media but also they will have me going "hey where are they" "i wonder how theyre doing rn" right up until either the character or my interest dies

#currently in garlemald #i JUST realized while writing his post. the dying thing. i lose interest when a character dies bc no more new content #it happened with destiny & cayde it happened with zenos in ffxiv #but the thing is. these games have a fuckton of lore and story to comb through. #my interest in either game didnt die with the character hyperfixation i just. got a new one. #in theory i can be somewhat normal in ffxiv and actually appreciate most characters but. yeah. replaying shadowbringers except #im only interested in the cutscenes. #i didnt care about the first the first time through bc i was that fixated on zenos #i do care about the first NOW but only because gaia is my dearest & she & ryne deserve to be happy #but obviously gaia isnt in the msq so #shadowbringers felt formulaic in the same way hunting down the primals in arr msq did #while yes the overarching plot of shadowbringers is good and the writing is great and the villain is fantastic and graha is there. #going to a region doing a bunch of quests killing a lightwarden 'and now go do this four more times :)' is not my personal idea of fun #stormblood is still my favorite but hey man what do i know #it wouldve been endwalker if it wasnt for the ending & the way it sent me into 3 days of constantly ranting about #narrative redemption vs narrative condemnation for characters #but hey what do i know im just a teenager with weird opinions on things #really wish i was more confident in my takes i have so many posts i could make

[starlightnest]

The more time I am stuck at prae the more I am convinced about Midas nan Garlond being trans

#ffxiv #shitpost #text post #hc #headcanon #Listen to me #it makes sense #Midas nan Garlond #I don't know a thing about Cid having a biological mother #just that Midas and Gaius were pretty close #close enough that Gaius' gunblade was made by Mid but that's for another deranged post #The thing is #I can settle with either Gaius or Mid being ftm but Mid has the energy #A short mad scientist with a luscious beard? trans man energy if you ask me #also by being a scientist rather than a war criminal sorry I mean being deep in the army Mid would have had access to hormones #He could have invented hormone therapy if he wanted #The other theory is that Cid was just born in some weird garlean shit but I want some of my blorbos to be trans #That's why is important to have female characters in your stories kids #the gay agenda (me) would turn your faves trans

[agent-jaselin]

Because of the twins reactions I don’t think this is what they were going for but! I’m going to pretend this whole arc was meant as a tragedy. The citizens and even higher military so attached to the propaganda they’ve been taught for centuries that they’d rather die than admit a different truth. Quintus’ intentional suicide mimicking the accidental death from earlier (which i do think that part was on purpose.)

#please tell me my tragedy theory #was actually the story in japanese #i know varis is completely different and better written so #i live in hope #ffxiv spoilers #jase liveblogs #though more just after the fact discussion now #hoping this arc has ended

[astrxealis]

eghvhshbghb i’ll organize my thoughts into coherent words soon but :O i am so scared/excited for the story of 3rd tier ;; >_<

#⋯ ꒰ა starry thoughts ໒꒱ *·˚ #⋯ ꒰ა ffxiv ໒꒱ *·˚ #in any case SOBSSSSS I LOVE ERICH ............... themis is stil #still* my fave tho T^T and i love laha a lot actually #WHAT. what they did with the p8 music i am AJHBGJHSB GENIUS ... anamnesis and ultima refs ?? #abhesbjghbdgbhsbhg laha and erich sobsbsbssbhjdbghjbdjhgbajhbjhdbg my heart #but i'm absolutely terrified for 3rd tier's story the same way i was absolutely whjbajbdj for the whole elpis section of 6.0 msq #also. 3rd tier. i can't really imagine wtf is going to happen but i'm going to make and list down theories and i will be shocked if i some #how get it right >< #6.2 spoilers #pandaemonium spoilers

[voidsentprinces]

I said it once and I'll say it again, Shadowbringers was the lightning in the bottle for FFXIV. We were going to a new shard with new possibilities, we just didn't know it yet. The trailer showed of Thancred with one of the series most ICONIC weapons and MINFILIA was somehow fucking back!? Y'shtola was suddenly called Master Matoya which ignited the theory crafting train to wonder if their souls would somehow merge (this proved to be wrong obviously but at the time we didn't know what the fuck was happening), the Crystal Tower was a main focus but we didn't know how yet, the Crystal Exarch was mysterious and still took a couple months before anyone even began to speculate he was actually G'raha, there was a long period where Healers were about to start a Riot because they were down right CERTAIN Dancer was going to be a healing job, Dark Knight the community regarded best written job was a central figure, the War with Garlemald was still firing up as Ghimlyt Dark didn't hit juuust yet, Gaius had just been re-revealed, and the Scions were being dragged away by the mysterious Calling, Elidibus hijacked Zenos's body and Varis had gone stircrazy, Solus was revealed to be an Ascian and up to no good, naturally. And lastly it felt like, for the first time, the story was going to make the Warrior of Light and company the BAD GUYS!?! How!? Are we working WITH the Ascians to fight the light here!? Hydaelyn and Zodiark were PRIMALS!? We had no goddamn clue but MOST importantly of all...Urianger was practically naked so the thirst train that started in Heavensward derailed and drove straight through the fandom taking many of them with it as it just went fucking hard. The fact that it ended up having the best story in theme, atmosphere, and the biggest knee to the gut from level 78 - 80 was SPECTACULAR.

I don't think anything will hit like Shadowbringers did ever again.

[lookbluesoup]

I know shippy stuff and canon-adjacent stuff is popular and I'm certainly not dissing those. I like them too, they're a lot of fun! And AUs are great, I have so many!

But man, I wish there was more... idk, emphasis and exploration of the FFXIV lore, and those moments that have to have happened but aren't shown on screen - talked about and written about and illustrated here on tumblr.

That's usually been my favorite part of fandoms, discussing the lore with other fans in-depth and sharing theories, and seeing how everyone's characters would handle those big or quiet moments from the story itself. Exploring how a game mechanic/boss fight would feel from a story perspective, and what it would mean to the characters.

It's not entirely absent from here, but even when I make my own meta posts, even if they get lots of notes, I tend to see very little discussion added compared to what I'm used to from other fandoms. And when new patches come out, there's not a lot of deep talk about the story itself circulating. Maybe I've just been lucky in my previous spaces!

But... I want to know how the WoL and Graha bonded during the Crystal Tower raids. Did they sit around the campfire at night and talk? Did they drink and sing and laugh and argue?

What was it like, recovering from Ultima Thule? How did it feel to set out on the road again, leaving the title of Scion behind? Did they give their friends a tour of Ishgard? Did they visit Edmont? What was it like in the trenches of Ghimlyt Dark, for these characters who have never seen war before, versus the ones who have? Did the WoL help stabilize Lakeland, and tend wounded after the sin eater attacks?

I want late night study sessions with the twins, bittersweet work in the hot sun rebuilding Ala Mhigo, learning to fight on dragonback, Hraesvelgr's brood visiting Ishgard on diplomatic forways. I want snarking with Emet Selch while you help people with "side quests" in Norvrandt. I want gentle moments with Ryne on the road because if anyone understands the suffocating feeling of immense responsibility Hydaelyn and Minfilia have dropped on that child, it's the WoL.

What was it like for the WoL to fight the pirates in Sastasha? To see the women taken captive there? To see the Drowned mutilated by Leviathan's tempering? How did they handle the narrow tunnels and rickety elevators in Copperbell, and the giants angry after centuries of unjust imprisonment? Did they step in Aurum Vale's goldbile and have a shoe burnt off? Did they bring a pet korpokkur home from the Arboretum? Do they carry scars?

Do they take the manacutter out for joyrides? Did Grani recognize the color of their soul, and choose them over the tempered twist of Emet Selchs, or did Emet charge his familiar with looking after them? Have they ever been robbed in Limsa Lominsa? Did they ever buy loinfruit?

Does that goobbue sproutling grow up? The coerl kitten become a battle steed? The wolf pup a guardian? Do the sylphs play games with the WoL when they visit the Shroud? Do they carry a polished shell to remind them of their Clutchfather? Do they stop by the guild to check on the Deftarm whenever they're in Dravania?

What was it like trekking the spindly mountains of Othard, riding a Yol for the first time, seeing the endless plains of green, and the dead white of the Burn?

Do they still have nightmares about Haurchefant, or are they good dreams remembering his smile? Did he teach them to make hot chocolate? Did they stay up all night when the Scions lost their souls, waiting by the bedsides with a candle and feeling helpless?

Do they visit Amaurot, even after Emet Selch is gone? Are they still trying to remember? Did they look up at the night sky in Elpis and feel an indescribable sense of loss?

Was there ever a moment in Endwalker where they almost became a Blasphemy themselves? Did they ever answer Venat's question? Do they know that the love their friends had for them, saved them?

#idk its SUCH a good story and theres so much cool lore #i want to keep digging into it and i miss having a community focused around that aspect of a game #ffxiv #ff14 #wyn gabs #manifesto #apparently lol #autism brain go brrrrrrr #text #shadowbringers spoilers #endwalker spoilers #long post

[nihilnovisubsole]

oh, right, shadowbringers! i'm overdue for another ffxiv bullet point vibe check. i actually finished it a couple of weeks ago, and then my sink exploded [long story] and i wanted to chew on it for a while. it's clear that this expac is an overwhelming fan favorite, so i figured i should formulate some more intelligent thoughts about it.

part of me worries that my shadowbringers experience was colored by how badly i missed the people and places on the source. more than the aether and gods and soul transference and all that stuff, what i really took away was a sense of loneliness. the first isn't my world. its citizens are strangers to me, though i recognize on a philosophical level that i should help them. even the scions - in theory, my closest comrades - have lived for years in the blink of my eye and become very different people. when did thancred become responsible? when did the twins grow up? i wondered what other NPCs were doing without me. all i wanted was to go home.

on the other hand, i read a theory that this is the point. the story wants you to feel cut loose from everything you know. are you still a hero in an emotional vacuum? will you still put yourself on the line to do the right thing? sure, your world will be doomed if theirs falls, but that possibility seems so huge and far-off that it doesn't register in your gut. i don't think that's the writing failing to connect with me or anything. if that's the intent, it's an interesting feeling for a game to evoke.

i may have also exacerbated that feeling by keeping my actual avatar isolated on norvrandt for so long. i mentioned earlier that i play around the game's day-night cycle, running missions based on when they'll feel most immersive. that extends to maps, too: if the story says i'm stuck in a place, i stay around that place until the story carries me elsewhere. i mean, i'll dip out for wondrous tails and daily cactpot and stuff, but i don't take big story vacations to jet around eorzea. i didn't "come back" from the far east in stormblood until doma was free. that's a lot of MSQ to just spend alone with your thoughts.

there's a storytelling paradox at work: the first's problems are so large and so bad that it's smaller and more personal when you become invested in someone's plight. i expected to care a lot about liberating ala mhigo because i'm so fond of raubahn as a character, and i did. i didn't expect to feel the pity that i felt for, say, kai-shirr, or runar's unrequited crush on y'shtola. it comes on slowly and quietly.

i don't know. it's a curious story. it's a melancholy story. it's a lot more experimental than the expacs that came before it. it'd probably be worth it to new-game-plus it at some point to pay closer attention to the individual character arcs.

same goes for emet-selch. he's a curious villain. i don't sympathize with his methods, and i obviously have no romantic interest in him. but i keep mulling him over. he keeps lurking in the back of my mind, which means that his writing succeeds by virtue of being memorable.

to my mind, everything around amaurot contributes to that success. amaurot is where it all starts to come together for me. it's a beautiful, odd place - art deco in final fantasy? who knew? - and the pinnacle of the arc's surreal "this is a dream, but tangible" tone. you can tell the team wanted to go all out with the ascian reveals they'd been building up to for years. i wonder if they had fun designing it.

even if it is. i. hm. no i shan't say it

all right, i'll say it

I AM EMET-SELCH AND I AM HERE TO ASK YOU A QUESTION

there, it's out of my system. on a less ridiculous note, i finally got royce's canon armor! now i can gpose freely. i wish there were an in-engine way to pose with NPCs, but them's the breaks. who knows? maybe we'll get it eventually. it is a live service game.

#ffxiv

[fortunatelyenchantingtaco]

Endwalker spoilers!!!

My only ever fistfight with ffxiv is Hermes because while in theory i can appreciate his story of essentially a man who cared too much and was looking for the answer till the very end

In practice i was doing elpis and last part of endwalker when it was like idk. A month or two since the start of the war (Im Ukranian) and it just filled me with so much rage i cannot even begin to tell ya. While i get why and everything as a person whose life got upside down into such a short amount of time, i just couldnt accept the fact that knowing it would destroy the world, he still chose what he chose

So many people died and they had no choice in the matter, they died not knowing why!!! Some kind of disaster struck!!! Bringing to life your worst nightmares!!! And you have no fucking idea why, who did this, why does it punish you so

Its been almost two years now and it is better, I can begin to understand, I can get it when i really try to distance myself from whats happening. But when i was doing it it really felt like a “man living in paradise gets depressed and destroys the world” which is a horrible simplification but god did it feel like it. I just cannot help but think about all those people who died while having no part in it, having no idea what caused it. Its so cruel so not proportional to the things he was angry about

Its a beautiful story and i love that we give the answer i love it its so wonderful

But was it at the end

Worth all the lives lost? All the tragedies? Im not sure

Feels so so unfair to die because of one dude’s choice — and i know technically it can be said well that was essentially the same with the animals they were creating in Elpis

Im sorry are we gonna pretend its all the same thing? He was the head of Elpis — he could change procedures to ensure much less animals would be given life before making sure the design is solid. Ancients were pursuing perfection they werent violent or anything like what. There were options, just none left for him and i get it i sure do, its not like my depresso doesnt make me selfdestructive sometimes

But making that choice on your own? Deciding fate of everyone? I honestly cannot stand that let me go

Kinda has the same problem with Stormblood but it wasnt bothering me as badly. Bozja kind of did a better job of showing war than the stormblood as a whole but that might be just me

#ffxiv endwalker #ffxiv #hermes

[salty-dracon]

Honkai Star Rail 2.0 Trailblaze Mission Liveblog

Everything I write includes four things- cool cities, found family, the most horrifying plot points I can possibly squeeze into a story, and angels with dubious intentions. Naturally, I'm PUMPED for Interstellar Fantasy Cool City Vacation with Found Family + Dubious Angels + Player Tears. Liveblog under the readmore to keep people unspoiled.

---

Foreword

This is not my first liveblog rodeo. I've liveblogged plenty of murder mystery games. But I promise to make this an entertaining experience for anyone who wants to read this.

You're probably wondering why everything I write is about killing angels. It's been a running theme in my work ever since high school, where the villain of a superhero story I wrote was a man who built himself metal wings. He was themed around control- if not by breaking bodies, by breaking minds through mind control powers. He was fucked up like that.

And I've written a lot of angels since then (a lot of them just straight up divine beings), most of which in some way have powers that are used to control others, with the protagonists fighting against them to free themselves from control. So yeah, killing angels, whether they're child-kidnapping supervillains, instigators of amatonormative authoritarianism (fellow aroaces this one's for you), or digital gods who have killed millions and would kill millions more for the sake of vengeance against everyone that hurt their human pets- it's basically standard for me at this point. No doubt whatever WIP I write next is going to involve kicking the ass of another angel.

(I didn't keep up with marketing. I have no idea what Robin and Sunday's personalities are like. Going by the trailers, Robin seems like the nice and friendly sibling and Sunday's the less nice one who has to keep her out of trouble.)

Anyway, I keep hearing theories that Firefly and/or Himeko will die, and if that happens, I'll be sad. Firefly is the closest thing Trailblazer has gotten to another girlfriend (the star rail trio are siblings, ride-or-die besties, or a polycule depending on what's funniest at the moment) and Himeko is just right up my alley being a tall, beautiful woman with red hair in a big dress and a black leather coat who beats up enemies with a CIRCULAR SAW. Still, they can't hype Firefly up as Trailblazer's closest thing to a planet BFF and not kill her, right?

Also if this happens I'll laugh, but if Welt dies. Like they're saying it's Himeko but what if.

Other theories I have, for other reasons:

Someone will attempt to steal or acquire the Astral Express, and they will succeed until a later patch.

There will be a quest involving breaking down the Family's supposed hivemind.

Social media will explode with outrage over a specific enemy that felt intentionally kept out of marketing (it's the one with the blue head sitting on a dice box, only briefly visible in certain scenes in the music video).

With Genshin being my first HYV game I was really surprised to see Tingyun die also. Unlike many other gacha games (Epic Seven comes to mind) Genshin has a really clear criteria for which characters are and aren't going to become playable, and those criteria are basically just "be alive and have a reason to aid the Traveler for the foreseeable future" to avoid plot breaking. HSR has proven that that criteria really does not apply, w/ Tingyun, canonically dead, being a potential party member, and Dan Heng having both a 3-star and 5-star version that can be in the same party if the player feels like it. (there has to be someone out there who runs "team plot breaker".)

Also, I have been spoiled on exactly ONE thing due to leaks, and I will say nothing more on that fact.

Begin Quest!

Let's get started squeeeeeee

I'm not sure whether Dan Heng just typed "..." to show that he's around, or because that's actually what he would say if they were all together and they needed to talk.

I'm having flashbacks to FFXIV Endwalker's "You may exhibit a light touch of VIOLENT AETHERIAL SICKNESS".

Oh, that's exciting. Some of the Nameless went on to live here. Tiernan the guard, Legwork the mechanic, and Razalina the surveyor.

I'm imagining the final preparation for this vacation was March zipping all over the Express gathering all of her necessary (unnecessary) things, Dan Heng diligently packing his suitcase neatly and carefully, and Trailblazer filling up a plastic bag until the other two scold them for it and tell them to at least pack a backpack or something so their stuff doesn't get thrown out with the trash. Meanwhile Himeko and Welt have had their suitcases packed for a few days already.

WHATTTT. NOOOOOO. I was really excited for the whole Astral Express family to let loose together. Noooooooo. (I mean if my theory that someone will try to steal the Express is correct, at least he'll have someone to hit with a lance.)

UHHHHHH. WH. WHERE'S THE PLANET. WHY'D WE GET SCLORPED INTO ANOTHER SPACE ENTIRELY. WHY WERE THERE MONADO VISIONS

Acheron: oh god motherfucking dammit how do these fuckheads keep getting in- Come with me.

multiplayer dreaming

Acheron: This is the border between dream and reality, mind and matter...

she's so not impressed with anything the trailblazer does lol

oh look it's everyone we'll meet here.

:/ so looks like the stellaron hunters will actually be crashing the party themselves.

Listen, I don't play that many RPGmaker games or visual novels, but red text is usually a bad and/or scary thing. So am I supposed to take this as bad and/or scary?

"Have you met Acheron before?", "Would you fear losing any of the friends you've made over the course of your journey?", "If you could stay in a dream where you could experience none of this loss forever, would you?", and "If you already knew how the journey would end, in tragedy, would you still trailblaze a path?". Fuck, these questions are hitting. And we're going to witness some kind of tragedy, that much she says.

Black, white, and fleeting red. I'm pretty sure these are the colors in Acheron's splash art. I wonder what that means.

Acheron Casts The Spell: Freshly Chopped Raw Onions.

Wait, so is it a planet, like a round planet, or is it like Asgard from the MCU where it's just a flat plane?

auuuuuuuuuugh front desk troubles i hATE them

aventurine shows up, and himeko and welt just look at each other like "who's this jackass". then himeko expertly deals with the jackass in question. how much experience has she had dealing with ipc assholes if she could verbally square up with two of the stonehearts on a turn of a dime?

I think it's really funny how the marketing keeps saying "listen the IPC aren't bad guys and they aren't unreasonable, they have a reputation to uphold" as though basically the entire Belobog Topaz quest wasn't Himeko, March, and Trailblazer giving a giant middle finger to the IPC for outright lying and manipulating Bronya. And then this guy starts complaining that we wasted ten minutes of his time.

Aventurine: This is Sunday, the most handsome man in Penacony! And that's his sister Robin, the singer renowned across the universe!

Robin: Hehe he called you handsome~

Welt and Himeko: *either heterosexual judgment or just plain confusion*

If you called my OC Grey, the Angel of Illusion and main antagonist of The City of Hands, whose ability is weaving dreams, "handsome", he'd probably just try to ignore you.

Oh, interesting. I sort of assumed that Robin was part of the Family like her brother, but I guess not...

WHICH DAY WAS HE-

There's a hotel in Disney World (World? It's the one in Florida) that looks just like this hotel. But it's supposed to be the super luxury version.

My brain has to do so much of the legwork here (> <) but i'm imagining March and Trailblazer skipping off to their rooms, full of excitement, while Himeko and Welt have a quiet, ominous chat over some drinks.

"Witness the impossible in the realm of dreams, find the legacy of the Watchmaker, Father of Penacony, and thus find the answer to the question 'Why does life slumber?'."

What...? A distress call from one of the Nameless, having arrived relatively recently since both March and Dan Heng were on the Express at the time they received it. YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS!!! MISSION IMPOSSIBLE ARC!!!

Based on my knowledge of Genshin, which will be a lot less useful than I hope it to be, I think most of the factions are remaining quiet because they need the help of the Nameless to clean out whatever's causing their societal issues. Plus, I'm not sure how the Annihilation Gang ties into everything. They can't be the ones who sent the invite, right?

Today I learned that Trailblazer is canonically possibly or possibly not old enough to drink! (There's rum in the Galactic Voyager!) Actually wait, I think I've had this drink before.

Himeko always just sits wherever. And she sits so RADIANTLY.

We might as well be plunging ourselves into VR heaven at this point auuuughhghg i'm so excited

We're visiting the Golden Hour first, so that means we'll be separated from the other three noooooooooo. i mean, "history and culture enjoyer", "atmosphere and people enjoyer", and "shopping enjoyer" match the other three to a tee but :(

March you're so right, this is an intergalactic live-action detective saga.

Okay, let me note this down for foreshadowing reasons. Family feuds, tragic losses, worlds torn apart, espionage situations, rivers running red with blood (acheron lol).

THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE

I don't trust you! :)

(Doesn't TB already have the Preservation's protection? Lance, forward, and all that?)

danger. danger. danger. danger. danger. danger

thabks acheron O_O

Aventurine: How did you make this friend so fast?

Trailblazer: Oh, uh... she called me funny in a dream once?

It will be really funny if Aventurine isn't actually an antagonist here (he's trying to "reclaim" something that's in Penacony, and we all know how bad that went in the case of Belobog) and Acheron is warning us for nothing.

*bass boosted* I think it's really funny how the marketing keeps saying "listen the IPC aren't bad guys"-

I can imagine myself walking into this dream pool while fully-clothed. I keep my socks on, the bottoms of my feet touch the water, my face recoils back like I ate a sour grape. Wet socks are the worst, and I have had my fair share of wet sock troubles. Even stuffed plastic bags into my shoes to avoid them.

Mikhail.

Aventurine: Hey, Ratio, where's that bust of yours?

Every single Dr. Ratio/Aventurine shipper: WRITE THAT DOWN WRITE THAT DOWN

... So his endgame is to basically bring Penacony (penal colony) back into the IPC's hands. Or something like that. How is another question entirely.

*stares at trailblazer flying through the air like a ragdoll in dream space* weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

FUCK YEAHHHHHH MIDTOWN MANHATTAN!!! (I should go visit again one of these days...)

ehhh, she's freaking out for no reason, she'll be fine, elio never foresaw a future where she died from falling 100 stories in a dream world- SHE GOT YAMCHA'D!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA

[scene where robin checks on trailblazer who just smashed into bare concrete] my guardian angel and her friend wondering whether they should carry my soul to the afterlife after i drank too many blue raspberry slurpees and passed out behind the 7-11 at 2am

OH THANK GOD DREAM TEXTING SERVICE.

So much of this is just like the Caligula games, I like it.

so today i learned that not only is pom-pom as old as akivili, but he put akivili to task too. also, "broke the train into two pieces"? so is there a second half of the express somewhere??? *soft gasp* can trailblazer finally stop sleeping on the couch

FIREFLY!!! GIRLFRIEND!!!

(this one npc has darker skin than most of the genshin sumeru characters and yes i'm still mad about that)

Thanks, Dad- i mean, man. stranger. with dad vibes

Fun fact about me: The cheat code to designing a male character I will find super cool no matter what atrocities they commit is: brown or red hair, a formal suit, caring dad vibes, and severe mental health issues for which they have very harmful coping strategies. This rarely but sometimes applies to female characters too (makima chainsawman, and a character from a game where the antagonist's file says he likes fireworks). This also applies to Welt. Yes, I do sometimes spend my days wishing I had a better father, how did you know?

Maybe Mikhail is Firefly's brother or something? And she's a local from the Iris family...

this is gorgeous...

going on dates with my girlfriend :)

girlfriend activities :)

girlfriend simulator :)

syrupism??? just sounds like an offshoot of american consumerism to me. like my dad's friend who has a $2m collection of coca cola memorabilia. which is simultaneously the coolest and most cringe thing i've ever heard

can't wait to tell march (my girlfriend) that i have another girlfriend in another server instance

If we go on enough dates with girlfriend we get to hear her tragic backstory.

O_O we're being followed??? *long sigh* okay who is it? rude gambler boy? benedict cumberbatch's sherlock? dad 2? that angel everyone keeps turning into a creepy monster in fanart? a t rex chef?

strong build? silent steps? oh motherfucker it's S A M P O K O S K I

... that is not sampo koski. he always introduces himself with his full name.

oh and he does know who march is, and while march is also my girlfriend, that's not march.

the pepeshi are just moogles. or lalafell.

UM. UM!!!

sampo. sampo what the hell are you doing. is this going to lead us to tatalov

i KNEW IT

i swear some of these trashcan lines were ripped straight from "dog of wisdom"

eris's apple- er, trash can

THERE HE IS! GIANT SAMPO

this is so stupid LOL

i mean i did have a feeling that firefly was lying, i just couldn't figure out how or why. as for how the trash can dream is supposed to symbolize penacony, i'm not sure either.

oh noooooooo i hate walking talking cartoon characters. especially ones that sound like mickey mouse

"innocence kindness, and honesty of a child"? dude, trailblazer murdered cocolia. they have the option to lie all the time. anyway, misha.

no no no no no. i want girlfriend time.

... wait. boss stone. stonehearts? that would make them the ipc, or an expy of them.

a traumatized galactic hero, a bellboy, and a pair of lesbians wake up in a dream world together

DATE DATE DATE DATE DATE

sparkle and aventurine. i guess they have a reason to hate each other

sigonia and avgin. ????

it took me way too long to figure out that "chicken wing boy" was sunday

this entire border section is like a scene 3/4ths of the way through a teenage coming of age movie

MONUMENT VALLEYYYYYYY (you should play it)

the last time i had this much fun with an ingame girlfriend was with kasumi from persona 5 royal. i know a lot of people don't like her because she gets in the way of akeshu action but i couldn't stop smiling every time she appeared on screen, and that's how i feel with firefly. like god, she's just adorable. she's just a treat. ingame protagonist, you'd better treat her well.

firefly is a stowaway suffering from entropy loss syndrome- basically, her perception and actions are slowing down and she's slowly dying on the inside and it's affecting her mentally too. a lot like something from zero escape. she has a dream, and penacony lets her realize it. and she wants to find the watchmaker's legacy.

SELFIE! SELFIE WITH GIRLFRIEND! AAAAAAA

Okay, March found Ratio in the shopping district, Welt's had some weird things happen himself, and it's back to reality for us.

fuck off sampo, i'm going to have an angsty goodbye scene with my girlfriend

yeah i knew you were sparkle. cool transition though

we've entered salvador dali street

"the real dreamscape"... i really have no inkling as to what it might be

OH. Origami bird. That's one of Clockie's friends, and if I'm right that "Boss Stone" is meant to be an expy of the IPC, then that means that the watchmaker themselves lost Mikhail.

THIS SI FINE THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINETHIS IS FINE

THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE THIS IS FINE

such a cool monster design

hi black swan

MOM DAD BESTIE I MISSED YOUUUUUU

Huh. Black Swan wants to ally with the Trailblazers. In exchange, she wishes to experience memories. The dreamscape is collapsing, potentially exposing a lot of danger as well as the Watchmaker's Legacy. The person who sent the Watchmaker's invite is likely behind the collapse as well. The various factions on board- the Trailblazers, IPC, Family, Masked Fools, the Stellaron Hunters, the Galaxy Rangers, the Garden of Recollection- one of them is the culprit. The IPC is the most obvious, but... where is the Annihilation Gang in all of this?

Okay. Stellaron Hunter Sam is the one Welt saw suspiciously wandering around.

Acheron!!!

Acheron is so angry all of the time. I love her.

FIREFLY!!! At least she's okay! For now!

There she is! Hug girlfrie- OH NO

FIREFLY!!! FIREFLY!!! OH NO OH NO OH NO

OH MY GOD SHE'S DEAD

D,:

Moving on...

Let's see, someone killed a lot of monsters in one strike with a blade slash, and that blade was superheated.

Firefly was betrayed by a companion after tracking down some information about the Watchmaker. That companion, probably Sam since I know he's a boss fight.

oh my god that's a boss fight that's a boss fight

DID ACHERON JUST THROW HER FUCKING KATANA AT HIM-

you, you CAPITALISTIC BITCH

actually, if aventurine was the one behind firefly's murder, which he very well could be- no, no, i'm just not going to entertain that rn

BLACK SWAN WAS THE BETRAYER?! HOLY FUCK

or, they were both trying to save the trailblazer?

Acheron's an Emanator of Nihility? Who gives a shit? I'm friends with an Emanator. Her name's Herta. She has puppets.

wHAT. Do you mean. Ifrit is dead.

... Listen, I thought it was lowkey insane that they'd drop a character design as awesome as Dubra's and then drop absolutely nothing else. I began joking in chat about how badly they'd animate Ifrit's skull. But if he was never actually meant to be an ingame character in the first place, that's crazy.

I mean like, realistically I don't trust any of these people. I really don't trust the IPC since they have a vested interest in reclaiming Penacony. But Acheron stealing her invitation is interesting, since I thought she was the most trustworthy.

Yeah, thanks for putting it mildly, Black Swan. Everyone could be lying. It could be you. It could be me. It could be Mom. It could be Dad. It could NEVER be Bestie.

Okay. Let's go. Let's see the "truth" behind Penacony.

OH NO. OUT OF ALL OF THE PEOPLE TO DIE, I DID NOT EXPECT HER!!!

Hey. Hey what the fuck. What the fuck is happening what. WHAT

oh he is NOT happy about someone disguising herself as his sister

the people here are way too horny for sunday

he's pulling out the capitalized pronouns. in christianity those are the big guns.

Final Thoughts

they told me i wouldn't be ready, and i wasn't. i wasn't even ready for how not ready i was

Also my favorite kind of Big Reveal is when you know something big is going to happen, because it's being foreshadowed (Firefly death) but that completely keeps your mind off the true reveal (Robin death) until it's time, and then the true reveal hits you like an avalanche.

You really can't trust anyone in this hotel. I have a vague idea of who's allied with who, but what they want? I have no clue.

My head hurts.

#honkai star rail #honkai star rail spoilers #liveblog

[devotedlystrangewizard]

that point when u cant stop doing things you like doing not because of executive dysfunction but just because youve been pushed past your breaking point and now everything but your special interests bothers you ahaha

#personal #WOOHOOOOO #im in my final year in theory but i just. i cant fucking do this anymore. i need time off. i need to take a break and just take a year or 2 #ive been saying i need a longer break since the first time i failed a year. funny story. no one listens #and now that im of a legal age to quit school and just try again a different time bc we have high schools for adults in that exact situatio #its been building up for like 4/5 years and i cant fucking do this anymore man. im so fucking tired all the time and its not the depressjon #im on antidepressants and they WORK. #when i get time off?? i feel fucking fantastic! i can enjoy my special interests! #but im so perpetually overwhelmed constantly on the verge of a meltdown that i literally have stopped functioning #i just go to school to do nothing and then i come home and play videogames and its a hell loop #and my mom blames the videogames but if i didnt have those id just be laying in bed every moment im home #ffxiv is literally one of the rare few things that still makes me happy lol #anyway #6 months to go till final exams #maybe ill be a dropout by then #who knows

[writingmoth]

10 fandoms, 10 characters

ty for the tag, @tisiphonewolfe!

tagging: @i-can-even-burn-salad @treesandwords

ok now i need to remind the stuff i actually like lmao. and having to choose!!! how!!!

destiny 2 - savathun

she's terrible and i love her to death for it

very honorable mentions bc choosing one was HELL: crow and oryx

waIT NO ITS GHOST

MY BOY

ffxiv - my wol, ves isra

no seriously

but if i had to choose a npc.... being very original:

league of legends - varus

my boy(s) </3

asoiaf - daenerys

being super honest i love the world of asoiaf and spend waaaaay too much to,e reading theories about the next books, but the only character i really care about is dany

tolkien - legolas

tbh im due for a silmarillion reread but until then it's him

dragon age - zevran

and its not even close tbh

now for things i like but don't follow as much:

hollow knight - pure vessel

he just makes me so sad omf

ffxvi - dion

i have not played the game bc i dont have a ps5 but. i know the whole story at this point so.

naruto - neji

im far as im concerned hes living his best life. no i dont take criticism.

baldurs gate 3 - astarion

i have not finished the game yet... and he doesnt like me... but...

#10 fandom 10 characters #choosing only one from destiny and ffxiv has me fighting for my life #i have a type and seeing it like this is not even funny

[nochi-quinn]

candela obscura chapter 1 episode 2: hey entire table what the fuck

still enjoying matt in shirtsleeves

still weird that his wrists are naked

are his sideburns going grey? like under the bulk of his hair

this is a scene that jumped into matt's head fully formed and he has to give all the details

source: been there

auggie!

that's my son!

vexnvax syndrome strikes again

going 'yum' just as charlotte's art pops up: correct

if there's one thing anjali's going to do it's play a hot lady in period clothing

"I've been smoking since I was eight" "then you can find your own smokes"

"sir, ma'am - " "doctor"

mala: the three genders

is "otherwhere" like ffxiv and "anyroad" or is it like. a place.

if there's one thing laura's gonna do it's try to get a magical item out of the GM

thank you, howard

witcher potion

auggie, whose friend turned into an ice ghost not even a month ago: fuck you, werewolves aren't real

arlo: maybe SOME PEOPLE - not me - are just SHY - I'm not tho - and have TROUBLE with PEOPLE - except me, I'm fine

bidet

"let matthew know" snickersnort

"what's my name?"

your name is also matthew

I don't know why "make a sneak" makes me smile but it does

howard just faceplants in the background

the story's too long to tell here but one time a woman brained herself on a hamster cage in petsmart and that's all I could think of with the guard blocking auggie

this voice is very endearing

not weird but WEIRD weird

all this for a loaf of bread?

matt making up names off the top of his head

aha! drugs

oh no

Quite Betrothed

fate dating au

"have you ever seen boiled bacon?" revolting!

"I have moments where new information makes me somewhat uncomfortable" autism mood

"I'm gonna touch it" to "this was a mistake" pipeline

if any of them were gonna succeed this seems like where you would want to succeed

yeah, DEAD SCIENTISTS, HOWARD

howard is now craving bacon

I WAS JOKING

I also enjoy this voice very much

aha. veterans.

he is An Doctor

bottom table is ND as f u c k

channeling patrick loller from tiktok: "if you thank me for my service you have to give me $5"

pocket bacon!

yeah see, $5

"we're not doing Get Help"

and that's just what the couple did to the room!

oh shit it's the fuzz

"our first victorian shit!" robbie what

joke three people in the world will get: you can only poop in the designated areas

the whole table: howard no robbie: HOWARD YES

nose punch go CRUNCH

"HOWARD WENT ROGUE"

howard said acab

what is anjali feeding her dice

robbie do you want to tempt the wrath of the whatever

the secretary's a werewolf

with a very cute accent

"he was a horn player" "I bet he was"

"s e x u a l i n t e r c o u r s e"

howard

"I wanna take his badge" fearne lives

he ran into a doorknob"

"WHY DID YOU TALK"

"stairs is faster" confused me until I remembered some people can actually walk down stairs instead of having to take them one at a time, one foot then the other, while clinging to the rail for dear life

laura

the way my brain autofilled "stayed open during the pandemic"

"is he a tall lanky boy" tailed by slenderman

grumbles in public transportation

everybody gets to punch a cop!

cable car fun fact: I was reading dashiell hammet for the first time and had to google what a broadway car was bc he said it like 90 times in the first three pages

and I'm STILL not sure I got it right

"how do you know I'm OUP" "the everything about you"

"my name is gertrude! I mean ethel!"

"spend all the drives! you won't need them later!"

"steal the man of the cloth's cloth!"

[witcher voice] for your discretion

"if only you knew how I was making my money"

ty for not popping your shoulders out on stream anjali

(I originally said "popping them out" and decided specificity was necessary)

this music is a+

"first name trio" is a good name for a band

disco elysium crossover

"she's having an idea….and it hurts" mood

"SHE DID IT" my crackpot theory is vindicated

that is certainly a way to put it

eddie? eyes emoji?

ashley very quietly reaching for her pencil

bacon plague!

banana spiders

"make sure you bring your hand with you"

c o n s u m e

"I've been working on this really great YA novel" MATTHEW I have already snorted lemonade through my nose once tonight, you can't say shit like that

ARLO

AUGGIE

I love them

why was my only thought AT THE OPERA TONIGHT

"do I recognize her as a TA?" "she's an ex-student" you get how that's worse, right

you have buried the lede slightly arlo

anjali: "I shouldn't curse" matt: who told you that shit

"that's poor people talk"

classism!

arlo

"THAT MAN TOUCHED MY BREAST"

"JEEEEEEEMY GOD"

we never should have given matt buttons

matt you live in LA you're giving them all trauma

kickin buddies

[pounding table] werewolf weREWOLF

that's. not a werewolf.

that's a bloodborne monster

just the panicked yelling dlkfjls

I too yell wordlessly when forced to make decisions

"until it was trying to merge with your body" hate THAT wording

hey matt what the fuck

HEY MATT WHAT THE FUCK

"if I'm still aliVE YOU NERDS HELP ME" bakugocore

"its own viscosity" despise it

hey. hey howard. whatcha doin.

[justin mcelroy voice] DON'T DRILL A HOLE IN YOUR HEAD

DON'T YOU PUN RIGHT NOW

hey robbie what the F U C K

"a gun! :D"

hey. hey arlo. hey arlo whatcha doin

some fullmetal alchemist shit is what

I hate everything about this

laura has just decided all her characters are coloring books now

"this arm doesn't have function anymore" oh mood

"takE IT, ROBBIE"

"you just do. what other choice is there?" hey I don't need this right now

hey howard what the fuck

HOWARD'S HAUNTED

see this is why you don't drill a hole in your head, you get ghosts

#candela obscura #critical role #spoilers #crititag #candelatag #liveblog #reaction post