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dysnomia · **12-14-2016, 12:23 PM**

I have a quick question that I'm hoping someone can help me with? I'm designing this dunesfolk lalafell character and within their lore found on wikis and whatnot, it says they wear a forehead gem that represents their zodiac.

But when I look up zodiac with the ffxiv lore, I can't find anything but weapons from the game.
When it says zodiac, it is talking about the patron deity? or the name day?

Someone help, please? Thank you! c:

Gegenji · **12-14-2016, 12:34 PM**

I'm not... entirely certain now that I think on it, but I believe it means which of the Twelve you were born under.

You see, each of the months are also tied to one of the twelve gods of Eorzea. The first month is Halone's, the second is Menphina's, and so on. And so whichever month your character was born correlates to which deity is your "guardian deity." And each of them have a symbol that correlates to them... so I figure that when they say the zodiac they mean that.

So that means if your Dunesfolk was born in... say, the Third Umbral Moon (sixth month, roughly our June), then the symbol on their gem would be Oschon's. Then again, it could just be whichever deity you or your family has as their "primary" diety and not be tied to date of birth at all... I suppose you could work it either way, really.

Um, I hope that helps! ... and I also hope that someone comes and corrects me if I'm way off base on this. Blush

Kilieit · **12-14-2016, 12:55 PM**

(12-14-2016, 12:34 PM)Gegenji Wrote: And so whichever month your character was born correlates to which deity is your "guardian deity."

I don't want to cause confusion - the phrase "guardian deity" is usually used by the game to refer to the deity you select on character creation, separate from the DoB you give them, to provide some extremely minor elemental resistance bonuses flavour. IDK how other people pick their guardian deity, but for me I choose a deity that resonates with the character's beliefs and history, even if they don't strictly worship them. This is unrelated to their DoB.

During the Valentione's event this year, fortune-teller NPCs referred not to your guardian deity in the context of a star sign (like the Ceremony of Eternal Bonding does), but to the deity you were born under. So even though Aghurlal's guardian deity is Byregot (and that's whose symbol showed up on his side during his wedding), the fortune-teller NPC said he was born under Althyk (because his DoB is in December), and therefore that Althyk was the relevant deity for his compatibility with his partner.

The "born under" connections are as follows:

January [1st Astral Moon] - Halone, the Fury - Ice
February [1st Umbral Moon] - Menphina, the Lover - Ice
March [2nd Astral Moon] - Thaliak, the Scholar - Water
April [2nd Umbral Moon] - Nymeia, the Spinner - Water
May [3rd Astral Moon] - Llymlaen, the Navigator - Wind
June [3rd Umbral Moon] - Oschon, the Wanderer - Wind
July [4th Astral Moon] - Byregot, the Builder - Lightning
August [4th Umbral Moon] - Rhalgr, the Destroyer - Lightning
September [5th Astral Moon] - Azeyma, the Warden - Fire
October [5th Umbral Moon] - Nald'thal, the Traders - Fire
November [6th Astral Moon] - Nophica, the Matron - Earth
December [6th Umbral Moon] - Althyk, the Keeper - Earth

I included the elemental aspect because that may or may not connect to the colour of gem the character born in that month is expected to wear? IDK.

Gegenji · **12-14-2016, 01:00 PM**

(12-14-2016, 12:55 PM)Kilieit Wrote:
(12-14-2016, 12:34 PM)Gegenji Wrote: And so whichever month your character was born correlates to which deity is your "guardian deity."

I don't want to cause confusion - the phrase "guardian deity" is usually used by the game to refer to the deity you select on character creation, separate from the DoB you give them, to provide some extremely minor elemental resistance bonuses flavour. IDK how other people pick their guardian deity, but for me I choose a deity that resonates with the character's beliefs and history, even if they don't strictly worship them. This is unrelated to their DoB.

During the Valentione's event this year, fortune-teller NPCs referred not to your guardian deity in the context of a star sign (like the Ceremony of Eternal Bonding does), but to the deity you were born under. So even though Aghurlal's guardian deity is Byregot (and that's whose symbol showed up on his side during his wedding), the fortune-teller NPC said he was born under Althyk (because his DoB is in December), and therefore that Althyk was the relevant deity for his compatibility with his partner.

Ah, fair point, fair point. I was just sort of reaching for the term of whichever deity was "in charge" of that particular month. I generally did the same thing as you described, myself. Picked a deity that fit the beliefs and character... and usually had a bit of a hidden in-joke using existing holidays for my characters' birthdays (I think Chachan's is Children's Day in Japan? I'll have to double-check).

The Valentione's event was a good catch - I completely forgot that it checked your star sign. And I don't remember if I realized or not that it was based of their DoB and not their chosen deity. Nice tidbit of lore!

Sounsyy · **12-14-2016, 06:26 PM**

(12-14-2016, 12:23 PM)dysnomia Wrote: I'm designing this dunesfolk lalafell character and within their lore found on wikis and whatnot, it says they wear a forehead gem that represents their zodiac. When it says zodiac, it is talking about the patron deity? or the name day?

This has been a talking topic for many many years, actually. But the Encyclopedia Eorzea may have finally given us some much needed clarification on the Dunesfolk jewels.

1.0 Character Creation Wrote:Many [Dunesfolk] wear a small, traditional gemstone on their forehead, a symbol of their zodiacal sign.

Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:While many are familiar with the Dunesfolk custom of attaching a small orb to the forehead as a symbol of their guardian deity, it is less well-known that this practice dates back to - and serves to honor - their ancestors, the sorcerers of Mhach. Another unique Dunesfolk practice is that of feeding their children cups of herb tea infused with minuscule portions of diluted snake and scorpion venom. As such, Dunesfolk raised in traditional households often display a remarkable resistance to certain poisons.

The complication now arises when deciding if Dunesfolk choose a gemstone representing their chosen guardian deity or if they choose the gemstone they were born under. This decision may ultimately be entirely up to the individual Lalafell! It almost sounds like a coming of age milestone for a traditional Dunesfolk family, though whether that's true or not is theorycrafting at best.

What we do know is that the people of Eorzea choose their guardian deities for a wealth of reasons. Some follow their birth moon, others follow the doctrine of their city state, some races are more predisposed to worshiping one of the Twelve over another, while others make the choice simply for their lifestyle or chosen profession. Many worship more than one, and many more all Twelve. So when making the decision for your Dunesfolk, I would try to figure out which deity your character finds most central to their core beliefs, or stick to their birth guardian.

Fernehalwes Wrote:The same can be said regarding religion. Each city-state has a patron (matron) deity, and most people in that city-state will follow the teachings of that god or goddess. There are, for the most part, however, no strict religious codes that must be followed. Some Eorzeans will choose to worship a deity connected to their profession (for example, weavers often follow Nymeia the Spinner). Some follow the deity associated with their nameday. There are even some Eorzeans who choose not to follow the teachings of the Twelve, but they are few and far between...and often will not admit it.

The exception to this rule can be seen in Ishgard, where they take the teachings of Halone very seriously...to the point that the church and state have become inseparable. They go as far as calling those who do not follow the Fury 'unbelievers,' and those who are found to have communicated with the dragons of Dravania (the mortal enemies of Ishgard), are branded as heretics and in some cases executed.

Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Belief in the Twelve, a pantheon of gods and goddesses each represented by one of the six elements upon which all creation is founded, has served as a cornerstone for civilization in Eorzea for millennia. Though theologians remain unsure of the exact origins of Twelve worship in Eorzea, studies of relics from the Allagan civilization tell us that even five thousand years ago at the peak of the Third Astral Era, the six and six deities were already engrained in society - as they are today. Not only is the year divided into twelve, and twelve-year cycles used in modern astrology, city-states still choose a patron deity to serve as a guardian over their lands, with that deity becoming a focal point of cultural development, such as the case with Nald'thal and the economically inclined Ul'dahns.

Sometimes, people from certain races or professions will choose to focus their worship on a single deity. Many Miqo'te Seekers of the Sun clan will follow the teachings of Azeyma, the Warden and goddess of the sun. Sailors will often pray to Llymlaen, watcher of seas and goddess of navigation to see their ships safely to port, and artisans will pray to Byregot to guide their hands.

From this past Valentione's Day celebration, I dug up some old text on Sounsyy's reading. Sounsyy's chosen Guardian Deity is Llymlaen, the Navigator. However, her birthday is during the Sixth Astral Moon, or November, the moon of Nophica. So while Sounsyy has chosen to follow the path laid out by the Navigator, her fate ultimately lies with the Matron.

The birth day and month, as well as your name, race, and gender are indicated to be crucial to an accurate reading.

Frank Fortune-teller Wrote:Hmmm... Let's see here. You were born in the Sixth Astral Moon, and thus your fate is guided by Nophica.

House Valentione Emissary Wrote:On these cards is written your name, race, gender, and much moreâ”€information that is essential for an accurate reading.

Unfortunately, what specific gemstone belongs to which specific deity is unknown, if there are even twelve gemstones. There might only be six (half of twelve), following what many numerologists call "Factors of Twelve" or "traces of the gods." As Kilieit illustrated, gemstones may reflect the elemental color or property of the associated Twelve. It's possible also that they might reflect the gemstones of the Near Eastern zodiac of the Atma, which is curiously shared by the ranger units of the Gods' Quiver, which are Lapis, Peridot, Ruby, and Topaz looking gemstones.

dysnomia · **12-15-2016, 02:00 AM**

Oh my goodness. Thank you so much everyone for the replies!! This helps me a lot. And surprisingly didn't confuse me as much as I thought it would when I saw the length of the replies, hehe.

Thanks!Â Chocobo

Zodiacs

RPC has moved! These pages have been kept for historical purposes