(08-13-2017, 10:05 PM)Valic Wrote:(08-13-2017, 06:47 PM)Kieron Lohengrin Wrote: When I DM a storyline or scene I give my players a choice of when they want it to be set. Unless they specify otherwise, it usually defaults to the "present day", i.e. they already freed Ala Mhigo and Deltascape / expert roulette shenanigans ongoing, but sometimes they want to play out a very specific life event in their toon's recent past. Sometimes people also just want to do slice of life things like living with the Mol tribe for a while. Aetherytes make travel time a non-issue, if PCs so choose.I'm glad you brought this up as this is another one of those things I've wondered since we've gotten the new continent. While I can easily write over having to travel to the east via a boat or some form of travel that involves me going from point A of Eorzea to point B or Othard and then just go there via aetheryte cuz screw it. I always wondered how many players RP out the fact they aren't attuned to the aetherytes in Othard period. If we're speaking on the terms of casual RP, we can just easily come up with anything, hopped aboard a merchant ship, got a ride from a lominsian friend, flew by chocobo and somehow didn't get swept up into any issues for a good few days during, or you just tele'd to the aetheryte because.... Whatever the case may be, long term seems to make this part more of a main factor in you having to know that your character needs to attune to this new continent's aetherytes(assuming they're not from there originally) to be able to go there as frequently as you desire. I understand the cost and amount of anima this would use of course would be a bit draining to just easily do back and forth, but I'm more concerned about writing the "why did my character decide to go to Othard?" or the "How did they get here in the first place?". Casually it's easy to come up with any reason just for the sake of it and have fun, plot-wise it feels like you need to invest a bit of story in the travel itself to make sense.
I never tell someone "you can't do that because we're still stuck in X event." And if they want to try playing out something non-canon / one-shot with their characters for a while I'm also cool with that. The best way to think of it is like the official vignettes that Square Enix writes and publishes on their website - "Here's some aftermath for what happened to your character after that ingame cinematic. Also btw yes they canonically fill out orphan sticker books a lot"
I guess what I'm saying is... I can't imagine maybe character types just waking up one day and going "I feel like going to the FAAAAAAAAR east.... yeap!" and then just doing it "because". I've been spending a bit of my story in writing how to travel that way too, and it's starting to feel a little iffy. It feels both forced and at the same time it feels as though it couldn't happen any faster than I wish it could.
I have not much to add to what people already said above me... Since I already play in time bubbles in a similar vein to the MSQ and all that jazz, I don't feel any peculiar issue with continuing that way with SB and travel and stuff. It allows for far more freedom and elegant storytelling to me, as long as it remains believable (doesn't break suspension of disbelief that is).
A lot of people will have varying views on what's acceptable and what's not for your dilemna. I am probably on the far end of the scale where I'm too stubborn to deviate from lore. I have always been one to almost shun aetheryte travel, or at least grind my teeth when it's used casually in roleplay. How many time have you had FC events where people get their briefing in their FC house, then use the aetheryte to get to their destination every damn day? And then back? And again? Since I know I'm a minority and have after all to follow FC events and whatnot, I go along with it.
But aetheryte travel is not a given to most people in Eorzea, costs a shitload of money, and is far from safe as a mean of travel. You might notice that almost not a single NPC actually uses it except in the most urgent circumstances, and I have a hard time recalling even the Scions using that most of the time. And when they do through emergency spells not cast correctly (thank you Y'shtola), they get lost in the aetherial sea.
I also believe there is a reason why the story is very shy in using that plot device. Because it was created obviously first as a main game mechanic for that MMO to be functional and fun. They of course justify it through the lore and story obviously, and the lore actually covers it pretty extensively for that matters, but it remains an awkward thing and the story doesn't like to use it.
And I understand why. It cheapens every notion of travel and journey. You still have to attune to an aetheryte first, yes, so at least you have to do the journey yourself first. But even then, it still cheapens greatly the idea of scale and distances. It feels too easy overall.
It already boiled down to what kind of character people want to portray too. Badass adventurers or shonen stories? Or more realistic, everylife characters? Depending on the tone of the story you tell, aetheryte travel can swiftly go from a normal everyday thing to something that just totally ruins your suspension of disbelief (and suspension of disbelief is the very essence of roleplay).
So we know it costs anima, costs gil, can cost your life if not done correctly, and Alisaie also mentions that the aetheryte travel between Othard and Eorzea is way too much for all of them but the WoL who is pumped in anima like nobody.
With that in mind Othard is closed to my character until she has to get there through proper means, which is travel. Maybe at some point airships will open up to get there (remember the non functional airship landing in Kugane?). Or maybe not.
It's okay anyway, I got time bubbles.
Balmung:Â Suen Shyu
