FFXIV – Part 170: Remember

Summary: The end of the Shadowbringers main story quests for 5.0. Hades. Farewell to Emet-Selch, Ardbert. Back to the Source. Regicide. Breadcrumbs to Eden. Moon’s haunted.

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The Dying Gasp

-Time for what I imagine to be the main story quest’s final boss for 5.0: Emet-Selch/Hades. Hythlodaeus knew him as Emet-Selch, so maybe Hades is a name he took on after Zodiark tempered him.

-As with most of these trials and raids, I prep with a Mizzteq raid guide. Bless you.

-HOLY SHIT THAT ENDING LOLOL! We lay scattered amidst the fury of Hades’ assault. Only two stalwart Warriors of Light stood fast. It all came down to the heroics of Hunky Mangos and Tako Quintet.

Hades charged his final attack, “Black Cauldron,” while the tanks plinked away. Anxious seconds tick by, and Hunky Mangos falls.

Badly wounded and alone, the noble Knight of the Five Tacos lands the killing blow.

-I love how Hades’ design centered so much on his people, on the Ascians and pre-Ascians.

All those masks floating, used for abilities, held in his arms as a power source.

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Shadowbringers

-All the Ascian faces and masks float. He’s in despair, losing his civilization.

“No! I will not let it be for naught!”

-He pulls himself together, but Thancred rushes in, breaks an auracite, and binds the Ascian. All the Scions help. Ryne, too.

-Just as Hades starts breaking free, Ququshu summons all her Light IN THE FORM OF ARDBERT’S AXE, AND HURLS THE THING AT HADES THIS IS SO FRIGGING EPIC

-It shatters Hades’ form, and suddenly he’s back to being Emet-Selch. Well, Emet-Selch with a giant hole in his chest where the axe broke through.

EMET: “Remember… remember us. Remember that we once lived…” I nod, and he smiles.

RIP to one of the all-time great FF villains.

This is kind of heartbreaking? The death of a society. Or most of them, cause isn’t Elidibus still around as Zenos? No way we’re done with Zodiark and the Ascians yet, but we’re getting there.

[Later edit: Only now do I understand why his trial was called the Dying Gasp. It was the last attempt at survival and renewal for Emet-Selch’s people as they were.

This “as they were” thing is especially important. Emet-Selch wanted to preserve them in a time capsule of who they used to be, but the line continues through me, and through the rest of the universe in their fragmented form that Emet despised.]

-Emet-Selch/Hades is simply one of my favorite FF villains. Not just MMO, but overall. His motivations, his personality, his style and background and methods. Just incredibly strong.

Draws some from Kefka, but he has a specific purpose that’s not at all nihilistic. More than that he reminds me of FFIX’s Kuja, both in terms of his strategy and manipulation, as well as his relationship to an ancient civilization.

But even then, Kuja was a pawn who went against his people. Emet-Selch was not. Zodiark tempered him, but Hythlodaeus said he was always pro-Zodiark. I get the sense that his goals untempered would have been very similar to his tempered goals.

-Y’shtola sees my aether returned to normal. Throwing the Light Axe at Hades’ darkness cancelled the light out.

-Ardbert restored my broken soul too. Thanks, soulmate. The Light Axe dissipates.

-The Crystal Exarch is still standing. We all leave.

-The camera pans up, across the ruins of Emet’s dead civilization.

-Scene change to the dock where workers saw Bismarck bearing us underwater. Dullia and friends are worried for us… and see me washed up on a beach. The credits start rolling.

-lolol we had to swim the whole way back. Poor Alphinaud and Urianger.

-Urianger must’ve fallen behind. He’s not with the rest of us. “He’ll wash up sooner or later.” Hm.

-HI TITANIA

-A voiceover – G’raha? Ardbert? I’m horrific at discerning voices – says now everything is all good. Mt. Gulg will fall. Emet-Selch’s enchanted Amaurot will fade. Things will move on.

-G’raha and I return triumphantly to the night-time Crystarium. The Light is gone.

-Ardbert’s spirit walks towards his comrades, mirroring Team Scion returning to the Crystarium. He finally gets the peace he deserved.

-A random kid walks up to me. Asks if I’m the Warrior of Darkness. Wants to know how I got to be so strong. I only put my finger to my lips, as if saying , “shh. Don’t tell anyone I’m here.” (I don’t really understand why that’s Ququshu’s response.)

Just as Team Ardbert inspired us, here Team Scion is continuing the cycle, inspiring the next generation.

-The full credits roll now.

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Post-Credits: Crystarium

-The sin eaters have retreated, the Light is gone, the Rejoining is halted, and no umbral calamity is imminent on the Source. A success!

-G’raha Tia is still here, despite the potential paradox.

-Most Scions will stay here. Ququshu will check back in at the Source. That’d be cool if the next patch deals with the goings-on back home with Garlemald.

-Ryne’s glad most are staying here. It’d be lonely otherwise. What a neat arc for her.

-More voiceover. As a kid, he (Ardbert? G’raha?) wanted to be a hero. His attempts fell short, until suddenly he met a true hero. He was happy to stand at their side. (Guessing that’s me.)

-I step through the portal. Still on this side, the Crystal Exarch says:

“Do you hear me, G’raha Tia? This is no time for sleeping!” Uh… is he psyching himself up to keep doing stuff and being awesome, or is he someone else? I assume the former.

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Meanwhile, in the imperial palace in the Source…

-Estinien and Gaius charge through the palace. They saw things in chaos and took advantage.

-The halls are littered with dead guards, all killed with a single blow. Zenos’s work.

-The Emperor cry out in pain from the throne room, and they rush in.

-The katana-wielding soldier is fallen. Now “Zenos” (the real Zenos, in new armor, or the Ascian Elidibus?) stands above the emperor with his sword at the emperor’s chest.

[Later edit: actually, THROUGH his chest.]

GAIUS: “Identity yourself, demon!”
ZENOS YAE GALVUS: “You were hoping for the Ascian?”

It’s the real Zenos. The Ascian fled. Jesus, how strong is Zenos to be able to take him defeat him?

-Emperor Varis confirms this is the real Zenos. “Elidibus is gone. Tore a hole into the rift…”

He turns to Zenos.

“Zenos… my foolish, greedy son… was a second life not enough? Was the Empire too rich a prize to ignore? True freedom for our nation – our people – will never be won by a spoiled princeling! The burden of this throne is beyond you.”

GET REKKKKKT ZENOS

-But no, Zenos is not interested in ruling. He only came to “remove that which ruins my sport. I will not have my prey stolen by your petty wars and cowardly weapons.”

So… he just came here to dismantle the Empire so that they can’t use Black Rose and pre-emptively kill me before he gets revenge?

-He raises his sword, and FUCKING KILLS THE EMPEROR RIGHT THERE. I was NOT expecting Varis to die without fighting him as a boss first.

His eye glowed red first. Not sure if this means anything other than that he’s enraged.

“I heard the Ascian speak of Zodiark and Hydaelyn. Even the will of this star is but a construct of our own making.” His eyes are wide, wild.

“We shall gorge upon their strength, and then, my friend, our context shall begin anew.”

Gaius charges Zenos. Cut to black.

-Holy shit. So is Zenos going to try using Zodiark and Hydaelyn as sources of power? This opens up some really interesting doors.

-Even as the game is setting up Zenos’ return as a villain, I don’t expect to fight him again. He was an endgame Stormblood boss, and even had a super-charged form as Shinryu. I think it’s more likely that he’ll just be a shit-stirrer who activates Zodiark or something before dying.

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Mor Dhona, Scion HQ

-I report in to Tataru. Great to see her again – I love her lots.

-Things are at a standstill with the Imperials here.

-No sign yet of Black Rose. She and Krile had tracked down an old friend to help – Estinien probably.

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Meanwhile, on… the moon or something?

-Elidibus stands alone. He senses that Emet-Selch bit the dust.

“Emet-Selch… gone. Lahabrea… gone. I alone remain – the last of the unbroken.”

-He’s also worried about Zenos, shocked that Zenos overpowered him. He’ll be unpredictable now, knowing about Zodiark and Hydaelyn.

“You have wrested the advantage, Hydaelyn. The thieving hands of Your disciples tighten their grip on our star.”

I have a feeling we’ll finish off the main Ascian/Zodiark storyline before the next expansion.

“I will keep these ‘heroes’ mired in the First, and victory will be ours at last.”

As he says this, he puts his hand to the moon’s surface, as if speaking to it. Is that where Zodiark is held?

“Warrior of Darkness now, are they? Then their fate is decided. They shall meet the same end as those who came before – death at the hands of Warriors of Light!”

I wonder who he’ll try to conscript into that role. I legitimately don’t know.

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Meanwhile, in the desert of the First…

Scene change to Thancred and Ryne in a desert. She senses something out there.

RYNE: “We may have saved the world, but we haven’t reclaimed it.” Is this setting up the Eden raid?

-Thancred will join her on the journey in this wasteland. “That’s what family’s for.” That must mean so much to Ryne.

-The camera pans away to something titanic buried in the wastes. Yup, it’s Eden from FFVIII.

I never got the summon myself. Only learned about the gf after playing.

-The game provides one of those closing stanzas, text on a black screen:

“Though blazing skies give way to gentle night,
What hand can end the war of dark and light?”

The First’s issues with Lightwardens and sin eaters is done. The focus will shift to Hydaelyn vs Zodiark. My only real prediction at this point: Hydaelyn will not win. Not in a simple “Yay, we have slain Zodiark in Hydaelyn’s name and all is now well!” way, at least.

-Ooh, I can now access job quests! I thought there were just role quests, but nope.

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Next time: Trying the red mage quests, then onto the Eden raid. I think it’s the 8-player raid (like Omega). The 24 player raid should then be the Nier-themed raids, which aren’t out yet. Patch 5.1 comes out at the end of the month.