(08-20-2013, 10:17 AM)Darien Cadell Wrote: Just got to find me a cowry.The cowry are just a type of seashell that was used historically (both in the real world and Eorzea according to the info on Nald'thal) as a type of currency before minted currency existed. In modern types they're mostly just used for jewelry, and since it is considered ancient currency in Eorzea as well I'd say the same is probably pretty likely as well. You could probably find them in any market and buy them by the handful for a single Gil.
For us the use of cowry to contact the Blades is symbolic and serves a purpose. Nald'thal's symbol is the cowry, so as the Blades of Nald'thal the cowry is symbolic to our patron, but because cowry come in different shapes, sizes, colors, and pattern variations it can also tell us a lot about a person trying to contact us. How vain they might be, how urgent the request is, the type of mentality or mood the person is in making the request.
For example a person who is desperate to reach us will likely use a larger cowry because it would likely get our attention more quickly, while someone who is vain might use a cowry that is brightly colored, or has a more noticeable pattern on it, even if they pick it subconsciously. This is obviously not an exact science, but it's a good way to make an estimate about who we might be dealing with.