Tempering and Role Play

[B'ren Lyrgh]

Don't post much here but I figure I might as well ask people beyond my skype list about something like this. I've been messing around with an idea since I started playing this game...about four months ago now. When I found out about tempering of people to the Primals, my mind went in so many directions I couldn't figure out exactly what I wanted to do with the idea. I let it sit for a bit and finally getting a bit of courage to start a bit of a side story for my FC and my first story start that I'd run since I've started rping decades ago. 

 

Basically what I'm curious about is how people go about temperin, 'drowning', 'touched' characters and ways of it being "instant sap of will you serve me now mortal" sort of deal or a gradual decay of will power and a torturous, agonizing fall into that mentality of such. I was told that there are FATES dealing with much higher thinking Tempered sneaking into the Immortal Flames, but I'm still curious as to what other people think about it.

[Aduu Avagnar]

Don't post much here but I figure I might as well ask people beyond my skype list about something like this. I've been messing around with an idea since I started playing this game...about four months ago now. When I found out about tempering of people to the Primals, my mind went in so many directions I couldn't figure out exactly what I wanted to do with the idea. I let it sit for a bit and finally getting a bit of courage to start a bit of a side story for my FC and my first story start that I'd run since I've started rping decades ago. 

 

Basically what I'm curious about is how people go about temperin, 'drowning', 'touched' characters and ways of it being "instant sap of will you serve me now mortal" sort of deal or a gradual decay of will power and a torturous, agonizing fall into that mentality of such. I was told that there are FATES dealing with much higher thinking Tempered sneaking into the Immortal Flames, but I'm still curious as to what other people think about it.

From the Ifrit cutscene (iirc) its pretty much instant, and I think the people that were in the IF weren't tempered, simply corrupt and payed for by the Amal'jaa

[Zyrusticae]

I think different people would have different reactions to it.

 

Part of it is how malleable you are. For example, someone with a rigid mentality and who cannot truly accept the primal's influence may be struck dumb, incapable of little more than blind obedience, whereas someone who is open to the idea may be left with more of their higher-order functions intact, as there is less resistance being formed there. The latter individuals are the most dangerous ones, as they will actively push towards helping the primal achieve their goals through whatever means are available to them. The former are little more than shock troopers, there to fill the trenches with bodies.

 

As for how gradual it is, it seemed to me like the Ifrit cutscene made it clear that the tempering process is basically instantaneous. Either you get tempered or you don't. Not much in-between and not much in the way of an interim period.

 

There is a potential for conflict with regards to friends and loved ones meeting their tempered former comrades. I have no idea if tempered individuals retain their loyalty to their old friends on any level; it's possible that a tempered individual may be able to 'fight back' against the tempering if faced with the prospect of killing, say, a former lover or their best friend. Maybe. I dnno, it's an idea.

[Berrod Armstrong]

GE: Can you give us some details on what happens to a person when they become tempered by a Primal? How much of their identity remains? Also, speaking of “tempered,” some people have taken to the idea that this term was only supposed to be attached to Ifrit, since tempering involves heat, and we see other terms attached to the process with other primals (Drowned / Touched). Care to shed any insight on what’s up with the different names?

 

MCKF: Back in 1.0, in that first Ifrit battle, that whole thing is that Ifrit has his blue flames that he spits out. That’s what tempers the people. There used to be NPCs that would go “No! I’d rather die than be tempered!” because it takes all of you away. It tempers you, removes part of your will to make you more acceptable to the teachings of Ifrit and the Amal’jaa. How much of the identity remains depends on how much tempering has been done. You don’t get a full tempering in one shot. One tempering will remove some of your will, but you’re still kind of conscious. If you remember back in 1.x you have people in the Serpent Reavers that were “drowned,” but they were still talking about their lives in the past, but now they’ve changed.

 

 

GE: So, it’s like a diet tempered.

 

MCKF: Yeah, there’s still a little bit of them left, but they’re convinced of the true power of Ifrit, Leviathan, etc. The more you get tempered, the more you lose. Currently, there is no known way to cure the tempering. Currently.

 

For Ifrit, the process is his blue flame. For Leviathan, they’ll dunk you in the holy water and you become Drowned. It’s the same process, but it’s a different kind. For Garuda you’re being touched by her gales of tempering, and so we’re calling it Touched. It’s that element washing over you and taking part of you away. You can assume there will be something similar with Ramuh and Shiva like Shocked or Frozen.

 

 

 From the interview with Fernehalwes that you can find here!

[B'ren Lyrgh]

Hmmm. Well, yeah I figured it'd be instant and as Berrod just banged on about in skype it's a "done and done" deal. Really what he and just agreed on, though him more saying my erratic thoughts finally came out clearly, is that it would work more along the lines of a 

 

"First "Tempering"": Done and done, you're theirs, no ifs ands or buts about it. You have your mind still mostly yours, you go about your day but doing things iN THE NAME OF MIGHT IFRIT, but otherwise normal.

 

Second "Tempering": More or less a fanatic of sorts, finding yourself in Thanalan more often than not and either stealing or mining crystals yourself to bring back to the Amalj'aa for feeding into Ifrits flames

 

Third Tempering: ALL HAIL IFRIT, MIGHTY LORD OF FLAMES. *KIDNAPS EVERYONE THEY KNOW TO BRING BACK TO IFRIT AND HAVE THEM TEMPERED*

 

pick and choose your primal here (though i think Ramuh's would be a bit more...calm about the whole thing)

 

(and this is just me thinking out loud to everyone, wouldnt mind some feedback on anyone elses opinions)