Quest: Borghertz’s Dragon Hands (Dragoon Artifact Armor)
-The next quest is from a Galka in Jeuno named Guslam. He feels frustrated that he’s working in an armor shop, but that nobody repairs and maintains old armor anymore. They just buy new stuff, use it up, buy new stuff again.
-Thirty years ago, a legendary craftsman named Borghertz made gauntlets. Lots of them. One for each job. They’re lost now, but Guslam heard a rumor that the gauntlets are in the Boyahda Tree. And so I’m off there!
-I hadn’t been there before. I have to go through the Meriphataud Mountains to the Sanctuary of Zi’Tah.
-The Sanctuary of Zi’Tah is quite beautiful. A huge forest with trees like giant redwoods and some purplish crystalline structures.
-AHA! I have been here before! Sort of. When I got sucked into that Emptiness-land, Escha, it was a gray and lifeless version of the Sanctuary of Zi’Tah.
-The combat music inside the Bayedah Tree sounds different than I’ve ever heard. Perhaps new for the expansion?
-Many of the enemies here are “Death Caps,” funguar types. Gross. Killed a few, got the coffer key, and found the coffer near the entrance. Old Gauntlets obtained.
Item description: “A pair of old and filthy gauntlets. Even if you could, you wouldn’t want to equip them.”
-I return the gauntlets to Guslam in Jeuno. He just says “They are beyond my skill. I cannot repair them.”
-The main blacksmith in the job mentions a Mithra with the Tenshodo who found a magical toolbox that has stayed shut. Perhaps a magical repair tool lies within that magical toolbox – if only I can find something to open it.
-I find the Mithra. She mentions the toolbox, and says she took a strange box from one of Brugaire’s warehouses (the boss from the last mission). I purchase the perma-closed box from her for 1,000 gil.
-WTF. I went to the toolbox, and the ghost of that legendary smith, Borghertz, saunters up to me. Says to bring him shadow flames from Castle Zvahl with the gauntlets and he’ll restore them. Thank you, smithy ghost!
-I head to Castle Zvahl, the Shadow Lord’s HQ. Found a torch near the entrance that had no use before and now summons a bomb-type enemy, “Dark Spark.”
Killing it nets me the Shadow Flame.
-Back in Jeuno, I give Ghost!Borghertz the Shadow Flame and Old Gauntlets, and he fixes the gauntlets up into Drachen Finger Mail.
-So that’s one more piece down, but Guslam also mentioned that there are more pieces scattered around Vana’diel. The next two are in coffers in Ifrit’s Cauldron and the Quicksand Caves.
-I’ll hit up Quicksand Caves first since I know where those are. They’re Antican (ant-monster) caves beneath the Altepa Desert.
-Tons of cactuars and Anticans here.
Cactuars even use 1,000 Needles!
-Whew! Found it. No real quest for this, just the Drachen greaves inside a chest.
-Last piece to find for this section of the armor set is in Ifrit’s Cauldron. Like… THE Ifrit? I hope so. That’d be awesome.
-To get there, looks like I have to take a path through new land. Norg > Sea Serpent Grotto > Yuhtunga Jungle > Yhoator’s Jungle Ifrit’s Cauldron.
-Found my first Sahagin of FFXI in Sea Serpent Grotto. It’s kinda cute!
-More Sahagins here in Yuhtunga Jungle, and cute little lemurs called Opo-opo.
-This place is amazingly complex. None of the enemies are my level, so I can just run through, but even with the map I am constantly looping back and finding dead ends and confused af. I tracked the path I took on this map:
-40 days and 40 nights later, I cross into Yhoator Jungle. Similar level enemies here: lizards, goblins, some malboro-types. I shortly reach Ifrit’s Cauldron.
-It lives up to its name. It’s basically a volcano.
-The bomb enemies here are causing real problems for me. They use “Self-Destruct” and kill my entire party.
-I keep dying to them. Not sure what to do. Maybe I can stun them when they cast Self-destruct?
-Successful tactic: Super Jump! Super Jump is a dragoon ability that lets me jump out of combat for a few seconds. If I cast that when the bomb self-destructs, I evade its damage.
-Got the coffer key. The enemies here are really hard for my level, so I’m going to look for the coffer with the next drachen piece while invisible and sneaking.
*many time units later*
-VICTORY!! Found it. Got the Drachen mail.
-Okay. Almost there. One piece left to complete this set. The next piece requires a quest.
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Quest: Knight Stalker (Dragoon Artifact Armor)
-The last quest starts at Rahal, Dragonslayer of San d’Oria.
-The Royal Knights of San d’Oria have been under attacks by “an unknown assailant.”
-The rumor is that the attacks are being carried out by Erpalacion, the last dragoon. He was the general of the knights a while back, the only dragoon around, but he joined the ranks of “the fallen.” Undead perhaps?
-Apparently, old King Ranperre sent Erpalacion to the Outlands. That’s the in-game name for the island with Norg, Yhoator Jungle, etc. I think.
-The only reason the king did this was to get Erpalacion away. He feared his power. That was the only reason. And on his journey, he died.
Wow. Fuck King Ranperre. What an awful king.
-Just then, one of the suits of armor nearby gets up and attacks us. Rahal knocks it down, but the suit of armor is empty.
-Some more suits of armor attack, but they’re slow and not very agile. They’re easily defeated.
-My first lead is that someone tried to steal the “brais” (?) of the last dragoon recently. I’m supposed to talk to the Brugaire Consortium for clues.
-The story around Drachen’s armor, armor of the last dragoon, is really starting to tie together. The person who hired the thief Esca has been after all the relics of Erpalacion, the last dragoon. Brugaire asks me to find the helm of the last dragoon in Kuftal Tunnel to lure this person out.
-Again, this takes a looong time. I kill some enemies, get the coffer key, and then use invisible/sneak/deodorize on myself before running around the entire dungeon searching for a chest. This time it’s in the last place I look.
-Huh. The helm isn’t inside. Instead, it’s an item called “Challenge to the Royal Knights.”
“The helm of the last dragoon is already in my possession. I will lay bare the inadequacies of the Royal Knights’ current leadership and their inability to defend San d’Oria.”
So definitely someone with a grudge against the Knights, and one of their own. The ghost of Erpalacion maybe?
-Back to Rahal in San d’Oria.
-Rahal recognizes the handwriting, and is horrified. He tells me to talk to Sir Balasiel.
-Sir Balasiel says the note is form Ancolain B Feulart, former second in command of the Royal Knights.
-We get a flashback of Balasiel relieving Ancolain of duty. Ancolain was too prideful, caring more about victory than the safety of those soldiers under his command. Lacked humility.
ANCOLAIN: “I will find a place where I am appreciated for who I am. May you not regret your words here today, Sir Balasiel.”
-So who did he join forces with? Dunno.
-I head back to Rahal. He says that Feulart might have “dabbled in the black arts that are practiced by those savages to the south.” Not sure what this means either, but my next steps is to head to the Temple of Uggalepih in the south of Yhoator Jungle.
-MOTHERFUCKER.
-I start to head south in Yhoator Jungle, and what do I see? Tonberries. Tonberries up the wazoo. They’re all low enough level that I can run past them, but I’m legit freaking out about what awaits me in the Temple of Uggalepih.
-A tonberry uses Everyone’s Grudge. Not sure what it does. I mean, it usually does damage to me based on how many enemies I’ve killed, but I doubt it’ll be that mean in an MMO.
-One Tonberry was about to use something called “Throat Stab” but I killed her first. I really, really don’t want to find out what “Throat Stab” does.
-Reached the heart of Uggalepih. Found the “???” I need. Time to fight Ancolain.
-CRAP THERE ARE TWO OF THEM
-I.. yeah, I died. [Later edit: I also missed that neither of these guys were actually Ancolain. Both must’ve just been his minions.]
-Second attempt, I got one of them down but then died. Progress!
-FUCK FUCK FUCK DIED AGAIN JUST BARELY
-What makes this so frustrating is that I need my wyvern to initiate the fight. The wyvern has a 20 minute recast timer. It takes about five minutes to get set back up to try again, but then I have to wait another 15 minutes doing nothing.
-GOT EM AHAHJKHASJKLFHADJKSFHADSKL
-NOW Ancolain shows his face. “It seems my trap was of little consequence after all. Not altogether unexpected.”
No. No no no. PLEASE say I don’t have to fight another boss now.
ANCOLAIN: “However, I am skilled in more than just swordplay. I have also conquered the arts of necromancy. With the helm of the last dragoon I will resurrect the spirit of Erpalacion.”
OH GOD PLEASE SAY I DON’T HAVE TO FIGHT ANOTHER TWIN BOSS
Though the music is INCREEEEDIBLE right now.
OH SHIT HE DID IT, HE RESURRECTED THE LAST DRAGOON, ERPALACION. Mirror match incoming.
Wait wat
What is happening
ERPALACION, to Lady: “I never dreamed the day would come when you would fly free in Vana’diel!”
ERPALACION: “Detolilla, I am most grateful to you.”
So… he doesn’t want revenge? Ancolian is as shocked as I am.
ANCOLIAN: “What are you waiting for, dragoon? As I was dismissed from my position of command, you were exiled from San d’Oria by King Ranperre. Now is our chance to exact our vengeance upon the kingdom that betrayed us. Let this adventurer be the first to be sentenced in our trial of blood!”
ERPALACION: “I have nothing but gratitude towards San d’Oria. Why would I sympathize with the plight of a petulant child?”
GET FUCKED, ANCOLIAN. GET REKKKKKT THIS IS AMAZING
Ancolian summoned the ghost of Erpalacion to embark on a campaign of vengeance only to find out that Erpalacion is at peace, has forgiven, and has nothing but contempt for the selfish pride of Ancolian. I’m jumping up and down. This is the best reversal ever.
-lololol Ancolian starts to run away from Erpalacion only to run into the waiting arms of Rahal and other San d’Oria guards come to arrest him.
That’s what you get for throwing your lot in with the Tonberries, Ancolian!
-See, it wasn’t even like Ancolian was fired. He was suspended, and told to think about how to tamp down his hubris so that he wouldn’t be as willing to sacrifice his troops for “glorious victory.” HE was the one who forsook San d’Oria, not the other way around.
-Rahal looks past Ancolian, in shock. He sees Erpalacion.
-Rahal asks one question: why did King Ranperre give such an unreasonable order? Why did King Ranperre essentially order Erpalacion to his death for no reason?
-Erpalacion has an answer. Flashback time, to the night Erpalacion was sent out by King Ranperre.
-In the flashback, King Ranperre… is applauding Erpalacion? Begging him to stay and help the kingdom. It’s Erpalacion himself who chooses to leave. Why??
ERPALACION: “I… during the course of this insurgence, an unholy sign has appeared upon my wyvern. In the heat of battle we slew those who have no sins to answer for. This is our punishment.”
-He is taking himself out of the picture. He thinks if he lives in solitude, he can restore the holy sign on his wyvern.
-Erpalacion convinced King Ranperre to sell the story that Erpalacion died in battle. He was afraid that if people knew he was still alive, foreign assassins and all manner of folk would constantly be after him. He would never get the peace he desired.
-THIS IS WILD. Erpalacion didn’t even leave right then and there. He stayed up with the King all night, drinking and talking and reminiscing. A final time of friendship.
-Erpalacion succeeded!! Enough time passed, and the unholy mark on his wyvern faded. He was an old man at that point, and always wanted to raise a new wyvern. He now sees that goal in me, Detolilla. My new wyvern.
“You have given new life to the race of dragons… Now is the time for me to return to my eternal slumber. Allow me a moment with this wyvern child.”
He walks up to my wyvern, Lady, and SNUGGLES HER before fading away.
“Grow strong, little one… the life that pulses within you is not yours alone. You hold the spark of all the wyverns that were denied life in this world…”
-I’m fucking tearing up from a 15 year old mmo. Jesus.
-Rahal leaves. I get the helm. The last pieces of dragoon armor.
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Epilogue
-I meet up with Rahal back in San d’Oria. He is thankful that the misunderstanding about King Ranperre and Erpalacion, the last dragoon, has now been cleared up. The truth has allowed the San d’Orian knights’ honor to be restored.
-My last meeting of this whole journey is with the Brugaire Company. After all, if it weren’t for Brugaire deciding to not sell that armor piece, deciding that he wanted to become valuable as a craftsman like his father rather than a simple swindler, I wouldn’t have had any of this gear.
-Brugaire isn’t, like, a whole new person or anything. He just decides he wants to try to be better than he was. Still a businessman.
CERAULIAN (Brugaire’s employee): “All this ‘last dragoon’ business has tired me out, but at least it’s never dull around here!”
Right there with ya. That was an exhausting questline, but the story was awesome – especially that phenomenal final bit with Erpalacion.
Though I gotta contest one thing: Erpalacion keeps being referred to as “the last dragoon.”
Not anymore.
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Next time: Now that I’m geared up like a proper dragoon, back to the main storylines of Rise of the Zilart. Limit break #3.
