Until lore says otherwise, it is the 1st Year of the Seventh Astral Era. FFXIV (per the devs) operates in a time bubble. Time doesn't move forwards unless they say it does. This alleviates the confusion of a new player joining ARR in 2017 and the storyline starting out in the 5th Year of the Seventh Umbral Era, playing the storyline, the storyline telling you it's now the 1st Year of the Seventh Astral Era, but then everyone else is currently in the 4th Year of the Seventh Umbral Era cuz that's how long they've been playing. The same thing happened in FFXIV's 1.0, which began in 2010 and ended in late 2012. Two real years had passed, but the entirety of 1.0's gameplay and storyline had taken place in the Year 1572 of the Sixth Astral Era.
I'll quote Fernehalwes's explanation:
So, the way time works in Eorzea is that after every Astral or Umbral Era shift, the calendar date resets to the 1st Year.
So in 1.0, the game ended in the Year 1572 of the Sixth Astral Era, meaning that the Sixth Astral Era specifically had lasted 1,572 years. After the Calamity, the calendar reset to reflect Eorzea entering into a dark time - or Umbral Era - resetting the calendar to the 1st Year of the Seventh Umbral Era. Five years had passed between the Calamity and the start of play in ARR, bringing us into the 5th Year of the Seventh Umbral Era. Towards the end of the 2.0 MSQ, the leaders of the Eorzean Alliance declare the Umbral Era through, and the dawn of the 1st Year of the Seventh Astral Era had begun.
Now, at any time, lore or story may give us an important date - ie. the fall of Ishgard in 3.0 perhaps?
And most likely, this date will remain within that 1st Year of the Seventh Astral Era because of the above-mentioned time bubble. In which case, roleplayers, like they did during the end of 1.0, will have to adjust their timeline to fit... or not. Roleplayers can choose to ignore this bubble or not and play as if each Heavensturn Event signifies a year passing. Technically, they are also correct. Just- in all likelihood, if a major event takes place, you can bet the Eorzean calendar will reflect zero time passage.
So the fall of Ala Mhigo was still 20 years ago. The Battle of Silvertear Skies was still 15 years ago. Etc.
Hope this helps! Know its frustrating.
Also, personal pet peeve: the Year 1577 does not exist, though it is a helpful way of thinking about time passage since the Sixth Astral Era. The Sixth Astral Era ended in 1572, to say the Year 1577 is to say we're still in the 6th Astral Era and that the Calamity did not happen. If you wanna add up years in between all the Eras, it'd be more accurate to say 10077, as the Dawn of Eras was roughly that long ago.
I'll quote Fernehalwes's explanation:
Quote:Before I move onto question two, allow me to veer off onto a little tangent: there have been several threads about Hydaelyn’s timeline not matching up with Earth’s. If it has been two years since the release of the game, why is it still 1572 in Eorzea at the time of patch 1.23? This is a dilemma faced by a lot of MMOs. To allow everyone that joins the game, regardless of when they do, to experience the full story, there simply has to be a stoppage of time. Okay, not really a stoppage, but more of a time bubble in which a span of about a year is contained. This is why that for the duration of 1.0, Eorzea was in a perpetual 1572. Think of it as the same thing that’s happening in the Simpsons. 23 seasons gone and Lisa’s still 8, Maggie’s still a baby, and the gummy Venus still tastes oh, so sacrelicious. Pushing time along would also mean changing 1000s of lines of NPC dialogue, updating quests, webpages, etc. with every patch. Meaning it would take more than double the time to release updates, and I’m sure most people wouldn’t want to wait. In a book, movie, offline game, a strict timeline can be set without too many complications. In an online title, there are just too many variables, so we ask that you bear with our bending of space-time. It’s for the greater good!
So, the way time works in Eorzea is that after every Astral or Umbral Era shift, the calendar date resets to the 1st Year.
So in 1.0, the game ended in the Year 1572 of the Sixth Astral Era, meaning that the Sixth Astral Era specifically had lasted 1,572 years. After the Calamity, the calendar reset to reflect Eorzea entering into a dark time - or Umbral Era - resetting the calendar to the 1st Year of the Seventh Umbral Era. Five years had passed between the Calamity and the start of play in ARR, bringing us into the 5th Year of the Seventh Umbral Era. Towards the end of the 2.0 MSQ, the leaders of the Eorzean Alliance declare the Umbral Era through, and the dawn of the 1st Year of the Seventh Astral Era had begun.
Now, at any time, lore or story may give us an important date - ie. the fall of Ishgard in 3.0 perhaps?
And most likely, this date will remain within that 1st Year of the Seventh Astral Era because of the above-mentioned time bubble. In which case, roleplayers, like they did during the end of 1.0, will have to adjust their timeline to fit... or not. Roleplayers can choose to ignore this bubble or not and play as if each Heavensturn Event signifies a year passing. Technically, they are also correct. Just- in all likelihood, if a major event takes place, you can bet the Eorzean calendar will reflect zero time passage.
So the fall of Ala Mhigo was still 20 years ago. The Battle of Silvertear Skies was still 15 years ago. Etc.
Hope this helps! Know its frustrating.
Also, personal pet peeve: the Year 1577 does not exist, though it is a helpful way of thinking about time passage since the Sixth Astral Era. The Sixth Astral Era ended in 1572, to say the Year 1577 is to say we're still in the 6th Astral Era and that the Calamity did not happen. If you wanna add up years in between all the Eras, it'd be more accurate to say 10077, as the Dawn of Eras was roughly that long ago.
