(05-15-2017, 01:34 PM)Jeanne IX Wrote: 1: Does Ishgarde own Coerthas? The three city-states I've been to (I'm only level 18) all seem to own the land in their surrounding regions, but it's my understanding that Ishgarde's gates have been closed to the outside world, so is Coerthas actually theirs or not?
Coerthas is still considered the territory of the Holy See of Ishgard. Ishgard did withdraw from the Eorzean Alliance roughly twenty years ago following the fall of Ala Mhigo and they did close the city gates to defend against a rise in dragon attacks and left their land to be ravaged by Dravanians and Garleans until quite recently. However, Coerthas fell under the protection of the four High Houses during this time, despite what little their resources stretched thin were able to accomplish.
If you're looking to learn more about Ishgard, there's a good amount of info at the bottom of this post.
(05-15-2017, 01:34 PM)Jeanne IX Wrote: 2: Are all of the refugees from Ala Mhigo in Ul'dah poor or is it conceivable that some wealthier ones have fled to Ul'dah too?
Most Ala Mhigan refugees, especially those in Ul'dah, are poor or destitute. There are a few exceptions, but very very few - Raubahn being the most notable. There's multiple reasons for this:
The first is that prior to the revolution and subsequent fall to Garlemald, the King of Ruin spent the better part of five years executing any Ala Mhigan with noble blood and any wealthy families or merchants. So what few were spared the purge then either ended up losing their possessions during the Garlean invasion or were forced to sell whatever they could as refugees in foreign lands.
Secondly, it's been twenty years since the fall, and in Ul'dah many of those years were spent without access to any honest labor. Even today, many Ul'dahns perceive Ala Mhigans as lazy or unsavory, and deny them employment. Furthermore, Ul'dahns only measure a person's worth by their material wealth, of which Ala Mhigans no longer have any. They cannot afford the exorbitant price of citizenship, access to medicines, or the price of hearth or market stall. So most Ala Mhigans are forced to live outside the city.
So, it is entirely possible for a wealthy Ala Mhigan to exist in Ul'dah, but they have a lot of things stacked against them - and in the case of those few exceptions who did manage to make or maintain their wealth on Ul'dahn blood money (Raubahn, for example, spent over a decade as a prisoner forced to fight in the bloodsands), they are resented by their own people, most of whom have been significantly less fortunate.
You can find out more about how Ala Mhigans are surviving in the various city-states in this Ala Mhigan Lore Compilation. Hope this helps!
