Aetherflow - Spring 2020 by aetherflow.media

SPRING

2020

TABLE OF CONTENTS 14

Hydaelynâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hearth

Vigil of the Blue

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re excited to announce our partnership with Midgardsormr Community Center and hope you enjoy these lovely houses!

Ever wanted to learn more about the Shadowkeeper? Recount the tales of the Warriors of Darkness to find the connections within.

58 Should We Disband?

Ever get salty about Alliance Raids? Enjoy some catharsis with our resident salt shaker, Mio.

Fashion Focus

We talk gritty fashion with Flash Galathynius.

104 The Joy of the Culinarian

This time around all of our recipes are vegan friendly. We hope you enjoy our spin on some delicious in-game dishes!

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Interview - Hiroshi Minagawa

We are proud to share our exclusive interview with Hiroshi Minagawa, the man behind the incredible UI and art direction of FFXIV.

118

126

Guiding the Community

Curiosities of Cosplay

Ever want to know what goes on in the brain of a Lore Master? Anonymoose was glad to share some insight with us!

We interview the incredible Back of Beyond and discuss the changing cosplay scene and body positivity!

138 Glamourous

Our resident Glamour Queen Vederah uses inspiration from the main cities in Norvrandt to create some gorgeous pieces.

150 Llymlaen’s Locales Think you’ve seen all of Norvrandt? Check again.

168 Interview - She Heals, I Tank

The dynamic duo behind the podcast talk about their experiences in FFXIV, the community and what it’s like to work so closely with their SO.

Aetherflow Spring 2020

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sy XIV's very own and incredibly talented artistic director, Hiroshi

awa! Obtaining interviews like this could not be achieved without

loved staff, Patrons, and readers like you, as well as the amazing

within Square Enix! We owe each and every success to you, dear

unity, and we owe you our deepest gratitude. But by now you've

to expect much more from us, so we have also included delectable

s, gorgeous artwork, intricate cosplays, various glamours, and

much more.

d you ever find yourself interested in becoming part of our lovely

unity or helping make decisions for future pieces, we welcome join our Discord server with open arms. Within it, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be able

nly chat with our various staff members, make your opinion heard

s (such as deciding our next SE interview), provide us with your

ack, and join in on exciting events, competitions, and challenges.

oroughly hope you enjoy this issue and look forward to providing

th many more in the future!

ove,

ditorial Team

na, Arya, Lolae, Vederah & Nana

LET YOUR CREATIVITY FLOW Are you looking to get creative with the Aetherflow Media team? Now is your chance! We are seeking out talented and interactive individuals to fill a few positions on our team. Check out the descriptions on the right for more information on these roles. Any or all of these sound intriguing? Click here to let us know. We look forward to hearing from you! Please allow 1-2 weeks response time as we like to allow all those interested a chance to apply before we begin the interview process. We look forward to your application and thank you for your interest!

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PHOTO

Must be able to This could be a a folder of scree Applicant must ag for Aetherflow Proficiency in necessary touch not required.

OGRAPHER

o provide a portfolio. social media platform, enshots, a website, etc. gree to disable all mods Media photoshoots. Photoshop for any ups is appreciated but

SOCIAL MEDIA TEAM

TRANSLATOR (JP/EN)

Must be able to pitch promotional ideas and be proficient with the various platforms. Applicant should expect to prepare at least 3 posts a week, whether scheduled or manual, published within the Social Media Team. Social Media Marketing experience is appreciated.

Must be able to efficiently translate written pieces between Japanese and English, making sure to maintain their original meaning, format and tone. The estimated workload for this position would be one article per issue, including any communication with members of the Japanese community. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an advantage if audio pieces can be translated as well. The use of Google Translate does not count!

WEBSITE TEAM

COMMUNITY TEAM

A blog, website or portfolio should be provided. Will be in charge of publishing content to the website, both blog installments and articles from the recent magazine. Must be knowledgeable in WordPress.

Must be personable and be prepared to interact with the community within the Aetherflow Media server. Should come up with ideas for various Discord contests and challenges, such as screenshot or glamour challenges.

THANK YOU From the depths of our hearts, we would like to share our deepest appreciation

to each and every one of our Patrons. Without your generosity, the goals in which we have achieved thus far would still be mere dreams. Every dollar counts when it comes to making ideas into realities and with your help we were able to give our project a complete makeover! Your donations allowed for the purchase of a more appealing website template, more efficient and user friendly plug-ins, and a rebranding that made our site better than ever! Because of you we are able to not only embrace our passions, but share them with those who share the same sentiment. Your assistance has made our dreams and goals come to life on the very screen youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re looking at. We would be nothing without the help of our dear supporters, so that is why we have decided to give our Patreon a well deserved upgrade.

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K PAYPAL

PATREON

SPECIAL SHOUT-OUT TO OUR PATRONS Miu Asakura Arya Serena Elisa Shagaru Catalis Fishy Miri Zafflesia

Sykes Mikh’to Patricia Kelly Shyntyrr Zero Soll’a Tag

Mini Aetheryte

Aetheryte Ticket

Grand Company Aetheryte T

$ 1-4

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A personalized Thank You card signed by

Next to that fancy support page is going

We don’t produce everyt

the staff, plus the unedited version to use as

to be a Patron-only lucky draw you will be

first time. With this tier y

a high-quality wallpaper! You’re also going

automatically entered into for reaching this

the development of a full

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else and now…? We’re giving you something to

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get to be one of the first to see the screenshot

hug. You’re going to get a mystery gift mailed

meet you in person you’re a

of your character in the magazine! After that,

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you’ll probably end up on o

Naturally, the previous rewards are yours too!

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Along with the mystery gift

tier if you remembered to br

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Ticket

thing perfect the

youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll get to see article, in stages,

d. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll also have

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We get support from you, but what do you get in return from us? SPECIAL SHOUT-OUT TO OUR PATRONS

you in person and

to sign it, too! If we

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r day is going, and

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ring it with you!

TEXT BY SERENA SPARKLES | PHOTOS BY CAELI PISCIS, LAEL

I am incredibly excited to announc lovely Midgardsormr Community Ce project of an avid housing enthusia community events on the FFXIV Aet

Their core focus is to build a place out and feel included and welcome health and welfare of the community events and services that are all free well organized and enjoyable for any or joins through watching their act chance to participate in one of their (and not just because Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m biased)!

During their winter tour, we had the houses, with the top three winners h very article! Going forward, the winn of the tour, so be sure to participate featured here or help choose who is 12

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LE NORA AND LEVY BLOSSOM | LAYOUT BY ESE'AL BALDESION

ce our newest partnership with the enter! This community is a passion ast with the mission to offer more ther Data Center.

e where people can come to hang with their mission of advancing the y through positive social interactions, of charge. Their tours are incredibly yone who either tags along in game tive stream! If you have not had a tours yet, it is highly recommended

e MCC staff vote on the showcased having their very own feature in this ners will be selected by the viewers e in the future for your chance to be s! 13

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Our very first winning house is owned by Talia Deathheart and designed by Mochi Chan. Located in the Mist, Ward 1, Plot 16 of Faerie, this small features a gorgeous open window style, complete with a location next to a window where you can /doze after a long day of hard work defending The First! This cozy design is complete with gorgeous lighting and a lovely Japanese atmosphere. But you know the saying; pictures speak louder than words! So please enjoy this stunning design, and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t forget to leave a lovely message if you visit!

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Mist, Faerie

Ward 1, Plot 16 18

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Moving on to the second winner from this tour, we move on to the server of Midgardsormr. Within the beautiful housing area of Shirogane, Ward 11, Plot 30, this gorgeous mansion houses the MVP FC. Talented decorator Youya Mayi worked their magic in designing a clean and well organized marketplace, complete with vendors prepared to sell visitors any of their peddled wares to enjoy a day at the theatre! Once inside, one finds themselves faced with an incredibly impressive stage, complete with theatre type seating for those in attendance of any of the various seasonal plays. Should attendees require any type of sustenance before or after the play, they can simply take a trip downstairs and locate the well-stocked bar. As the theme suggests, bring your family or date for a nice time!

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Shirogane, Midgardsomr, Ward 11, Plot 30 26

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The third and final winner is located on plot 35 of Ward 10 in Lavender Beds on Sargatanas. Decorated by Rhapsody Enarya for their husband and owner of the house, Specty Enarya, this house sports the perfect gamer themed man cave! An adorable retro wood SNES Controller Coffee table really ties the whole gamer room together! There are far too many fine details to describe in this glorious house, such as my personal favorite touch of the faux fireplace below the TV in the gamer room, so I’ll let the pictures do the rest of the talking. But be warned: You’ll need to pay close attention to them to catch everything! But I promise the extra attention paid will be worth it. So without further ado, let’s dive in!

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Lavender beds, Sargantas Ward 10, Plot 35 34

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Vigil of the Blue

Defining the Shadowkeeper TEXT BY FELLOW OF THE VIGIL OF THE BLUE, CASSRIC PHOTOS BY CAELI PISCIS - LAYOUT BY ARYA ROSE

The Flood of Light - the singular most defining moment of our lives as Vrandtic citizenry, is the bookend by which we all can base our continued struggles in the wake of the effects. To the casual observer, it rose like a wave of incandescence and removed all we knew and would not gain the chance to learn about, robbing from us all. But to the inquisitor, research drives a desire to find the meaning. Why did it happen? Why did the whole world suffer by some frenzied whim of fate? There has to be more to it. Survivors such as us can wish to return to the moment before we knew about the Flood, about Sin Eaters, as anyone in their right mind would. Back to simple lives not threatened by the vagrant husks that occupied our world before the return of the night. But there's no reversing the past. This event has happened, and now it no longer threatens us in the way that it did before the Warrior of Darkness appeared. But choosing to forget might cost us more than we realize.

Who is to tell us that it might not come back to threaten us again someday? Common knowledge finds support in the opinion that the famed Warriors of Light of a hundred years past are the perpetrators. However, can we accurately say that is all there is to know about it? Do we even know how they caused it? In this memoir and those that shall follow, we take the Blue. Observing the Blue is planning a preparation to embrace the return of night in our lives with rest and hope of new tomorrows, choosing not to omit the brilliance of the Flood of Light that demanded our attention for so long. Here we find a space of remembrance and vigil, preparation, and peace of mind. Remember the Light, residual in approaching darkness. Indirectly in our lives, the Flood becomes the Blue we maintain as we research the causes of the terrible incident and how to prevent said causes from dooming our world a second time.

Finding The Source I begin my intentions of taking the Blue by sharing an experience that started it all. During one bout of struggled research and few too many ales, a tavern server from The Wandering Stairs inquired after my subject of analysis. I dare not mention further in regards to the server's identity, given the fact by the point of the creation of this document, I had learned much regarding the subject I cover now and felt the need to maintain secrecy for their safety. Returning to my recounting, I replied, "The Flood of Light," speaking between slurred attempts to express my frustration, as I knew that several suns had passed without an understanding of the definite reason. I couldn't accept the accounts of the passing folk who blamed the Warriors of Light, for in various encounters too many others spent equal enthusiasm in defending the very same. How could an opinion on such an important cause be so divided? I wanted answers. The server then cryptically suggested my answers were lacking because I was researching the wrong topic. "Learn about the Shadowkeeper." the server spoke to me, "and then I shall share a story with which you will find answers." The resulting day after held me enjoying the consequences of my

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reckless imbibing. However, I could remember that suggestion; no amount of the drink I took seemed to muddle that mention from my mind. With the singular memory in focus, I returned to my books once more and sought to request materials from the Cabinet of Curiosities. Moren and the others were extremely curious about this progress of my research, Moren even expressing a desire to revisit the accounts of history himself per the suggestion of the Warrior of Darkness. Finding it extremely curious, I requested his advice on starting the research, to which he informed me that his preferred opinion was, to begin with, a review of the recent events, handing me one of the illustrated accounts he kept on him nearby. Moren shared an account with the accompanying visuals, describing that the death of the Shadowkeeper was the catalyst for the Flood, a deed received with great disapproval. Thankfully, mention of the Shadowkeeper, who was the focus of my research, wasn't too hard to find. However, I found something else important that was lacking. What was the reason for this fight? Why would legendary heroes need to fight said being, when all they did before was aid their fellow man in the threats that were beyond the reach of local

Thankfully, mention of the Shadowkeeper, who was the focus of my research, wasn't too hard to find.

effort? There was more to this than could be defined with a review of recent events. I posited my query to the librarian, to which he remembered a tome that discussed in great detail strange events tied to the existence of the being in the tale of the Flood. Aptly titled The Rise of the Shadowkeeper, this record addressed a focused subject of a pre-Flood incident as support for the book's discussion. I copy a portion of the text for the sake of readers: "In the eyes of the elves, all the other races that now inhabit Norvrandt are naught but invaders thieves who despoiled them of their ancestral home. Their disdain was not reserved for long-standing enemies such as the Voeburtites alone. Even their allies, the Humes, were regarded as outsiders unworthy of trust. With many of Lakeland's offices of power held by elven conservatives, who desired a return to the glory days of eld, the Shadowkeeper saw an opportunity and seized it, taking control from within."

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Upon reading this portion of the text, I found myself thrust into a position of difficulty while analyzing this account of history. Residents of the Crystarium would work on dismissing this notion of conflicting opinion, seeing as elf populations are indeed a contributing factor to the rise of this nation and its growth. Somehow in their ancient past, this one specific culture found promises in the being slain by the Warriors of Light. Furthermore, by no means is this mention a rewarding one as I would move forward to suggest that political seizure is undoubtedly not a favorable action. Taking this into account, I made plans to travel to Lakeland and see for myself if there were any means to find more information about the historical events registered in the obscure tome.

Taking A S

By the blessed Dark to be a local scholar, by the occupying Cry who was a specialis architecture, finding in the ruins which gr blanketed land. Havi onwards by a recent by Eulmoran forces, frequent visits to For the Crystarium guar to sites of interest. H amount of martial ex my guard in exchang me his ongoing stud Loft. I had a vague k massive stronghold as a sightseeing ent notes with me about requested a bit of inf my departure. When a point of history to as a site of the confl the tome I had read knew I could find my didn't take long for th my reason for makin

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Stroll Through History

there happened r, pointed out to me ystarium military, st in historical great interest raced the violeting been spurred t conflict incited the scholar made rt Jobb, requesting rd to escort him Having a small xperience, I offered ge for him to show dies at Laxan knowledge of the in the center, thusiast shared t them after I formation before n I noticed it was refer to the ruin lict described in in the Cabinet, I y next step there. It he scholar to learn ng the journey to

the place of interest, becoming a third and final confirmation of this uprising, as he went deeper into the history of the elves and the association with the Shadowkeeper for them. "The elven folk held sway over the entirety of Norvrandt in ancient past," he instructed me. "Twas the other peoples who pushed them closer and closer to this region, forcing their disparate clans to band together and take arms to protect the Source, viewed as sacred land. Later in their history, when the old guard that fought that battle wished to push beyond their borders, they sought the guidance of the Shadowkeeper. All they received, in the end, was blood and devastation." It took no small amount of awareness to realize this, as the scholar and I made an effort to avoid the observances of the shambling undead elves that stalked the remnants of their old home. Surely the deed of slaying this steward of darkness held no small reason. Did this massive civil war encourage it?

I would end up finding even more cause to pursue my point of research upon our return after a being of strange wolflike form ambushed us. Dispatching it was no small challenge, but once down, the scholar took an effort to point out something extremely significant about the creature's weapon of choice as well as its featured garment - they were of elven make. I needed to find more details about this war in Lakeland. Once I saw the scholar's continued safety and return to Fort Jobb, I returned to the Crystarium. Research afforded me another point of potential discovery. Reading that amaro participated in the war in a few brief passages, I took my search to the Tenemos Rookery, aware in part of amaro longevity, and hoping perhaps the Zun could help me find an amaro of potential ancestry to said conflict.

To Borrow An Amaro While there, I happened upon a Galdjent veterinarian of the Crystalline Mean named Berthic, who inquired about my presence, confusing me for an amaro enthusiast. Defeated upon my dismissal, he suggested taking my inquiry to Skip, an amaro noted with the ability to speak recently rescued from poachers. None all too surprised by the notion of speaking amaro, as it was known to me of their magical nature, I talked to the amaro named Skip. Eager to speak to me of his fellow kin, Skip mentioned a resident of a place in Il Mheg known as Wolekdorf, also a veteran of the war, having taken refuge among his own after being summoned there by the calling magic used to bring the wayward to a sanctuary. Fearful myself to go anywhere of note associated with the pixies, Skip offered to fly there himself and get the information I sought. A few suns later, the amaro returned, having exciting news to tell me. The individual in question was found and interviewed, and indeed my suspicions were confirmed. Having participated in the war in Lakeland, the

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amaro escaped, grievously wounded by enemy soldiers. The catch was that these soldiers were notably not themselves. To wit, they possessed the form similar to the wolf-like threats prowling Lakeland, the same that had threatened the scholar and me earlier in my investigations. Conflict reports in the region note that the bipedal shaped ones are colloquially known as wargs, and the intelligent, more massive, and more wolf-defined creatures as gnoles. I now know that the Flood of Light has more to reason than just the slaying of the Shadowkeeper. This being has much more activity underlying their existence than a simple steward of an opposing force whose removal cost us enormously. Magicks that warped the people that trusted them to give them a return to days of glory, leaving them bereft of sanity; as well as the guidance to a civil war that tore apart a nation so intimately near to the date of the Flood's beginning, draws me to seek even more. Knowledge of this will develop a means to prepare and prevent any event like this from happening again.

Dwarven Ad

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dditions

A few more suns were required for preparation of a rough draft of my findings, for I developed a desire to document the proceeding discoveries, for anyone who wished to take the Blue with me and investigate the underlying causes for the Flood. Grateful for the pointed reference that was given to me by the server at the Wandering Stairs, I made plans to visit and show them the draft, to see what they would think. Upon my arrival and with time to show them, the Stairs server took a glance upon my notes, and curiously no expression on their face betrayed surprise. In fact, upon finishing reading, they looked back up at me with a knowing smile, almost pleased. "You're almost there," they spoke cryptically, "if you find it within your means, travel to Kholusia and seek an audience with the dwarves. They can give you more answers." Travel across the Divide was undoubtedly much more straightforward at the timeframe of my research than it would have been earlier, before the arrival of the Warrior of Darkness, seeing as how the Eulmorans back then were adamant on striking us down by orders of their twisted

regent. Despite that case, I sought to secure funding and found myself taking bounties offered by Clan Nutsy for a bit of extra coin. It was during this effort I found a hidden mention of the Shadowkeeper among hunt mark archives, notably that a particular Sin Eater of immense strength was once one of the elven dissidents associated with the civil war I learned so much about earlier. I was noting these experiences to be akin to a light in a dark room revealing everything in an instant; for the project I embarked on in regards to the Shadowkeeper, it showed so many details in various places. The further I pressed on with my inquiry, the more I found. Once I felt I had found sufficient means to get me across, I happened to run into one of the notorious Virtue-Hunters that frequented the Wandering Stairs. Shadows praise that the individual in question happened to be a dwarf, although I found myself confused as to the notable lack of a beard and a helmet, as is the definition for their culture. Several insults regarding the state of my mother as a hob later I was able to learn that Giott, as was her name, had experienced a unique occurrence. In the presence of the

Warrior of Darkness, the two of them had laid to rest one of the Cardinal Virtues, the noteworthy name of Sin Eaters who had oddly taken the form of the Warriors of Light accused of starting the Flood. In doing so, she had learned of an ancient portion of her ancestry's history hidden by the passage of time. Giott's lineage, as she told me, was found to be the legacy of the chief of her people from the era of the Warriors of Light a century ago. During that time, her people were suffering from a terrible affliction described as "stoneblight," where said afflicted would slowly turn to rock over time, akin to a slowdelayed petrification spell. The dwarves loathe relying on outside assistance, and instead of reaching past their borders for help, they withdrew, placing their sick in sealed off caves to prevent the spread of contagion. Giott described this event in pained detail, and I looked on and listened, only pausing to confirm the circumstances I felt needed more description. Lamitt, the Warrior of Light who hailed from the dwarven people, took it upon herself to find a cure for this stoneblight, and did so under the mantle of an adventurer and bounty hunter with the other Warriors she

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met along the way. Returning with the curative magic recovered from ruins lost to time, she saved all those who hadn't fully succumbed to the effects but was cast out by her leader for the deed. It was at this point that I admit I grew alarmed. For by Giott's tale, the origin of the illness seemed to associate with the Shadowkeeper. I left her some coin for the story, seeing that I didn't need to use it for its initially planned endeavor to seek a dwarven audience. Giott explained she wanted people to know the truth. A worthy pursuit, by any means. She also told me it was one of her favorite things to do on her fifth flagon of ale, something I had a hard time believing. But then again, the dwarves are known primarily for their Talos sized constitutions for liquor.

Lamitt, the Wa Light who haile the dwarven p took it upon he to find a cure fo stoneblight...

arrior of ed from people, erself or this 49

These five, under much work and perseverance, became the heroes of Norvrandt and beyond. But today, 100 years later, we see them as villains. Why?

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A Return to Reason Retiring to the Cabinet of Curiosities, I showed Moren my findings as he excitedly recommended some of the more old and obscure writings that the librarians had acquired as gifts from various refugees. I pored over these scripts, doing my best to find as many sources as I could. By the end of my fevered analysis, I viewed my findings with awe. With no small mention, the Shadowkeeper seemed accredited with not just the Lakeland civil war between the elves. It was with shock I found mention of this being behind several realm-spanning issues, namely as the leader or mastermind behind the numerous conflicts. Furthermore, problems in question found address by the presence of the Warriors of Light, in a similar pattern to how Lamitt had done with the illness that beset her people. There was a pattern here that I could see, some sort of strange equation taking place. A significant issue would arise that threatened the lives of thousands, and a singular individual would bear the burden of solving the problem, rising later as a member of the heroic band hailed for years before the onset of the Flood of Light. These threats that made these heroes all bore some connection to the Shadowkeeper, if by a small margin. However, the words of common folk would defend the Warriors of Light as striving to

answer the need for a solution by these crafted problems. It was almost as if all that was taking place was by design. When the tavern server who led me on this search next had spare time, I described how various sources seemed to attribute several events to the Shadowkeeper, giving a reason to the recorded defeat by the Warriors of Light. I asked why this appeared to be the case. Once again, with their knowing smile, the Stairs server addressed me, finally delivering the story promised to help me understand the nature and reason for the Flood of Light. "Ardbert. Lamitt. Renda-Rae. Branden. Nyelbert. These five, under much work and perseverance, became the heroes of Norvrandt and beyond. But today, 100 years later, we see them as villains. Why?" "This is the focus by which I've been divided in regards to my research endeavors," I replied. "I can't see how archives as well those who hold to the oral traditions are in complete opposition to the books of today as well as the status quo. But why have me research the Shadowkeeper?" "In the entire time of your research, what did you see? The various travails plaguing the nations too close to the

onset of the Flood, could you see how it all connected?"

the brink. By her sacrifice, a warrior born."

I nodded, having observed this with my interaction.

"Branden had chosen to help the Voeburtites who disgraced him, returned to his homeland to solve the grand mystery of the magical plague that had cursed his people. Once there, he and the others culled the great evil that caused the plague, but not before it took the one he swore life and blade. He cut her down in mercy, learning what it meant to be truly just. By his sacrifice, a warrior born."

"When one such as the fledgling heroes engages in the work of changing the results of a major event, they did so with the disposition of Light. These events orchestrated, finely tuned and created to spur forward this Light, to give a proving ground so that their souls could draw forth greater reserves of this power and draw the world's balance closer to that aetherial signature." I shook my head in confusion. "You mean the Flood was the result of too much Light drawn forward by the Warriors in their endeavors?" "Light drew forth on purpose," they added to my statement. "Deeds crafted for the very sake of forcing them to make difficult decisions, and by choosing to sacrifice for a greater good, they would be recognized and given the gifts and tools that defined them as Warriors of Light. The Shadowkeeper created them on purpose, cultivating them, and shepherding them to a greater goal that first required them to pay dues that not everyone is willing to pay." The server continued to speak. "Lamitt, seeking a means to cure her sibling and her people, broke ancient dwarven law and sought Ronkan magick to rid the stoneblight. Though saving her people, they exiled her the very same moment she brought those afflicted away from

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"Renda-Rae, having lost her companions in the past to a monster she swore to lay low, chose to fight the very same beast after joining the other fledgling heroes, alone. Her fear of losing them and the following commitment to trust them fully received a Blessing of Light. By her sacrifice, a warrior born." "Nyelbert, begrudgingly accepting to help the others, sought a relic that would save a friend from beyond his reach. But the relic in question tore at the aether and was causing an impending disaster, putting thousands at risk. Knowing he might never get another chance to save his friend, he shattered the relic to protect the people from their doom. By his sacrifice, a warrior born." I stood transfixed as I listened. The details in the server's story would echo details within the research I procured over several days. The Voeburtite plague and the stoneblight among these rang the clearest as events of

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pre-Flood history, but to hear this person recite these events so precisely and so pointedly chilled me. "H-how do you know all this? Reciting this as if you have researched this topic so heavily, or somehow, heard from a first-hand account." "Do not misconstrue. I am still one that serves drinks and cleans after drunkards. But now I tell stories, stories of the truth. I labor to preserve the legacy of the heroes that once stood beside us to save us from the ills that tormented our lands. Today their names serve as curses, but I labor to bring it back to when their names were once praised and hailed in respect. I owe it to them." the server explained, suddenly downcast. "Owe it to them? I don't understand.* I replied, still perplexed. "You've been given my end of the deal. I told you a story that clears the names of the Warriors of Light. If you wish to learn more and to seek further, I can help you. However, it will take place at a later time, after you've granted yourself a chance to ponder on these words." "I see. Thank you for your time." I replied, respectfully departing. The server was right, after all. If I requested

too much, there was a chance I would lose the details I had. I needed to take down what was given to me while the details remained fresh. I was elated, however, knowing that I had sufficient information to be able to start my process of preparing the research for my memoir. I had the means to share with the world the details that could protect us from further ruin. If it wasn't the Warriors of Light, if the Shadowkeeper pushed them into the act of becoming who they were to induce this Flood, there was more to learn. I plan to continue to pursue this, but I close this recounting to share with you the innocence of the Warriors Ardbert, Lamitt, Branden, Renda-Rae, and Nyelbert. They never stopped being our heroes, and with time, we will learn of the more essential terms of their sacrifice and honor them as they've deserved. When I return to my memoir, I will share the following details I receive from a return visit to the Stairs, the astounding revelation, and what took place as a result of continued knowledge. The Flood no longer influences us, but it still is essential to keep within our sights. To prepare and prevent.

Remember the Light as it turns Blue.

Hey there everyone, it's Croatoan! I'm the writer behind the character Bounding Fox, and now I'm proud to present to you a new character, who will be the writer for anything lore-related to the First. This author's note is to serve as side content to help any readers interested in tracing my steps and learning for themselves the sources for my satirical piece here. To note, I did write as if this happens in-game. Still, the desired idea is to communicate through a medium to be able to express the large amount of information presented to us about the First reflection, the setting for Shadowbringers. Without further ado, here we are! The phrasing "to take the Blue" is part of the satire, to describe the writer's desire to make a preparatory society designed to learn the causes of the Flood and understand how to prevent it in the future. The idea comes from the French concept of "l'huere bleu," time right before nightfall in the twilight where the sky is said to take a deep shade of blue. Choosing the Blue is symbolic of the desire to retain the memory of Light even after the Lightwardens are gone. The satire starts with the Wandering Stairs, as we learn from the final role quest "Shadow Walk With Me" a particular character is revealed to have more history with the Warriors from the First than we realize. I omitted the name and details for now, hoping readers get a chance to find out for themselves.

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Moren speaking to the character and sharing a desire to revise history is also expressed to our character as an optional dialogue choice after the completion of "Shadow Walk With Me." Using that and the "City of the First" quest progression where Moren showed our character the children's story, I used that as a place where a curious seeker of knowledge could find answers. In that recounting, players get to read for the first time about the individual known as the Shadowkeeper. Throughout the length of 5.0, there are a few references to this entity, and I wrote opportunities for the character to encounter these references available in the game. List of references to the Shadowkeeper used in the story: 1. City of the First, during Moren's illustrated history of modern events 2. Rise of the Shadowkeeper, a written book in-game read in Il Mheg during the quest "Bewitched Books." 3. The reference in the above book corresponds and is confirmed by various sources, all except one viewable in Lakeland. These are the two FATEs "Cry Not Wolf" and "A Beast Among Men," the sightseeing entry for Laxan Loft, and the sidequest "Lofty Goals" accessible after the main quest "A Party Soon Divided." 4. The last Shadowkeeper reference is a little farther along, viewable after accessing elite hunts from Halldor as he relays to you

the inform Rebellion that was in the boo 5. Using the the Facet I develop character participat events of reference The ques a Tail," wh shares hi 6. During th players g to the Sh the very s stoneblig

The rest of th the bulk of th the quest "Sh side quest, w orchestrated need for a sa catalyst that the Echo and is learned du reveal it in pa search for th

Feel free to c for yourself w looking forwa and 5.3 when

mation from marks. The Forgiven n mark is said to be a Sin Eater once part of the conflict detailed ok. e amaro Skip introduced in t of Nourishing's questline, ped an opportunity for the r to learn of the amaro who ted in the war detailed in the f all the Lakeland Shadowkeeper es as well as the book in Il Mheg. st this is available from is "Tale of here the amaro veteran Kenn Beq is experience. he healer role quest with Giott, get a chance to read a reference hadowkeeper, as Lamitt suggests same being caused the ght.

he satirical piece references he information available from hadow Walk With Me." In this we learn that the Shadowkeeper d events that would draw forth the acrifice, that sacrifice being the would allow the individual to gain d the Blessing of Light. A lot more uring this quest, but I wanted to art, to give readers more time to hemselves.

check out these sources and learn who the Shadowkeeper is! Here's ard to more information come 5.2 n we conclude Shadowbringers.

AETHERFLOW

TEXT BY MIO RYOTA | PHOTOS BY LAELE NORA | LAYOUT BY ESE'AL BALDESION

Alliance raids. I do quite enjoy them at the beginning of the patch cycle. When you’re busy taking in the scenery and still focusing on the fight’s mechanics, it’s usually quite nice. However, once you’re used to all that and start to subconsciously notice what everyone around you is doing… Oh god does it get worse. There’s just so many different types of players you meet there. And don’t get me wrong - if you’re a new player, or you’re still learning the content, that’s perfectly fine. Once people start being dead weight on purpose, though, I have to question myself why they’re doing that to 23 other people.

For example, it’s really not hard to keep your GCD rolling. It’s really not hard to keep your DoTs on the boss. It’s just really not that hard to press a button every 2.5 seconds. If everyone would just take their time to do their rotation even somewhat decently, instead of staring down the boss menacingly and being dead weight, the whole instance would be done so much quicker! Just leave Facebook and Instagram closed for 30 minutes and do the damn thing you queued up for.

"OH MY GOD WHAT IS HAPPENING..."

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Easily avoidable AoEs. I’m talking about the most basic, orange circles, lines or cones you can even find in the Central Shroud. You can’t tell me you really have to be hit by that in level 80. You’ve got like ten seconds to move, and yet you’re tabbed out on Discord because you really have to respond to that DM. It can’t wait until the boss is dead in a few seconds, it has to be right now. And if you’re lucky, you get the type of person that, completely accidentally, releases back to the start! Oh no, a happy little accident! Totally not on purpose so you can skip out on the boss, instead of doing everyone a favour and just killing

it quicker. Maybe this one is just me nitpicking, but damn has it gotten annoying. You enter the instance, and there’s that one person that finds it so incredibly funny to post the f*cking “big d*ck dps” moogle macro, which I’ve seen just about ten thousand times at this point, or just any other macro that’s essentially made to spam the entire screen. And there's always the people that just keep chat ting in /alliance. “That was a rough start!” or “Oh my god what is happening!” I’m glad you feel emotional about the content, but you really don’t have to let everyone know in the damn alliance chat, do you?

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And don’t even get me started about the good old single-wipe elitist. Yes, we know that the content has been out for three months, yes, we still wiped. Stop being a d*ckhead and stop complaining about how we just wasted five minutes out of your precious schedule. After all, we wiped on purpose. We knew you are here. We knew you’d get annoyed by it. Let’s not forget one of the classics, though! Some people seem to have found a liking to collecting vulnerability up stacks!

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I especially love watching the main tank do it, and it’s just amazing when you can watch someone do it on purpose. You ever watch a person stand in AoE after AoE, their stacks slowly creeping up towards double-digit numbers? It’s quite impressive. Move, damn it, it’s not that hard. Give your healers a break.

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Just do everyone a favour and play the game. We’re all there for the same reason. We don’t necessarily want to be there, we just want our weekly token and the occasional glamour or upgrade piece. Move out of easily avoidable AoEs and press your buttons. It won’t hurt you and just lets us all go back to doing something else. Don’t be a prick, and don’t be dead weight on purpose. But what am I saying? I don’t pay your sub. Until next Tuesday, when we all queue up again and meet in duty finder hell.

FASHION

FOCUS Eorzea’s most stylish individuals brought into focus. Interview, photos and layout by Lolae Demort

Flash Galathynius - Balmung

How would you describe your personal style?

What do want your current style to say on your behalf?

Do you have a fashion petpeeve?

I mostly create cosplay type glamours, but when I feel like doing something completely different, I actually tend to gravitate towards more gritty or techno inspired things. I read a lot of science-fiction, fantasy, and dystopian novels, and that’s where I pull a good chunk of my inspiration from.

My current style is a little gritty. Something technological and/ or dirty. Sometimes gold and bronze can be good, but nothing too gaudy.

Using three or more armor pieces from the same set. Also, using Jet Black or Pure White in every single slot. I’m actually guilty of the color part at least twice, but I was trying to fit a theme outside my comfort zone.

Also, symphonic and power metal music works—I listen to a lot of that! 68

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For some glamours, I like to find a way to make brownish and earth-like tones look good, while other glams have me matching the colors of the undyeable metals instead of the fabrics. It’s a calming mental exercise when I’m not writing a novel.

If you could name or label your personal style in (max) 3 words, what would it be called? Gritty, metal, techno.

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WEAPON: Deepgold Revolver (Loam Brown) HEAD: Weathered Gunslinger's Hat BODY: Ravel Keeper's Chestwrap of Aiming (Loam Brown) HANDS: Genta Kote of Aiming LEGS: Dark Divinity Brok FEET: Genta Sune-ate of Aiming EARRINGS: Prototype Midan Earrings of Aiming 75

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WEAPON: Augmented Shire Bayonet (Gobbiebag Brown) HEAD: Halone's Helm of Fending (Soot Black) BODY: Alexandrian Mail of Fending (Pure White) HANDS: Tekko #55 LEGS: Cropped Fireglass Leather Slops FEET: Adamantite Sollerets of Fending 82

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WEAPON: Alexandrian Metal Knuckles (Gobbiebag Brown) HEAD: Sky Pirate's Mask of Striking BODY: Nezha Lady's Togi (Deepwood Green) HANDS: Replica Allagan Gauntlets of Striking (Soot Black) LEGS: Ala Mhigan Bottoms of Striking (Kobold Brown) FEET: Lost Allagan Thighboots of Striking Make sure to check out Flash Galathynius' glamours on Eorzea Collection! 90

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INTERVIEW - HIRO MIN 92

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W OSHI NAGAWA While the visual aspect of FFXIV is only part of what

makes Eorzea so fantastical, it's definitely one that

can make or break the game. Hiroshi Minagawa, art director at Square Enix, is one of the people that brings to life all of the characters and places we've come to love so much. We were incredibly honored to sit down with him recently and talk about the challenges he's faced since he first started back in ARR, the FFXIV UI that he created, as well as a look back at all of the other incredible worlds, like Ivalice, that he helped build. interview by arya rose

& xennon moon | photos by caeli piscis | layout by lolae demort

First, thank you for taking time to speak with us today. Could you please explain what the role of Art Director involves in simple words for our readers? まず最初に、本日はお時間をいただきどうもありがとう

ございます。さて、アートディレクターという役割に対して、読者に分かりやすいようにご説明していただけますでし

チームにイメージを伝える人、様々な才能を持つスタッフをまとめてイメージするビジュアルを作り上げる人、方法

は能力や経験によっていろいろあります。一番のポイントは様々な方法を用いて、P/D（プロデューサー兼ディレク

ター）が想定するプレイヤーがタイトルに求めるビジュア

ルを定義し、それを実現できるチームを編成してビジュアルを創り出すことです。

ょうか。

What has been the biggest challenge that you

What I do as the Art Director is to achieve visuals

experiences in Visual and UI designs?

as a team by relaying the visual concept of the title to the artists in the development team. To be able to do that, I need to determine what the director wants to express in the title and what that producer wants to achieve in visual images in accordance

have faced in the current role, having gained ビジュアルデザイン／UIデザインの経歴から、現在の役

割を担当するに当たり、直面された最も大きな困難には

どのようなことがございましたか。

to the project’s concept which is based on the

Since this is a long ongoing title, what I tried to

understanding about targeted players.

keep in mind is the creation of visuals that gives a sense of freshness to the players without

There are different ways to achieve the desired

making anything resemble what they have

results depending on each art director. It also

seen before. Having said that, there actually

depends on capability and experience of each

had to be some parts which somehow look

art director. For example, there are some art

similar to what has already been seen before,

directors who are good at drawing themselves

and it was quite challenging for me to keep the

and expressing their conceptual vision to the

perfect balance between fresh looks and the

team with their own drawings, or others might

iconic FFXIV visuals.

be good at leading a team of artists with various skills to come up with a visual concept as a team. The most important thing for an art director is to be able to understand what visual concept our Producer/ Director (or P/D) envisions for players to expect from the game, by using various means and finally define it. And also resourcefully manage a team of artists that can achieve the goal and create the visual. ディレクターがタイトルで表現したい内容と、プロデュー

サーがターゲットにするプレイヤーを理解した上でプロ

長くサービスを続けているタイトルなので、これまでと似

た印象をプレイヤーに与えず、新鮮な気持ちで冒険でき

るビジュアルを意識しました。それでも、どうしても過去

の何かと似てしまう部分があって、新鮮さとファイナルフ

ァンタジーXIV(以後FFXIVと略) らしさのバランス取りがこれまで以上に難しいと思いました。

What are important factors in making a UI for video games? ゲームのUIを作るにあたり、考えなければいけない、最

ジェクトが目指すビジュアルイメージを定め、そのイメー

も重要な要素にはどのようなものがあるのでしょうか。

として目指すビジュアルを作り出すのがアートディレクタ

Since FFXIV is an MMORPG, the priority of UI design

ジを開発チームのアーティスト達に伝えて、チームの成果

ーです。

成果をあげるための方法はアートディレクターごとに様

々な方法があります。シンプルに絵がうまくて、直接絵で 94

AETHERFLOW

seems different compared to more common games. This is also Mr. Yoshida (P/D)’s operational philosophy, but it is evident that there are many players who leave FFXIV for a while once they have

played a new expansion or patch for a certain length of time and they usually come back to FFXIV when a brand new expansion or patch comes out. If we renew or change UI dramatically in each expansion/ patch, it would be difficult for players to understand the changes in a new one and it could feel bothersome for them to play the game because the amount of UI elements in FFXIV is much bigger than that in an ordinary video game. On that note, I primarily avoid fixes or changes to the UI should it be too complicated to find certain UI functions, even if I, as a developer, wanted to improve certain features or reorganize the

このとき、大きくUIをリニューアルしてしまうと、一般的

なゲームUIと比べてUIの量が膨大なので、覚え直しや

変更箇所の理解が難しくプレイが面倒に感じられてし

まいます。ですから製作者として改修したい、構造を整

理したい部分があっても、どの機能が、どこにあったの

か見失うような修正は原則として避けています。一方

で、プレイヤーからのフィードバックにはUIの強化や改修要望が多いので、上記の原則を強く意識しつつも改

修を行います。このようなスタイルで調整をしていくと、

どうしてもUIとしての統一感にほころびが出てきますが、UI製作者視点で気になる部分よりもプレイヤー視点

でのストレスの少なさを重視しています。

structure in the UI. On the other hand, however,

How did you work on the project to create a

since we see a lot of requests for reinforcements

brand-new UI for FFXIV: A Realm Reborn?

and fixes to the UI from players, I do apply changes taking the previously mentioned point into consideration. It is inevitable to see some unevenness or incoherence of some degree in the UI as we have to apply changes this way, but

FFXIV：新生エオルゼアでは、全く新しいゲームのUIを最初から構築するというプロジェクトにどのように取り組

んだのでしょうか。

I always value easier playability for the players

There are two aspects to creating UI. One is a

more than my own ideas.

conservative way to adhere to standard control

FFXIVはMMORPGなので、一般的なゲームのUIを設計

してきた経験と比較すると、UI設計の優先度は異なると思います。吉田P/Dの運営思想でもありますが、拡張や

functions in MMORPGs for PC. The other is an ambitious idea for FFXIV to set up a standardised function to play the title using a game controller.

パッチの期間である程度遊んだらしばらくFFXIVから離

In relation to question 3, I used controls and UI

レイサイクルの方がかなりの比率でいらっしゃいます。

of Warcraft (or WoW) as a reference. That

れて、次のパッチや拡張でまたXIVに戻ってくる、というプ

functionality ideas of the great pioneer, World

was because I did not want to make those who played WoW stressed or feel uncomfortable with the basic controls of FFXIV when they play our game. With these challenges in mind, we knew we would have to come up with a new UI not only is it playable with a mouse and keyboard, which is conventional controls for an MMORPG on PC originated from WoW, but can also be played with a gamepad. Hypothetically speaking, if the game design of FFXIV was based on the idea that “it should be an MMORPG that is playable with a game controller”, it would have been a different game system where battle actions would have had to be limited according to the number of buttons on the controller. But because the initial game design of this title involved a great number of actions like WoW, we had to come up with a way to allow players to use a gamepad. As a result, we finally managed to create the control function known as the Cross Hotbar (or XHB). UI設計の取り組みには２つの側面があります。ひとつは

保守的で、PCのMMORPGのスタンダードな操作方法を守ること。もうひとつはFFXIVの野心として、ゲームコン

トローラーでMMORPGを操作するスタンダードな方法を確立することです。

質問３にも関わりますが、World of Warcraft(以後WoW

と略します) という偉大な先人があるので、その操作や

UI設計を手本にしました。WoWのプレイヤーがFFXIVを

プレイした時に、基本的な操作でストレスや違和感を避

けたかったからです。その上で、WoWを源流にもつPCの

MMORPGの操作、つまりマウスとキーボードでプレイす

るUIをゲームコントローラーで操作できるUIを考える

What are the benefits of creating a brandnew UI in comparison to changing an existing UI? 既存のUIに対して作業を行うことと比較した場合、全

く新しいUIを構築する際に、何か利点はあるのでしょうか。

必要がありました。仮に、FFXIVが「ゲームコントロー

It is related to question 3 again but it is more

ンしていたら、バトルアクションの数をコントローラーの

new UI because I would not have to worry about

ラーで操作するMMOPRG」を先に決めてゲームデザイボタン数が少ないという理由で絞り込む等、今とは異な

るゲームシステムになっていたかもしれません。本作は

WoWのように多種のアクションを使うゲームデザイン

が前提だったので、それをゲームコントローラーで操作

するにはどうすればいいかを考え、XHB（クロスホットバー）という操作方法に行き着きました。

fun for me as a developer to create a brandthe players who have been accustomed to the existing operational functions. 質問３に関連しますが、今の操作に慣れているプレイヤ

ーを考慮しなくとも良い分自由に発想できるので、製作者としては楽しいです。

I ALWAYS VALUE EASIER PLAYABILITY MORE THAN MY OWN IDEAS.

You have worked on many titles such as “Tactics Ogre”, “Final Fantasy Tactics”, “Vagrant Story”, and “Final Fantasy XII” to name a few. Have you taken any inspiration

作することが多いです。 FFXIVの場合も、サウンドディレク

ターである祖堅のBGMをもらえた瞬間にイメージが固まって詰めに入れることが多々あります。

from any of those past titles and used it in FFXIV? これまで、多くの作品の中でも、「タクティクスオウガ」、「

ファイナルファンタジータクティクス」、「ベイグラントス

トーリー」、「ファイナルファンタジーXII」などのプロジェ

クトを手掛けてこられたましたが、これらの過去作から、何かインスピレーションを得て、FFXIVに活かされている要素などはあるのでしょうか。

I do not think I seek inspiration from my own past titles much. But what I have noticed is that each title has some visual elements that are similar to something in previous titles in a way, although I was always looking to create something different each time. 自分が手掛けた過去作からインスピレーションを得る、

ということはあまり無いと思います。ただ、振り返ってみ

るとそれぞれのタイトルで「今回は前と違うことをやるぞ」と思っているはずなのに、似たようなビジュアルにな

るなぁ、と感じます。

When you are working on a project in general, in what kind of things do you seek inspiration? 一般的に、仕事をなさる際に、どのようなものからイン

スピレーションを得られるのでしょうか。

There are many things but when I am stuck trying to create a visual, I tend to look for a piece of music that matches the concept and listen to it while I work on that visual piece. In case of FFXIV, there have been many occasions where I managed to finalize my visual ideas the moment I received music from the Sound Director, Mr. Soken. いろいろありますが、ビジュアルを考えたり詰めたりす

る時に、イメージに合う音楽を探してBGMにしながら制

What did you think about Return to Ivalice raid in FFXIV, having worked on FFXII as the art director? FFXIIのアートディレクターをなされた後、FFXIVの「リタ

ーントゥイヴァリース」についてどう思われましたか。

What I was so grateful was that there were some development team members who had played FFXII and they remembered things which I even did not remember. They proactively proposed ideas on the setting and details so this helped a lot in the development process. In other words, a lot of my work was cut out thanks to them. ☺

とてもありがたかったのが、自分が忘れているような事

を当時FFXIIのプレイヤーだった開発スタッフが覚えてい

舞台が第一世界になったことと、光の氾濫というビジュ

アル的にイメージしやすい設定をもらえていたので、意

図的にアートの方向性を変えたような事はありません。

「紅蓮のリベレーター」では山岳エリア的な場所が多くデザインの差別化に苦労しましたが、「漆黒のヴィランズ」は変化が付けやすい設定だったので、デザイン面で難しい部分はあっても無理は少なかった印象です。設定

的に全く異なる世界ではないので、源流は同じで異なる

世界に分かれた、というイメージをなるべく意識し

て、積極的に細かい設定やディティールの提案をして進

ました。

した ☺

When you found out that Warriors of Light

Were there any changes to art direction

came to your mind?

めていけたことです。端的に言うと、楽をさせてもらいま

would go to the First in the new story, what

between FINAL FANTASY XIV: STORMBLOOD and SHADOWBRINGERS? If so, please tell us what the intentions were. 紅蓮のリベレーターから漆黒のヴィランズへ移行する

ストーリーについて、光の戦士が第一世界に行くことになるという事実を知ったとき、どのような考えが頭をよ

ぎりましたか。

際、アートの方向性について何か変更点はあったのでし

To be brutally honest, I thought “it would be easier

えていただけますでしょうか。

Stormblood!”

ょうか。もしあった場合、どのような意図があったのか教

to apply various visual changes to this than in

I did not have to change our art direction

Related to the earlier question but because I

intentionally, because the world setting has

wanted players to feel afresh and that they would

changed to the First and that it was relatively

embark on a new adventure, I appreciated the

easy to visually imagine the new setting of the

setting where it allowed me more visual changes.

Flood of Light. It was challenging to differentiate designs for similar-looking mountain areas in Stormblood but thanks to the setting in Shadowbringers which allowed variety, I did not find it too much although designing it was quite hard. Since these worlds were not entirely different worlds, I respected the concept where these worlds have split from the same origin.

100

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身も蓋もありませんが、「紅蓮よりもビジュアル的な変化を付けやすそう！」です。

冒頭の質問にも関連しますが、とにかくプレイヤーには

新しい場所に来た、冒険していると感じてほしいので、

ビジュアルの変化を付けやすい設定は嬉しいです。

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All areas in Shadowbringers were unique. How did you and your team gain inspirations about these in-game locations and what did you and your team do to make each area look unique and beautiful? 漆黒のヴィランズに登場するエリアは全て非常にユニー

クです。皆川さんや皆川さんのチームの方々は、このようなロケーションについて、どのようにインスピレーション

を得たのか、また、各エリアが独特かつ美しくなるように

するため、どのようなことを行ったのでしょうか。

Because a lot of staff members in the art team have been in the team since the original FFXIV and have longer history in developing FFXIV than

as it carries an apocalyptic feel to it.

アーモロートです。 BGMも静謐で雰囲気が気に入ってい

ます。フィールドも気に入っていますし、ダンジョンの方も終末感があって気に入っています。

Have your work process or project ever been influenced by a trend in the gaming industry? Also please let our readers know what kind of plans you have for future projects. 皆川さんの仕事やそのプロセス、プロジェクトなどにおい

て、ゲーム業界のトレンドから影響を受けることはあるのでしょうか。また、読者に向けて、今後、どのようなお仕事

に関わる予定があるのか教えていただけますでしょうか。

I, my brief direction to avoid repeating or over-

Yes. I surely get affected by it. Very, very much, in

wrapping with past visual images was enough for

fact. But I usually get influenced by what makes me

the team. We firstly decided on the main colours

feel “Wow, this is great” rather than a general trend.

for each area and created different design plans

On the other hand, however, because I am getting

based on those. Then we asked Mr Yoshida to

older and my susceptibility has become less sharp,

pick what was closest to his desired image and

I started to feel less agitation or jealousy when I see

finalised the visuals. I remember that the most

others’ great work. When I was working on Vagrant

challenging part was the design of Il Mheg as it

Story for PS1, I saw Metal Gear and felt “Oh shoot,

was a typically fantasy-based location compared

we need to start over the visual designs!”. But I

to the locations that had to be different from what

can now calmly play Death Stranding although I'm

had already been seen.

astounded by it. I have started working on visual

FFXIVのアートチームは、僕よりもFFXIV開発経験の長い

旧FFXIVからのスタッフが多いので、シンプルにこれまで

とイメージが被らないようにしよう、という大まかな指針

でも上手くビジュアル制作を進めてもらえました。最初に

各エリアの代表的な色を決めて、そこからいろいろなデ

ザインプランを作成して吉田P/Dのイメージに近いもの

ideas for the new expansion with the art team since the beginning of the year. I cannot tell you anything about the setting of the next adventure yet, but please wait for it whilst simply guessing about what it is going to be like! はい。当然影響を受けます。受けまくります。ただトレンド

をピックアップしてもらい、絵を詰めていきました。これま

から影響を受ける事はあまりなくて、単純に自分が「こ

っぽいイル・メグのデザインにかなり悩んだ記憶があり

を取ってきたせいか、感受性が鈍ったのか、すごい作品

でとは異なるイメージの場所よりも、定番のファンタジーます。

What is your favorite Shadowbringers zone? 漆黒のヴィランズの中で、一番お気に入りのエリアはどこ

れはすごいなぁ」と思うものに影響されます。一方で、年

を見た時に焦りや悔しさが弱くなった気がします。初代

PlayStationでベイグランドストーリーを開発していた頃

にメタルギアの発表みて、「畜生、ウチもビジュアル設計

を全部作り直すぞ！」みたいな感じでしたが、今はデス

ストに驚愕しつつもゆっくり落ち着いてプレイしていたり

でしょうか。またその理由を教えてください。

します。丁度年明けから次の拡張に向けてアートチー

It is Amaurot. The music is tranquil, and I like its

冒険の舞台はまだお話できませんが、いろいろ予想して

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ムとビジュアルのアイデア出しを始めたところです。次の楽しみにお待ち下さい！

A massive thank you goes out to Hiroshi Minagawa and everyone at Square Enix for this interview and supporting us ever since we started out! 103

the joy of the culinarian:

Spring has always symbolized new beginnings for me. It feels like a fresh start and makes me think of equally fresh flowers and ingredients. Is there any better season to be health- and ecoconscious? Any better season to seize exciting opportunities and grow as a person? I think not, and that's exactly why I decided to take over for this issue. I live a vegan lifestyle myself, and have done so for many years. My main incentive has always been animal abuse, but I discovered all of the amazing health benefits as well. I'm hoping to show you that cooking vegan isn't difficult or intricate, and definitely not limited to veggies! Let's jump into spring in the best nutritious and delicious way possible with these vegan renditions of Eorzean recipes. text, photos and layout by lolae demort 104

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bacon bread

Soft dough mixed with thick-sliced bacon and twisted into a pattern resembling a sheaf of wheat.

You might think that this is an odd choice for a fully vegan menu. And while I can't disagree with that, it's a very purposeful one as well. A ton of friends and family that still use animal products are obsessed with bacon. I don't have the slightest idea why, but they seem to act like it's heaven sent. A mind-blowing substitute for bacon is tempeh; fermented soybeans turned into a funny looking mass. It's perfectly possible to bake tempeh as is, but the great thing about this is that it acts like a sponge for any type of herbs or marinade you add, which leaves you with endless possibilities! It’s also much healthier than regular bacon, has less fat and is cholesterol-free! The type of bread we're making has a nice crispy crust with the most delectable, moist interior. This homemade bread combined with our "bacon" makes for the perfect starter or even side dish for this menu. I recently made this for my dad, a meat enthusiast, and he asked for seconds. Oh, and be prepared for your kitchen to smell beyond amazing... You're welcome.

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Makes 7 buns Total prep time: 50 min Total cook time: 30 min For the bread you’ll need: • 350 g (13 oz) all purpose or bread flour • Some extra flour • 25 g (1 oz) yeast • 50 g (1,7 oz) margarine • 2.5 dl (1 c) soy, almond or oat milk • 1 tbsp salt For the tempeh you’ll need: • 250 g (8 oz) tempeh • 2 tbsp soy sauce • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil • Some extra virgin olive oil for frying • 2 tbsp agave, maple or rice syrup • 2 tbsp BBQ sauce (make sure there’s no honey in it) • 1 tsp paprika powder • 1 tsp ground cumin • Salt and ground black pepper

bacon bread

Click here to download a simplified recipe card!

Let’s start off with our bread! Mix the flour, salt and yeast in a bowl. Add the margarine and milk, and proceed to knead everything into a soft, smooth dough. Cover the bowl and leave it to rise at room temperature for about 1 1/2 hrs. until it’s doubled in size. This gives us more than enough time to prepare our tempeh. Slice the tempeh as thin as you want, without it falling apart. It’s up to you to decide if you want crispy thin bits of bacon or thicker chunks full of flavour. Mix the soy sauce, olive oil, syrup, BBQ sauce, paprika, cumin and pepper in a bowl and stir well. Let the tempeh slices soak in this marinade for about 10 minutes. Heat extra virgin olive oil in a saute pan and when it’s hot, add the tempeh and cook for about 2 minutes on each side over high heat, until both sides are browned and crisp, and add salt to taste. Chop these slices into smaller bits so we can easily distribute them throughout the dough. Once your dough is nice and fluffy, divide it into 7 equally sized chunks. Making them the same size ensures an even baking time. I usually eyeball this step but you can weigh or measure them if you’d like to. Always coat the surface you’re working on with some flour to prevent your dough from sticking. Roll out your dough into strips, sprinkle your bits of tempeh on top of them and roll into little balls again.

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These are ready to be baked, which will result in delicious buns that just burst with flavour. I went the extra mile and tried to make this bread look like how it does in-game. If you look at the icon for this meal, it seems to be shaped like a stalk of wheat, otherwise known as pain d’épi. There’s a very specific way to go about this, but I opted for a simplified version. Once your dough is in place and all of the balls are connected on the inside, make the ends a little more pointy for a perfect shape. Coat your bread in olive oil before you pop it in the oven for a nice golden finish. Remember to butter up your tray and coat it in flour before baking. Bake for about 25 min. in the lower half of an oven preheated to 180°C (350°C). Remove from the oven and leave to cool.

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stuffed cabbage rolls This dish is usually meat-heavy, but I love a nice challenge. We’re simply swapping out the ground beef for a vegan alternative and creating our own vegetable broth. These rolls are savory, smokey and delicious. A big old plate of fresh, springworthy food, and pretty darn healthy to boot. Can’t beat that! Another great thing about these rolls is that the meat and rice cook inside the cabbage itself. To ensure even cooking, try not to use the outermost leaves since they don't have as much moisture. Also, don't forget to cover the baking dish with foil. Gotta get that steam circulating! You’re by all means welcome to make more broth than you really need and pop it in the freezer for future culinary endeavors. It’s crazy how this can really bring pasta or any old soup to life. Let’s get cracking and make some magic.

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Ground meat rolled in cabbage and boiled in broth.

Makes 10 stuffed rolls Total prep time: 30min Total cook time: 1h 40min For the broth you’ll need: • 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil • 1/2 large onion, chopped • 3 cloves garlic, minced • 2 tbsp tomato paste • 1 small can crushed tomatoes • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar • 1 tbsp brown sugar • 1 tbsp paprika powder • 2 tsp dried oregano • Salt and ground black pepper • 1 L (4 c) water For the cabbage rolls you’ll need: • 10 cabbage leaves • 450 g (1 lb) Beyond Beef or any other vegan substitute • 80 g (1/3 c) uncooked white rice or quinoa • 60 g (1/4 c) breadcrumbs • 1/2 large onion, chopped • 2 tbsp dried or freshly chopped parsley • Ground black pepper

stuffed cabbage rolls It’s best to start off with our broth since this will have to simmer for a bit. Heat oil over medium high heat. Add your onion, and sauté for two minutes. Lower the heat and add the garlic. Sauté for 2 more minutes until it starts to smell amazing. Add the tomato paste and crushed tomatoes and turn the heat up and and “fry” for 1-2 more minutes, for extra depth of flavor. Make sure to lower the temperature to medium heat for the next step. Pour in water and stir. Add brown sugar, paprika powder, dried oregano, salt, pepper and vinegar and let this mixture simmer for about half an hour, stirring occasionally. Strain once it’s cooked and you should end up with the most fragrant, flavourful broth you’ve ever tasted. Set aside. Place your ground beef substitute, rice or quinoa, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, breadcrumbs and parsley in a bowl. Stir to combine. You can really add anything to this mixture, like lentils, beans or anything that you feel fits this recipe. Peel 10 large leaves off the cabbage and immerse them in boiling water. Lay each cabbage leaf on a flat surface. Use a small knife to cut a V-shaped notch to remove the thick part of the cabbage rib. Shape 1/3 of a cup of the meat mixture into a log shape and place in the center of a leaf. Roll the cabbage leaf around the meat mixture. Repeat with remaining meat and cabbage leaves. Secure the leaves with toothpicks or food grade string.

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Click here to download a simplified recipe card!

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°C) and pour your broth into a baking dish. Place the cabbage rolls, seam side down, in the dish. Using a spoon, coat them completely in broth. Cover in foil and bake for about 1 hour or until your cabbage is tender and the “meat” is cooked through. Sprinkle with parsley before serving.

honey bun

Most often found in markets located across the eastern and southern regions of Eorzea, this lightly glazed buttery brioche pastry will keep for several days (making it a fine companion for long journeys), but is best when freshly baked. Guaranteed to make life sweeter.

Before we start, let me clear something up: we’re not using honey. As weird as that may sound since the recipe heavily relies on it, it’s not vegan. Honey is probably the product most frequently mistaken as vegan-friendly. There is a common misconception that honey bees make their honey for us, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Honey is made by bees for bees, and their health can be sacrificed when it is harvested by humans. While there might be exceptions, like buying honey from independent bee keepers who don’t view their hive solely as a product, store bought honey definitely isn’t vegan-friendly.

Makes 12 buns Total prep time: 50min Total cook time: 1h 10min

Luckily, there’s a ton of equally sweet and delicious alternatives. There’s agave, maple, rice and date syrup, just to name a few. My two all-time favorites are agave and rice syrup, so combining them seemed like a great choice. You’re obviously welcome to use any type of syrup you prefer!

For the filling you’ll need: • 120 g (1/2 c) brown sugar • 3 tbsp agave or rice syrup • 1 tsp cinnamon • 60 g (1/4 c) margarine (at room temperature)

The dough we’re using is soft and really moist, almost like brioche. We’ll be filling our buns with a scrumptious, sugary and very creamy mixture. I know I started off by saying this would be a healthy and nutritious menu, but I don’t want you to miss out on this little piece of heaven.

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For the dough you’ll need: • 80 ml (1/3 c) almond or soy milk • 80 g (1/3 c) margarine • 1 ½ tbsp agave syrup • 1 ½ tbsp rice syrup • 3 ½ tsp yeast • 180 ml (3/4 c) warm water (105F – 115F) • 360 g (3 c) all-purpose flour • 1/2 tsp salt

For the glaze you’ll need: • 5 tbsp agave or rice syrup • 3 tbsp water • 1 tsp powdered sugar • Pinch of salt • Crushed or whole nuts (optional)

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honey bun

Click here to download a simplified recipe card!

Grease a metal baking pan, preferably 9x13inch, and set aside. Melt your margarine in the microwave until it’s soft. It doesn’t have to be completely liquid. Pour it into a bowl, add the milk, syrup, yeast, and warm water and stir. Add 2 cups flour and salt to yeast mixture. I like preparing my dough manually, but using a mixer is an option as well. Knead everything well until you get a nice goopy texture. Add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time. Knead for another 1 1/2 minutes, or until your dough starts to clean the sides of the bowl. Knead for about 2 more minutes, or until dough is smooth and elastic – the dough will still be slightly sticky to the touch. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning it to grease the top. Cover the dough with a clean, dry dish towel and set aside. While our dough is rising, we can start working on our filling. Make sure your margarine is soft enough to mix and add it to a mixing bowl, along with the syrup, cinnamon and brown sugar. Mix until all ingredients are combined into a nice paste and set aside. Place the dough onto a floured surface, and roll into a rectangle, preferably about 12x16-inch. Spread filling over dough and roll dough up lengthwise, pinching seam to seal. Cut into 12 pieces, and place in the prepared baking dish. It's easiest to use a serrated knife.

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Cover the baking dish with a dry, clean towel and let the dough rise again for about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C (350°C). Bake for 25 minutes, or until the buns are golden brown. Prick with a fork to check if the center is baked through. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. While everything is cooling, whisk your glaze ingredients together. Drizzle this mixture over the buns while they’re still warm. Let buns sit for a few minutes before serving. While this is totally optional, putting some crushed nuts on top of our dessert really gives it a nice texture and that mouth-watering, smokey flavour.

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Guiding the community

THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE RESOURCES AND GUIDES OF FFXIV interview by rymmrael bhaldraelwyn photos by skrully matsuyama layout by lolae demort 118

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Anonymoose GAMER ESCAPE STAFF MEMBER/THE GUY PEOPLE ASK ABOUT STUFF

In a game where you can kick over just about any random rock and find some tidbit of story lurking underneath, it takes a special kind of dedication to be well enough versed in the vast, tangled skein of lore to be considered an expert. And you’d be hardpressed to find an expert more knowledgeable or involved in the community than Anonymoose. As one of the most long standing and influential members of the greater Final Fantasy XIV community, you probably recognize the name if you, yourself haven’t been under a rock for the last few years. He’s been a fixture on the official lore forum since before there was an official lore forum. And in the years since its inception, he has eventually become (in his own, unassuming words) “the guy people ask about stuff.” And in addition to the aforementioned forum, Anonymoose has a laundry list of community involvement under his belt. Not only is he a member of the Final Fantasy XIV Gamer Escape team, but has been since its very early days. More recently, he partnered with us here at Aetherflow Media to help raise money for the non-profit organization ‘To Write Love on Her

Arms’ during our annual charity stream on Twitch. (Check out the Lore Tour portion if you want the chance to hear him and our very own Croatoan dive headfirst into game lore!) He even worked as a proofreader for the second volume of the Encyclopedia Eorzea, the official lore book released by Square Enix, after he did such an amazing job at unofficially proofreading the first one that Koji himself took notice and hired him. He even gave Anonymoose a shout out at Fanfest, making his name more than a little ironic in the process. Like many of us, he’s had to scale back on his involvement in recent times due to real life commitments. Even so, he was kind enough to play scheduling tag with me until we could both set aside time to sit down for an interview. The result was one of the most fun times I’ve had as an interviewer with AFM as we discussed everything from how he got started in the game to his becoming a walking Encyclopedia Eorzea. In the end, I couldn’t resist dipping into his substantial story knowledge to ask a few lorecentric questions, proving that he really does live up to his self-styled description.

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So how did you first get in to Final Fantasy XIV? A friend of mine had lured me into FFXI a few years prior, so I was there on 1.0 launch day for my preordered Collector's Edition, totally confident that they'd fixed all the stuff I struggled with in beta. Thatâ&#x20AC;Ś didn't exactly go as planned, though.

But you stuck with it through all of 1.0 or did you take a hiatus and come back? I was one of those sweet summer children that firmly believed "The Golden Patch" was coming to solve all our collective woes, so I stuck with it at first. And then by the time I realized it wasn't coming anytime soon, I had succumbed to sunk cost fallacy, so I stuck with it later, too. It was like that show LOST. You tell yourself you'll only watch until they tell you what the smoke monster is and suddenly it's a few years later like, well now I can't stop watching until they tell me what the damn smoke monster is! But we found a lot of ways to make our own fun until the Seventh Umbral Rising events started; making friends and finding new and innovative ways to make things not function as intended.

Was it 1.0 that first got you interested in the lore of FFXIV? For all its issues, yes! When core systems and server interactions don't work right, it's hard to imagine what your experience with the game 120

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might be like if it was smooth. But even when a story is incomplete and convoluted, you can see its potential. It was one of the things that inspired faith in the game. It was something we could actually DO: try to solve the puzzle.

These days, what is it that you usually spend your time on in game? To be honest, my work/couch balance has suffered a lot lately, so whenever new content comes out I do each new thing once to archive the text and then inevitably fall off the treadmill. When I can log in, it's usually to check in with my FC.

Then most of what you do in game still revolves around lore, a huge shock for someone pretty widely regarded as a lore expert on the official Forums and to the wider FFXIV community. Can you explain how that evolved? In my head I see it as happening in two phases. The first was Koji Fox's doing. SE opened a forum for reporting text bugs, and every time we found one, Koji (then better known as Fernehalwes) would tell us some trivia about the world. But then we just set up a campfire in the bug report forum, ravenously combing the text for typos, inconsistencies, and unexplained terms hoping to coax new secrets out of him. They eventually had to make a separate forum for lore just to evict us. I half suspect he masterminded the whole thing just to encourage a lore community to form. The second was...also Koji Fox's doing. When

we learned that 1.0 would shut down and be replaced with a new game, I remembered this wistful sentiment I'd had when I left FFXI. At the time, in my estimation, it didn't seem like XI's world setting and story had been as carefully archived or properly understood as it could have been. It seemed a shame - one day the servers would go dark, and what survived might not be complete or even entirely accurate. I didn't want that to happen to XIV, so I started creating a detailed summary of the story. It got mentioned off-hand at an interview with the dev. team conducted by Gamer Escape, and it was offered that Koji and Oda could read it over and make it was as accurate as it could be. Between those two events I kinda just ended up the guy people ask about stuff. They must have known that I probably had it archived somewhere.

Speaking of Gamer Escape, I'm not sure how many of our readers are aware that you're on their website team. Would you mind telling us how that came about? One couldn't get very far in XI without a wiki, so I used FFXIclopedia every single day. That was on FANDOM, then known as Wikia. When XIV was announced, a number of those admins decided to try running their own website instead, so I followed 121

them over to the founding of Gamer Escape. Honestly, I just ended up nagging them to move, rename, and delete pages so often that it was easier to give me the privileges to do it myself. And then all the lore stuff happened and I conveniently just happened to already be on the team.

has a huge amount of lore behind it that might seem intimidating for newcomers. Where would you suggest someone start who is totally new to the game but interested in getting the whole story?

I can't overstate how supportive they've been, either. There's a world of difference between writing summaries and having ideas alone versus having editors and content producers who are eager to help you make those things real.

For someone who was both new and eager to immerse themselves in the world? First, I would say go ahead and order the lore books. Even just as mementos of your time with XIV, they're worth every penny. Then set them aside. Just be secure in that they'll be nearby when you need them, like your Steam backlog. Take some time as a new player and explore the game itself without getting all anxious about how fast you're progressing.

So what are some of your typical duties with the website? When I had more free time available, I would write main scenario summaries, plan and conduct interviews, do event coverage and game reviews on occasion. The usual "game journalism" stuff with a lore focus. Lately, real-life obligations have monopolized a lot of that time so it's been all I can do to stay on top of the lore so I can answer questions in their Discord and be available to prep interviews if need be. I'd love to get back to it if I can find a comfortable rhythm, but I've gotta get through those transition periods, first.

If someone wanted to get involved with Gamer Escape, contributing or just joining the community, would they be able to do so? Community-wise, absolutely. Their Discord is active and welcoming of pretty much anyone who can manage to not be a jerk. If someone wanted to join the team, there's a page on the website that lists what they're most actively looking for at any given time.

With two published lore books, dozens of online short stories, and hours upon hours of quests, FFXIV already 122

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Don't skip things; read the text, watch the cutscenes, do the sidequests. When you have questions, look for answers. What makes FFXIV special is that every time you look behind a curtain or scratch away at the surface, there's something to find. If you can't find the answers or have trouble understanding something, then consult your lore book (or come visit us on the lore forums or Gamer Escape's discord!).

Before I wrap things up, I have two last questions for you that are more personal opinion than anything else- How do you feel, personally, about where the story for the game is going? In a nutshell, cautiously optimistic. I could go on for days about how impressive it is that this team has managed to so consistently and continually weave a convincing illusion that FFXIV's lore is this monolithic block of facts they've always known and events they'd always planned. If you've followed the chaos of what this world and story have been through, you know it has no right being this coherent. So every patch, I get a little nervous. Is this when the Jenga tower falls? That retcons can't be convincingly hidden? That an age-old mystery has an unsatisfying or a rather inconsistent conclusion?

What makes FFXIV special is that every time you look behind a curtain or scratch away at the surface, there's something to find.

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But so far, even though there have been times I've gotten cynical about the way something played out or made fun of being able to see the stitches on something that was adjusted, they've always managed to pull together something I was thrilled to have experienced. If Shadowbringers was any indication of what's to come, I might just make it to the ending with no regrets!

Alright, last question, I just have to ask- who are your favorite and least favorite lore characters in the whole story of FFXIV?

guy. I'm not big on the "0% Approval Rating" or "Hunting the Most Dangerous Game" tropes, and he's both. I can respect that he's what Stormblood needed; don't get me wrong. In fact, he really won me over with his death. Then that didn't stick and now he's back on the Hunt with ambitions that threaten to derail the conclusions to major plot arcs in a way I can't (yet) foresee enjoying. I'm all keyed up just thinking about it. I will say that he's a great wildcard character to have in the mix, though. They utilized him well to systemically influence the events of Shadowbringers, so he might climb out of this position, yet.

As much as I hate copping out and declaring a two-way tie for "favorite", I don't hate it enough to not do it, but the reasoning is complementary, I promise.

Anonymoose, thank you so much. It has been great hearing such thought out and well-reasoned responses from someone so enthusiastic about lore!

The first is Ysayle. When I saw her as one of our allies in the Heavensward concept art, I rolled my eyes so hard I thought my retinas would detach. We'd just met her in 2.4 and I didn't like her arrogance or her obvious biases or her selfrighteous attitude. I joked that I refused to work with her until she had a "What have I done!?" moment and grew as a character a bit. And then SE delivered. Hard. Her whole story won me over and broke my heart. I think she's one of the best written characters.

I'm honored and humbled that anyone would want to ask, talk to me about it, and publish it. I was pretty surprised you guys asked me!

The second is Gaius van Baelsar...for exactly the opposite reason. Every time SE tries to use him, something goes sideways and he ends up a more complex, more interesting, more popular character than they ever intended, and now they're stuck trying to help Judge Vader realize his full potential. It's amazing. I can't wait to see what his ultimate destiny turns out to be. The pressure's on! As far as my least favorite character goes, I'm going to get some flack for this, I think, but I'll say up front that this a probationary position. Zenos. I'm really just not the target demographic for this

Click here to check out Gamer Escape's Discord. If you're interested in being part of the Gamer Escape team, and working alongside Anonymoose and many others, click here to see any open positions. 125

CURIOSITIES OF COSPLAY BACK OF BEYOND

Text and interview by A'onisya Dehf Photos by Cosfame, Cyberhead Designs Photography, Felix Dandy Photography, Happy Hause Photography, South Bird Photography and Vontography Layout by Lolae Demort

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Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise: Cosplay is for everyone. Whether you commission your cosplays, alter thrifted pieces, purchase pre-made costumes, or start with patterns from scratch, cosplay is largely about expressing your love for a character or story to other people who feel the same. I had the honor to speak with Kate, aka Back of Beyond Cosplay, during MagFest 2020, and our discussion touched heavily upon the shifting cosplay scene. I’d often seen Kate’s impressive work in FFXIV circles, and her outlook was a breath of fresh air

amidst tensions that have sprung up in the cosplay community. As cosplay veterans face the increasing popularity of cosplay, it’s easy to fall into discussions about what are the “right and wrong” ways to cosplay. For Kate, though, cosplay is really for everyone, and the growing accessibility of resources for new cosplayers only makes that growth all the more exciting!

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Since you’ve been actively cosplaying since 2013, your breadth of work is huge; even just scrolling through your Instagram is daunting. What was the catalyst that began this journey for you? I was able to buy my first sewing machine in college, which is what started it all. FFXIV in particular really sucked me into cosplay. I’ve just been working my way through it because I find so many things in-game that are just really fun to do and I just wanna make it in real life. Did you have prior experience with sewing, or has cosplay really been the means of exploring your interest? I wasn’t taught at all; I went to school for business so I have no sewing expertise like that. My grandmother was a seamstress; that was her career growing up, so I did learn a little bit from her, but when it comes to cosplay work, a lot of it is just kind of “wing it as you go” with some finishing techniques. So a lot of it was self-taught and just kind of picked up, because it was something I still very much enjoyed. It’s very striking that most of your FFXIV costumes are specifically glamour pieces. What is it that draws you to the glamour outfits more so than the job sets? The job sets I do like, and I do want to do them, it’s just when it comes to practical application sometimes it’s not there. Like I wanted to do a dragoon armor set, but I have nowhere to store giant Worbla or foam pieces that take up so much space. Or with the white mage armor, I don’t have a practical way of making the floating butterfly staff. Some of them I want to do, but I don’t get around to doing it, whereas the glamour sets somehow get my attention a little more and pull me towards making them. [laughing] I realize now after you’ve said that I’ve pretty much done only glamour items! 128

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There’s nothing wrong with that! The artifact and armor sets are rightfully popular, as they have wonderful and recognizable designs, but you don’t always see the glamour sets as much. You’ve previously constructed beautiful gowns, such as Cinderella and your Miraculous Ladybug masquerade design. Have any of the new dresses in FFXIV caught your eye? I actually forced my red mage to 80 just to wear the Nier casting set, so I think my next actual dress project is going to be that because it looks really cool and it looks like the next thing I want to try. I’d previously been looking at some of the older ones, like the Autumn Wool dress and shirt. They’re lovely, and they’re actually glamoured for some of my outfits, but they’re also not as noticeable so I’m passing on them for now. But the latest Nier dress is something I’m really getting pulled into lately. So that striking silhouette and design of the Nier set is more up your alley right now? Yeah, it’s just something about the design that just grabs me and that’s why I end up getting pulled into, so with the Nier set it’s just eye-catching. With your sewing experience, you probably have a lot of ideas on how to take liberties and make your costumes more personalized. Do your armor and prop pieces tend to be more screen accurate? Yeah, I really like when I do armor and props going for the screen accurate “out of this world” element, which is part of the appeal of doing it. When it comes to fabric, I love doing historical fashion references, like my High House Bustle is actually based off of 1890s dresses. So I definitely like being able to put my own flourish on things.

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I teach myself new techniques, like beading work, when I’m doing my Dancer outfit, for example, which I’m starting to work on now. I’m practicing tambour beading, doing rhinestones, teaching myself dyeing, a lot of that fun challenge comes with working with fabric which I personally enjoy. Your cosplays often include armor and props, such as your Alkalurops white mage staff for your Vanya robe of casting set, but most of your work is in sewing. Would you say the sewing aspect of costuming is your main wheelhouse, or do you try to have expertise in all areas of crafting? I really enjoy doing both mediums, but when it comes down to practical applications I tend to go to sewing just because fabric is easier to store and work with in the dead of winter. I live in the north, so I can’t exactly spray paint or work with resin in my garage when it’s twelve degrees outside. So I tend to use fabric more out of sheer practicality. But I enjoy having any excuse to play with armor, props, metalworking, woodworking. How is working with materials for props and armor different from sewing for you? I like how easy it is to see armor start taking shape right away; you can actually start seeing how it’s coming together quickly. And I love all the finishing touches you can give accessories to add that little graphical in-game touch to real life, whether that be through painting or using LED lights, which is usually my favorite. Sewing lets you do interesting flourishes with historical references to pull back from. So you can start mixing and matching all of the in-game references with historical flourishes, and that gives you so much more creative freedom to explore both influences. So it’s like more traditional medium with sewing or more fantastical with the armor-making.

I was looking through your resources and tutorials, and I really liked the test you did for your Beyond the Boundary blood sword prop where you tested out a bunch of different adhesives. That’s so useful and interesting, and you mentioned really enjoying getting to mess with that kind of stuff by making props. I have a lot of fun with prop-making because my grandfather was a woodworker. I work in hardware, so I have a lot of expertise and practice with weird things like resins, woodworking, and metalworking. Being able to put real world application into fantastical stuff is really fun, and it also comes back to being helpful in the real world for other stuff. Messing around and doing experiments is part of what I love so much, and if I can help someone have a better experience making things, that’s what I enjoy doing. I just really love teaching people through my goof-ups, trials and errors. You’re incredibly active on social media; your feeds have constant updates with costume WIPs, and you never hide the mess or the process that goes into creating a finished product. Were you always actively posting your costume construction from the beginning, or is that something you started doing later? It’s been a constant thing of posting work in progress photos on social media for me. It was a habit I got into while working on competition pieces; they usually like seeing a workbook of your progress photos to show off unseen detail and the thought behind it, and that carried over into my posting on various social medias. I also really like posting the work in progress behind things because it can help people who might be stuck on similar projects figure it out. I like being able to explain things that I had both a hard and fun time puzzling out. 131

One thing I really love about your WIP posts is that they really show just how much time costuming takes. The perfectly identical embroidered lines in your Immortal Flames skirt, for example, would not have looked nearly as polished if they’d been rushed. What drives you to be so detailed in your costumes even when the time it takes especially when you’re under a deadline - can probably be frustrating? Is it frustrating, or have you learned to plan around timing? I’ve definitely learned as I’ve been doing this for enough years that crunching under a deadline really is not healthy after actually collapsing at a con one year. Don’t recommend three days straight of crunching! So I’ve learned to pace myself better. For me, I’m a huge perfectionist. I love adding details and detail porn, so those closeup beading or the angles you see in embroidery. That is my thing. I kind of relish the monotonous detail work because it makes the costume pop all the more when it’s done. I’ve actually broken quite a few sewing machines doing embroidery, so it’s something for me that I hate, but I also love. For cosplayers trying to get into the cosplay scene, experimenting can be really intimidating. But you talk so freely about trying different approaches, some of them work, some of them don’t, and you enjoy that aspect. Would you encourage other cosplayers to really embrace the challenge of trying things and finding those moments to learn? I don’t know if new cosplayers know how many wonderful resources there are now compared to ten years ago when I started. Back then, it was basically accepted that it’s trial and error, and if it goofs up, that’s fine, it goofs up! Nowadays, I’d like people to try and goof up and fail because that’s part of the fun of it! People can really start out of 132

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the gate strong with all these resources, which is great for people starting their first project and doing it immaculately because they have so much to learn from. Do you think that adds pressure to new cosplayers, now that there are so many resources? There’s so much ability to dive in and have a lot of knowledge right off the bat. Do you have any advice for cosplayers who have all of these resources but also want the freedom to try and fail and learn like you have? This actually comes up a lot in the craftsmanship community, about how many resources there are now versus then. Honestly, I don’t think it should be intimidating for new cosplayers because most everyone knows that for your first project, you learn as you go. I hope that the positive message of “learn and do your best” reaches them and they pick up on that and not feel bad if things go wrong.

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I want to tie that to asking about some of the craftsmanship awards that you’ve won throughout your cosplay career. Has the competition scene changed with the growing availability of crafting resources?

terms of FFXIV cosplay. Has cosplaying FFXIV changed at all for you since the community - including the XIV cosplay community - has grown exponentially since then?

There’s almost a ceiling now. People in novice are competing with beautiful handmade costumes from the first time they’ve ever sewn. And in masters, there can almost be nothing wrong with somebody’s costume. You have ten people who have immaculate outfits, and there’s almost nowhere else to go. So we’re hitting a really interesting top of the bell curve in terms of, “What are we gonna do next?”

I love how it’s getting more popular and more people are recognizing it, and I also like how it’s getting more accessible for people. People are able to buy the au ra or miqo’te sets now and not have to figure out how to pattern these insane things. Being more accessible, more people can find it and fall in love with it and start learning. I’ve never had a bad interaction with any of the FFXIV fans in real life because they just want to gush about the game, and that’s one of the most fun parts of the community.

I’m excited to see what happens next, because I never thought it would get to this point where everyone is getting professional levels of quality. I’ve looked at people doing their first outfits and their work is flawless. As someone who has judged their outfits, they’re impossible to pick apart. They’re wonderfully done. And I’m so happy to see people doing so well and self-learning without having to go into a fabric or textiles degree. You mentioned your High House Bustle is based on an actual 19th century design. Do you consider what would be interesting to learn how to make when picking your next cosplay? What other criteria go into selecting your next costume? It’s kind of a two-part thing. Sometimes I see and glamour and I’m fixated on it, or it’s something that I think will be a really fun challenge to do. The High House Bustle is kind of both. I wanted any excuse to make historical garments, but also make it video game-relevant, and that was a fun challenge to do some background reading and studying about this genre. But for other projects like the Vanya robe or the Thavnarian outfit, it’s more, “I really like this outfit, let me make it IRL because I love it in-game so much I want it now!” You cosplayed the Miqo’te starter set back in 2015. That’s fairly early in

That’s what I’ve heard from pretty much any cosplayer I’ve met. It’s really a feelgood kind of community where there’s a lot of support. And I’m glad to hear you say it’s exciting to see it being made more accessible, rather than taking a gate-keeping stance that is popular in a lot of cosplay circles. For FFXIV cosplayers, it’s more, “Welcome, anyone can cosplay these things if they want to!” Exactly. You don’t have to be able to make an armor set, you can buy some of these sets online now and you can show it outwardly more easily. And if you like it, then people start getting into it more and more with making things, and that’s where the fun comes in. It’s also such a niche game, in a way. FFXIV cosplayers instantly recognize each other. If you don’t play the game, you might know it, maybe some of the more notable characters, but for something like the High House Bustle, probably not as recognizable if you don’t play the game. 135

I mean, most people will notice a white mage outfit, because it’s pretty traditional from game to game, but some of the more niche stuff is more unusual and if you do play the game, it’s like, “I recognize that, I don’t know the name for it, but I know you,” and that’s part of the fun. Does that make it different from some of your other cosplays that come from a more commonly recognized IP? I don’t think FFXIV being more niche is a bad thing; it’s actually pretty nice. Because when you’re doing any of the top, say, superheroes or cartoon or anime characters, you have people who like the character, or maybe they like the outfit, but they don’t necessarily know more than that. People who recognize FFXIV are like, “This is the game. I found another person here who likes this game!” And I think it’s sometimes a little more wholesome. Is there anything we haven’t touched on that you’d like to mention, either about cosplay or FFXIV in general? I’m currently super excited to see new content in FFXIV. I’m going back to level my blue mage so we can grind out blue mage mounts and I’m curious to see the new four-part raid coming out. I’m just so excited because this whole expansion has been a slam dunk with amazing content and I’m just really geeked to play it!

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TEXT BY VEDERAH KILMISTER - PHOTOS BY LAELE NORA - LAYOUT BY ARYA ROSE

A Night on the Town

It’s been some time now since we first were able to explore the hidden realms of the Shadowbringer’s expansion. We’ve dwelled in her cities, mingled with her people, and basked in the awe of her untamed and wild beauty. The work the designers put into breathing life into the First is unparalleled- and I found myself completely inspired everywhere I turned. Naturally, I chose to express my awe and admiration the only way I truly know how- though glamour. Join us as we showcase glamours inspired by some of the iconic sights of the First!

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Crystarium

Being probably the most anticipated area of the entire Shadowbringerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s expansion, the Crystarium did not disappoint with the sheer magnitude and majesty of its design. The city itself is light and refreshing with its mostly neutral color palette, with an exceptional pop of sky bluea stark change from the vibrance of Kugane that we were accustomed to. This glamour really focuses on that color story- especially celebrating the stunning beauty of the dark metal structures against the blue crystalline ceilings. Even the folded metal structure of the Adamantite Armour of Maiming mimics some of the gentle spray designs of the same metal work, while the gold accents mimic the walkway lines and designs of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s streetwork.

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Mord Souq

Much less structured than our previous stop, I found more inspiration in the people and concept behind Mord Souq than I did its actual architecture. Denizens of this desert clime were mostly adventurers and merchants on the move, peddling their wares. This glamour was created with an eye for a color palette that melded in with the landscape, to act as a form of camouflage, and rustic layers that would keep the blazing sun off the skin during the day, yet allow for warmth at night.

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Eulmore

Listen, I know there is a whole lot of hype around DuliaChai, but I want to take a moment for who I feel is really Eulmoreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s star citizen: Renda-Sue. When my travels first brought me to this city, it was this wandering NPC who first caught my eye with her large hat and masquerade mask. She was iconic. She was everything I ever wanted to be. She was 100% the inspiration behind this glamour. The city proper just screams for elegance and decadenceand we delivered using items with luxe golden details and some saturated colors.

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Lydha Lran

In the land of the pixies, you must become one with them lest you be turned into a lifeless little green shrubbery! With this little glamour we were not only able to embody the pixies themselves, but also the entire surrounding landscape of this beautiful realm. We embraced the floral tapestry of the land with flower based hairstyles, accessories, and corsages while the hard leather boots mimic the wooden framework of their Hobbit-style dwellings.

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Slitherbough

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Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something beautiful about the dilapidated and earthy style of both the town of Slitherbough and its people. Tonally the realm is dark with subtle use of color in the light fixtures, as well as the graffiti on the roots of the trees.

to heavily utilize feathers and other bone accessories in a similar fashion as a repr their connection to the spiritual realm.

For this glamour we chose to stick with a similarly subdued color palette and focus on items with distressed hems and folded layers of fabric. We also wanted

XOX,

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Until next time, friends! Stay original and

e-themed resentation of

d stay glamourous.

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Llymlaen's Locales TEXT BY ADATAR KORGEAN - PHOTOS BY LAELE NORA AND L'HOA RELANAH LAYOUT BY ARYA ROSE

Welcome back fellow Warriors of Darkness! We wrapped up last time in the fabled Crystarium, bastion of hope for the denizens of The First, but our travels of the amazing sights and sounds of this land do not end there! We continue our journey into the island of Kholusia.

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Kholusia Beautiful Kholusia, serene and seemingly peaceful; Kholusia is said to have the fewest Sin Eater attacks throughout the land. Its high cliffs split this secret land into an upper and lower section, with a great lift eventually giving access to both sides of the island. Kholusia is home to the industrious Dwarves. Their statues and caves are sculpted with the greatest of care and respect, just as the glorious beards on their faces. High upon a jutting strip of land, overlooking the island and the sea, sitting in stark contrast to the dull lands around it, is the brightly colored and festive-looking town of Eulmore.

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Eulmore Colorful, loud, boisterous and a haven to the high and mighty of the island of Kholusia, Eulmore stands proud amid the turmoil of the flood of light. While other parts of the land of Norvrandt have suffered, Eulmore has seen an age of endless parades of decadence and debauchery. It is here that the Warrior of Darkness meets some important people in his/her quest to bring back the darkness. Moreover, it is the founding point of the Artist Alphinaud and his assistant! *nods*

Despite all the glitz and glamour, Eulmore is not all that it seems. This is never more apparent than taking a stroll through the slums at the base, and right outside the front, of the city proper. Swing by the Beehive, grab some Meol and let the lights of Eulmore wash over and take away the worries. Shaking off the fear of heights, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s head on over to the Rak'tika Greatwood.

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Rak'tika Greatwood The sunlight filters through the leaves of the forest, the air rich and heavy with the scent of the woods and burnt foliage. Rak'tika is a lush and dangerous land, full of hidden temples, towering trees and the homeplace to the sacred protectors, the Viis. Bringing back the darkness to the Greatwood accentuates the beauty as the plants and flora light up the night and bring a glow to the land. When the time comes the call of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;La-heeâ&#x20AC;? can be heard across the forest, and it signals the coming day and greatness. Enjoy the air and take a deep breath as we head past the shores of Kholusia and dive into the Tempest.

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Tempest One of my favorite locales, the Tempest is an underwater paradise on one half and a towering metropolis on the other. The abundant sea life, the gentle music, everything about the Tempest shows a calmness of life under the sea. But the sea bed isn't without dangers; hostile sea creatures are present, along with the threat of the Sin Eaters. As our heroes make their way through the Tempest we set our sights on the towering city of Amaurot, replica home to the fabled Ascians. The city is a stark outlier amongst the reefs and plant life of the surrounding waters, but with the phantoms that call the dead city home, along with the presence of Emet Selch himself, the Tempest is a breathtaking and unique experience in a sea of amazing locales.

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She heals I tank We recently had the chance to talk to Vegan Pete and Avi Aiel, the power couple behind the weekly podcast She heals, I tank. We talked about their experiences in FFXIV, the community and what it's like to work so closely with your partner. interview by zero yuno | photos by she heals i tank | layout by lolae demort

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Could you tell us a little about yourself for people who might not know who you are? Pete: I'm Vegan Pete, one half of She Heals I Tank. The other half is my wonderful wife Avi Aiel. She Heals I Tank is a weekly Final Fantasy XIV podcast that we've been doing for almost 200 episodes now. My love of MMO's started with Dark Age of Camelot and FFXIV is the first one to really hold my interest for an extended period since DAoC. Avi: I'm the she of the podcast... I have been healing in FFXIV for almost as long as I've been playing; since 2.0. I learned the game as a bard, but fell in love with healing, and I've never mained a healer other than scholar, even though I level all of them to see how they play. I was also in the Navy for six years. And I only just finished my Bachelor's in IT Management... I add that last one because our listeners have all heard how busy and stressful that was. What inspired you to create She Heals I Tank? Pete: I was feeling pretty uncreative in my life, my job is in sales and I wanted to start a hobby that was more on the creative side. I've always enjoyed podcasts, I think the first one I downloaded was the Adam Carolla podcast and thought it was so cool that he was making something on his own. The whole "just make something yourself" thinking was also implanted in me from Felicia Day and the web series The Guild. Then more specifically for FFXIV, I am a fan of Limit Break Radio but they weren't talking about some of the stuff I wanted to talk or hear about which made me realize that there was enough space to make ourselves different to start our very own podcast.

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Podcasting can be stressful, due to the preparations that come with it. Do you find that working together so closely can cause tension? Pete: The only time it really gets stressful is when there is a combo of 2 things, one being that there is a lull in the game with not a lot of info coming out and then when we've had a busy week with work or being sick and just not having the time to create worthwhile subjects to base an episode off of. The only time we can get a little snippy with each other is like 30 minutes before the podcast if we still need to add some things to the outline. I guess we cope with this by just doing the episode and once it starts we start having fun. And with drinking. Avi: I think the tension comes with the fact that Pete and I prepare for things very differently. And with how hectic my schedule had been, things can get pushed to the last minute, and that can make the prep right before an episode a bit tense. But, other than those on the wire moments, we really enjoy working with one another. With Fantasy XIV being just one of the many popular MMOs available, what made you come to Eorzea and keeps you active over so many years? Pete: I'm actually not 100% sure why FFXIV has kept my interest for so long. DAoC was mostly persistent world Realm vs. Realm (PvP) so that always kept it fresh for me. I guess it's the patch cycle that gives me enough content to keep coming back and keeps it fresh to me. I don't think I've played any other MMO for more than a few months, but I've played DAoC and FFXIV for years.

What originally brought us to Eorzea though is I downloaded the trial on PS4 for Avi to play because I knew she had played previous FF games. This is actually my first FF game, I didn't start playing until she started getting into it so I could play with her. Avi: Well, I know that I am currently suffering from FFXIV burnout. Which is ok. And something that we have talked about on the podcast. And I think the longevity to playing a game as long as we have is giving yourself permission to take breaks. And yes, it's a wonderful game, with the best storytelling I've ever seen in an MMO. And glamour! With a massive player base with a wide variety of interests, we all have different reactions to the game. What are some changes you would like to see in the game? What is something you think they accomplished successfully?

Coerthas, put some keeps in there that you can defend and whichever side has the most keeps get a 5% exp or gil bonus. I could go on and on about PvP. Avi: I would like to see some mid-tier difficulty content, like extreme dungeons or something along those lines. I would love more difficult four man content. Currently, all we have is PotD or HoH, which get difficult only after hours of effort. With everyone's different schedules, it gets more and more difficult to find groups of eight that can regularly meet up, but a group of four is much more manageable.

The longevity to playing a game as long as we have is giving

Pete: I think the FFXIV dev team has nailed PvE for the most part. Yeah there are tweaks we all think of but most of it is kinda nit picky. I find the PvP in the game atrocious though, they just really don't have a good plan and don't know how to balance.

yourself permission to

They try to do too many different forms of PvP instead of concentrating on making one of them really good. I sound like a broken record if you listen to the podcast but I also really want a persistent PvP zone where you can capture towers and keeps.

What are your hopes and goals for 5.x?

Call it War Games and the lore behind it is the 3 grand companies always take part in the War Games so they are prepared for any Garlean invasion. Have a zone about the size of the

take breaks.

Pete: I hope some of the content they put out in exchange for less dungeons per patch is actually good. What we've had previously with Diadem and Eureka have fallen kind of flat. I think the jury remains out on the Restoration of Ishgard. It sounded really cool but this first step was disappointing, with the whole server hopping thing it was over way too quickly. I hope the next step with the revamped Diadem proves to be better.

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My personal goal in 5.x is to become a better healer. I've mained tank and dps through savage before but I've never really tried to learn healer at that level. I'd like to be able to heal through the first [two] floors of each savage raid tier so I would be able to help out on any job role that is needed. Avi: I'll keep my hopes for 5.x very simple. I'd like the Viera and the Hrothgar to be able to use the various hairstyles available in the game. I put a lot of effort into collecting hairstyles I can no longer use. And if I'm dreaming, I'd love to see a female Hrothgar. A male viera would be cool, but I think female Hrothgar would be awesome. Oh, and butt sliders! Definitely butt sliders. Your goals in-game might not be the same, which is the case for many other couples that play the game together. How do the two of you find common ground or shared objectives? Pete: I'd say our goals are pretty far apart at this point in the game. I still really enjoy challenging savage and Avi's not into raiding anymore. I think one of the shining points of FFXIV and what makes it easy to still play together is the fact that you are able to level all the jobs on one character. So we are still able to do roulettes together to level other jobs. And when a new tomestone comes out with a patch we will run expert roulette together, it's always nice when you know the tank and healer are good. Avi: The thing with an MMO that is great is the variety of content available. I may not enjoy crafting, or want to craft with Pete, but I definitely reap the benefits when I want something fancy crafted. Sometimes it isn't about doing content together, it's about playing video games next to

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one another. He'll be crafting or doing savage content while I level my white mage. Then we can break and run a dungeon together. I think part of a healthy relationship in or out of game is not having to do everything together. You seem very knowledgeable about lore, can you tell us your favorite piece of lore? Pete: You must be talking to Avi for this one lol. A lot of stuff goes in one ear and out the other for me. I don't know if I have a favorite piece of lore, I appreciate the addition to world building [behind] it, but I actually pay way more attention to the actual story. If the story isn't good, no matter how good the lore behind it is, I'm definitely not going to enjoy it. If I had to pick something though, it would probably be the lore of chocobos. I really like the bond that they share with us and how they are a part of the society. I still ride my chocobo 95% of the time. I'll try out a new mount I get every now and then but I always go right back to my chocobo. The biggest hole in the podcast is probably not having a real lore segment, but we do try with the "Teaching Pete Lore" segment where listeners send in their lore questions for me to answer. I don't think I've gotten any wrong yet. Avi: The fact that you asked this is hilarious! I think that our podcast is known for NOT being the lore specialists. Hopefully that shows other players that you can completely love a game, and not need to be an expert in every element of the game. I think for me, my favorite lore in the game is the scholar's backstory, the tonberries' curse, the discovery of the fairies, and just everything involved with Nym.

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Final Fantasy XIV is known to have a unique class system since we can play every class on one character instead of making multiple characters, what is your absolute favorite job and why? Pete: I'm really enjoying Gunbreaker, it's my main for Shadowbringers. But if I had to pick one my absolute favorite to play forever it would be Paladin. Part of that might be nostalgia, it was my main for so long. But I do think right now it is balanced really well, it does both offense and defense great and is really fun to still play. It's just a classic tank that feels great. Avi: My favorite job is Heavensward Summoner. I'm kidding, but really. That actually was my favorite class to play in this game ever. BUT it's gone now. The class that has stayed the test of time for me is the other side of that coin, scholar. I find that I enjoy classes that contribute to the party, have too much going on, and the flow of their abilities just feels right to me. I think the class you choose is very personal. I've often described the mechanics in FFXIV as a dance, and if the class just doesn't feel right, then it will make the dance that much more difficult. What would be the best way to describe your podcast to those who might not have heard of it? Pete: We try to be a mix of entertaining and informative. The goal is to get you all the latest

when we started, nor did I be listened to by anyone.

FFXIV news but discuss it in a fun way that isn't just reading the news to you. Anyone can just go to the Lodestone and read the latest news. We try to have discussions that are fun but also allow us to be critical of the game when we think we need to. I think we are pretty fair between our praise and criticism of the game. I also like hearing what others think of the game as well; so I really try hard to incorporate the listeners, whether it's reading some of their tweets or emails or having them call in. I think we've found ourselves in a pretty great community that has been born from the show. Avi: We record a husband and wife FFXIV gaming podcast. We tend to focus on helping new players with the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Greenleaf Gaming Segment,â&#x20AC;? as well as community content creators. As a married couple, the dynamic is definitely different from most gaming podcasts, and we may pick at one another at times, but it's always done with love. Did you ever envision gaming would help you connect with others like this? Pete: Not at all. I had no idea what we were doing, I didn't think the first episode would even be listened to by anyone. I was shocked when it started getting its first downloads. Now it's grown into a really amazing community, [that] is really the best part of the whole thing. Avi: I never in a thousand worlds would have dreamed of connecting with people in the way we have through FFXIV and the podcast. Honestly, the community we've grown and the people we've met are what keep me interested in the game even more than the game itself. I feel very lucky to have met such wonderful and loving people.

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What are some of your favourite ways to interact with your viewers when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re live streaming? Pete: If you're talking about during the podcast it's taking calls, I think it's the most entertaining to listeners. But reading Twitch chat is great as well; chat always comes up with some funny jokes and corrects us if we get something wrong. As for live streaming gameplay I still struggle with what works. I try to always be attentive to chat and respond. Definitely easier when doing lower level stuff like 24 man raids than compared to savage content that takes more concentration. I try to be funny and entertaining. I turn off the viewer count, I don't want to see it. I always approach it as there can be one person watching that is having a shitty day and just wants to watch something and have fun, I'm going to try to be entertaining and turn that personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s day around or at least have them forget about their bad day for a little while. I guess that's been the same approach I've had with the podcast as well. Avi: While we are live streaming the podcast, I got a talking to from Pete about not typing in chat because you can hear it on the podcast, and he's all about audio quality. So during the podcast live stream, I think I enjoy interacting with chat through the camera and the looks I give in response to what Pete is saying, and what they are typing in chat. And I think that adds a level to the live stream that listeners won't quite get through just listening. While streaming on Twitch, I had a lot of fun while we did the Ditch the Label fundraising, we did a spin wheel. The viewers donated and we'd spin the wheel and have to do what it said, such as

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swapping computers or playing with no HUD. What advice do you have for anyone interested in podcasting or streaming? Anything in particular you had to learn the hard way? Pete: The best advice I can give is to just do it. I spent too much time researching different setups, microphones, mixers and software and it got overwhelming. It was information overload. The first episode ended up being recorded on a 1 USB microphone setup in between us. You can do a lot of reading but you need the practical hands on experience to really learn what to do. And more specifically to podcasting, I just wasn't used to talking that long and I'm a mumbler with the occasional stutter so the real practice I needed was just in speaking. It wouldn't matter how good the microphone is if I kept on mumbling everything. As for anything I learned the hard way, we've actually been pretty lucky. One thing that stands out to me is there was a story a while back about a content creator who was being accused of some sexual harassment among other things and we talked about it and had some personal stories shared. I later got an email from someone who said she wished there would have been a warning before we started talking about issues like that because she had past experiences and the talk brought up some of those and she wasn't prepared for that at all. That's paraphrasing, it was a very nice email, she wasn't mad, just wanting to make me aware of it. So since then I really do take into account the type of topics we're going to cover. Luckily there hasn't been a need to hit on something as serious as that was, but one thing for sure is that if we do there will definitely be a disclaimer because I

never want to make someone feel like that. Avi: The biggest thing I've learned from reading blogs, listening to podcasts, or even attending panels is that the most important piece to podcasting or streaming is to just start. Don't wait until everything is perfect, you have the perfect set up or anything like that. Just start, and then be consistent. Set a schedule and stick to it. Even if you are only streaming one day a week, so long as you always stream that day at that time, that's what's important. The skills involved and the quality will only improve with time and practice.

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