(03-06-2017, 11:36 AM)Theryl Wrote: 1) I'm looking for a slum, the kind of place with hookers, junkies, and guys offering you a great deal on stuff that fell off the back of a wagon. In short, the kind of place where a girl with few scruples could scrape out a a living. Pearl Street in Ul'dah looks promising and it seems like Lomnisa should have something similar but I'm open to other ideas.
Ul'dah and Limsa Lominsa are definitely the best places for this sort of background. Ul'dah's got the Pearl Lane, but also a ward in the city called the Dunes or Market Rows, which is home to Ul'dah's famous pillowhouses. If you're looking for a bit more lore on Ul'dah's lesser known areas, I'd recommend this post.
Limsa's also got plenty of good, seedy underbelly areas for this. Such as the Sailors Ward or the many Rhotano Pleasure Barges owned by Carvallain docked near the Captains Ward.
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(03-06-2017, 11:36 AM)Theryl Wrote: 2) I'm looking for more information on magical training. In theory, the various guilds seem to control most of it, but are there other, unofficial sources available? Hedge witches, heretics, failed members, the old drunk down on the corner who knows a few things? Given the number of mages it seems likely that someone would be doing a little illicit training on the side.
The guilds are very simply an established "institution" which preserves a specific method of their trade. So not all archers trained at the Gods Quiver in Gridania. Nor do most marauders ever step foot into the Coral Tower in Limsa. The 1.0 version of the game illustrated this a lot better by not having the first Class storyline quest start until Lv20. You were also allowed to start as any class in any city. So, you could be an archer who started in Ul'dah and then journeyed to Gridania seeking to improve your skills, which is how most of this seems to happen in world.
Beyond this, there are also Ala Mhigan conjurers, Sharlayans and Ishgardians teach their own versions of Conjury and Thaumaturgy, and Arcanum was brought to Limsa by the South Seas Plainfolk, so a better understanding of that art could likely come from that background.
Encyclopedia Eorzea Wrote:Fearing their livelihood will be lost or altered by the influx of new people and ideas, independent craftsmen and warriors alike begin banding together to preserve their trades. They form guilds not only to safeguard their knowledge, but to provide themselves with the wherewithal to form business partnerships which will help assure their financial stability.
If you'd like to read more about magical theory, the mechanics of casting, and aether sources, here's a pretty large post on the topic!
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(03-06-2017, 11:36 AM)Theryl Wrote: 3) Which leads to the subject of magical regulation. Do the various governments require guild membership, is it more akin to organized crime ("No one does magic in dis town wit' out guild say so."), or is it basically a free for all? I'm guessing the last, given there doesn't seem to be much government outside the cities.
The only magicks that are illegal in the modern city-states are Black Magic, White Magic, and anything related to Void summoning. Necromancy is also hiiiiiiiiighly taboo in Ul'dah and will get the Thaumaturges after you.
As for the guilds restricting magical use, that's something you won't find. Kinda went into this above, but the guilds don't require you to participate in their curriculum to learn magic, and therefor cannot force membership to their guild upon any magi they come across. You may pledge to a guild at any skill level, but a guild cannot restrict your ability to utilize what they teach you. That's why there's a lot of criminal elements, such as the Alacran, who use casters using thaumaturgy against the city-state.
Hope this helps!
