History YMMV / FinalFantasyXIV

** The introduction of the Hrothgar race has also divided fans. Many are those who like the idea of a PantheraAwesome race (with a subset of them who are ardent ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'' fans being over the moon that they are essentially playable Ronso). Many are also those who were gravely disappointed at the fact that the race was included at the exclusion of male Viera. Hrohgars being gender-locked like Viera has also drawn many detractors. This is likely to become moot now that male Viera are coming with the launch of ''Endwalker'' and female Hrothgar will come sometime after. There are also those disappointed by the fact that Hrothgar and Viera are both incapable of wearing the vast majority of headgear, and that the devs have no apparent interest in fixing it considering they've gone a whole content cycle and even begun working on adding the other gender for both races while barely even acknowledging the headgear issue.

** A lot of people thought that the mysterious visitor from the New World in TheStinger of 6.5 part 1 would be the long-awaited female Hrothgar due to the way that the camerawork was trying very hard to not actually show her figure above the waistline, especially when dataminers got a sly finger wag from the dev team by making it so that she was literally ''just the pair of legs'' with no modelled upper body. The 2024 JP fanfest would confirm this by showing her at the end of the full ''Dawntrail'' cinematic and confirming that she was the character that we saw in the stinger.

* CommonKnowledge: Thanks to an awkwardly phrased line, it is widely believed that a side character's fate is worse off than it truly is. [[spoiler:The spell Y'shtola uses to see through aether is thought among the playerbase to be slowly killing her. The problem comes from when Matoya spoke to Y'shtola about the spell and said it was burning up her "life force" with fans reasonably assuming one's life force is the same as their life span. In actuality, life force is infrequently but consistently used to refer to one's aether reserves. Indeed, in a later arc Y'shtola has to offer up some life force to a voidsent and explicitly states she'll be fine once she's had a chance to rest and recover her energy. Characters do express concerns that Y'shtola is driving herself to an early grave, but that's in the sense that she might develop health problems from overworking herself, where her seeing spell is certainly not helping but also far from the only factor. An easily missed sidequest has her sister Y'mhitra remark that there likely won't be any problems if the Warrior of Light is around to make sure Y'shtola takes it easy every now and again.]]
* ComplacentGamingSyndrome:

* ThatOneAttack: [[ThatOneAttack/FinalFantasy Of course there would be.]]

** While each of the city-states face some sort of internal conflict, the most infamous of the trio falls on [[CrapsaccharineWorld Ul'dah]]. It becomes hard for a lot of players to sympathize with the nation when the Monetarists enforce a status quo of small handfuls of rich and wealthy at the expense of the majority, complete with [[DirtyCop paying off the Brass Blades]] and being willing to bankroll assassinations, enforced race riots, and other such crimes. Virtually every major character that voices an opinion ''hates'' the Monetarists, as does practically every refugee and citizen on the benevolent and/or poor ends of things. Once [[HateSink Teledji Adeledji]] is out of the picture [[spoiler:in his failed aftermath of trying to ''assassinate the Sultanate'']], the game then turns around, offers a weak HandWave that the others aren't ''[[EvenEvilHasStandards that bad]]'' and have the nation's best interests in mind, and [[KarmaHoudini moves on]]. It only becomes more bitter once Ul'dah [[CharacterFocus got most of the plot spotlight]] and generally shrugs off everything with the Monetarists as a necessary evil afterwards; even an EnsembleDarkhorse like Godbert, the sole TokenGoodTeammate of the group, becomes a BaseBreakingCharacter for some when he espouses their viewpoints and shuts down the Sultana completely as well.

** On the dungeon side of things, the Praetorium, the Aetherochemical Research Facility, Ala Mhigo, Amaurot, and The Dead Ends are the climaxes of each respective expansion, and do an incredible job of ending each respective story arc. All of them save the Praetorium are followed up by the FinalBoss of the main story, and the fights are loved as well for the setup.

** The final dungeon of the ''Shadowbringers'' 5.0 content also qualifies. [[spoiler:Amaurot is the place where the ancient Ascians once lived in, as well as it being a peaceful realm where the Ancients are nothing but kind to you and each other, with a tinge of sadness due to all of it being a LivingMemory that will be massacred in the coming Sundering, and is completely different from everything else in ''Shadowbringers''.]]
** Holminster Switch, the first dungeon of ''Shadowbringers'', is considered one of the best dungeons in the game's history. Not only is it tone wise so much more different from other first expansion dungeons, two of the three bosses have fun mechanics, and the story leading to it sets up the stakes very well. The theme for it, combined with the first experience of the new ''Shadowbringers'' boss theme, makes it stick out heavily.
** The 30-50 Dark Knight job quest line is a tightly written and powerfully told story that perfectly sets up the [[KnightInSourArmor mood]] that the [[DarkIsNotEvil Dark Knight]] job embodies, and features [[EnsembleDarkhorse fan-favorite Fray Myste as your mentor.]] The story also acts as an interesting look into the role that MMO protagonists take as {{All Loving Hero}}es, ruthlessly deconstructing the idea of being the only hope in a world as massive as Eorzea, as well as pointing out the hypocrisy and UngratefulBastard nature of the average MMO citizen. [[spoiler:And then, in a breathtaking twist, it turns out the entire job quest is a case of ThroughTheEyesOfMadness, and that Fray is actually a [[EnemyWithin direct manifestation]] of ''the player character's own frustrations and trauma'', climaxing in some serious MindScrew that goes so far as to bleed into the [[InterfaceScrew quest journals.]]]] This quest line was so well written that the story writer for it, Natsuko Ishikawa, was promoted to head story writer for ''Shadowbringers'' in response to the praise that the job quest has garnered as well as her other projects. The rest of the quest line is pretty awesome too, with the 60-70 line being another standout.
** The "Children of Werlyt" storyline in ''Shadowbringers'' is considered a very well-written and very fun questline by a majority of the playerbase. When it starts with the Warrior of Light getting to pilot a HumongousMecha, you know you're in for something special. The bosses all consist of the Weapons from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' as used by {{Ace Pilot}}s, each of whom is portrayed as a TragicVillain, along with a BigBad that [[HateSink is so despicable and vile that players want to see them fail]]. The overall narrative about the horrors of war and {{Child Soldier}}s, the CatharsisFactor and BittersweetEnding that each of the characters get, as well as some legitimately challenging and fun boss fights make it a highlight.

** Thanks to events of Stormblood (wherein Lyse [[spoiler: leaves the Scions of the Seventh Dawn]], she's only known as a character who was "annoying".

* CompleteMonster:
** ''A Realm Reborn'': [[{{Pirate}} Captain Madison]], the leader of the Serpent Reavers, disappeared to escape his gambling debts and resurfaced after having allied himself with the Sahagin. He goes on a campaign of RapePillageAndBurn throughout the coast of Limsa Lominsa, putting village after village to the torch, murdering all the men of the settlements he devastates and taking the women and children to become slaves, usually of the [[SexSlave carnal kind]]. Madison's worst deed is the creation of the Hole, a dank recess in his hideout of Sastasha where he keeps the women he's turned into sex slaves for himself and his entire crew.
** ''Stormblood'': [[PsychoSupporter Asahi sas Brutus]] is an ambassador from the [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVGarleanEmpire Garlean Empire]] who reveals himself to be a sociopathic follower of [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVZenosYaeGalvus Zenos yae Galvus]]. He tries to sabotage the peace between Doma's leaders by trying to provoke [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVTheWarriorOfLight the Warrior of Light]], and it was revealed that he hired the mercenaries to fake his good nature. However, his worst act is when his parents adopted his cousin, [[TragicVillain Yotsuyu]]. When Yotsuyu got mistreated by Asahi's parents, Asahi then came out with the idea to sell Yotsuyu to an abusive drunkard for money and political connections, as well as selling her to a brothel. After Yotsuyu regained her memories, Asahi sent her parents on her, which resulted them being killed. When the prisoner exchange happens, Asahi then tries to invoke the primal Tsukuyomi into Yotsuyu and callously shoots her multiple times when she tries to die peacefully, mocking the player, while brutally beating Yotsuyu, that attacking him would result in a war. When his soul appears in the Aetherial Sea in ''Endwalker'', the exchange between him and the Scions is not amicable in the slightest, and both are more than happy to say they hope to never meet again.
** ''Shadowbringers'': [[SmugSnake Valens van Varro]] is a commander of the Garlean Empire who wants to use the Oversoul and is [[DrivenByEnvy motivated by petty jealousy]]. An abusive boss, Valens would leave his men to die without a care if he [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness he sees no value in them anymore]]. Valens forces his young wards to torture a man with a burning rod pressed against his back, in order to warp them into being abusive and cruel like him. Later on, it's revealed that Valens disciplines all of the siblings by [[WouldHurtAChild using abusive, torturous methods]], and this is shown by one of the siblings having permanent scars on her back. He forces a man to go to the Oversoul chamber capsule against his will and lies about how he and his family would be let go with his cooperation. [[CruelAndUnusualDeath The man's body and mind are gruesomely contorted]] until it overrides them down to their consciousness entirely.
** ''Endwalker'': [[spoiler:[[EvilutionaryBiologist Athena]] is the first chief keyward of [[Characters/FinalFantasyXIVPandaemonium Pandæmonium]] and the source of all its troubles. Obsessed with [[GodhoodSeeker ascending to godhood]] and [[InTheirOwnImage remaking all life to fit her warped standards]], Athena marries and has a son, Erichthonios, with Lahabrea solely to serve as her vessel, ensuring his compliance by [[AbusiveParents tampering with his soul to compel him to love her and stunting his magical abilities so he can't fight back]]. Even after Lahabrea kills her to protect his son, Athena ensures her plans survive by masterminding the creation of Hephaistos to take over Pandæmonium and enslave its staff while also keeping a copy of her personality and memories within the Heart of Sabik, which possesses Erichthonios's present day reincarnation. Upon her final defeat, Athena spitefully tries to break her son with the truth of how she stunted him and attempts to end all life as revenge for being rejected as a god.]]

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: ''A Realm Reborn'' singlehandledly saved ''Final Fantasy XIV'' and played a major role in pulling Square Enix out of a rut it had been in for years. Its advanced but still simple-to-grasp combat, a unique story focused on making the player an actual character compared to MMORPG titles, and the overall improvements made to it compared to the original launch helped elevate the game into a strong contender in the genre, ultimately becoming perhaps the only subscription-based [=MMO=] to ever seriously threaten ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''[='=]s spot at the top. But as time went on, the original ''ARR'' has come to be seen as less of a base game and more of a barrier to the much more polished expansions that have since come to define the game's popularity. It's not uncommon to have people who joined after any of the expansions released to say that the ''ARR'' section of the story is the biggest hurdle in enjoying the game. Common complaints are the very black-and-white story (especially compared to much more complex villains down the road), one-dimensional characters, and simplistic mechanics all-around. And yet, were it not for this part of the game, ''XIV'' would not have become the MMO juggernaut that it's known as.

* ShippingGoggles:
** Zenos/Warrior of Light is sometimes a ship, despite the fact that Zenos is presented as the Warrior's ArchEnemy. The dialogue choices for Zenos, which [[InterplayOfSexAndViolence can be read in a very lewd tone if phrased correctly]], sometimes contribute to this mindset, all in spite of the fact that the Warrior gives off no indication in canon that they feel anything but disdain for Zenos. The closest this gets is [[spoiler:the PostFinalBoss of ''Endwalker'', where the Warrior has the option to give a GrinOfAudacity to Zenos and agree to being a BloodKnight and a ChallengeSeeker just like him, which Zenos is quite happy to hear]]. But that's still pushing it, considering dialogue options in previous conversations all show the Warrior of Light being openly hostile towards Zenos. One choice late in the story even has the Warrior declaring that they want Zenos dead.
** There's a minor ship that involves Thancred/Urianger, as events of ''Shadowbringers'' and ''Endwalker'' have the two of them spending a lot of time on missions together, as well as choosing to [[spoiler:go WalkingTheEarth together when the Scions supposedly disband at the end of the 6.0 storyline]].

** The housing system has been called the most unintentionally accurate commentary on how ''broken'' the real estate market is in real life. At first, getting a house was an exercise in frustration due to how many people would snipe lots the second they went on sale. When the housing lottery was implemented, this instead caused people with multiple accounts and Free Companies to start stuffing the lottery boxes with multiple entries, comparable to [=AirBnB=]. [[RuleOfThree And finally]], it's not uncommon for people who win the lots to do things such as construct architectural monstrosities to try and mess up screenshots, self-appoint themselves as the head of the district [=HRA=] and demand their neighbours conform to the district style so they don't interfere with screenshots and role-playing, get in pissing contests with their neighbours in trying to make more elaborate houses, or just do nothing with their lot to taunt people who could have won it. It wound up teaching a lot of people that there's quite a lot of ways people fight using the real estate market, as well as just how unfair it is.

** The housing system has been called the most unintentionally accurate commentary on how ''broken'' the real estate market is in real life. At first, getting a house was an exercise in frustration due to how many people would snipe lots the second they went on sale. When the housing lottery was implemented, this instead caused people with multiple accounts and Free Companies to start stuffing the lottery boxes with multiple entries, comparable to [=AirBnB=]. [[RuleOfThree And finally]], it's not uncommon for people who win the lots to do things such as construct architectural monstrosities to try and mess up screenshots, get in pissing contests with their neighbours in trying to make more elaborate houses, or just do nothing with their lot to taunt people who could have won it. It wound up teaching a lot of people that there's quite a lot of ways people fight using the real estate market, as well as just how unfair it is.

** Not just for a specific characters, but for an entire gendered species as a whole, the Male Roegadyn is this compared to their [[AmazonianBeauty female]] counterparts, likely due to the goofy expression and awkward body proportions that's trying too hard to look badass and/or intimidating. Because of this, players who want to play the game seriously while still looks rugged and badass would rather pick Hrothgar or Highlander Hyur over picking Male Roes, and those who still pick Male Roes are either [[{{Troll}} memeing]], roleplaying as Franchise/{{Shrek}}, or both.

* TheScrappy: Ran'jit, TheHeavy of ''Shadowbringers'', is considered the low point of what is considered an amazing expansion, and widely disliked. He's a RecurringBoss from Eulmore determined to protect the Minfilia of the First, ostensibly because her power is needed to keep the Sin Eaters in check, being a constant thorn for almost the entire expansion. However, many of his elements didn't work as intended on the writers part; he's extremely powerful in a way that is never given a proper explanation during the story, he's unlikable from a motive and personality angle, and he has an infamous [[ThatOneBoss instanced fight]] in the story as Thancred that drags on far longer than people wanted. All of this is topped by being [[UnintentionallyUnsympathetic unsympathetic and unlikable]] as a character, in an expansion that produced several well received villains, especially since he isn't meant to be hated. If Ran'jit is ever discussed in fan spaces, it's almost certainly going to be about [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter what a shame it was that he wasn't written better]], or that he's one of the worst parts of ''Shadowbringers'' story.

** Ran'jit, TheHeavy of ''Shadowbringers'', is considered the low point of an otherwise solid expansion, partially because his portrayal as an AntiVillain largely was lost on the playerbase. He's a RecurringBoss from Eulmore determined to protect the Minfilia of the First, ostensibly because her power is needed to keep the Sin Eaters in check. The trouble is that the game does little to explain how he got to the level of power that he did where he could put a CurbStompBattle on the Warrior of Light and the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, pretty much by himself. While Zenos from ''Stormblood'' was given some explanation as to how he could be TheDreaded -- he was some sort of experimental SuperSoldier, the Emperor's son, and infused with an artificial Echo -- Ran'jit gets no such explanation in-game. Even [[https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/10th_anniversary/tales_under_the_new_moon/sidestory_02/ a sidestory dedicated to Ran'jit]] depicted little reason for his strength beyond TrainingFromHell, which only came post-''Endwalker'', leaving him with nothing at all for a while. Also, Ran'jit is ThatOneBoss as a DuelBoss with Thancred, which [[MarathonBoss feels like it goes on for about twice as long as it needs to]] and [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment doesn't impact the narrative much at all once it's over]], making Ran'jit feel like [[PlotIrrelevantVillain he was just there because the game needed a boss fight]]. [[spoiler:He also gets beaten by the Warrior of Light unceremoniously upon their return to Eulmore, in a carbon-copy of the fight with Thancred minus a few mechanics, which makes Ran'jit go out with an AntiClimax. And while [[AlasPoorVillain his death is portrayed as tragic]], it's hard to feel bad for him given the fact that Ran'jit could have potentially doomed the First to extinction from his obsession with protecting Minfilia at all costs, even counter to logic or changing circumstances.]] If Ran'jit is ever discussed on fan spaces like the game's subreddit or the official forums, it's almost certainly going to be about [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter what a shame it was that he wasn't written better]] or that his portrayal as a well-meaning villain fell totally flat. While other villains from ''Shadowbringers'' have gone on to be fan favorites (especially the BigBad), and have had multiple {{Call Back}}s or even bit parts in the MSQ since their departure, Ran'jit hasn't been so much as mentioned in-game since 5.0 due to how poorly-received he was as a character.

** Ran'jit, TheHeavy of ''Shadowbringers'', is considered the low point of an otherwise solid expansion, partially because his portrayal as an AntiVillain largely fell flat on the playerbase. He's a RecurringBoss from Eulmore determined to protect the Minfilia of the First, ostensibly because her power is needed to keep the Sin Eaters in check. The trouble is that the game does little to explain how he got to the level of power that he did where he could put a CurbStompBattle on the Warrior of Light and the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, pretty much by himself. While Zenos from ''Stormblood'' was given some explanation as to how he could be TheDreaded -- he was some sort of experimental SuperSoldier, the Emperor's son, and infused with an artificial Echo -- Ran'jit gets no such explanation in-game. Even [[https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/10th_anniversary/tales_under_the_new_moon/sidestory_02/ a sidestory dedicated to Ran'jit]] depicted little reason for his strength beyond TrainingFromHell, which only came post-''Endwalker'', leaving him with nothing at all for a while. Also, Ran'jit is ThatOneBoss as a DuelBoss with Thancred, which [[MarathonBoss feels like it goes on for about twice as long as it needs to]] and [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment doesn't impact the narrative much at all once it's over]], making Ran'jit feel like [[PlotIrrelevantVillain he was just there because the game needed a boss fight]]. [[spoiler:He also gets beaten by the Warrior of Light unceremoniously upon their return to Eulmore. And while [[AlasPoorVillain his death is portrayed as somewhat tragic]], it's hard to feel bad for him, given the fact that Ran'jit could have potentially doomed the First to extinction from his obsession with protecting Minfilia at all costs, even counter to logic or changing circumstances.]] If Ran'jit is ever discussed on fan spaces like the game's subreddit or the official forums, it's almost certainly going to be about [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter what a shame it was that he wasn't written better]] or that his portrayal as a well-meaning villain fell totally flat. While other villains from ''Shadowbringers'' have gone on to be fan favorites (especially the BigBad), and have been referenced multiple times in the MSQ since their departure, Ran'jit hasn't even been mentioned in-game since 5.0 due to how poorly-received he was as a character.

* LowTierLetdown: Dark Knight has the misfortune of being viewed as the worst tank class/job. Dark Knight is a GlassCannon comparatively speaking to the other tanks, with the highest burst damage among tank jobs, putting out numbers comparable to melee DPS. But with that power comes with MP management. This makes the Dark Knight have to rely on only two/three skills to get MP back, something the other tanks don't have to deal with or worry about -- the Paladin gets skills that alleviate the MP burden while the Dark Knight doesn't, and the other two classes rely on their own resource (the Warrior's Fury and the Gunbreaker's Cartridges) without using MP at all. What's worse, the Dark Knight also has an invulnerability that used to straight up kill the user if they weren't healed back to full HP (though 6.1 would improve it). Also, Dark Knight has two AntiMagic mitigation buffs that are hard to figure out when to use, since the game is unclear as to which attacks count as magic damage. Patch 6.3 changed it so attacks show if they're physical or magical, but this only comes after the damage has already been done (literally). Finally, the Dark Knight has only two moves which restore their HP, one of which has a 60-second cooldown and shares a recast timer with something else, which means it's not available at all times, and the other is the third hit of their 1-2-3 basic combo, which makes it hard to use and doesn't restore much HP when it lands. All of this means that Dark Knights are far squishier than they should be for a tank, and have to be focused on by healers in order to stay alive. ''Endwalker'' especially had this issue on display -- Warrior became the go-to tank because of its absurdly good self-healing, Gunbreaker's damage and support abilities made it a good off-tank, and Paladin got more offensive tools and more support for its magic. The Dark Knight got practically nothing by comparison, furthering its status as the worst tank job in the eyes of many players.

** The ''Stormblood'' Paladin questlines are seen by some as even further [[SeasonalRot degredation]], others actually appreciate that it takes you back to the Gladiator's Guild. For the most part, the beginning guild(s) become a non-entity after level 30 (When the player gets the job crystal) so having them be more than just mere cameos actually did help give the impression time ''does'' pass.

** The game's changing of focus for boss "tells" -- indications as to what move the boss is going to use and/or where the attack will land -- is somewhat divisive. In ''A Realm Reborn'' and the majority of ''Heavensward'', most bosses used tells were just floor-markers that had several seconds of windup. Around ''Stormblood'', the focus changed to watching what the boss was casting and also what the boss itself was doing. As of ''Shadowbringers'', boss tells are often entirely visual, with the floor markers appearing when it's already too late to avoid getting hit. On one hand, it's seen by some players as an evolution of the gameplay, that it's a system the game teaches you in just the right amounts, and that it's better to make players keep their eyes on what they're doing rather than just the bottom half of the screen. Other players find the tells don't fully communicate what you have to do, requiring you to make educated guesses on how to dodge or just take the hit and learn the hard way. Combine this with server lag and players who won't explain, and late-game fights to these players can be annoying. Either way, there's little overlap on how good the system of boss tells is, or what needs to be done about it.
** In general, the reception of ''Endwalker'' has been pretty split: on one end, some players consider it one of the best expansions in the game, while another part considers it mediocre or even downright bad. Commonly cited positive points are a satisfying, well-executed MSQ storyline, a well-received revamp of PVP, well-made raids, and interesting new jobs (including the first new healer added in six years), while detractors cite lackluster side content (specifically that cater to more hardcore players, such as a long relic grind), an increasing casualization of the game's systems and Job design, a plot that [[CosmicDeadline shows signs of being compressed]], and not feeling different enough from previous expansions to warrant the hype. Another, more middle-ground opinion thrown around is that while Endwalker did some things right and some of the contested side content DOES have some good ideas on display (such as the Island Sanctuary and Variant and Criterion Dungeons) they, and the expansion as a whole, didn't fulfill their potential the way these players hoped they would.

** Related the above, the story starting to portray Garleans as a whole in a more sympathetic and humanized way in ''Shadowbringers'' and especially ''Endwalker'' has been highly contentious. On one side, many players enjoyed seeing a deep dive into Garlean culture and examining the more fleshed out aspects of a faction that was originally one dimensionally villainous, and claim it makes sense since in ''Endwalker'', rather then dealing with high ranking Legati, you're mainly dealing with civilians and lower ranked soldiers who had no real say in Garlemald's crimes. It also helps that Jullus, one of the main focal point Garleans of the expansion, has proven [[EnsembleDarkhorse incredibly popular]]. On the other side, many players have expressed deep discomfort over how the story is suddenly asking them to sympathize with a faction that, up to this point, had been uniformly portrayed as being textbook fascists, especially after ''Stormblood'' went into great detail about just how brutally violent and oppressive Garlean conquest and occupation can be.

* FanNickname: Warriors are often called "Unga bunga" due to the popular perception that a caveman could play one. (They have an easy to learn play style, and so many self-healing abilities that they almost don't need a healer while tanking.)

** Shadowbringers has another addition from Final Fantasy VII, [[BonusBoss the Weapons]], starting with Ruby, as trials. [[spoiler:Then halfway through the first trial against the Ruby Weapon, '''''[[TheBusCameBack Nael van Darnus]]''''' arises from its back, complete with ''another'' ShoutOut to ''Legacy,'' in the form of '''''Dalamud itself'''''.]]

** While each of the city-states face some sort of internal conflict, the most infamous of the trio falls on [[CrapsaccharineWorld Ul'dah]]. It becomes hard for a lot of players to sympathize with the nation when the Monetarists enforce a status quo of small handfuls of rich and wealthy at the expense of the majority, complete with [[DirtyCop paying off the Brass Blades]] and being willing to bankroll assassinations, enforced race riots, and other such crimes. Virtually every major character that voices an opinion ''hates'' the Monetarists, as does practically every refugee and citizen on the benevolent and/or poor ends of things. Once [[HateSink Teledji Adeledji]] is out of the picture [[spoiler:in his failed aftermath of trying to ''assassinate the Sultanate'']], the game then turns around, offers a weak HandWave that the others aren't ''[[EvenEvilHasStandards that bad]]'' and have the nation's best interests in mind, and [[KarmaHoudini moves on]]. It only becomes more bitter once Ul'dah [[CharacterFocus got most of the plot spotlight]] and generally shrugs off everything with the Monetarists as a necessary evil afterwards; even an EnsembleDarkhorse like Godbert, the sole TokenGoodTeammate of the group, becomes a BaseBreakingCharacter for some when he espouses their viewpoints as well, even if he was right.