With the upcoming 3.5 and swimming...

[Mia Moui]

...there doesn't seem to be a breath timer.  We can stay underwater as long as we desire.  Does this mean that Eorzeans (and presumably their mounts and such) can breathe underwater?  I realize it's a game mechanic, but at the same time, plenty of us will be underwater for long periods of time in RP or otherwise.  I'm curious what the community thinks.

[Caspar]

Bleetzbol.

 

By that I mean the explanation is probably going to be the same. Magical stuff grants people the ability to breathe underwater or at least hold their breath for a long time. The implications of it probably won't be engaedwith too much. (Hiding soldiers in bodies of water, early development of aquatic facilities and underwater vehicles, etc.)

[Unnamed Mercenary]

They talked about this during the Tokyo Fan Fest.

 

I don't know if anyone's transcribed it, but it was basically "we don't want a drowning mechanic for diving too long. Assume they're down there with magic."

[Kilieit]

If we're speculating... probably it'll be similar to flying's "only areas with a strong wind aspect" handwave.

 

Specific areas of the ocean/lakes/etc will have a special elemental aspect that allows people to dive there without concern. This explains why sailors can still drown at sea, for example, and why swimming (and diving) are limited to specific locations.

[Virella]

Hey like, magic is cool. Other games do it as well, so why not here?

 

I don't see why spells, trinkets ect would be far-fetched!

[Unnamed Mercenary]

We've already been told there won't be combat while diving. ...but we can still interact with NPCs. ...which makes me think it'll mostly be gathering or walking for the most part. (But hopefully we'll get some cool semi-underwater dungeons/ruins too!)