(05-09-2015, 05:21 PM)Zyrusticae Wrote: the lowest common denominator
Yikes. That's a little harsh. I think 'majority appeal' would be a better way to put it, but hey...
To everyone worrying about this part of the lore, I think we need to remember that we have at least three races/race subsets that should be treated differently by the game, but don't: Duskwight, Highlanders and Keepers. In lore, all three of those have significant negative perceptions toward them from various segments of the population but there's no acknowledgment from the game if you play one.
FFXIV doesn't differentiate from race. Gameplay wise, it's essentially just a cosmetic choice. It's not TES where there's slight differences for quests or reactions or the basic "Oh hi, [race]!" Since there's going to be Au Ra players running all over the place, they can't really have the Holy See declare them heretics or have every questgiver react to one with 'AHHHH VOIDSENT GO AWAY'. That might work in a single-player game but again, XIV has absolutely no in-game acknowledgment of your race, most likely to streamline quests and gameplay experience.
I'm sure there's still going to be prejudice and suspicion that gets mentioned in certain quests or lore tidbits; they've established time and again that this world can be a rather xenophobic one. RP-wise, I'd say a pretty good explanation would be that Ishgardians in general are so desperate for help that they'll try to ignore most weird stuff in the hopes of not perishing to a horde of dragons.
