The Antitower
-I head into the Antitower dungeon with my friends to search for Minfilia.
-The dungeon is SO COOL. I feel like I say this a lot, but this is now one of my favorites.
So many dungeons in XIV have unique feels. Like, Snowcloak is one of my favorite dungeons when I’m in the mood for a peaceful snowy area. The Antitower is now what I want when in the mood for trippy and goofy.
The key twist (har har) is that it’s an upside-down castle. The intro shows the tower from the outside with the dungeon title screen, then the camera flips upside down to show us the proper perspective.
-The bosses are odd and magical and wonderful. The first boss is Zuro Roggo, a frog wizard who transforms party members into frogs with her frog song.
Oh yeah, and she is full of Kermit references. The frog minions she summons sing something to the tune of “The Rainbow Connection” and her dying words are “It’s… it’s not easy being… *croak*”
-Another boss is a dust bunny type named Ziggy. Ziggy summons exploding rocks we have to kill. The rocks are called “Stardust.”
-The journey down through the castle is trippy too because we’re walking on the ceiling. Everything is upside down. Chandeliers shoot up from the floor. It’s wild.
-But the capper is the final boss. It’s an old nightmare-inducing friend from FFIV: the Calcabrina dolls.
”We are Calcabrina! Adorable dolls! Terrible dolls! Yip-ho-ho!”
THEY EVEN HAVE THAT TERRIFYING, HAUNTING, HYPNOTIC THEME FROM FFIV!
Much as you’d expect, there are two phases. The first where we have to kill the dancing, whirling Calcas and Brinas. Then the second, where they Voltron together into Calcabrina.
One of her most deadly moves as Calcabrina in FFIV was that she could charm your party members which was SO ANNOYING. They managed to incorporate that into this fight. She transforms random party members into the smaller dolls.
The non-doll members have to attack them to break them out of the trance – again, just like FFIV.
What a delight.
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Word of the Mother
-My crystal starts to glow, and I’m transported… to the mothercrystal herself, Hydaelyn! A series of smaller crystals orbit her. I’ll bet if I count, there’d be twelve.
“We are the Word of the Mother. We who were once called ‘Minfilia.’”
WHOA. Minfilia wasn’t lost in the sea of aether. She was called to be a divine prophet! She looks so much different now.
-Minfilia speaks as “We.” With Hydaelyn. Calls herself Word of the Mother.
“Hear… feel… think…” This hearkens back to the very beginning of the game, some of the first words I heard after creating this character iirc.
-She begins to tell me a story, streaking through space alongside me. Two small comets.
-Before life, there was Light and Dark. Darkness coveted power, so she banished Him to a distant moon. This must be Zodiark.
“Across ten and three were we then divided. Reflections of the Source, each possessed of a shard.” So Hydaelyn and the twelve gods of Eorzea. The gods are all pieces of her. Or rather, they’re all pieces of the original light, with Hydaelyn as the most central and intact.
-Zodiark longs to be made whole. Has HE been split apart, like the Light was?
“Thus do they [who’s they? The Ascians?] rejoice in their Ardor – in your calamities – for each marks a Rejoining.”
I don’t understand this, what’s being rejoined. Unless the Ascians were pieces of the original Darkness and they’re trying to Rejoin Zodiark, but I don’t think so. I interpret the Ascians as worshippers of Zodiark rather than pieces of him similar to the twelve gods and Hydaelyn.
“Seven times have they succeeded. Seven times hath the Darkness grown stronger. Seven times have I failed.”
Calamities that mark the end of an era. So each time one of those calamities hit (Bahamut and six prior similar things maybe), that somehow made a part of Zodiark rejoin him. But what are the parts of Zodiark that are separate and need to be rejoined?
“The Ascians cannot be suffered to continue. This is my final…”
She breaks off speaking. She Crystal’s power is nearly dry.
“Blessed children, go forth and seek… seek…” FINISH THE SENTENCE PLZZZZ
DAMMIT SHE SHATTERED AND DISSIPATED APART FIRST
I don’t think the Crystal itself or Hydaelyn are now shattered. Just her ability to communicate so clearly and directly through Minfilia.
-I appear back in Matoya’s Cave. Ohhhhh shit, Minfilia herself was expended too! I assumed that when we saw her break, that was only symbolic of her connection with Hydaelyn. Maybe it was more literal. Being a vessel for a god could easily be taxing enough to destroy her.
She could just be dispersed to be brought back later, but it sure as hell looks permanent.
-Alphinaud is crushed, but Matoya – our very own Korra-era Toph – has none of it.
”She threw herself on the fire to fuel your ‘dawn’s light,’ boy. You’ll just have to usher it in on your own.”
This mission requires sacrifice, and today was Minfilia’s turn.
-No longer are we just about sticking our fingers in the dike, stopping each Primal appearance as it comes up. It’s now about crushing the Ascians entirely.
-Alphinaud is not so ready to move on. Everyone walks away, he stays behind briefly. “No. No, this is wrong…”
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This War of Ours
-The Scion search pauses. Ser Aymeric has asked me to attend a meeting.
-He’s setting up peace talks between Ishgard and the dragons. He wants me there both because of my past help to lay the groundwork for this peace, and for practical support if Team Nidhogg attacks.
-Suddenly, Aymeric stumbles.
I thought this was gonna be a repeat of the end of “A Realm Reborn” for a second (where the Sultana drank a poisoned drink), but he’s just weak from being stabbed.
-Before I leave, Aymeric asks me to have a drink with him once this conference is concluded. Two things:
1) You’re nice and all but I have eyes only for Tataru.
2) There’s no WAY this conference will end smoothly now that you started counting chickens.
-I head to Falcon’s Nest for the conference, at the border of Dravanian and Ishgardian territory.
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Random Stuff Around Eorzea
A random bard I met in the dungeon finder. Seems appropriate that he’s wearing a chocobo mask:
I discovered that I can toggle off my visor, and can now finally see Ququshu’s face again:
I’m not usually a fan of how Lalafells looks in melee gear. My friend’s paladin set-up changed my mind:
A random player with some sweet glasses:
A player with a comfy winter sweater:
I got a poroggo minion from beating the Antitower. She’s an EXPERT at photobombing:
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Next time: preparing for the peace meetings.
