Fairy Lore?

[Gar]

So ICly my character is going to be a Paladin, but I've been considering a sort of IC sub-job that gives my character a bit more fun things to work with. Then I realized, if it was Scholar I could have a fairy companion! (Other things about Scholar fit too, but the fairy was the kicker)

 

So my question is this: Do we have any lore to these fairies yet? I want my own Tinkerbell. But at the same time I don't want to RP a fairy companion that makes people facepalm every time I am around.

 

I've always wanted to give my character some sort of small companion like a monkey or something. It gives him more to interact with in a scene and gives opportunities for humorous mischief.

 

I will read/hunt for whatever lore/rules to these fairies as the game goes live, and then I'm giving birth to my faithful sidekick.

[Remnance]

I don't have the exact detail, but you might be able to find something from FFXI to play with.  I noticed them for the first time just leveling. As they felt safe more would appear in the world and help.

 

I believe they were involved with time travel gates that sent players to the past to fix disturbances.  I haven't seen any thing for XIV.

[Naunet]

I know the fae in the Shroud are currently in conflict with Gridanians, but I can't recall the details. It has something to do with the beastmen tribes I believe.

[ForestGuardian]

Personally I can't stand the fairy model, and will be facepalming anyway. : P

 

 

The Sylphs are infinitely more appealing to me as a sort of "fae pet"... 

 

Even better than the sylphs, I would have liked a Job with Seedkin companions, like Mandragora, etc. Maybe even some druid or animist-like spells. I don't know how well that would have fit into lore, admittedly. But visually, the impact of the graduation hat, glasses, book and fairy is doing nothing for me at all, I'm kind of shocked that they put it in as a Job, alongside Dragoons, Monks, Paladins and Summoners. But to each their own. If you like it, you like it, and in time I'll probably stop being annoyed by their appearance.

 

Now to actually respond to your question... 

 

I don't see much established lore for the fairies in FFXIV, but I found a few bits and pieces about the pixies in FFXI and Titania, their leader. Nothing too important aside from the fact that they've been benevolent, and have a good grip on white magic and healing. 

 

It seems the names are pretty interchangeable throughout Final Fantasy games, everything from fae, fairy, faerie, pixie, sidhe to sylph being nearly the same thing (there are actually creatures called sylphs that look identical to the fairies we've got in FFXIV). The Fairy server in FFXI was even merged into the Sylph server apparently, which just makes it more obvious to me that there's very little distinction between the two fae-like creatures.

 

This link has the most information, I think, again these are from Final Fantasy 11 so they're not exactly the same creatures: http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Category:Pixies

 

If all else fails and the lore never comes, you can try to piece together your own story. Maybe the fairy was bound to an old tome you discovered, or by following an obscure trail of hints, clues and riddles from book to book you were lead to a fairy "fountain". There seems to be a recurring theme of "bottled fairies" in the Final Fantasy games. "Bottled Pixies" were apparently dropped by goblins and orcs in FFXI, freeing them in Witchfire Glen gained you reputation with Titania, their queen. So, it could be as simple as rescuing one and proving yourself. I'm sure, even when/if lore comes out, some creative freedom will be allowed.

[Havoc Snow]

Really the Fairies and Sylph are two entirely different things, especially since one is a beast race and one is just a fairy. Beyond that the Fairies look like tiny elves with butterfly wings, complete with humanoid features and little dresses, your typical fairy. The Sylphs look like dolls made out of cabbage, complete with soulless black eyes that stare knowingly into your heart.

 

For example this is a Sylph:

 

 

 

 

and this is a Fairy:

 

 

 

 

The similarities end at the point that they're both supposed to be fairy like, though the actually Fairy definitely fits the bill a bit more. As far as lore goes in FFXIV, the only thing we know so far is this:

 

In an age long past' date=' when mankind flourished under the radiance of arcane mastery, the island of Vylbrand was home to a city-state called Nym. Though the history of that age tells of countless wars waged with earth-shattering incantations, it was the brilliant strategic maneuvering of Nym's scholars that allowed their mundane army of mariners to throw back would-be conquerers time and again. These learned men and women defended the freedom of their tiny nation with their unique command over spell-weaving faeries, utilizing the creatures' magicks to heal the wounded and bolster the strength of their allies.[/quote']

[ForestGuardian]

I know the fae in the Shroud are currently in conflict with Gridanians, but I can't recall the details. It has something to do with the beastmen tribes I believe.

 

Sylphs: http://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/world/threats/primals/ramuh

 

"A diminutive people who dwell deep within the Black Shroud, sylphs resemble delicate dolls wrapped in vibrant leaves.

 

By and large, these woodland folk hold favorable relations with other races, and have become an almost common sight since a trade in crystals was established. The Garlean invasion of the Black Shroud, however, has quickly soured the sylphs' view of outsiders."

 

They're considered among the "Beastmen", and venerate Ramuh. I haven't actually played the game / I know very little, but I'm hoping for my Roegadyn Conjurer to have some RP revolving around them and diplomacy with Gridania.

 

@ Ashren Snow, I don't know if that post was directed at me, but I was just pointing out that in past games they've been nearly indistinguishable. 

 

These are Sylphs (from other Final Fantasy games):

 

 

[Havoc Snow]

I know the fae in the Shroud are currently in conflict with Gridanians, but I can't recall the details. It has something to do with the beastmen tribes I believe.

 

Sylphs: http://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/world/threats/primals/ramuh

 

"A diminutive people who dwell deep within the Black Shroud, sylphs resemble delicate dolls wrapped in vibrant leaves.

 

By and large, these woodland folk hold favorable relations with other races, and have become an almost common sight since a trade in crystals was established. The Garlean invasion of the Black Shroud, however, has quickly soured the sylphs' view of outsiders."

 

They're considered among the "Beastmen", and venerate Ramuh. I haven't actually played the game / I know very little, but I'm hoping for my Roegadyn Conjurer to have some RP revolving around them and diplomacy with Gridania.

 

@ Ashren Snow, I don't know if that post was directed at me, but I was just pointing out that in past games they've been nearly indistinguishable. 

 

These are Sylphs (from other Final Fantasy games):

 

 

 

My mistake, I thought you meant that the Sylphs of FFXIV looked identical to the Fairy. Yes, the Sylphs of previous games do look pretty spot on to the fairy, and I wouldn't be surprised if that was what they based its appearance on to begin with. As far as the Sylphs storyline goes, the "bad" Sylphs are new in 2.0 IIRC. I can only vaguely remember the story from Phase 2, but if I can recall correctly Ramuh used to be peaceful and suddenly became aggressive after the attacks from the Garlean Empire, corrupting some of the Sylph who in turn have begun kidnapping other Sylph to corrupt them. There is a small settlement of them in East Shroud that are still good, so a diplomat between Gridania and the Sylphland is still a feasible concept, just avoid the purple ones.

 

Some of the Primal choices confuse me though, like why Ramuh is the Primal for cabbage patch kids, or why Titan is the Primal for the Kobolds and not the Hecatonchires/Giants. Ifrit being the Primal for the lizard/dragonkin race makes sense, Leviathan as the Primal of the fish people race makes sense, and if you know the lore behind Garuda and why she's totally insane even her being the Primal for the scaley wingless bird people race makes sense.

[ForestGuardian]

Well I think lightning has always had a close connection to nature, not that the other elements don't. But in games where a true "life / plant / green" magic isn't available and earth magic isn't focused on by it's self, lightning seems the next best thing (to me, at least). 

 

In The Elder Scrolls Online, I'll probably have my Bosmer be a Lightning-based Sorcerer if not a Sun Heals Templar, he'll be a particularly devout follower of Y'ffre the Forest God, and fire magic or ice magic just don't fit that as well. Hoping very hard that I'll be able to specialize in one element. Hated that about GW2 elementalists. But I'm actually satisfied with the Conjurer specializing in Wind, Water and Earth, those three go nicely together, IMO. 

 

And I'm rambling... The point: I don't think Ramuh being the Primal of the Sylphs is too crazy. Druids in WoW had Hurricane, an AoE lightning spell, and Robyn, the first druid I was introduced to through The Moonshae Trilogy (Forgotten Realms) once called down a lightning storm on some northmen. 

 

I'm really sorry if I've derailed the thread at all, I mean it's SORT OF on topic, plus as far as I can tell there isn't anything else to be said that IS 100% on topic and relating to fairy lore. I do hope I'm wrong though, and someone might offer some truly useful information that has nothing to do with sylphs, other games, druidic magic or lightning magic. xP

[Havoc Snow]

Well as far as I know Fairies were introduced to the game lore through the Scholars, and while Nym was alluded to in the past I don't think there was a lot about it (that I can recall) beyond a few in game texts. So until we know more about Scholar, and possibly about Nym, we won't really know a lot about Fairies. I assume most of the lore will come from the Scholar Job quests and possible via any Scholar NPCs we might encounter.

 

As far as Ramuh and the Sylphs go though, I could be completely wrong about this but the Element of Lightning has also struck me as the "Dark" Element of FFXIV, just the same as Air would be the "Light" Element. A lot of the Lightning based creates (and even Ramuh himself) share similarities in color or appearance to the Voidsent monsters given them a demonic vibe, and Ramuh even looks like some kind of Vampire based on his concept art. The closest thing to Druids we have in the game are Conjurers who use Water, Earth, and Air; while the Thaumaturges who use Black Magic and are tied with Death and the Afterlife use Fire, Ice, and Lightning.

 

The only reasoning I could make was that in most prior games Ramuh was always something like the Wise Man in the Woods, you usually found him in some isolated part of the world where he'd offer you guidance and what not and then become a Summon for you.

[Mtoto Wamoto]

Off topic from the OP...but seeing as it was brought up...

 

The primals that each beastman tribe worships doesn't seem closely tied to the type of beast they are or the location they're found in, but it seems to be based more on what the beastmen themselves actually worship and the element they're associated with.

 

For example, we know that the Amal'jaa pride themselves as fighters and their society seems based around warlike tendencies and that they are associated with the element of fire. Of the known summons, Ifrit seems the one most fit for the Amal'jaa.

 

The Ixali are associated with the element of wind and they long for the power of flight, something that has since been lost to them and thus they rely on hot air balloons to take to the skies. They in turn worship the skies. Between Garuda and Siren, Garuda hands down fills the role of the Ixal primal. Fun fact...Coerthas is known as being the birthplace of the wind.

 

The Kobolds worship the earth it seems, or at least greatly prize the minerals that come from the earth. It makes sense Titan is their primal.

 

Sylphs are renowned for their abilities with magic and their society seems to be based around it. Ramuh is on of the most prolific summon when it comes to that regard, so again, it makes sense that he is their primal. 

 

My knowledge on Sahagin is a bit limited, but using what we know, we can assume that their society is closely related to the ocean. If you can name a more well known and traditional water based summon other than Leviathan, good luck.

 

This is just speculation, though I believe I might have read it somewhere...but I believe that the Gigas are likely to worship Shiva and are likely from the region north of Coerthas known as the Farreach. 

 

I'm rambling at this point, but here's some more fun speculation.

 

The Mamool Ja come from the lands to the west and are mercenaries for hire. Its been said (I'll have to find the source) that the beastmen are looking into summoning their own primal, so chances are, they may end up doing so later down the line. My bet is on Quezacotyl, mainly because the big traditional ones have already been named so any new primals added would likely end up being some of the lesser known summons from previous games.

 

Siren and Fenrir aren't associated with anything right now, and to be honest, until they reveal more beastmen, I'm waiting on speculating much on them as we can't say for sure she will be a primal. 

 

The Goblins and the Qiqirn don't have an announced primal yet and it isn't even known if they can summon one. However, the lore of 1.0 tells us that the Paragons taught the beastmen how to summon the primals and that some of the beastmen (namely the sylphs) chose not to use this knowledge out of fear. Following the same vein as King Moggle Mog, they might just get comical primals for the lulz.

 

Odin and Bahamut have been confirmed as Elder Primals, and methinks that Alexander will fall in line with that as well, all three of which could somehow be associated with the Allagan empire in some way. 

 

blah blah blah, Mtoto is ramblingagainohgodwhypleasemakehimstop

[Saefinn]

Hopefully these fairies will have a lore to work with and have personalities of their own, rather than just being an avatar, so I can RP my fairy as well as Saefinn (iirc Carbuncle used to speak in FFXI, so I wonder if the FFXIV will be the same? We could prolly RP our own Carbies)

 

Either way, my fairy will be roleplayed and it will probably be fun and interesting to do, but I am slightly amused by the fact I'll be a Pirate Captain with his own Tinkerbell. Peter Pan will be turning in his own grave. But this isn't neverland, so I won't be working it into my roleplay - well I suppose I could jokingly make a subtle reference without breaking lore. I mean, Final Fantasy I has a grave that says "Here lies Link" in the Elf Village, I guess I could have a "Here Lies Peter Pan". There are graves in Thanalan after all.

[Castegyre]

^Interesting stuff, thanks for babbling

 

One of my two characters will likely be an Arcanist and I have something of an idea of how I want to go with the fairy thing if I decide to go full on Scholar from there. I need more of an idea how their lore works before I set anything in stone, though. I don't want to do anything too ridiculous. So I'll be keeping a lookout for more on this subject.

[Gar]

Personally I can't stand the fairy model, and will be facepalming anyway. : P

 

 

 

Hahaha totally understandable.

 

Thanks for the links and the discussion guys, it is given me a better idea of where to start from. I hardly think the Primal discussion is off topic since its all in the same vein.

 

And Saefinn, that is pretty funny because my character is a pirate as well and I had a similar thought of the whole Peter Pan thing. I imagine my character sorta like the Peter Pan who's wrapped up in Hook's clothes as they sail back to London on the stolen ship.

 

Random sidenote, have you ever read the Peter Pan book? It freaked me out. Peter is a little douchebag and Tink swears like a sailor. It was... kind of amazing.

 

But this is all good stuff. Sounds like I can have a pretty good spread of artistic creativity when it comes to writing my fairy, but I'm getting a better idea of where she'd come from and what have you.

[Havoc Snow]

A few points I wanted to add to the conversation that were relative. In 1.0 Nym was alluded to as an ancient civilization that had powerful magical practices (though nowhere near on par with the Allagan). However we never really get to see anything from Nym, so there was very little lore or facts about the ancient city other than it was located "somewhere" in La Noscea. During one of my many lore surfs (randomly hopping around links on the net and getting lost in the lore and info) I came across an article on the FF Wiki about Nym that contained some concept art that is believed to be Nym in ARR (image below). The proximity of Nym's ruins (and likely cultural influences) to Limsa Lominsa easily explains why Scholar would be tied to it, but what it also may mean is that we'll eventually have quests that send us into the ruins of Nym (perhaps a dungeon?) which may mean we'll have a better explanation on what the fairies are, and why they're only just now appearing again after all this time.

 

One thing I'm curious about is whether the fairy is a living creature, or a magical homunculus of sorts created by the Scholar, like an extension of the Scholars knowledge and magical prowess.

 

Artwork of the Scholar and their Fairy

 

Possibly some ruins of Nym

[Castegyre]

 

One thing I'm curious about is whether the fairy is a living creature, or a magical homunculus of sorts created by the Scholar, like an extension of the Scholars knowledge and magical prowess.

 

 

This is part of the information I need to know for, um, science... or something...

[Havoc Snow]

 

One thing I'm curious about is whether the fairy is a living creature, or a magical homunculus of sorts created by the Scholar, like an extension of the Scholars knowledge and magical prowess.

 

 

This is part of the information I need to know for, um, science... or something...

 

It seems like a reasonable speculation since we know that Arcanists create their own Carbuncles using a mixture of symbols and a gemstone, so unlike in the past where Carbuncle was a singular being and Summoners were able to unlock the ability to call him to their aide, this time he's a manifestation of the Arcanists power.

 

We also know that the Summons that the Summoner uses are just manifestations created using a combination of the Summoners power and a sliver of the Primals energy, so they too are sort of like homunculus in a way. So if these two classes actually create their pets as an extension of their power, rather than calling to serve the aid of already existing beings, it could easily be assumed the the Fairies are also just a reflection of the Scholars power in some way, an extension of their magical abilities. It was also stated that the Fairy would have different forms for different stances, which I assume mostly means a change in color and maybe wing design based on whether it's buffing, healing, or assisting with damage.