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Jazz Egi · **11-07-2014, 07:16 PM**

(11-07-2014, 06:43 PM)Titor Wrote: I love the idea that it is like aetheric ASM, that was kind of the idea that I was going with but like conceptualizing it like that never hit me.

Also using circuit diagrams, yes. Maybe a combination of the two? The circuit elements are more like the internals, and the jagged/curved is more like the overall shape of the geometry.Â

I have my degree in EECS so all of this is supppeerrr interesting to me. And exactly what I was going for. So I am glad that a lot of people have the same idea for it!

As for summoning/life, I was thinking more this was drawing up an actual entity out of the aetherflow (like how summoners pull on the primal's energy, they are not re-engineering the primal's life). So like, in the Aetherflow there are carbuncles, or one giant carbuncle that you pill bits and pieces from, and so when you summon them it is more like a familiar. The arcanist in MD seems to treat their carbuncle like a pet, instead of like a master/slave kind of relationship, so I think that arcanists with carbuncles would keep them more like friends or pets.

They are not drawing up the life itself and bringing forth a new entity (which is why all carbuncles look similar and stuff, and there are not people who have like dragon fish godlike summons that they designed and created themselves). So along that lines I was thinking of summoning not as geometries but as a kind of pet/familiar relationship. Summoning a carbuncle (since it is a low level skill in game and a lot of arcanists are shown with them) seems to be a pretty basic move for an arcanist if they want one, so I doubt it is anything complex or hard like engineering the carbuncle's whole life and form.

Has anything confirmed exactly how intelligent carbuncles are? I like to think the carbuncle is a self-sustaining loop of aether given shape, and its commands are given by the arcanist in the form of geometry pages dedicated to various basic algorithms. Of course this ties into game mechanics perfectly. A spell for sic or obey or heel.

Alternatively, they are just egis of some Good King Carbuncle or something.

Titor · **11-07-2014, 11:53 PM**

The one that belongs to the arcanist in MD runs around on its own, sniffs the air, etc, all while its master is calling for it. Since it is disobeying the arcanist's orders, it makes sense to me that they are an intelligent entity (to some extent, like an animal) and does not HAVE to follow its master's orders.

**Unnamed Mercenary** · **11-08-2014, 01:27 PM**

I think I remember this getting answered in a lore thread somewhere, source unknown, so I'll write as opinion until fact-checked.

I've been under the impression that the amount of free-will a summon has is dependant on the arcanist. Almost like there is a gradient from [mechanical]<--------->[sparkly fluffy pet] and each arcanist's ability to summon a carbuncle/egi/faerie falls somewhere on that plane.

This is kinda shown in game with all the very stationary carbuncles in t Arcanist's Guild, that are basically just standing there, commandless.

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Jazz Egi · **11-09-2014, 06:37 AM**

(11-08-2014, 01:27 PM)Unnamed Mercenary Wrote: I think I remember this getting answered in a lore thread somewhere, source unknown, so I'll write as opinion until fact-checked.

I've been under the impression that the amount of free-will a summon has is dependant on the arcanist. Almost like there is a gradient from [mechanical]<--------->[sparkly fluffy pet] and each arcanist's ability to summon a carbuncle/egi/faerie falls somewhere on that plane.

This is kinda shown in game with all the very stationary carbuncles in t Arcanist's Guild, that are basically just standing there, commandless.

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SpoilerAnd then in the SCH story line, we also get yelled at as adventurers for not controlling our Eos strictly.

Yeah, but that does not clarify much. Tons of npcs stand sentry. Are guards not cognizant people?

Egis are fleshed out to be mindless husks derived from a primal's essence while fairies are not only self aware but capable of going against you. Egis are automatons while fairies are tiny people. Thematically carbuncles should fall in the middle, sentient but only in an animal sense.

Steel Wolf · **11-09-2014, 08:48 AM**

I'm curious how much the animation of the spellcasting plays in to this theory.Â Obviously, those who RP themselves as able to draw aetheric geometry in the air don't apply here.

For the animations of the class I've seen (haven't leveled the class up much), they consult their grimoire, either tracing patterns or otherwise noting an existing shape, and then they use their grimoire as a focus, either opening the book to direct the drawn effect, or throwing the shape from the page into the aether.

In either case, I wasn't sure how this accounts for those animations, if they're accounted for at all.Â I'd imagine, though, after drawing aetherial geometry, you'd want to be specific about where the shape should manifest....unless something in that geometry's writing takes that in to account.Â For example, a final pen stroke away from the drawn geometry would indicate the distance from the caster in yards to the ground, or aim the effect in the direction written.

Anyway, this was some fascinating headcanon...and sorry if this question was already asked and answered elsewhere in the thread.Â :3

Titor · **11-09-2014, 07:40 PM**

I had considered using a grimoire more as 'tracing' a geometry, where the aether that you channel into the book will be drawn to the conductive ink on the pages and it kind of template-forms the shape you are going for.

Free-drawing is more like drawing the shape in the air without 'tracing' the geometry you wrote around before. Thus those who can free-draw must either have the geometries memorized perfectly or know exactly how to construct new geometries they want to use.

Using a grimoire as a focus is just making sure that you draw the geometry perfect. Every line will be as perfect as it is drawn in the grimoire, every aspect will be in place. This is why I had thought that free-drawing is possible (just like how some artists are able to draw without looking at a reference image or pose) but is very tricky and missing one part or drawing a line crooked could result in either a nonfunctioning geometry, a sub-par geometry, or a completely different geometry all together (possibly dangerous!) which is why only the most skilled or mathematically adept geometry users would attempt to free-draw.

Jana · **11-09-2014, 09:48 PM**

Maybe I'm taking too literally what should be gameplay and story segregation, but the fact that crafted grimoires use special aetherial-conducting ink makes me think that that the actual contents of the grimoire traced by the arcanist matters just as much as what exactly they're tracing on. "Freedrawing" it without this aether-conducting ink doesn't seem like it would work very well, like trying to cast other kinds of magic without a staff or wand to aid the caster. It's not clear how it would happen in FFXIV but many fictions will have the cast be either very weak, unstable, or just not work at all.

Titor · **11-09-2014, 09:55 PM**

If you are going by gameplay, the fact that physick is cross-classable and can be cast by my dagger wielding rogue kind of hints that you can indeed cast memorized geometries without a book.

Jana · **11-09-2014, 10:17 PM**

Yes, I have my character use Physick outside of ACN IC sometimes too. But without the stats from the SCH class and its gear (including the book), it's going to heal for a negligible amount (and I RP it that way when using Physick IC too). This is already what happens when SMN casts Physick with a grimoire, and at higher levels where SCH and ACN/SMN grimoires are separated, even what's written in the books changes as well. Just because it can be done doesn't mean it can be done in a practical way and give the same results.

Titor · **11-09-2014, 10:25 PM**

But if a WHM even an mind-geared DoW or BLM class casts it, it will come off actually pretty good.

Jana · **11-10-2014, 12:14 AM**

True, Physick has the same potency as Cure I (correct me if I'm wrong), so a WHM will cast it for the same amount of healing. You could make a case for a strong conjurer being able to use all sorts of healing magic the same way no matter what it was, even though the same would happen if the same WHM cast Ruin. But there is some point at which the gameplay and story/lore have to separate; Ruin and Physick are both sub-level 5 skills, and ACN's other cross-class skills are enhanced by a trait that only ACN gets. So you could say that these beginner skills could be used without a proper grimoire, but even level 2 Bio wouldn't be usable without one according to gameplay.

Forgive me if this kind of ramble-y, it's late and I'm still quite busy.

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