History Characters / FinalFantasyXIVTheFirst

* DropTheHammer: Gaia's weapon of choice when she's not casting magic. [[spoiler:She puts it to good use breaking out the Warrior of Darkness and their allies from their ice prisons, then attempts to break Ryne free from hers.]] When Gaia was revealed in pre-release material, much ado was made by game staff about how a Hammer isn't a weapon used by any player Class/Job (barring crafters), although the Marauder/Warrior does have a dwarven war hammer for their Lv 78 weapon. When her outfit was added to the Online Store, there were also several hammers added based on her weapon so that multiple disciplines[[note]]Gladiator/Paladin, Marauder/Warrior, Dark Knight, Lancer/Dragoon, Reaper, Conjurer/White Mage, and Thaumaturge/Black Mage[[/note]] could complete the look.

* FlatCharacter: Among the Lightwardens, it's this. Not playful like Titania, not unnerving like Philia, not a wild beast like Eros, and not a person like Innocence. It also has zero build-up compared to the others, who were all feared across their respective regions. Storge, on the other hand, is just a [[DiabolusExNihilo creature waiting at the bottom of the local dungeon.]]

* InASingleBound: Ran'jit looks to be preparing to leap a distance of several hundred meters in pursuit of the Scions after the battle in Laxan Loft. While the Exarch intervenes before he can pull it off, his other exploits leave little room to doubt he could have pulled it off.

''Nations of Hydaelyn'': [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTheEorzeanAlliance The Eorzean Alliance]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVIshgard Ishgard]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVDragonHordes Dragon Hordes]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVOthardAndHingashi Othard and Hingashi]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVSharlayanAndThavnair Sharlayan and Thavnair]]\\
''Other Realms'': [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTheVoid The Void]] | '''The First''' | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTheWorldUnsundered The World Unsundered]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVPandaemonium Pandæmonium]]) | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVUltimaThule Ultima Thule]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTural Tural]]\\

''Other Realms'': [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTheVoid The Void]] | '''The First''' | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTheWorldUnsundered The World Unsundered]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVPandaemonium Pandæmonium]]) | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVUltimaThule Ultima Thule]]\\

[[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTheWarriorOfLight The Warrior of Light]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTankClasses Tank Classes]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVRangedClasses Ranged DPS Classes]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVMeleeClasses Melee DPS Classes]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVCasterClasses Caster Classes]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVHealerClasses Healer Classes]])\\

''Antagonists'': [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVAscians Ascians]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVEmetSelch Emet-Selch]]) | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVGarleanEmpire Garlean Empire]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVZenosYaeGalvus Zenos yae Galvus]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVBozjanGarleans Bozjan Garleans]] \\

''Antagonists'': [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVAscians Ascians]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVEmetSelch Emet-Selch]]) | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVGarleanEmpire Garlean Empire]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVZenosYaeGalvus Zenos yae Galvus]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVBozjanGarleans Bozjan Garleans]]) | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVPrimals Primals]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVRaidAntagonists Raid Antagonists]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVOmega Omega]]) | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVAntagonists Other Antagonists]]\\

A mysterious girl clad in dark armor seemingly sent from the void that attacked Eden in the embrace of a voidsent. Though Gaia remembers being a free citizen of Eulmour, her memories are fragmented and hazy. At the guidance of a "faerie" who's been with her since childhood, Gaia invites herself to the efforts with Eden in the hopes of regaining her lost memory.

'''Race''': Hume]
A mysterious girl clad in dark armor seemingly sent from the void that attacked Eden in the embrace of a voidsent.

* BossSubtitles: As the Voidwalker, she has the grandiose subtitle of "Antithesis Manifest". [[spoiler:Her "Fairy" holds the subtitle "Antithesis Conscient."]]

* DropTheHammer: Gaia's weapon of choice when she's not casting magic. [[spoiler:She puts it to good use breaking out the Warrior of Darkness and their allies from their ice prisons, then attempts to break Ryne free from hers.]] When Gaia was revealed in pre-release mateiral, much ado was made by game staff about how a Hammer isn't a weapon used by any player Class/Job (barring crafters), although the Marauder/Warrior does have a dwarven war hammer for their Lv 78 weapon. When her outfit was added to the Online Store, there were also several hammers added based on her weapon so that multiple disciplines[[note]]Gladiator/Paladin, Marauder/Warrior, Dark Knight, Lancer/Dragoon, Reaper, Conjurer/White Mage, and Thaumaturge/Black Mage[[/note]] could complete the look.

* HearingVoices: All her life, she's heard the voice of a "Fairy" which tells her how to use her power, and is the only reason she even remembers her own name. [[spoiler:This "Fairy" turns out to be the will of Eden itself, or more accurately, the Ascian Mitron who is sealed within Eden, calling out to his partner Loghrif.]]

** She calls the mysterious voice that gives her power a "Fairy", this is what Laguna called Squall's presence junctioned to him when he felt Ellone "connect" him to the past.

!!sin eaters

When the Flood of Light nearly consumed the First, every mortal life that the Flood claimed was reborn as a sin eater who now plague the world in the Flood's absence.

* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: To the [[OurDemonsAreDifferent Voidsent]]. Both are the unfortunate souls twisted by the Floods that claimed their worlds, who become aether starved and attack others to feed. While Voidsent are aspected to Darkness, are demonic in nature, and originated from the Thirteenth Shard, the sin eaters are Light-aspected, angelic in nature, and hail from the First Shard. Voidsent retain their personalities and humanity, but taken to [[CardCarryingVillain extremes as they satisfy all their desires]], while sin eaters suffer DeathOfPersonality and act on the most primitive of instincts. Voidsent scheme to get more power and move up the hierarchy, while sin eater are content serving their superiors even if it doesn't satisfy their base urges.

** sin eaters with the "Touch" infect their victims with a primordial Light that disrupts the aetheric balance of the soul. Even if a person survives being attacked, that Light will slowly eat away at them from the inside and they will eventually turn into a new sin eater.

* LightEmUp: Naturally the sin eaters can weaponize light aspected magic in various ways.

* WasOnceAMan: Every sin eater was a person or animal that was either caught up in the Flood of Light before it was halted, or was corrupted by the sin eaters.

* AfterTheEnd: By the time the Warrior of Light shows up, the entire planet save for the region of Norvrandt has been consumed by the Flood of Light. The inhabitants live in constant fear of the violent Sin Eaters and the inevitability that the Light will eventually consume them as well.

** The Sin Eaters were named such when they first arrived because they were interpreted as heavenly avengers by the Light worshippers predominant in Norvrant. Although it became clear that they were in fact just mindless, aether-starved beasts, the name had already stuck; rather than trying to give them a different moniker, the people started calling themselves "sinners" to identify as enemies of the creatures. Flipping terms denoting vice and virtue seem to be a quirk of the culture that has arisen as a result, and when called "villains" by their adversaries, the Crystal Exarch is quick to take up this title in stride and the Scions play along with it as well.
** Because of the Sin Eaters' aspect to Light and the eternal daytime that shrouds the skies up until ''Shadowbringers'', Novrandt idolizes the darkness and night, which comes across as this trope to natives of the Source. The Night's Blessed, as explicit Darkness worshippers, are the most obvious, but people all throughout Norvrandt grow up on tales of "the Sunless Sea". [[spoiler:When Urianger reveals that Astral/Active and Umbral/Passive on the elemental balance is actually the opposite of what their names suggest, being Dark(Astral) and Light(Umbral) respectively, it reveals that Darkness is actually a positive force for creation, subverting the long held beliefs about the inherent natures of Light/Dark that the Source believes.]]

* DarkIsNotEvil: The Warrior of Light from the Source takes up the role of Warrior of Darkness in Norvrandt to save the First from being consumed by the primordial Light and the Sin Eaters spawned by them.

** Lakeland is a variation of Bargaining. The people of Lakeland are desperate to find some way of saving the world, and the Crystal Exarch is willing to do whatever it takes to stop the Sin-Eaters. The result is that they actively fight to stop it. Unlike most examples of Bargaining, this makes them heroic since [[HeroicResolve they are willing to do whatever it takes to save the world]]. Lakeland's determination is rewarded through their efforts in the end.
** Ahm Araeng is Depression. Being where the Flood of Light was stopped, the people of the land are downtrodden and living without any care to work or do much. Those on the eastern side live as much as they can by hoping traders come by, with a camp setup for those infected by Sin-Eaters where they wait to die, while those living on the western side have given up their mining trade and just live day to day. The Warrior of Light and the Scions help inspire hope in the people of Ahm Araeng, and motivate them to resume work and find purpose.
** Kholusia and Eulmore is Acceptance. They've given up trying to fight the Sin-Eaters and simply coexist with them, waiting for the end of the world as they live a life of luxury. Unlike most portrayals of this trope where Acceptance is framed as a good stage, here it's evil because of [[TheQuisling their methods]] and [[WhileRomeBurns ways they live]]. Once Vauthry is ousted from power, the people of Elmore decide to actually try and improve things instead of accepting the end of the world.

* LightIsNotGood: Nowhere is this more apparent than the First. The Flood of Light has nearly destroyed the world in its entirety and monstrous angelic entities known as Sin Eaters are preying upon its remaining inhabitants. Due to The First being essentially locked in a permanent state of daylight, the Sin-Eater attacks and their victims are on full display without any shadows or darkness to obscure them. The Flood itself is essentially a crystalized mass of Light aether that forms the border of what is still left of the world, with everything beyond it being just a barren white void that can't sustain any life at all.

* HowTheMightyHaveFallen: Lakeland was once the heart of the Church of the Light, the dominant religion of the First. Once the Flood began and the Sin Eaters arose, the religion fell into ruin as Sin Eaters were seen as divine retribution for the people's sins and the religion collapsed.

* TheChainsOfCommanding: [[spoiler:Experiences this after the Sin Eater attack on Lakeland the Crystarium. She feels she failed her men with how many died during the battle while they were so close to finally being rid of the Sin Eaters. The Warrior of Light has to step in when she collapses from pain and starts blaming herself for the fallout of the attack]].
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Her introduction involves her grilling the Warrior of Light about where they're from, before casually one-shotting a Sin Eater that snuck up on them. This establishes herself as a seriously loyal and skilled combatant who won't abide the Sin Eaters attacking innocents.

* LegacyCharacter: She's the latest in a long line of Minfilia reincarnations, all of which were trained from an early age to fight the Sin Eaters and all of which, understandably, quickly died off.

* ReincarnationIdentifyingTrait: Every Minfilia has blonde hair and the Word of the Mother's glowing sapphire eyes. [[spoiler:When the original Minfilia gives this last reincarnation" her power, she "removes these traits as a sign she is no longer a LegacyCharacter and is free to decide her own destiny.]] As the Oracle of Light, she also has an immunity to Sin Eater corruption and the ability to sense their Light. This is PlayedWith in the sense that the Minfilias' aren't truly the original's reincarnations, but act out as hosts for her soul instead. The traits are what indicate the presence of her soul alongside their own.

** In a level 79 quest, [[spoiler:they show up in their Titania form with a flock of fae to help protect the colossal Talos from Sin Eaters and allow the Warrior of Light to reach and defeat Vauthry]].

* AllCrimesAreEqual: And are met with either death, exile from the city off the top floor balconies (which likely ends in death), or as food for the Sin Eaters.

* TheDictatorship: Eulmore formed a cult of personality around its psychotic despot [[FatBastard Vauthry]] due to his ability to control Sin Eaters. A highly class-segregated society, the upper crust of Eulmore is made up of decadent nobles that don't care at all that the world is slowly crumbling around them, while at the bottom there are commoners whose only hope of getting to the upper parts of Eulmore is by becoming an indentured servant of a noble. Vauthry himself is a narcissist who only desires to be worshipped, even if that means allowing TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt to happen. Eulmore wasn't always like this though, and was actually a democratic city-state at the forefront in the fight against the [[LightIsNotGood Sin Eaters]], though this means that by the time ''Shadowbringers'' starts, Eulmore's army is completely under Vauthry's control. [[spoiler:Once Vauthry is dead, the city as a whole returns to its senses and reinstates a democratically-elected mayor.]]

* TheFatalist: While the citizens of Crystarium fortified their city against the light and Sin Eaters and are trying to find a way to fight back, the citizens of Eulmore believe death from the Light will get everyone sooner or later, so they decide to give in and spend the rest of their days in excess luxury.

* HumanResources: Sin Eaters exist as part of Eulmore society and are given people to feed on. Those who defy the laws of Eulmore specifically. [[spoiler:Also done indirectly by "ascending" people into sin eaters then turning any unwanted sin eaters into meol, which is a nourishing food but is full of primordial light which over time makes the populous more susceptible to Vauthry's mind control magic.]]
* ImpossiblyDeliciousFood: As WordOfGod in a live letter, meol is universally delicious and tastes like a bakery smells, that great scent that makes you want to try everything in the store. It is subverted as a PovertyFood due to everyone eating it and like it and is even used for bartering by the lower class. [[spoiler:Though, its later shown that consuming the stuff isn't such a good idea, as it's made of sin eater and corrupts the consumer with light, making them susceptible to brainwashing over the years, and potentially transforming one into a Sin Eater much farther down the line.]]

* ArcVillain: [[spoiler:Of the entire "Sin Eater" arc of ''Shadowbringers''. While its clear in a normal story he'd be the BigBad, his protecting the Sin Eaters and wish to ensure his rule over the ruined world as a god, Emet-Selch's self-inclusion and the ultimate reveal of the Ascians' [[WellIntentionedextremist true motives]], along with [[TheManBehindTheMan Emet masterminding Vauthry's birth]] to hasten the Eight Umbral Calamity, ultimately turns him into this.]]
* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: He is said to "ascend" the nobility and any peasant that said noble asks him to. It is described as taking one to a paradise after a rapture-like event is invoked on them. [[spoiler:It's later revealed ascension is him turning people into Sin Eaters, with even him undergoing the process when his mortal form tastes defeat.]]
* TheBeastmaster: [[spoiler:He has complete control over the Sin Eaters in his city, for he is the Lightwarden known as Innocence.]]

* EvilCannotComprehendGood: His FatalFlaw. Vauthry was raised from birth to believe he could become Norvrandt's salvation, and views himself as a WellIntentionedExtremist who is the only hope for the First. When the Warrior of Darkness arrives and starts to show they can stop the Sin Eaters and Lightwardens, he is unable to understand why they would do so, and diverts time and resources to try and stop them. This is demonstrated when he is introduced, as he fails to understand why Alphinaud was so angry about Kai-Shirr hurting himself by his commands. [[spoiler: In the end, he simply can't understand how he can be wrong, and as he lays dying, he can only question why everything he knew lead to his defeat.]]
* EvilGloating: [[spoiler:After the Sin Eater attack on Lakeland, he personally leads an airship delegation over the survivors purely so he can gloat that the people of Lakeland have no one but themselves to blame for "defying" the Sin Eaters and that they should have joined Eulmore when they had the chance.]]

* HalfHumanHybrid: [[spoiler:He was conceived with the Light of a Sin Eater placed in him as he resided in his mothers womb, and his docile presence was strong enough to pacify Sin Eaters with his presence alone.]]

* HeWasRightThereAllAlong: The party assumes that Vauthry is hiding the Lightwarden of Kholusia so he can use it to control the Sin Eaters. [[spoiler:In fact, Vauthry ''is'' the Lightwarden, Innocence, and controls the Sin Eaters directly.]]
* IAmAHumanitarian: [[spoiler:His actions as a Sin Eater-Human hybrid mark him as a two-fold cannibal since he regularly gorges himself on Meol, which is made from ground-up Sin Eater flesh and Sin Eaters are created from various citizens in his domain including humans being transformed into Sin Eaters by his command.]]
* TheImmune: [[spoiler:Due to being born half-Sin Eater, Vauthry resists the dangerous effects of light imbalance. Even after becoming a proper Sin Eater, he still retains his self and soul until he dies]].
* ItsAllAboutMe: The reason the Sin Eaters, monsters that have been plaguing Norvrant for over a hundred years - far longer than Vauthry has been alive - exist? So that everyone will flock to his "sanctuary" and kneel under what ''he'' allows his subjects... or at least, [[UnwittingPawn that's what he thinks.]]

* MadnessInducedOmnivore: Already a despotic ManChild [[TheHedonist obsessed with hedonism]], he shows he's gone off the deep end for sure when the Warrior of Light and companions walk into his chambers to witness him eating his pet Sin-Eaters and massive amounts of [[HumanResources meol]], including a shot where he swallows his food whole, fork and all.

* TheManBehindTheMan: [[spoiler:He was the one who had the graves of the First's Warriors of Light exhumed and summoned Sin Eaters into their corpses, creating the Cardinal Virtues. This is only revealed after all four role quests are done, and likely long after Vauthry's been killed, to the point the reveal is treated as a minor afterthought.]]

* MindControl: He has charisma that makes everyone in Eulmore practically bend to his will. [[spoiler:This is because as the most powerful Lightwarden, he can control Sin Eaters, and the people of Eulmore are fed a diet of Meol, a bread made from Sin Eater flesh]].
* MisanthropeSupreme: He holds a deeply cynical view of mankind, claiming that the people of Norvrandt are short-sighted fools who would destroy themselves in pointless resource wars without the threat of Sin Eaters to keep them in line. He uses this point to justify his rule in a conversation with the Exarch.

** Additionally, he bears some similarities to Queen Brahne from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX''. Both are morbidly obese tyrants who appear to be the BigBad. Their plans for conquest rely on supernatural creatures: Sin Eaters for Vauthry, and Black Mages for Brahne. Both have a pair of twin jesters as minions, along with a nigh-invincible general who subjects the party to a HopelessBossFight. [[spoiler:And finally, both turn out to be pawns for the real Big Bad.]]

* SatanicArchetype: Fulfills all of the critiera. He commands the sin eaters to his will, checks out on all SevenDeadlySins, and lures innocents to his false utopia. [[spoiler: He is also revealed to be half-sin eater with Innocence, his Lightwarden form, resembling Lucifer before his fall.]]

* VillainousGlutton: A grossly obese, hedonistic villain. Illustrated best just before his [[spoiler:flight from Eulmore]], in which he's stuffing his face with meol [[spoiler:and possibly his Sin Eater attendees]].
* VillainHasAPoint: During his parley with the Exarch, Vauthry mocks the Exarch's hope that Norvrandt can be saved, and believes that even should the Flood be stopped, humanity would destroy itself over what little resources remain. He's not wrong when he says that [[IgnoranceIsBliss people yearn for happiness and safety]] ''now'', not later. Plus, until the Warrior of Darkness arrived in the First, no options remained to actually stop the Sin Eaters and the Lightwardens, so his outlook on the world had some basis in reality.

* YouCouldHaveUsedYourPowersForGood: [[spoiler:Alphinaud remarks several times how Vauthry could have used his power over the Sin Eaters to make Norvrandt a better place, and even quotes this trope nearly word for word when he's finally defeated.]]

* AlasPoorVillain: It becomes clear that Ran'jit has been broken by a lifetime of fighting Sin Eaters and watching all the Minfillias he has raised as surrogates die at their hands. All this after we consider he is the last Gukumatz master with his nation and its culture erased by the flood of light. That Vauthry offers any alternative to the violence has him support the man wholeheartedly. [[spoiler:His last thoughts and words are of his "daughters".]]

* DespairEventHorizon: After already being the last of his kind, seeing multiple generations [[spoiler:of Minfilias, who he has raised as both TheMentor and ParentalSubstitute, die pointlessly against the Sin Eaters just to give the people hope eventually broke him, and he came to serve Vauthry and keep the current Minfilia locked up to protect her no matter what.]]

* FallenHero: He was previously one of the greatest champions against the Sin Eaters, both for his sheer martial skill and his superior leadership. However, a long career of seemingly hopeless fighting, combined with watching his surrogate daughters die in those same hopeless battles again and again, wore him down. Now, he willingly acts as the depraved Vauthry's enforcer solely with the goal of [[spoiler: keeping Minfillia safe, no matter the cost.]]

* LastOfHisKind: Ran'jit's Gukumatz martial arts order, home and culture were completely wiped out by the flood. He's also the last of the Sinbound, pre-Vauthry Eulmore's elite anti-Sin Eater force.

* OldMaster: An evil version of this trope. He is an 88-year-old master of martial arts who had fought against the Sin Eaters in an endless war for decades, indeed being trained [[ChildSoldiers before he could form complete sentences consistently]]. His mastery of Gukumatz, a dragon familiar made out of his own aether, gives him a powerful living weapon to aid him.

A race of aquatic humanoids which spend their days living in isolation at the bottom of the sea in everlasting abodes, keeping little contact with the surface. They are the First's variation of the Sahagin. Due to the darkness of the sea they have been left relatively untouched by the Sin Eaters.

* HiddenElfVillage: The Ondo Cups are nestled at the bottom of the Tempest, the churning waters off the coast of Kholusia. Due to the lack of light on the sea floor, it's practically untouched by Sin Eaters and landdwellers alike. As such, the Ondo are alarmed when [[spoiler:Bismarck displaces the water for the heroes to breathe in when they come in search of Emet-Selch]]. But although the Ondo are secretive, they harbor no real ill will toward surface dwellers and will simply ask them to leave if possible or at least behave themselves.

* FightingFromTheInside: [[spoiler:She tries to resist her Sin Eater transformation and communicate with you and Alisaie. Tesleen gets as far as "Forgive me, Alisaie..." before losing herself to the transformation. During the boss battle with her in Holminster Switch, Tesleen shows none of her previous traits; she's just another Sin Eater now, with no helping her beyond a MercyKill.]]
* MercyKill: It's mentioned she usually delivers these to the afflicted under her care by feeding them their favorite foods laced with poison before they turn into sin eaters so they do not die in pain. [[spoiler: You also give this to her as the second boss of Holminster Switch, putting Tesleen out of her misery before she can turn anyone else into a Sin Eater.]]
* SacrificialLamb: [[spoiler:Tesleen's death and subsequent horrific transformation into a Sin Eater is what truly establishes how terrifying the Sin Eaters are.]]
* SmallRoleBigImpact: She's only in the game for a few quests at the beginning of ''Shadowbringers'' before she's removed from the story. However, Tesleen's ultimate fate is what sets things up for how bad things are in the First by showing what the Sin Eaters are capable of.
* TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth: She's the kindest and sweetest character you can imagine when you first meet her. Even in a hellish world where sin eaters kill anyone they spot and infect survivors, she does her best to maintain a positive outlook and help those who are suffering. [[spoiler:Naturally, she dies in the most painful way possible when she was turning into a Sin Eater]].
* WalkingSpoiler: It's hard to talk about Tesleen without revealing what happens to her, or what her relationship ends up becoming to the Sin Eaters.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: You only get to see and learn about her for a good thirty minutes or so [[spoiler:before she transforms into a Sin Eater and later on is slain in the upcoming dungeon]].

* CreepyChild: He never says a word, and reacts to everything around him with a flat, emotionless stare due to the late stages of primordial light afflicting him. [[spoiler:Even Tesleen's horrifying transformation into a Sin Eater ''right in front of him'' fails to provoke a reaction.]]

* WrongContextMagic: In a world plagued by everlasting light and angelic Sin Eaters, the Voidwalker surprises by using exclusively dark-based attacks and tearing open gates to summon Voidsent; the equal and opposite of Sin Eaters. While Voidsent and dark magic are a common-enough threat on the Source, the overwhelming dominance of Light on the First combined with the greater metaphysical distance from the Void to the First means that no Voidsent are ever seen as enemies prior to the fight with the Voidwalker. [[spoiler:This is the first major hint to her true nature.]]

Once the prosperous mortal kingdom Voeburt, the land of the north was claimed and reshaped by the different fae Beastmen into their new home Il Mheg after the Flood of Light claimed their forest home and the inhabitants of the territory were taken out by the Sin Eaters or [[TheCorruption worse]].

* GreenThumb: They love flowers and plants, and as such even turn mortals they like or ones that anger them into shrubs for fun. Though they have on occasion [[MercyKill did so because they were turning into a boring Sin Eater]].

* LockedOutOfTheLoop: He's kept in the dark about the true nature of the Scions and how and why they came to the First beyond that they are heroes from far away here to fight the Sin Eaters. This lead to an awkward moment when he [[spoiler:pleads with Y'shtola to stay with the Night's Blessed because he's completely unaware she will die if she stays, leaving her struggling to find a way to let him down gently.]]

** Lamitt [[spoiler:tried to, and succeeded in, saving the stone-blighted Dwarfs, only to be banished along with the cured Dwarfs out of political convenience than any taboo she broke. The cured becoming Sin Eaters only made things worse.]]

* CosmicPlaything: ''Shadowbringers'' really piles on that he was one. The Shadowkeeper from his tale [[spoiler:was actually a member of his own party, who was trying to turn his party all into Warriors of Light so they could slay her]] in an effort to cause an overflow of Light. In an effort to circumvent this, he fought the Ascians in the same way the hero of the Source had, and even won... but in doing so, [[spoiler:created the first Sin Eater and]] [[MortonsFork caused a Flood of Light anyway]]. In his efforts to fix his mistake, he's forced to wander the world as a ghost for a hundred years while he and his friends are demonized and desecrated, because NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished. And of course, even ''after'' he plays a vital role in saving Norvrandt, his spirit is allowed to rest, and his story is corrected in the public record, [[spoiler:Elidibus then steals his body to exploit his restored reputation to drum up the peoples' hope, and use it to turn himself into the Warrior of Light Incarnate]].
* EarnYourHappyEnding: ZigZagged. For the sheer amount of crap thrown his way over the centuries, [[spoiler:his reunion and eventual FusionDance with the Warrior of Light in ''Shadowbringers'' sees him play a key role in finally getting the Flood stopped, the Sin Eaters and Ascians defeated, and his and his friends' good names restored across the First. However, the end of 5.3 shows that Ardbert continues to exist independently within the Warrior of Light's soul, and they and Seto happily acknowledge that [[AndTheAdventureContinues so long as the Warrior of Light's journey continues, then so will his]].]]

* GoMadFromTheIsolation: Ardbert has been alone for a hundred years after [[spoiler:his comrades sacrificed themselves to aid Minfilia in stopping the Flood]]. While he could still see and hear people as a ghost, he couldn't interact with any of them. Heartbreakingly, this included being ForcedToWatch as innocents begged for their lives while being devoured by Sin Eaters, no matter how hard he tried to intervene, and spending over a century overhearing vicious lies being spread about his party by the very populace they sacrificed their lives trying to save. He basically went numb and lost all sense of self, until the Warrior of Light arrived on the First and was able to see and hear him, to which his senses became sharp again.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: The Eden quests reveal it was actually Ardbert who [[spoiler: created Eden and thus brought about the Flood of Light. When he struck down Mitron and Loghrif, the Blade of Light he used to do so was manifested by a will that wanted to eliminate the Darkness so strongly, that it instead turned Mitron into the first Sin Eater.]]

!!Sin Eaters

When the Flood of Light nearly consumed the First, every mortal life that the Flood claimed was reborn as a Sin Eater who now plague the world in the Flood's absence.

* AnimalisticAbomination: Animals that become Sin Eaters usually look like white versions of their normal selves with no other angelic traits, but they are no less monstrous or unnatural than any other Sin Eater. The Lightwarden Eros takes the cake, being a Cerberus with the head of a mandrill for its middle head.
* BodySurf: If a Lightwarden Sin Eater is slain, its primordial Light will immediately jump to the nearest creature and transform it into a new Lightwarden. The Warrior of Light is the only person who can absorb a Lightwarden's aether without being corrupted this way. [[spoiler:Well... ''kinda'', at least.]]
* BodyHorror: The Sin Eaters made from the spoken races typically wind up horrifically twisted in one way or another. Only the Cardinal Virtues seem to avert this trend, and that might be [[spoiler:because the Virtues were ''dead'' when their bodies were infused with Sin Eaters]]. [[spoiler:Even Vauthry's transformation into an angelically beautiful being is horrifying to watch]]. Of note, during [[spoiler:Tesleen's]] transformation, while you can't see much of it, [[HellIsThatNoise the sounds coming out of her "cocoon" are sickening]].
* BreathWeapon: Some Sin Eaters, like the [[KillerGorilla Forgiven Violence]] type, can attack by spitting or exhaling Light energy at their enemies. The Lightwarden Eros can breathe fire from its middle head and lightning from its left and right heads.
* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: To the [[OurDemonsAreDifferent Voidsent]]. Both are the unfortunate souls twisted by the Floods that claimed their worlds, who become aether starved and attack others to feed. While Voidsent are aspected to Darkness, are demonic in nature, and originated from the Thirteenth Shard, the Sin Eaters are Light-aspected, angelic in nature, and hail from the First Shard. Voidsent retain their personalities and humanity, but taken to [[CardCarryingVillain extremes as they satisfy all their desires]], while Sin Eaters suffer DeathOfPersonality and act on the most primitive of instincts. Voidsent scheme to get more power and move up the hierarchy, while Sin Eater are content serving their superiors even if it doesn't satisfy their base urges.

** Sin Eaters with the "Touch" infect their victims with a primordial Light that disrupts the aetheric balance of the soul. Even if a person survives being attacked, that Light will slowly eat away at them from the inside and they will eventually turn into a new Sin Eater.
** Prolonged exposure to the Empty and its nothingness will slowly turn individuals into Sin Eaters. Though it takes days of exposure before such light begins to slowly imbalance one's aether.

* DeathOfPersonality: Why the Warriors of Darkness view corruption into a voidsent better - voidsent, while selfish and extreme versions of what they used to be, are still people, and some show [[NobleDemon the capacity for honor and standards]], if not morality. Sin-Eaters are little more than mindless eating machines who exist only to spread and destroy anything not of Umbral Light.

* EliteMook: The Forgiven Dissonance/Hypocrisy Sin Eaters that the Kuribu is based on act as officers commanding the lower ranks for their Lightwarden, leading organized assaults on enemies and even targeting populations for a mass burst in Sin Eater numbers via their [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice preferred method of transforming people]].

* GoldAndWhiteAreDivine: Most Sin Eaters are some variant of white. Higher ranked ones like the Lightwardens may also include some other colors, gold specifically, to reflect their even more holy nature.

* LightIsNotGood: The Sin Eaters are angelic monsters aspected to Light, killing anyone not of their number.
* MagicEater: Like the Primals and Voidsent, Sin Eaters are starved of aether and consume it to sustain themselves, primarily targeting the aether of living beings.

* SinEater: Invoked in the concept of the [[AngelicAbomination Sin]] [[LightIsNotGood Eaters]]. They are typically mindless monsters who seek to kill other beings for their aether. The more powerful Sin Eaters can "forgive" the creatures they attack, gruesomely and permanently mutating them into newborn sin eaters. Most of these creatures tend to be named as "forgiven" sins (Forgiven Ambition, Forgiven Hypocrisy, Forgiven Deceit, etc). The most powerful sin-eaters are the Lighwardens, who draw massive numbers of lesser sin-eaters to follow them, and whose aether radiates into the surrounding area, creating the unnatural everlasting light that Norvrandt is bathed in. Killing a Lightwarden only [[YouKillItYouBoughtIt turns you into its replacement.]] It's not until [[PlayerCharacter the Warrior of Darkness]] comes around that the Lightwardens can be permanently killed. The name sin eater was born from a misconception when the survivors of the Flood of Light first encountered them. Worship of light itself had been the dominant religion in Norvrandt, and the light-aspected monsters were thought to be the light's judgment, come to consume the sinful on judgment day. Though now people know that sin eaters only hunger for aether, the name stuck.

* ThemeNaming: Lesser Sin Eaters are usually named after sins, vices, and other negative character traits for which they've supposedly been forgiven. This results in names like "Forgiven Contrition" and "Forgiven Hypocrisy". Several Lightwardens, meanwhile, take their names from TheFourLoves: Philia, Eros, and Storge. [[note]]Presumably the Lightwarden defeated by Titania before being corrupted by it or the one combined with Vauthry was Agape.[[/note]]
** Many of the larger Sin Eaters fought as dungeon bosses use spells that are named after various devices of torture. Thumbscrew, The Tickler, Head Crusher, Intestenal Crank, Heretic's Fork... Thankfully, the name of the spell usually has nothing to do with what the spell actually ''does''.
* TransformationHorror: The transformation from human to Sin-Eater is a horrific process, [[spoiler:as poor Tesleen could attest]].
* TheVirus: Sin Eaters don't take prisoners. If they don't kill and/or eat their victim, they convert them into more of their kind by means of wounding them. The more lethal the wound, the quicker the change [[spoiler:as poor Tesleen, who took a Sin Eater sword through her chest, showed.]]
* WasOnceAMan: Every Sin Eater was a person or animal that was either caught up in the Flood of Light before it was halted, or was corrupted by the Sin Eaters.
* ZombieApocalypse: What they essentially are; those infected with the rampant Light of Sin Eaters, likely because Sin Eaters attacked them, become [[ZombieInfectee gradually overwhelmed and killed by it]]. Upon their death by Light or Sin Eater, the Light becomes a cocoon which remakes them as a mindless Sin Eater version of themselves to continue the cycle.

The King of the Faeries, Titania ''was'' a living being that ruled over the various fae tribes of Il Mheg and fought against the Sin Eaters in the past. Unfortunately, in striking down the resident Lightwarden, they were left at the mercy of its aether and became a Lightwarden themselves, and thus had to be sealed away until the day [[PlayerCharacter someone]] could slay them.

** Unlike most Sin Eaters, Titania's will was so strong that they retained their appearance and some figments of personality after their transformation. Sadly, that's all they retained; their mind and soul are long gone, and they are otherwise the same as any other Sin Eater.

* OddNameOut: The only Lightwarden not named for something virtuous like TheFourLoves -- while they fell to TheCorruption the same as anyone else who slays one, they were powerful enough that instead of being overtaken entirely, they turned into a Sin Eater while retaining their sense of self. Given the blatant gap in the ThemeNaming, one can presume that until then, the Lightwarden had been known as Agape.

* AngelicAbomination: One of the more alien of the Sin Eaters, Storge's "body" is a disk carved with a face on either side and a collection of wings that float and rearrange themselves at its whim.

Innocence sits at the top of the hierarchy of Sin Eaters--the beings that emerged from the Flood to plague what remains of mankind. Beyond that, its nature and purpose remain shrouded in mystery.

* AmbiguousInnocence: It literally embodies this trope, by way of a MeaningfulName -- unlike most of the other Sin Eaters, which have "Forgiven" in their names, [[spoiler:Vauthry was born as a human/Sin Eater hybrid, and in the twisted terminology of the Sin Eaters, he has no sins to be forgiven of, therefore he is innocent. He was raised from birth to believe that he was special and justified, and thus [[TautologicalTemplar that any act or decision he made was correct]]. To his dying breath, he never understands why these "villains" are against him, why his "goodness" can't thwart them, or where he went wrong in any capacity. None of this is his "fault", but that doesn't make him any less culpable.]]

* BattleThemeMusic: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3fhfL4KUW0 "Insanity"]], a sweeping, almost ''[[LightIsNotGood tyrannical]]'' orchestral piece symbolizing its desire to smother the world with Light, punctuated by the chorus from ''Shadowbringers'' to symbolize the Warrior of Darkness railing against that tyranny. However, it's repeated so much that it's less like the Warrior of Darkness's theme, and more like the Sin Eaters and the very Light itself's MadnessMantra.

* AGodAmI: Innocence flat-out states that because [[spoiler:he is both man and Sin Eater]] that it is a god, who is "supposed" to look down on everyone else.

* LightIsNotGood: Personified. As leader of the Sin Eaters, Innocence thinks itself above all others and that it is their right to enforce their will. Its tyrannical nature is bellied by its glorious, angelic appearance.
* LimitBreak: Shadowreaver, an attack where Innocence has swords float in the background and charges while summoning five Sin Eaters to protect him. Once time is up, it'll summon even more swords before having all of the crash into the ground and explode.

* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Pretty much this version of a Primal, in this case for the Sin Eaters themselves. It has its own Trial (the Crown of the Immaculate) and theme, and serves as the "God King" that his kingdom of Eaters and people adore, sitting on top of the Eater hierarchy. [[spoiler:He even has his own version of "Tempering".]]

The first Sin Eater, Eden is pure light made manifest and led the Flood of Light as it covered the First. Only by Minfilia's arrival and halting the Flood was Eden stopped, where it has now resided in isolation in the vast Empty.

** [[spoiler:After the reveal that Eden is a Sin Eater born from the corrupted body of an Ascian, it is revealed that that the creature's birth was tied to Ardbert's desire to banish darkness from the First, twisting Mitron's body into a personification of this wish and unwittingly unleashing the Flood.]]

* HumanoidAbomination: Its humanoid form as Eden Prime serves to contrast how alien it is even compared to other Sin Eaters, as it is the manifestation of pure Light and is able to survive even in the aether-starved Empty, unlike all other Sin Eaters that have to feed on living aether to even survive. [[spoiler:The fact that it's so different from "other Sin Eaters", however, is the first big clue that not all may be as it seems.]]

When the Warriors of Darkness forsake their bodies to travel across the Shards to the Source, their empty husks became filled with Light, and gave way to powerful Sin Eaters known as the Cardinal Virtues. They travel across the land and collectively serve as the main antagonists of the Role Quests within the First.

* GhostMemory: Although they are now Sin Eaters, some remnant of their past lives influences the Virtue's behavior which drives them to take actions that deviate from the base instincts of other Sin Eaters.
* HumanoidAbomination: They're powerful Sin Eaters wearing the skin of the Warriors of Darkness, with only unnaturally pale skin, [[WhiteHairBlackHeart snow-white hair,]] black irises [[RedEyesTakeWarning with red eyes]], and constantly gives of [[BattleAura an aura of light]] to showoff their [[LightIsNotGood unnaturalness.]]

** Sophrosyne: Reviving specific slain Sin Eaters [[spoiler:because they were originally sick but no one wanted to deal with them.]]
* MyRulesAreNotYourRules: As Granson puts its, despite all the Lightwardens being dead, the Virtues still live, showing that they are something ''much'' worse than regular Sin Eaters, as well as the fact they all have actual classes and will use them in battle.

* RedEyesTakeWarning: Unlike other Sin Eaters who usually have BlankWhiteEyes, the Virtues have blood-red eyes akin to Voidsent.

The twisted version of the Ranger of Darkness Renda-Rae. Everything she "hunts" rises from the dead and becomes Sin Eaters.

* FromBadToWorse: The wild animals Andreia hunts were already a serious danger to the inhabitants of the First, but Andreia's hunting of the beasts turns an already powerful animal into a powerful ''Sin Eater'' actively out to end all life on the First.

* AlmightyIdiot: Phronesis commands incredibly powerful black magic and can instinctively conjure [[UnrealisticBlackHole black holes]] to defend itself from attack, but it acts purely on instinct and is otherwise just as mindless as any other Sin Eater. [[spoiler:It turns out, it's been trying to rescue his friend Taynor from Nyelbert's past, but as a Sin Eater, it doesn't even realize that he's already been saved, even when Taynor is speaking and pleading directly to him]].

The twisted version of the Knight of Darkness Branden. A year ago, it attacked a town by the name of Wright, earning the hatred of a hunter named Granson, turning his lover into a Sin Eater while taking a bracelet called the "Fangs of Orthus".

* DutyThatTranscendsDeath: [[spoiler:Dikaiosyne's reason for wandering across Norvrandt is to reclaim and protect the sacred artifacts that belong to Sauldia's royal family, which were stolen by an expatiation team a year ago, causing him to go on a rampage. After slaying him, the Warrior of Light and Granson decide to hide the Orthus treasures somewhere no one will find them, to honor Branden's wish and duty.]]

The twisted version of the Devout of Darkness Lamitt. It goes around and revives specific slain Sin Eaters.

* FacelessGoons: Turns out to be key to its reasoning, and its defeat. [[spoiler:Sophrosyne is attempting to heal the helmetless Dwarves that Lamitt cured, even now as Sin Eaters. However, her disappointment towards the Dwarven elders who cast them out prevents her Sin Eater from healing any Sin Eaters who wear a Dwarven helmet -- even herself.]]
* HealingHands: Will heal herself and her fellow Sin Eaters with Sanctified Cure II.

* NoCureForEvil: Sophrosyne is dangerous because she averts this rule among the Sin Eaters. She is traveling Norvrandt, raising slain Sin Eaters back to life when healing magic shouldn't be able to affect them at all. In battle, she can also heal and revive ''herself''.

[[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVGarlondIronworks Garlond Ironworks]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVHildibrandAllies Hildibrand Allies]] | [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVAllies Other Allies]] ([[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVGrahaTia G'raha Tia]])\\

* OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame: Very classically dwarfy, if a bit short, and particularly based on the Dwarves found in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasy1'' and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV''. [[spoiler:The twist comes from whom the player, and people native to Hydaelyn, would compare them to -- they are the same people that the Source calls Lalafell, and their beards that they are so proud of are fake.]]

* TheQuietOne: Naillebert is described in ''Encyclopedia Eorzea'' as a man of few words. In game he's only ever talked twice.

* BadIsGoodAndGoodIsBad: Very light shades of it. Because of the Sin Eaters' aspect to Light, the eternal daytime, and supposed "purging" of the world, Novrandt idolizes the darkness and night, even the ones that don't do it religiously outside of the Night's Blessed still grow up on tales of "The Sunless Sea" and affectionately refer to each other as "Sinners" as a greeting. This is the reason that the Warrior of Light becoming the Warrior of Darkness doesn't involve any kind of FaceHeelTurn, they remain heroic -- they just shift to a more acceptable title for the world they're in. When called villains by their adversaries, the Crystal Exarch is quick to take up this title in stride and the Scions play along with it as well. Flipping terms denoting vice and virtue seem to be played with for fun to get the player immersed in the title Warrior of Darkness, even though, as usual, the player character isn't doing many anti-heroic deeds. [[spoiler:When Urianger reveals that Astral/Assertive and Umbral/Passive on the elemental balance is actually the opposite of what their names suggest, being Dark(Astral) and Light(Umbral) respectively, it reveals that Darkness is actually a positive force for creation, subverting the long held beliefs about the inherent natures of Light/Dark that the Source believes.]]

* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Innocence is at the very top of the Sin Eater pecking order, outstripping all of the other Lightwardens with the amount of aether and Light he possesses.

* DropTheHammer: Gaia's weapon of choice when she's not casting magic. [[spoiler:She puts it to good use breaking out the Warrior of Darkness and their allies from their ice prisons, then attempts to break Ryne free from hers.]] When Gaia was revealed in pre-release mateiral, much ado was made by game staff about how a Hammer isn't a weapon used by any player Class/Job (barring crafters), though it's still unknown if this has any deeper meaning.

'''Race''': Hume
'''Discipline: Merchant]

* CannotHoldHisLiquor: Grenoldt doesn't like drinking liquor, believing it will dull his craft and make him prone to foolishness. Someone swapping his carrot juice for a single mug of ale is enough to make him drunkenly propose to Mowen before falling fast asleep. After the fact, he declares that he doesn't want any more liquor should the Warrior propose using it as LiquidCourage to [[spoiler:help Grenoldt propose to Mowen.]]

* AlternateSelf: He's the First's version of Gerolt, which catches the Warrior of Darkness by surprise as well as them saying "I knew this was coming." That said, having never undergone the circumstances that turned Gerolt into a bitter alcoholic, Grenoldt is much humbler, kinder, and friendlier than his Source counterpart. He sometimes has nightmares of his counterpart's experiences, such as losing all his hair while toiling over kettles or being slathered in Salamanderville.

* {{Catchphrase}}: "Lali-ho!", the proper Dwarven greeting.

* IdenticalStranger: Though the Echo flashbacks you initially see Cylva in are DeliberatelyMonochrome which helps hide the similarities a little bit, she looks nigh-identical to Cyella in the present besides a change of hair style. This would be {{Foreshadowing}} if the average player even bothers to realize [[BeneathSuspicion that random waitress may be the same person or related.]]

* WalkingSpoiler: Her true identity and motives blow a lot of things wide open.

* ReincarnatedAsTheOppositeSex: [[spoiler:If the player character is a female then Azem will also be referred to as a woman, but Ardbert stays a man regardless. Averted if the player character is male, in which case Azem is also referred to as male.]]

* EarlyBirdCameo: Very early, and even before they were used as the Warriors of Darkness. Each of them is based on the characters that were used for the art for their classes (Ardbert for Warrior, Branden for Paladin, Renda-Rae for Bard, Lamitt for White Mage and Nyelbert for Black Mage) and appeared fighting in the final battle as ''Legacy'' came to an end. However, since the Warriors of Darkness are from an alternate world, and the Warrior of Light that Ardbert is based on is used as the player stand-in in the promotional material for the game and it's expansions, it's more likely that they're [[AlternateSelf the First's versions]] of those characters.

* KickTheDog: The Ranger Renda-RAe nearly killed Alisaie with a poisoned arrow. She regularly brings up this fact to her twin with a cruel smile on her face.

* ReincarnatedAsTheOppositeSex: [[spoiler:If the player character is a female then Azem will also be referred to as a woman, but Ardbert stays a man regardless.]]