Legacy/A Realm Reborn - Heavensward - Stormblood - Shadowbringers - Endwalker
Loyalty! Unity! Liberty!
- The very first teaser trailer for the second FFXIV Expansion.
How do you get people hyped for the next big addition to the game? Breathtaking views of a mountain oasis, centering on an epic sparring session between two Monks perched high up in the palm of a giant statue of Rhalgr the Destroyer carved into the mountain is a fantastic way to start.- 3.5 Part 2 made it clear that the monk in the red dress is Yda's sister Lyse.
- The unveiling of The Red Mage at the 2016 Japanese Fan Festival, a fan-favorite job from the series exuding style in clothes, attacks, and gestures.
- The second trailer released: A shot of the new city of Kugane as some local soldiers that lived there like the Shinsegumi (later turns out to be Garlean troops in Far Eastern-inspied armors) run through the streets to a dead end alleyway, at which point we get treated to a shot of the Warrior of Light in Samurai garb standing over two defeated soldiers. At first the leader tells his men to go at them with their swords, the Warrior does a Flash Step to dodge one and then takes them both out without even drawing his sword, just with a precise Sheath Strike. Now unnerved, they all draw their guns as the Warrior of Light slowly reaches for his sword, Iai-style. When they fire, the Warrior proceeds to do a Single-Stroke Battle so quickly that he vanishes, cleaving the bullets in half in mid-air, and creating a shockwave that rips the shingles and wall panels off a nearby house and ruins a stone embankment, disabling or killing the Shinsegumi in the process. He then slowly sheathes his sword, and the second it clicks into its sheath a nearby rain guard collapses, a tree in the background (That wasn't in the path of his strike, mind) falls apart in a Diagonal Cut, and a paper lantern falls to the ground and starts burning. And then he looks up as the camera pans out, giving us a absolutely stunning view of Kugane as triumphant music plays, ending with Yugiri and new character Gosetsu standing on the top of its gigantic palace looking out.
- The benchmark trailer shows a huge battle between the Warrior of Light, their allies, and the massive forces of Garlean troops and magitek mechs. The Warrior of Light, showing off the new Monk skills and gear, easily punches their enemy to defeat but has an Oh, Crap! moment when they see an Iron Giant ready to take a swing at them. Cue interruption by a Red Mage on the nearby cliff as he joins the fray to lend a hand.
- The Hopeless Boss Fights with Zenos are pretty awesome.
- The sheer sense of dread Zenos inspires with his slow walk toward you, No Selling everything you throw at him, is really great once you're no longer in the middle of being freaked out over it.
- Even in the aftermath of the first Hopeless Boss Fight, which is easily the Warrior of Light's Darkest Hour in the expansion, Zenos doesn't leave the battle without a cost. After striking one last blow to take the Warrior of Light out of the fight, there is an extended silence as your allies look on in horror...and then Zenos's katana-, which he has used to devastate your allies for the better part of an hour with ease- snaps in half at the blade. This moment becomes even more awesome later when it's learned that Zenos collects and prizes strong blades of Eastern origin, and so would likely have cared a great deal for the broken blade. It's very clear in that moment that even if someone can defeat the Warrior of Light in combat, there will be a price to pay for it.
- There's something to be said of the other heroes trying to fight Zenos, for what little good it does. When Lyse sees him, she just snarls out a "You are so dead!" and she attempts to take him down right then and there. And when she fails, Y'shtola jumps in to shield her. Bear in mind that neither of them have the Echo, while Zenos does through being a Resonant.
- Almost the entirety of the main story itself is a huge moment of awesome. The Warrior of Light and the Scions manage to convince people of many backgrounds and even beastmen to rise up against the empire. Doma and Ala Mhigo are both liberated by the end of the 4.0 story and it is glorious.
- A very understated one near the beginning of Stormblood. When the Scions arrive in Kugane, something they wanted to do with a fair degree of subtlety, Lolorito has Hancock waiting for them before they arrive and Hancock intercepts them at the first place they go to. Not only that but Hancock knows exactly why they're there, something the Scions have been trying to hide from everyone outside the highest echelons of Alliance command. Alphinaud is completely taken aback at this as he has no idea how Lolorito learned all of this information, which is a testament to the sheer breadth of the Monetarists' intelligence network.
- The attack on Doma Castle is awesome in itself. What makes it better is how Lord Hien comes up with an alternate plan for the attack. Originally, the plan called for blowing halls through the walls to create an opening. The actual plan cooked up at the last minute? Destroy the foundation in the river to flood the castle from the ground up so that the enemy forces are forced to retreat to the higher floors with no chance of escape.
- The final dungeon of Stormblood is Ala Mhigo itself. After suffering that first crushing defeat against Zenos, and then the long campaign to liberate Othard and the rest of Gyr Abania, the Warrior of Light and the Eorzean Alliance at long last can move to liberate the city. It's a hell of a payoff after struggling for so long throughout Stormblood's story, culminating in a fight against Zenos where the Warrior of Light truly emerges victorious. To top it off, all of the city state leaders can be seen in the background actually fighting against the Garlean soldiers, showing they can kick as much ass as the people they train to defend Eorzea. Ishgard also joins in and one of their sentries will tell you "Ishgard remembers, Warrior of Light!" to show that they have not forgotten your selfless deeds from Heavensward.
- The final boss battle, The Warrior of Light's showdown against Zenos inhabiting the primal Shinryu just above the menagerie, only for Zenos to decide that the heavens themselves are not grand enough of a final stage and creates a new star JUST to make sure the final battle will be that awesome. Zenos suggests they transcend from their "mortal coil", and takes you there, crossing through the dimensions. Cue the epic music and the true final battle REALLY begins. It is a rare feeling that hearkens back to FFIV and FFV.
- The song that everyone sings after Ala Mihgo is liberated. Hearing the voices of everyone in their native homeland singing in harmony after finally regaining their freedom is an awesome and heartwarming sight to behold.
- One player in the Susano battle gets their moment to shine per fight when they have to singlehandledly stop a gigantic blade from destroying the party, holding it off in a Press X to Not Die segment! Success results in an absolute No-Sell and repelling the blade right back up, throwing a massive water clone of Susano off-balance despite him easily towering over the party.
- The final confrontation of the level 70 Dark Knight quest, Our Compromise. You are pitted against an army of enemies that are old foes reanimated from your memories, the whole while enduring a very painful speech from the antagonist, about your failures and the horrible things you've done. But just as things are looking their grimmest...the enemies fall with three separate abyssal drains going off at once. Who caused it? None other than Fray, who the last time you saw him, you subdued in your mind after his attempts to take the reigns. After a quick reconciliation with you in regards to the level 50 quest, he proceeds to completely shut down the antagonist's ramblings, before joining you for one more battle, where you work your way through several reanimated antagonists from the past.
- The fight itself is concentrated awesome, while afterwards if you speak with Rielle in the Forgotten Knight, she sums up the ethos of the Dark Knight in three sentences:
Rielle: It's nice to dream of a world without pain and suffering. But the world is what it is, and dreams will only carry you so far. That's why we've got swords.- Near the end of the fight, one of the final foes you face is none other than the shade of Ser Zephirin. Considering you never actually got the chance to rip his goddamn heart out for what he did to Haurchefant at the end of Heavensward, getting to personally kill the bastard is pretty damn satisfying.
- Just to drive home how much of a badass moment it is that the Warrior of Light is asserting their will over their own insecurities, The Maker's Ruin plays. It should be noted that this is the only fight in any class/job quest so far introduced where that happens.
- The battle against Exdeath in the Omega Savage raid. After roughly half of his health is depleted, Exdeath is overcome by the void much like his original battle in Final Fantasy V. Then the void disappears and the arena gets darker. Suddenly, the background begins to crack as Neo Exdeath literally rips reality open in order to pull himself back into the battlefield to begin the final phase of the fight. It's a spectacular transition scene the likes of which haven't been seen in the game before.
- The fight with Neo Exdeath itself is an amazing callback and love letter to V as well. Its 3D rendition is equal parts amazing and horrifying (as it should be), and a large number of its attacks are lifted directly from the source material and given far more attention to detail than you'd expect XIV's environment could handle. About the only complaint players have with the otherwise awesome battle is that Grand Cross is easier to handle than in V, which is ultimately Necessarily Evil on the developer's part since its original effect* instead of the revamp* would make the fight a Luck-Based Mission in XIV's engine.
- The Nadaam event is a massive one for the main story. Spoilers abound! You, Hien, Gosetsu, Lyse, and the Au Ra Mol tribe are competing against other tribes on the Azim Steppe to claim the title of Khagan. Once everyone reaches the claim zone, the battles blows up into a three way split between your allies and two major tribes. Once you actually make progress, Magnai uses Holmgang on you to yank you away from the zone and forces you to fight him off. Not long after that, Sadu joins the fray and is preparing to end you with a Meteor based spell unless you take out her support fast. Once all is said and done, the Warrior of Light claims the spot and becomes the new Khagan for the Mol tribe. Celebrations are cut short when Grynewaht and his men show up to kill the Warrior of Light. As the new Khagan, they order their new allies to attack the invading empire forces and it becomes a massive brawl between the empire and your allies. In an inversion, Sadu prepares to use the same Meteor spell on the empire and thus you have to protect her this time. Grynewaht screams "Bugger, bugger, bugger!" before Sadu finishes casting and wipes out the entire enemy alliance in a single attack while laughing. Grynewaht is forced to run away yet again while your allies bask in the glory of victory.
- An understated moment of Awesome not for a person, but for Eorzea as a whole. The Garlean Empire tried to invade the Realm not one, not twice but three times. It failed. All three times.
- First invasion, done with their biggest dreadnough the Agrius, was stopped dead in its tracks by the Father of All Dragonkind, Midgardsormr himself, who tore the Agrius apart.
- Second invasion fared barely better. This time, the Garleans decided to drop Dalamud on the Realm. Except they also released the very pissed off dragon god that was sealed in it and the dragon laid waste on everyone, Garlean and Eorzean alike. It was a tie and, for Eorzea, the End of an Age. Did the city-states yield in front of the Calamity? Nope. They used the five-year respite to build themselves back from the ground and brace for Round Three.
- This time, the Garleans used an old Allagan superweapon. The Eorzean Alliance met Garlemald head on and fought them off, by themselves, with only a small team of professionals to deal the Allagan superweapon. End result? A clear victory for the Alliance and Garlemald sent reeling.
- Then Ilberd tricked the Alliance into attacking Baelsar's Wall. Did the Aliance retreat? Nope again. Instead, with Ishgard having joined, they decided to go along with it and free the last city-state of the continent, Ala Mhigo. Unexpected resistance from the crown prince of the Empire? Stir trouble in Doma to distract him while they get ready. It ends up working better than expected when Doma frees itself and the clans of Azim Steppe join the fight. By the end of Stormblood, all of Eorzea is freed, Doma is free and Garlemald is wondering just how they managed to do it.
- The end of the 4.1 main story quests culminates in a fight against Lakshmi in the Ala Mhigan throne room. At first it's just the player and Arenvald defending everyone present from getting enthralled by the primal with their Echo, and soon it becomes too much for the two alone to handle. As everyone else present is about to get enthralled, in comes Fordola, released from her prison room by Lyse, to protect them with a barrier.
- A great part of this fight is that Lakshmi employs the exact same mechanics she used in her trial, alongside some new attacks exclusive to this fight. One such attack is a room-wide attack that can't be avoided... except for a section of the room that Fordola forms a barrier at. Once the fight nears the end, Lakshmi spams this attack, and Fordola keeps the barrier up, rapidly draining her aether in the process, to make sure Lyse has enough time to charge up the final blow to the primal.
- Also, just the mere fact that Raubahn and Lyse assist you in the fight at all. By this time the story has made it a clear point that only people with the Echo can face off against a primal without risk of permanent enthrallment, and these two characters in particular are well aware of that risk. They had the chance to escape, but they put it all on the line anyway to help safeguard the peace they'd worked so hard to achieve.
- Ivalice. Almost everything about it. Just stepping foot inside the playwright ship hits you with nostalgia as the Protaganist's Theme from FFT starts playing. The raid itself filled with bosses that were espers from XII, culminating in rescuing Ramza's father at end, only to have a last minute mugging from none other than recurring XII antagonist Ba'Gamnon! The biggest deal though is that at the end, Jenomis's real name is actually Arazlam Durai and his goal, as it was in Tactics is to reveal to everyone the truth about the Ramza of legend.
- The last boss of the first raid takes special note for people who played Tactics. It's Argath(Algus). Yes, that Argath. The Argath that started off the entire game's events by causing Delita's Start of Darkness, caused Ramza to become disillusioned with the nobility, and in general being a massive asshat to anyone he deems to be a lower class than him. The Catharsis Factor in beating him down is massive.
- The third part of the raid, at the Orbonne Monastery, not only has you fighting souped up versions of Mustadio, Agrias and Thunder God Cid, each demanding their own mechanics and patterns that players have to work together to overcome, but it culminates in the final battle with Ultima, the Final Boss of the original Tactics. And her battle is suitably climatic, beating out most other bosses up to this point on the sheer number of attacks she has combined with the Healer check when the original Ramza leads the souls of his fellow comrades to shield you as best they can from her utter destruction. In any other game, this would be a real final boss of epic proportions — here, it's a footnote in the Warrior of Light's ongoing adventures.
- The Kojin beastmen quest where you have to save Tsukumo by raiding the vault belonging to the Kojin of the Red and you have Kabuto at your side. Each time you make it further in, your Kojin allies leave behind treasures to boost your power before they go back to the diversion. Kabuto shines in one part where he has you gather enemies in one spot so he can use the Blue Cut skill to mow them all down. In the final moments against the Red's general, Tsukumo sacrifices himself by merging with Kabuto's soul, giving the Kojin warrior enough power to strike the general down in one cut, making the enemy cough up a copious amount of blood before dropping dead. The whole quest not only gives much needed Character Development for Kabuto, but it also showcases how badass a beast tribe can be when they work together among themselves and with you.
- The end of the Sigmascape story cranks up when Omega decides to see what can make the Warrior of Light become incredibly strong when they need to be. Omega concludes that the Warrior of Light's strength only emerges when their life is in danger, so it traps them inside a barrier and tells them they have exactly 180 seconds to break free or it will kill them. Alpha uses a card to become a frog and tries ramming into the barrier, but fails. Midgardsormr takes action by becoming his old city sized dragon form and bites down on the barrier until it shatters. For a dragon that didn't hold any high regards to the Warrior of Light in Heavensward, Midgardsormr shows he not only respects them but is also willing to take a risk with his own life to save them.
- A small moment of awesome for Nero as well: despite being poisoned by Omega's drone, he hangs on long enough to act as mission control during the Kefka fight. And while he's hauled off to the hospital, he takes a moment to encourage Cid to break his own constraints and dig into their destructive past research for a weapon that can help kill Omega.
- The middle of 4.3 has Yotsuyu regaining her memories, and she bites back HARD. First, she kills her Abusive Parents after they decide to treat her like garbage one more time, even considering selling her back into prostitution. Then, after she is defeated by the Warrior of Light after she transforms into Tsukuyomi, she saves the last of her strength to impale Asahi and kill him as slowly and painfully as possible, just as he deserves. While she does die in the end, she went out having finally satisfied her desire for vengeance by eliminating the ones responsible for all the shit she's gone through.
- The final MSQ for the "Under the Moonlight" scenario is a big twist from both a story and gameplay perspective. For the first time, you get to control another character in the game and it's not just anyone, it's Alphinaud. You basically get to see what happened to Alphinaud during his trip to Garlemald and get to play out the battle in the event. Sure, the kid's actual skill set is extremely limited, lacking skills he's previously shown to have... and having one he shouldn't, but it's rare for an MMORPG to allow the player to control a character not of their own. Alphinaud gets assistance from another group of Garleans, one who wields a gunblade and uses moves that are quite familiar to those who played A Realm Reborn. The game all but spells it out in The Reveal: Gaius van Baelsar is back.
- Heaven-on-High, Stormblood's deep dungeon, has magicite. Magicite allows the player to summon a primal that kills all enemies on the current floor (or dealing major damage to a boss) and grants the party a few seconds of invincibility. Depending on your luck, you can get several magicite pieces in a row and make several floors or a boss a complete joke. Summoning primals is also a nod to an early concept the developers toyed with where they wanted people to be able to capture a primal to summon later.
- Atelloune in the Stormblood Leatherworker quests comes off as an Insufferable Genius, but she does genuinely care about the endangered species of many animals and has you craft various things from their pelts to preserve their memory so future generations can appreciate them. Later on, a hearer from the Conjurer's Guild scolds you for agitating the elementals with the mount display and he then takes it away. You craft another mount so Atelloune can display it in the amphitheatre for all to see. Once again, the hearer arrives and makes a fuss by claiming the displays are offensive, but not before Atelloune puts him and his bodyguard on the spot by explaining why she had you make the mounts and how you can't understand the animals by simply reading a book. She even calls out the wood wailer for his ignorance of the very animals whose pelts were used to make his armor.Atelloune: We must protect them as we do the balance of life here in the Twelveswood. To do otherwise would be a grievous squandering of resources.Wood Wailer Escort: You're one to talk. What is this display other than a waste of skin? You claim it it has an educational purpose, but one could simply read a book─Atelloune: And you have read such a book? I should hope you have, and that you are highly knowledgeable as a result, given that you wear clothing made from their hides.Wood Wailer Escort: Well... I...Atelloune: *Turning to the hearer* What about you? Do you know anything of dhalmels or gaganas? These people have a right to know what is happening to the world outside of Gridania. To know the cost of the goods they would otherwise take for granted.
- The battle with Omega in Alphascape 3 is one of the more awesome moments in the game. According to the developers the main theme of the fight boils down to one single question "who is stronger?" which is why Omega doesn't call any other monsters to assist it. Omega wants an equal contest between it and the raiding party which is why it only uses it's own abilities. In the savage version of Omega's fight it even starts panicking after being weakened which is why it goes berserk and unleashes Pantokrator.
- In Tales from the Storm, Arenvald teams up with the summoner squad from the Immortal Flames and Fordola to take out Ifrit that was recently summoned. Arenvald succeeds and shows he is just as capable of taking down primals on his own like the Warrior of Light can.
- In the latest Live Letter, it is confirmed that Blue Mage will be released as a new job in 4.5. Although it is yet to be a full-fledged job, the trailer makes it clear that, true to the tradition, the Blue Mage will be able to learn some skills from their enemies.
- In an attempt to avert the all-our war on Ala Mhigo's border in 4.5, the Eorzean Alliance attempts a parley with Garlemald, which causes them to come face-to-face with Emperor Varis himself. The entire first half of the negotiations is a psychological moment of awesome for Varis, his demeanor thoroughly unchanging as he calmly yet brutally deconstructs every argument the Alliance makes against him, not a single rebuttal unwarranted. They have to call for a recess because Varis is just that good.
- Raubahn, Lyse and Hien immediately question Varis on why he thinks this war is still worth waging after so many have died on both sides, saying that their people are willing to die for their freedom. Varis bluntly reminds them that Garlemald's occupation of Ala Mhigo and Doma did not start out as a war, but was a retaliation when the offended nations decided to lash out violently from having their personal space violated, and asks them to question if they think their freedom is worth more than surrendering and resuming peace even if it is under oppressive rule.
- Aymeric cites Ishgard's 1,000 year war with the dragons was mindless bloodshed that ended simply when the idea peace was brought up. Varis counters that said peace only became an option because of the war, pointing out that the dragons were obviously more receptive after their leader was killed, a cruel truth that Aymeric's late father wouldn't sugarcoat.
- Merlwyb tries to appeal to Varis due to both their races being vagabonds driven from their homelands. Varis has none of this and reminds Merlwyb that her pirate nation of Limsa Lominsa has no right to complain due to having been the force that drove a people from their homeland, that being the Kobolds.
- Kan-E-Senna tries to use the Ehcatl Nine as an example of how the beastmen can change for the better, in an attempt to see if they and the Garleans can strive for the same. Varis' counter is that this doesn't make the Eorzeans better than the beastmen, and they have in fact resorted to summoning during desperate times just like the beastmen still do.
- Varis is in total control for most of the second half of the parley too. Despite the Alliance finally connecting the dots that Garlemald was conquering nations before reaching the Burn (and thus pulling the rug out from under the "stop the world from summoning eikons" propaganda), Varis simply praises them for figuring it out before casually dropping the Awful Truth that his grandfather and Garlemald's founder is an Ascian, then goes on to dictate his master plan to eradicate the Ascians involves causing Calamities and uniting the survivors into a master race that can defeat them.
- The sole (albeit powerful) awesome moment the Alliance gets in this entire exchange comes from Nanamo, one of the absolute sweetest and non-confrontational people in the setting. Following everyone else's Sudden Principled Stand, she tells Varis straight to his face that he is not fit to rule, claiming that it's the differences between people he seeks to erase that make it all the more meaningful when those different people find a common ground.
- The Ghimlyt Dark dungeon. Like in Ala Mhigo, you can see the Eorzean Alliance troops fighting Garlemald's soldiers and Magitek, except this time, you fight alongside them instead of seeing them in the background. The party starts the dungeon with Yugiri and Hien, who split off before the first boss. Then, the party meets up with Pipin and Lyse as you fight your way towards the second boss, where they also leave. And after that, the party meets up with Aymeric and Kan-E-Senna, with the other four eventually rejoining to take down an absolute mob of elite Magitek, culminating in a miniboss fight against an elite Colossus. When the Colossus attempts to cleave everyone down with an unavoidable attack, Kan-E-Senna protects everyone with a magic bubble. When the fight goes south for the robot, it attempts to take everyone with it by self-destructing, only for Lyse, Hien, or Yugiri to strike it down in a single hit with their own Limit Break.
- Additionally, to show just how serious Garlemald is about winning this war, nearly every single Garlean Magitek unit seen in the game thus far (save Reapers and Slashers) can be fought in the dungeon. Sky Armors and a Gunship are fought with Hien and Yugiri; Predators, Avengers, an Armored Weapon and a Scorpion are fought with Pipin and Lyse; and Rearguards, a Hexadrone, and a couple of Colossi with Aymeric and Kan-E-Senna.
- And to show just how serious the Alliance is about winning this war, it looks like Garlemald's initial advance has been stopped cold at Ala Mhigo's eastern border, with the backdrop of the dungeon being crashed Garlean airships and ruined armor (and fire) everywhere. And this was with the defenses unfinished.
- 4.56 ends the story of Stormblood by FINALLY revoking Elidibus's The Unfought status, even if he's doing so through possession of Zenos's corpse, in a two-part solo duty fight. The first fight is a Hopeless Boss Fight with you in control of Hien, with Lyse and Yugiri backing you up as you have to stay alive long enough to buy time for your own player character to arrive, as shown by the onscreen messages proclaiming your proximity to the front lines. The second part will, if you're geared enough, likely end in you performing nearly a Curb-Stomp Battle on ELIDIBUS, though once you kick his ass he revives (shoulda brought some White Auracite!) Ascian-style and nearly kills you when the mysterious voice finally nabs you. Turns out it's a mysterious Miqo'te-looking hooded figure in the Aetherial Sea who declares that the war is pointless no matter how it ends and the only way to save the world is with him, and bids the Warrior of Light go find a beacon he's left at the Crystal Tower. When you wake up, Aymeric meets you at your sickbed and reveals that none other than Estinien bailed you out of certain death! Tataru's in tears when you return to the Rising Stones, but one thing's clear: we're going to take the battle to Garlemald's doorstep.
- While Hien, Lyse, and Yugiri couldn't weaken Elidibus enough, they fought the Ascian valiantly whereas most normal people wouldn't be able to put a scratch on them. Lyse even manages to get in a punch that damages Elidibus's face mask and reveals one of his eyes, which is almost a Call-Back to the end of 2.5 where Lyse's face mask was slashed and revealed her eye.
- To give you an idea of how powerful the Warrior of Light is in comparison to two national leaders, the leader of the Doman Shinobi and all of them great allies to the Scions, the Duty for this has a Level 70 sync and lets you play as Hien for the first half, who is doing Scratch Damage at best, has 43'591 health points and has to be healed or use Second Wind to keep up in the fight for how hard Elidibus-as-Zenos hits. The game employs a strong case of Show, Don't Tell by making you witness firsthand how overpowered a Garlean body with magic is even with three against one. Meanwhile, a fully-geared Warrior in a Tank job is upwards to double that count, barely takes any damage from anything short of the most intense attacks even if they're a Healer, recovers most of the damage within seconds during lulls in direct fighting, and drops their foe dead like a rock temporarily. Were it not for the mysterious individual's attempts to summon them causing a sudden bout of unconsciousness, even being put on the backfoot in a cutscene shortly after was likely to be brief at best given they take a slash head-on and get right back up compared to the previous two times Zenos hit them in cutscenes. The Warrior decimated Elidibus so hard that the mere appearance of Estinien made him tactically withdraw after the beating he received rather than continue fighting.
- After the credits, we're shown a scene of Emperor Varis and Elidibus talking in Varis's throne room. Elidibus questions Varis on his decision to retreat back to Garlemald when his forces were so close to winning. Varis retorts that he had to dispel rumors circling the noble courts that crown prince Zenos had been possessed by a demon, then turns the question back on Elidibus: Why was he back in Garlemald when he was supposed to be killing the Warrior of Light? Elidibus can only offer the pathetic excuse that there was "a minor setback", but vows that the Warrior won't get away the next time they meet. The Eorzean Alliance aren't the only people Varis is capable deflecting the accusations of it seems, and Elidibus's body language during the conversation suggests that he wasn't prepared to have his argument thrown back in his face either.Elidibus: ...I pray you have good reason for abandoning the front.
Varis: How could I remain there while the rumor that my son is possessed by a demon spreads like a sickness here at home? ... But what of you? Did you not tell me you would destroy Eorzea's champion with the ease that one might swat a fly?
Elidibus: A minor setback. He/she will not escape me again. - Kugane Ohashi, the trial from the tail end of the Stormblood Hildibrand questline, at first appears to be a battle against Yojimbo, a boss that many players will have already contended with if they previously completed the Kugane Castle dungeon. And then "Battle on the Big Bridge" kicks in!"For Yojimbo... It is Gilgameshing time!"
- Bilingual Bonus: "O-hashi" translates to "Big Bridge".
- The Alliance and Resistance are trying to take a fortification to act as a defense against a weapon used by the Garleans from Castrum Abania, a cannon that could easily wipe out the army on approach. They reason that the Garleans won't fire on their own base, giving them a foothold to approach the Castrum more easily. Unfortunately, Zenos had other plans, and ordered the weapon turned on the fortification, killing Eorzeans, Ala Mhigans, and Garleans alike in a single blow that topples the main tower. A second shot is immanent, and no one can get to the tower... at least, no one at the fort where the Wo L is fighting. But someone else was already IN Gyr Abania, and has a the perfect set of skills to get to a high place - Estinien. Channeling Nidhogg's power through his spear, he leaps off the top of Castrum Abania and uses Dragonfire Dive to cripple the firing mechanism. The squad leader below orders his men to shoot him while wondering how one man can do that... only for Estinien to leap away again, out of range.
- Much like the two expansions before it Stormblood's story can have additional emotional weight due to the lore of the Jobs:
- For starters, due to the story being centered around the liberation of Ala Mhigo and Doma equiping Jobs originating from the nations adds to the awesomeness. Liberating Doma as a Samurai represents the rebirth of their honor and their redemption for the failure more than 20 years ago, whereas taking the role as a Ninja avenges the treason done upon them in their second try. Meanwhile freeing Ala Mhigo as a Red Mage does justice to all the Crimson Duelist who died at the hands of the Empire, whereas with the Monk it marks the triumphant return of the Fist of Rhalgr to their motherland to save them.
- Defeating Shinryu as any of the Jobs from Ala Mhigo is a giant middle finger to Ilberd, but another Job also adds surprising meaning to the fight, that being the Dragoon who, by killing the Mad Primal, prevents the cycle of hatred between Man and Dragon from starting anew commiting themselves as knights who fight for peace on both sides.
- Lakshmi is a vile Primal that uses her light motif and angelic appearance to hide the fact that she is a cheater and a liar, abusing her followers with empty promises to drain them of their aether and prayer.... Not exactly the Church but if there ever was a Primal that needed to be defeated by a Dark Knight it certainly is this one.
- Zenos might very well be the biggest monster in the game and many Jobs add more sweetness to the Warrior overcoming him. As a Samurai the Prince of Garlemald has spit on everything the Job represents while bastardizing the style. As a Reaper the Warrior is forced to confront the reality that, fascist though they may be, the Garleans were the very first of Solus, Varis and Zenos' victims, giving them false hope, encouraging their worst traits and then shoving them into a war that could never be won, and its time to avenge them too.
- Return to Ivalice puts the potential spotlight into two Jobs. Do you wish to focus on the idea of helping Garleans who do not wish for warfare and have drawn the ire of Varis? Then the Reaper is the job to go for during these quests. If on the other hand you wish to focus on Dalmasca then this is the first step in a long journey for a lone Gunbreaker to start the liberation of the nations that created their fighting style.
- Omega is an enemy to all life upon the star and has been since its arrival to Hydaelyn so a few Jobs have a personal feud with the mechanical monstruosity. Summoners must once again atone for the sins of the past by destroying the monster that indirectly created Allag, Dragoons must take their lances to champion Midgardsormr, Omega's Arch-Enemy, in their last confrontation and Gunbreakers must arm themselves to break the last of Allag's world destroying weapons in this last confrontation between the Empire and Gunhildr's Blades.
- Fitting towards her tragic nature and her vile actions there is two ways to deal with Yotsuyu. If you believe that her actions are inexcusable and her countrymen have suffered for too long then go forth Samurai or Ninja, write the closing chapter of this dark era in Doma. But if part of you sincerely pities Yotsuyu for the cards she was dealt then go forth Paladin, be the hero and deliver the salvation the maiden so keenly desires.
- The cutscene leading up to the final fight against Omega is a moment of awesome for Alpha. When Omega flees to the void of space, Alpha begins to track him down. Despite Alpha starting to freeze from the vast emptiness of space and running out of breath, he remembers Cid's encouraging words to him and Biggs and Wedge's near death experience from Omega, which convinces the Chocobo to push himself harder. When Alpha finally reaches Omega, Cid and the Warrior of Light suddenly appear behind Alpha's head shrunken down before returning to normal size. Thanks to Cid using Alpha's invisibility and shrinking cards, he was able to render himself and the Warrior of Light invisible to hide from Omega and small enough to ride Alpha to Omega. Even if Alpha couldn't match Omega in raw power, his ingenuity and bravery helps the Warrior of Light beat Omega once and for all.
