[Spoilers] 4.2 MSQ Discussion

[Nero]

This is a spoiler THREAD (and thus you shouldn't be in here if you haven't completed the MSQ and you only have yourself to blame), but it's always better to be safe than sorry, thus I encourage you to be liberal with spoiler tags regardless.

 

With that said....

 

 

 

 

So Elidibus probably transformed into or possessed Zenos or something, because I refuse to believe that's the real Zenos that's alive at the end, or else I will be very enraged.

 

I also have the immutable feeling that Square is doing little but spinning their wheels with this Yotsuyu thing. She's more or less guaranteed to get her memory back at some point, because it's the tropiest thing that can be accomplished with that character (or any amnesiac character, for that matter).

 

As for Asahi...well, Regula is still the only "decent" Garlean character, it seems.

 

 

 

[Ramen]

This is a spoiler THREAD (and thus you shouldn't be in here if you haven't completed the MSQ and you only have yourself to blame), but it's always better to be safe than sorry, thus I encourage you to be liberal with spoiler tags regardless.

 

With that said....

 

 

 

 

So Elidibus probably transformed into or possessed Zenos or something, because I refuse to believe that's the real Zenos that's alive at the end, or else I will be very enraged.

 

I also have the immutable feeling that Square is doing little but spinning their wheels with this Yotsuyu thing. She's more or less guaranteed to get her memory back at some point, because it's the tropiest thing that can be accomplished with that character (or any amnesiac character, for that matter).

 

As for Asahi...well, Regula is still the only "decent" Garlean character, it seems.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bringing back Zenos has given me less cause to care about the story. At this rate they're probably going to bring back Haurchefaunt too. Why should anyone stay dead? I know I'm jumping the gun on this but man I was feeling optimistic about the direction of the story until that moment.

 

[Gegenji]

This is a spoiler THREAD (and thus you shouldn't be in here if you haven't completed the MSQ and you only have yourself to blame), but it's always better to be safe than sorry, thus I encourage you to be liberal with spoiler tags regardless.

 

With that said....

 

 

 

 

So Elidibus probably transformed into or possessed Zenos or something, because I refuse to believe that's the real Zenos that's alive at the end, or else I will be very enraged.

 

I also have the immutable feeling that Square is doing little but spinning their wheels with this Yotsuyu thing. She's more or less guaranteed to get her memory back at some point, because it's the tropiest thing that can be accomplished with that character (or any amnesiac character, for that matter).

 

As for Asahi...well, Regula is still the only "decent" Garlean character, it seems.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bringing back Zenos has given me less cause to care about the story. At this rate they're probably going to bring back Haurchefaunt too. Why should anyone stay dead? I know I'm jumping the gun on this but man I was feeling optimistic about the direction of the story until that moment.

 

 

 

 

If it's any consolation, a couple of my friends have a running theory that this isn't Zenos, but our little Ascian friend puppeting his body. It'd be a decent explanation to why the Emperor was so upset in that one cutscene earlier - if he's in the body of his son. If... I'm remembering its placement right (after you actually defeat Zenos).

 

 

[Aedan Marceaux]

Lackluster, disappointing, and boring.

 

 

 

I honestly felt like nothing happened with this MSQ. We had an ambassador show up, make a deal that will likely be broken, threaten the WoL, then leave.

 

I facepalmed (mostly mentally, but a few physical times, too) several times with these quest.

 

Of course she lost her memory.

 

Of course he's her step-brother.

 

Of course they're put into a situation (still not convinced it wasn't staged in some way) that makes the bad guy look good.

 

Of course Zenos  is alive/back/possessed whatever.

 

This patch was just garbage all around in terms of MSQ. And I really dislike the whole back and forth with each patch regarding Ala Mhigo and Doma. I, admittedly, got excited when the questing starts in Rhalgr's Reach, only to be told, "Hey, there's things going on here that are likely more interesting, but lol, you're going to go watch Tataru be mad at elf boy cuz he bought a sword."

 

Zenos being back in whatever form it is - actually living, actually Elidibus, actually a clone, whatever - is dumb. Plain and simple. 

 

The best thing about this MSQ? Getting Cyan's theme on an orchestrion roll.

 

I've said it in another thread so I won't bother repeating it entirely here, but I was excited for Stormblood when it was announced... but as the MSQ presses on, those hopes of good story are getting thrashed repeatedly. The fact that they decided to focus on two nations in one xpac, rather than giving them each their own, is really hurting it, imo.

 

I can only hope that the new dungeons and "floors" in Omega are more entertaining.

 

 

 

So are we adding a few more months into our time bubble as the WoL and crew travels back across the ocean to Kugane...? Or are we just assuming that they teleported back over?

 

[Teadrinker]

I remember saying at the end of the Stormblood main story that they had wiped the chessboard clean.

 

When Heavensward ended you knew that you still had the dragons and Nidhogg to contend with and the end of the Dragonsong War. With Stormblood... well I guess everything is fine and nothing of value is lost!

 

Seriously, SE needs to step off that before it's too late. Literally no one of note died in the liberation of 2 countries except Conrad and his death was immensely cheapened once you found out Gosetsu and Yotsuyu lived.

 

Point being, they really have no enemy players on the board at the moment and are fueling their narrative off of human drama (Yotsuyu/Asahi) that I don't think anyone really cares about. I predicted this patch would be like sitting through Star Trek VI and it completely was except somehow less entertaining.

 

Also the gall at the end dropping the fact Zenos is alive like its gonna surprise people was just kind of infuriating.

 

This was so boring, holy shit.

 

[H.H.]

isildaure

and

homei's

bromance

is

was

is

too

cute

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Nero]

okay that's enough spoiler tag nonsense in a spoiler thread

 

Question: is Yotsuyu redeemeable y/n

 

I mean I take issue with the fact that so much focus was put on Gosetsu and Yotsuyu (considering THEY SHOULD BE DEAD) but as far as I can tell, everything is gearing up for Yotsuyu to get her memories back and then immediately turn evil again.

[Gegenji]

I mean I take issue with the fact that so much focus was put on Gosetsu and Yotsuyu (considering THEY SHOULD BE DEAD) but as far as I can tell, everything is gearing up for Yotsuyu to get her memories back and then immediately turn evil again.

 

My guess is she does get her memories back... but then also has the memories of the "nice times" she had as just Tsuyu. So she'll be forced to reconcile whether she wants to return to being Yotsuyu or continue on as Tsuyu. Whether she's willing to come to terms with what was done to her, what she did, and... whether or not she's willing to let go and start over.

[Unnamed Mercenary]

I mean I take issue with the fact that so much focus was put on Gosetsu and Yotsuyu (considering THEY SHOULD BE DEAD) but as far as I can tell, everything is gearing up for Yotsuyu to get her memories back and then immediately turn evil again.

 

My guess is she does get her memories back... but then also has the memories of the "nice times" she had as just Tsuyu. So she'll be forced to reconcile whether she wants to return to being Yotsuyu or continue on as Tsuyu. Whether she's willing to come to terms with what was done to her, what she did, and... whether or not she's willing to let go and start over.

 

This. There are a number of jdramas with that as the plot. And it feels extremely jrpg to amnesia plot a redemption.

 

 

...I'd prefer they not. One semi-redeemed villain was enough. And Fordola at least made sense.

[Branson Thorne]

I think it's fairly obvious she's going to unlock her memories. But from there I am unsure what happens. I've also considered the possibility that Gosetsu is going to give his life defending her, for whatever reason. Something is already clearly wrong with him and that's been pointed out several times by various NPCs already.

 

But then again, something much larger could be happening. Three characters who are supposedly dead suddenly show back up, and each one seems a different person then they were before, which is rather interesting to say the least.

 

Also, don't get me started on Gosetsu's whole spew about returning her (Yotsuyu) to his master so he may decide her fate, and then when Hien goes to take her life Gosetsu speaks out about how he should not and it's not the will of the Kami. Behead them both. Her for war crimes, and Gosetsu for treason. Boom, problem solved.

[Verad]

We are pretty vindictive in these parts 

 

Story was about as expected.

[Kieron Lohengrin]

the fact Zenos is alive

 

It might not be Zenos. It could be a clone, a la FF7. Or an Ascian, as others have speculated. They were producing Resonant supersoldiers in Ala Mhigo, and you fight some of them as common mobs emerging from experiment tubes in Castrum Abania. A clone wouldn't be that much of a stretch.

 

The plot taking the time to remind us of the emperor's all-eikons-must-die policy at the same time as Hell's Lid / Byakko has interesting implications. How much of the Empire knows that their golden boy Gundam-piloted Shinryu? Do they know that you're now making friends with auspices in their temple and sparing their lives, when one of the specific talking points during the peace negotiations is your eikon-slaying ability?

 

The 4.X buildup with imperial refugees from the Ivalice raid and now Asahi's claims highlight the infighting going on in the Empire, which probably gets invaded and sorted out in 5.0. Then on to Zodiark in 6.0.

[LiadansWhisper]

I'm getting real tired of people not staying dead.

At this rate, I want the option for my character to behead her enemies and stick the heads in a bag or something. You know, just in case.

Edited February 13, 2018 by LiadansWhisper

[Valence]

I really liked that MSQ patch... until Zenos. Let him rest in peace ffs. If you really have to resurrect people AGAIN, at least do it with... I don't know, Gaius, or Regula...

 

I mean I take issue with the fact that so much focus was put on Gosetsu and Yotsuyu (considering THEY SHOULD BE DEAD) but as far as I can tell, everything is gearing up for Yotsuyu to get her memories back and then immediately turn evil again.

 

My guess is she does get her memories back... but then also has the memories of the "nice times" she had as just Tsuyu. So she'll be forced to reconcile whether she wants to return to being Yotsuyu or continue on as Tsuyu. Whether she's willing to come to terms with what was done to her, what she did, and... whether or not she's willing to let go and start over.

 

This. There are a number of jdramas with that as the plot. And it feels extremely jrpg to amnesia plot a redemption.

 

 

...I'd prefer they not. One semi-redeemed villain was enough. And Fordola at least made sense.

 

I'm pretty convinced that since Fordola and Yotsuyu having been always portrayed in absolute parallels in their own background, situation, victims of the empire indoctrination/use, etc, that Yotsuyu is probably planned to follow the same pattern.

[Unnamed Mercenary]

I'm pretty convinced that since Fordola and Yotsuyu having been always portrayed in absolute parallels in their own background, situation, victims of the empire indoctrination/use, etc, that Yotsuyu is probably planned to follow the same pattern.

 

See, I disagree here a bit.

 

Fordola was clearly raised in it. She actually believed in the Garlean Empire as something worth fighting for. She appeared to want to work harder. Better. Show the Empire that Ala Mhigans were worth respect.

 

Yotsuyu on the other hand feels like the complete opposite. Yes, she also grew up under Garlean rule. Yes, she had a shitty childhood too. 4.2 shows us exactly how much her brother's special treatment pampered him while leaving her to her own devices. And that she did. I don't feel like Yotsuyu ever tried to be on par with the Garleans. She just knew how to make her fellow Domans look even worse. And to better that revenge, they put her in control of them as the acting viceroy.

 

Right now, there are three basic situations I see that SE might follow for Yotsuyu.

 

1. She never remembers and lives out her life in "innocence" as Tsuyu. (Least likely to happen, because then what was the point of writing her out of death?)

 

2. Like others have said above, we get full jDrama plot and she remembers everything, but clings onto the goodness that was showed her. Whether this means she tries to redeem herself or simply adjusts her revenge to focus on the Garleans, I'm not sure. (This seems most likely to happen as it appeals to the most tropes.)

 

3. Lastly, she very well could remember everything and then backstab everyone. Or she's been an incredible actress even to the point of fooling family. She's now seen the inside of the Doman Enclave. She's seen the House of the Fierce. If the Garleans were worried about what she might divulge to the protagonists, there could be a complete reversal in what she might reveal to the Garleans to reclaim her status among them. (I feel like this one's possible, but not as likely as 2.)

 

Meanwhile, Fordola seems to have already showed her focus is on Ala Mhigo. It always was. Whether that's under Imperial rule or being led by a new regime, she seems to carry a national pride that Yotsuyu did not.

 

--

 

That said, I do like what this patch has shown us in terms of not-Zenos or the Zenos-lookalike. We got another glimpse at the Garlean Empire. We got some good politics. And the new content and upcoming content is nice. But given that this is a Japanese game that's also intended for a Japanese audience, it'll probably follow more Japanese tropes. This isn't inherently bad or a negative thing, but I don't see any reason to congratulate SE's writing.

[Aedan Marceaux]

I honestly don't even feel like we, as the WoL, were even needed for this MSQ. Nothing during this bit of story seemed overly difficult bordering on impossible needing the "over 9000" powerlevel of the Warrior of Light himself to overcome.

 

It honestly just felt like we were around to give autographs and, at most, "make people feel safe". The beginning of the quests was even us just being told "nah, we got Ala Mhigo... you go see to that other business across the sea."

 

Even the in game mechanics aided in this feeling when you're saving Gosetsu and Yotsuyu. During that fight you were little more than a "tank" that pulled the big robots into Alphinaud's massive attack. Twice.

 

So one thing I would actually like to develop out of this boring patch would be a phasing out of sorts of the WoL. People realizing he isn't even really needed anymore.... ascians and primals aside, perhaps.

 

The rest... I honestly don't care about. Yotsuyu could just randomly fall over from a heart attack and it would fall right in line with the storytelling this go around, I feel.

[Valence]

Well I for one am very happy that a lot of their patches, old and new, actually don't spend their time portraying a shonen WoL going all around gung ho defeating everyone and whatnot. 

 

Screw that noise. I'm happier with more calm, subtle things, and to be honest, quite fed up to always be the center of the spotlight and saving the day. Feels better to just play a scion like any other, for once.

[Graff Lacroix]

The only way I can accept Zenos as "alive" is if he's really a Frankenstein's monster that Asina put together after his own near-death experience fighting you.

 

Asina strikes me as a villain who simply has no understanding of right or wrong.

 

As for Asashi, we don't know how much of what he told us about Garlemald was true or not. And I believe that Mirror he gave her is a bomb or other special "fuck you" surprise for the WoL.

 

And when he went all hate on us, (I knew from the start he was up to no good) my first thought was to quote Vulpes Inculta's classic line in Fallout: New Vegas - "If you feel strongly about it, attack us, and soon you won't feel a thing."

 

God, why can't we get choices that matter or actually affect the story just a little bit? I'd love to have been able to say something that turned his white trousers brown.