Admittedly, because of the game immediately preceding this one in this LP, I went with 星 as literal stars, which, coupled with 石 ("stone") and 召喚 ("summoning"), my reaction was more "Lucavi sighted, don't touch the Zodiac Stones!"
Between the Stellazio collectibles and Omicron wondering about the thirteen donations to the fountain to get that particular Stellazio, I'm already wary about finding a thirteenth Stellazio of Ophiuchus, held by FFIX's equivalent of Elidibus.
Wait, so Star was used for Planet in earlier FF games? Is that an FF thing that was only included in translations in 14, or a Japanese thing that was improperly translated in 14 and they ran with it,
As explained in the other posts, 星 "hoshi" is sort of the default word in Japanese used for both planets and stars.
I say "sort of" because honestly apart from speculative fiction (viz the hilariously trashy webnovels and light novels I love), I personally haven't seen any reason for most examples to use "star" as a synonym for "planet", due to stories either taking place only on the one planet with no need to specify, or using the now-ubiquitous word 異世界 "isekai".
In the more modern or sci-fi settings, there is usually a clarifying term 惑星 "wakusei" for planets, to differentiate from actual stars. I have no idea what the etymology of 惑星 is ("Beguiling Star", what?), but I've seen it used occasionally, if not the katakana transliteration プラネット. For example, "planetarium" is プラネタリウム.
But yeah, for stories where the characters might refer to "this planet" as distinct from "this world", 星 is the word used and understood. My guess is FFXIV wanted to be Extra Flavourful, which Koji Fox has admitted caused issues for future translations, when dialogue and characters he thought he could go over-the-top for fun turned out to be recurring.
In the more modern or sci-fi settings, there is usually a clarifying term 惑星 "wakusei" for planets, to differentiate from actual stars. I have no idea what the etymology of 惑星 is ("Beguiling Star", what?), but I've seen it used occasionally, if not the katakana transliteration プラネット. For example, "planetarium" is プラネタリウム.
I believe there is also a specific astronomical word for "star" in the sense of "big enough to shine from fusion", Kousei. As for the etymology of Wakusei, I saw somewhere that it's from "False Star", in the sense of Kousei = True Stars (does nuclear fusion) vs Wakusei = False Stars (do not do fusion), but I don't have a cite beyond "some astronomy article I read, maybe?"
I admit this dialogue box screenshot isn't in your summary, but I think it's significant enough to point out.
Tot says there is a theory that the "star" (ie planet, in FF-speak) has some sort of power/energy, which leads to life on that planet. And this theory is where the idea of the connection between "stones" and "summoning" comes from.
I noticed this because my immediate reaction was "LIFESTREEEEAAAAM" and "AETHERIAL SEEEEAAA".
Oh, very interesting. In English, this is "Ah, yes, the stars! They inspired the stories relating stones and eidolons."
I didn't mention it because I didn't know what the make of it - how did the stars in the sky "inspire" these theories?
Stars, plural, so I didn't make the connection with XIV-style "this star." Looking at it now, it's a total nonsequitur: Tot says "Ha ha ha... We live on the surface, Princess." Dagger says "?" And Tot says "Ah, yes, the stars!" This makes more sense now.
I believe there is also a specific astronomical word for "star" in the sense of "big enough to shine from fusion", Kousei. As for the etymology of Wakusei, I saw somewhere that it's from "False Star", in the sense of Kousei = True Stars (does nuclear fusion) vs Wakusei = False Stars (do not do fusion), but I don't have a cite beyond "some astronomy article I read, maybe?"
Googling gives me 恒星 "kousei", which does match the definition "constant star". I admit I've not seen the term before, but it makes sense as the counterpart to 惑星.
Oh, very interesting. In English, this is "Ah, yes, the stars! They inspired the stories relating stones and eidolons."
I didn't mention it because I didn't know what the make of it - how did the stars in the sky "inspire" these theories?
Stars, plural, so I didn't make the connection with XIV-style "this star." Looking at it now, it's a total nonsequitur: Tot says "Ha ha ha... We live on the surface, Princess." Dagger says "?" And Tot says "Ah, yes, the stars!" This makes more sense now.
I might have had some unconscious bias, because when I read that dialogue box it didn't even occur to me how it could be read as plural "stars". I just saw 星 and immediately thought "singular star, that must mean the planet".
This is truly FFXIV brain in action.
Still, even if it's plural "stars" and referring to the stars in the sky, there's still the part about how the "theorized power of the star(s)" leads to the existence/possibility of life, phrased as something more mystical or aetherial than solar power. In a Final Fantasy game, this is clearly foreshadowing a plot point, even if it might end up a dropped development later (eg Hyne and Lunar Cry).
And in fairness, Tot is going on a non-sequitur ramble, based on the context. Before Little Garnet turned up, Tot was going around talking to himself about "summoners and stones", for the benefit of the player reading the dialogue. Then Little Garnet arrived, the conversation turned to the globe model, and suddenly Tot went "oh yes, the theory the star/planet has a power that brings forth life is where the connection between 'summoners' and 'stones' was first conceived". Which is a continuation of his previous academic ramblings, but completely irrelevant to Little Garnet's questions about the globe.
(I think it does lend further support for singular "star" meaning "planet", because why would Tot look at the globe of the planet they're currently on and suddenly think about stars.)
Tot's design is practically the platonic ideal of "friendly old-man bookworm." He's like something out of a Matsumoto or Tezuka story - you could easily see this guy as a quirky side character in GE999 or Metropolis.
He can also tell you what the castle is making for dinner from two blocks away.
(I've known people who went through FF9 thinking Tot was some kind of bird-man and mistaking his nose for a beak, which would have been cool but I also like the little old man we got.)
This thread has been a delight, going through games I've played to completion (4, 5, 6), some I've only partially played (7, 9), some I knew via gamer osmosis (1, 8) and others I've had no familiarity with at all (2, 3, Tactics). Can't wait 'til we hit 10!
As we've discussed before during Tactics, there is a kind of bias in how Japanese media thinks about Western knights, where they're portrayed as being low in social status and there's a conflation of knight/soldier. As a knight, Steiner would be a noble, although quite possibly a low-ranking, landless one. As a Captain, he would be of higher status as well. Certainly he'd still think himself as very low in comparison to his queen, but he'd still be, by rank, above the average commoner. But here he's treated more like a mix between some NCO and a beat cop.
The tech level is early industrial. I'd suggest that that includes the social technology, so the state is powerful and the vassal system is not in effect. Knights are therefore a ridiculous affectation recalling a bygone era, or a sinecure or an honor that a monarch can bestow to indicate favor.
Steiner, though, is taking it seriously. He's the guy who takes the train to a jousting tournament where only a handful of SCA enthusiasts show up. And when he loses, he insists on ransoming back his horse and armor because that's The Done Thing™ while everyone else is just like "What? This is just a friendly match."
I think at some point in the past, maybe ~15 years ago, Treno tried to break away from Alexandria. Possibly the nobles got it into their head to leverage their immense wealth into paying for a mercenary army that the Alexandrians - with their professional troops - promptly curbstomped.
Alternately, Treno was forcibly annexed. The rich nobles there now are transplants, Alexandrian nobles who looted the place to the ground and then realized they could loot the ground too.
Treno was a more engaging stop than I would have thought. I appreciate the Dagger focus, but I think it's also very interesting that this extended section is how we do the reunion with the Tantalus troupe and spend more time with them, because it's a situation where Zidane isn't there. It's a fun way to see a somewhat different side of them and how Dagger navigates working with them and their aid without the person who had a more personal investment in her and she connected with more quickly.
The tension that Steiner has had with Dagger's journey from the start does feel like it's reached a point where the uncomfortable rigidity of his presence can no longer be ignored, or rather a point where others are not willing to leave it be and work with it. His wilful blindness to Queen Brahne's involvement in the nasty things happening and attempts to convince himself to ignore the signs is something that lands as coherent for his character, but it is unfortunate for his relationships with the cast. A reckoning is definitely in the works, and I can only hope it's not too rough, and that it doesn't come at the expense of something happening to Dagger.
[Lights on; VIVI and PUCK enter on opposite sides.]
VIVI
Either I mistake your shape and making quite,
Or else you are that shrewd and knavish sprite
Call'd Robin Goodfellow.
PUCK
Wizard, thou speak'st aright;
I am that merry wander of the night-
[Enter the ANTLION, sending all running around screaming.]
Last time, Dagger, Steiner, and Marcus visited Reno, found the Supersoft, and met with an old friend of Dagger's, her instructor Doctor Tot.
Today, Doctor Tot takes us down into mysterious and bafflingly-named "Gargan Roo," from where they hope to reach Alexandria…
I. I was expecting this to be short for "Gargantuan Kangaroo" and I'm disappointed
Doctor Tot: "This is Gargan Roo, an ancient travel route between Treno and Alexandria." Marcus: "Why was this thing built under a tower?" Doctor Tot: "Actually, Gargan Roo was in use long before even the invention of airships! The tower was built on top of the disused tunnel." Dagger: "But it looks fairly new." Doctor Tot: "I convinced Mr Bishop to keep this place intact. I haven't used it since it was remodeled, mind you. We must first activate the tunnel-connection sequence and call the gargant inside."
Interesting. "Mr Bishop" was the piece I was missing last update to realize that the theme of the Treno family names isn't nobility, it's chess - the King, Queen, Knight and Bishop families are the nobility who hold power in town.
Mr Bishop is thus probably Doctor Tot's sponsor mentioned last update. So much for the theory of it being secretly Kuja!
In order to activate the tunnel, we need to explore a bit to find various devices. Of course, the tunnel is full of monsters. Specifically, these horrible things:
Absolutely revolting.
These things are actually decently tough - and give a decent XP payoff. This'll be relevant at some point in this update. We fight them either alone or in pairs, and they're basically the only encounter in this area except for some flying bugs. Thankfully, the area isn't particularly large.
On the left-hand side, we find a small tunnel with a lever - that's the sequence trigger which starts the process of calling the "gargant." Once that's done, we head to the other side of the station (which is shaped like a circle) where we find another lever.
Doctor Tot gives Dagger some explanations, but he's doing that "expert in field overestimates average person's knowledge of field" thing, so he sounds like he's spouting gibberish and she has no idea what he's saying ("When you pull on that lever, gargant circles the station continuously.") Thankfully, things are about to be self-explanatory once we pull that lever.
This is the gargant of Gargan Roo - a giant insect that has been saddled with a small ship-like trolley. It moves by clinging onto the massive green vine you can see on the roof of the tunnel; this means the vine effectively acts as a rail and its motions are predictable, allowing it to be used as a means of transit.
…
It's the Last Stag from Hollow Knight, huh. And the giant flea-buses from Morrowind, too. Damn. Wasn't expecting "insect being used as public transportation" to be such a popular concept.
The gargant doesn't stop when summoned - as Doctor Tot was saying, it just moves in a circle around the station until we use a feeding station to draw its attention and make it stop. The sequence triggers are used to open and close various doors to control where it's going.
Easy enough. I tried to discern what it is we're feeding the gargant, and I think it might be some kind of vegetable, but I'm not actually sure.
Tot: "Please hurry. It'll resume once it's finished eating." Dagger: "Are you sure it won't keep going around in circles?" Tot: "It won't. I will reverse the connection and let the gargant out of the station."
[Dagger climbs aboard; Marcus follows; Steiner pauses.] Tot: "Please look after the princess, Master Steiner." Steiner: "Of course!" Tot: "The princess is bright, but she is still young and naive. I am concerned about her safety. Please make your own decision on the matter at hand to protect her." Steiner: "I am but a humble knight. I cannot exceed my authority…" Tot: "Is that an honest answer? You may endanger the princess if you keep telling yourself that." Steiner: "...I shall take note of your counsel."
[He climbs aboard.] Tot: "Fare you well, Princess!" Dagger: "Take care, Doctor Tot!"
Interesting. Doctor Tot is, I think, the first character in the game to treat Steiner with something approaching respect, calling him "Master Steiner" and actually encouraging him to trust in his own judgment and initiative. Which is notable because from @Adloquium's breakdown of the JP script we know that Tot isn't particularly impressed with him.
Notably, this now makes it the… Third older male figure to look at Steiner and think "this man needs to get some Important Life Advice, STAT." I think he just kind of has a vibe that draws that sort of comments.
As the gargant resumes its circling path, Tot hurries back to the lever with all the speed his tiny legs can manage and pulls the lever - which, comically, requires him to jump into the air, grab onto the lever and then let gravity do the work of pulling them both down, because he's too short to do it normally. Finally, we see him watch the gargant depart, musing to himself, "Be safe, princess…"
That last part is, I feel, important, because Tot is saying it to himself when no one is listening, so it seems very clear he's sincere. This is going to be relevant soon.
Marcus: "Finally!" Dagger: "We can reach Alexandria now…" Marcus: "You can't even see Treno anymore." Dagger: "I wonder how long it's going to take. I never dreamed of going home in a vehicle like this." Steiner: "Doctor Tot remains a unique charact-"
[The gargant comes to a sudden stop.] Everyone: "!" Steiner: "Wh-What's wrong?" Dagger: "It's hesitating."
[Dagger jumps off the trolley.] Steiner: "Princess!"
…okay, the thin white mist at the bottom of the screen had me thinking that like, the tunnel was above a chasm, I was fully not expecting the ground to be in such a short distance of the trolley that you could just hop down. They could literally just walk all the way to Alexandria using the tunnel!
Well, if it weren't for the hideous tapeworm standing in the way.
Yeah, that's a boss fight.
Interesting that the tunnels are mainly filled with worms that look parasitic. It's almost like the Gargan Roo is a kind of "body," or perhaps an intestinal tract, infested with parasitic worms. That thing is called "Ralvurahva"; that word isn't attested anywhere else that I know, so it seems likely that it's supposed to be Larvalarva.
Without Zidane in the party, we can't use Detect, so Marcus is stealing blindly - we still get a Bone Wrist and a Mythril Fork off it.
Unfortunately, just as I'm excited to make use of one of my new abilities, I find out FF9 seems to have brought back one of the least fun aspects of the older games:
Scan doesn't work on bosses.
This makes it extremely worthless except, I guess, to check for Quina's Eat ability when both them and Dagger will finally be in the same party.
The Ralvurahva uses String, which inflicts Slow on targets; Blizzara, which deals damage; and Devil's Kiss, which inflicts Poison. Looking at this big giant worm, I take him to be a physical attacker, so I have Dagger casting Protect, only to quickly readjust when it starts casting Blizzara, and forget to cover Marcus in the process.
Unfortunately, the worm's Devil Kiss brings Marcus to critical HP, and the poison damage finishes him off before I can have Dagger cure him. I'm about to have Dagger raise him, but Steiner - who opened the fight with Armor Break, halving the enemy's defense - hits it for 800+ damage, causing it to Escape.
I'm actually a little surprise that it escapes; I reload just to check if this is a binary gate thing where the worm either dies or escapes based on damage and time, but no, it seems scripted so that Escape is the normal way the battle ends once it takes enough damage.
Which means… It's definitely going to come back later.
Well, that's a problem for Tomorrow Us.
After the fight, we open immediately on the party getting off at the Alexandria station.
Marcus: "We're finally here." Dagger: "I think the gargant is tired, too."
[The gargant leaves.] Steiner: "I never knew such a place existed in Alexandria…" Marcus: "Where are we?" Dagger: "Let's keep moving!"
It's cute that Dagger is concerned about the gargant's health. It does make me wonder what its life is like. The Gargan Roo hasn't been used by anyone other than us in ages, so who's taking care of the bug with a giant trolley strapped to its back? Who's feeding it? Is it smart enough to take off the trolley and put it back on its own when it hears the signal?
The more I think about it the more this really does feel like a weird version of the Stag Stations from Hollow Knight.
When we leave the station, though, we end up in an area whose architecture is… Unfamiliar.
Note the monumental architecture, the incredibly deep chasm, and how it all feels old and weathered. We're in Alexandria, but this place is much older than the quaint 17th-ish century city above our heads. Dagger confirms this:
Dagger: "Doctor Tot told me about this place. My ancestors built this place to keep enemies from invading. Doctor Tot also said…" Steiner: "Princess! We can hear your stories later! The stale air cannot be good for us!" Marcus: "And we gotta save Blank!" Dagger: "Right. We need to hurry."
Good job, Steiner. You got told to believe in your own judgment once, and immediately proceeded to shut Dagger town while she was trying to remember, oh, I don't know, if this place built as a buffer against enemies intrusions might be, say, filled with traps.
As the group advances, a rusted iron grate suddenly rises from the floor, blocking the way. Steiner's reaction, of course, is to turn around and accuse Marcus of betraying them, getting into an argument just long enough for the second iron grate to rise and trap them completely.
Great job, you guys.
Steiner shouts angrily, shaking the bars, but the party is well and truly trapped (amusingly, I'm pretty sure Freya could literally just jump over the top). Which is when the culprits appear: None other than Zorn and Thorn, of course.
This is why I took note of Doctor Tot whispering for the princess to be safe once he was alone - it would be really easy to interpret this whole sequence as Tot deliberately sending Dagger into a trap because he's in collusion with Kuja/the Queen, but I don't think that's the case. I think he had no idea.
Zorn: "They fell for it!" Thorn: "Fell for it, they did!" Steiner: "Zorn! Thorn! I am Steiner, Captain of the Knights of Pluto! I have returned! Let us out at once!" Thorn: "Too bad, it is." Zorn: "You're all under arrest." Dagger: "Zorn! Thorn! I've returned to Alexandria to speak with my mother. Take me to my mother!" Zorn: "Yes, we will take you to see Queen Brahne, whether you like it or not." Thorn: "'Capture Princess Garnet,' Queen Brahne said. Ordered us, she did." Dagger: "What!?" Steiner: "Lies!" Marcus: "What's going on!?"
Zorn what do you mean whether you like it or not she has literally just told you that she wants to see her mother-
God. It's pretty clear that Zorn and Thorn are not entirely sane, and they seem genuinely incapable to process that Dagger is trying to come back to Alexandria and see the Queen. This whole capture plan is totally unnecessary and, furthermore, they're spilling the beans when they could have avoided revealing that it was Brahne's own orders to have her daughter captured! This whole thing feels comically surreal, there was no reason for all of this.
But this is where we'll leave Dagger, Steiner and Marcus for now. Because it's time to head back to Burmecia.
II. "My Desert Level Is Actually The Same As My Tree Level" I Say. Everyone Groans At My Bullshit
We pick up immediately were we left off, which is going to make the timeline… Somewhat wonky. We'll talk about it.
Zidane: "Can you stand, Freya?" Freya: "It is nothing." Zidane: "Take it easy, okay? How 'bout you, Vivi?" Vivi: "Y-Yeah, I'm alright…" Zidane: "So what now, people? They said they were going to Cleyra." Freya: "We have no choice! We must go to Cleyra, too!" Zidane: "I knew you'd say that! You coming, Vivi?" Vivi: "Um… Do you think we'll learn more about those black mages if we go to Cleyra?" Zidane: "Yeah, I'd say we'll learn a lot about them as long as we follow Brahne and that Kuja guy." Vivi: "Then I'm with you!" Quina: "Cleyra…? Sound yummy. I go with you!" Vivi: "O-Oh, and what about the princess?" Zidane: "Dagger? I'd never forget about her! She might not be here in Burmecia, but I know we'll find her soon."
I know that objectively it's because Quina is an optional party member for at least this section of the game so they get minimal plot-relevant dialogue, but it's kinda funny that Zidane doesn't bother asking them what they want and if they're alright - I mean, a little callous, but with the fact that Quina is just standing around while Freya and Vivi are still on their knees winded it just gives me this impression that Quina is just, like. Fine. That battle was nothing to them. They got hit on the head, woke up and were instantly back to chasing frogs. Burmecian genocide? That was a lifetime ago. Beatrix? Already forgotten.
unbothered. moisturized. happy. in their lane. focused. flourishing.
Freya points us to the desert north of Burmecia to find Cleyra, just in case we missed the giant sandstorm on our way here. She doesn't know how we could enter, but Zidane tells her we'll just figure it out, and on we go.
The game teleports us back to outside Burmecia, which is of course a trap. I immediately back track to go back into the city, where I rummage around until I've found the Cancer stone behind an upturned cart. Then we circle around back to Gizamaluke's Grotto so we can give Moguta a Kupo Nut; he rewards us with an Ether, which frankly isn't much.
Alright.
Strangely, as we approach, the sandstorm subsides. Not complete, but enough that we're actually able to pass through. This despite us not doing anything, so… Two possibilities: One, the Cleyrans are surveilling the outside watching out for refugees, identified that Freya is Burmecian, and lowered the sandstorm on purpose. Two… The sandstorm protecting Cleyra is already weakening on its own for unknown reasons.
That's potentially a problem. But at least for now, it means we can press on, passing through the fossilized jaws of some great fallen beast, and getting a CGI cutscene of Cleyra…
Cleyra is a gigantic tree, its roots sprawling out across the desert in a gigantic mat, its trunk towering like a massive tower. Cleyra itself sits in its canopy, and it looks like a verdant city, surrounded in foliage. However, despite what the words "city in a tree" might conjure in your mind, that is very much not what the approach to Cleyra is like; rather, until we actually reach the canopy, the tree is a barren, hostile environment, just tough roots, hard bark, and sand blowing through it all.
Yes, of course there are monsters. Which raises some interesting questions of its own, considering that Cleyra is a city where people are supposed to live, surrounded by a sandstorm. Are the monster strays who managed to get through the tempest and were then trapped, or are there an additional security measure?
The place even has doors, levers, stairs, and signage, so that we can sort of orient ourselves. Sand is pouring through the entire place, flowing like water into small cascades and streams. It's not a very welcoming environment. Soon, we run into our first surprise encounter:
This sand golem is pretty tough, and it has a hidden surprise; when it goes down, it collapses into a heap of sand like this and doesn't do anything… But it's still "alive." That's because the red jewel on its chest is actually the source of its power; if we don't destroy it in time, the sand golem rises again at full HP.
Luckily, Vivi knows Blizzara and desert creatures are weak to Ice. A single cast deals 1,200+ damage and defeats the golem instantly, it's ridiculous. That's not an exploit or anything either - even if we hadn't gotten the Ice Staff as a steal drop, there's one as a loot in a chest in this very room. The game wants us to have Vivi absolutely wreck shop throughout this sequence.
It's a good thing we carefully case the room before moving on, too, because the next step in our journey has us permanently change the dungeon layout:
By reaching out into this hole, we can trigger a button that unleashes a stream of sand, filling the room below. This covers up the chests, but on the plus side, we can now just walk over to one of the doors that was previously too high up:
There is a kind of austere beauty that comes from the monochrome blending of sand and bark. A place that could look like any cavern, until you look closely and see all the bumps and knots and the roots stretching out. Is all that sand hurting the tree? It doesn't seem like it would be infinitely sustainable, but then again, magic is at work. And hey, there's even a moogle there, with an actual mailbox next to his little home!
He also gives us another Kupo Nut, though we're not backtracking all the way to Moguta now.
The tree is also home to these bug monsters, which teach Quina Matra Magic. Sadly, unlike in VII, Matra Magic no longer literally fires French missiles, but instead does a more conventional beam spam attack.
Matra Magic has a specific effect: It reduces the enemy to 1 HP. It's obviously not going to work on bosses, but it means any target on which it works is instantly available for Quina to Eat without risking overshooting and killing them. That could be pretty useful!
I can include more screenshots to show you what the place looks like, but ultimately there's not that much to say. Traversal is simply a matter of trying forking paths, occasionally pulling levers to trigger sand cascades (or close them) to enable movement, and being sure to thoroughly check every nook and cranny for chests (including several which are actively hidden behind obstacles). Eventually, we run into the whirlpool room:
The Whirlpool Room has three sandy whirlpools. If Zidane enters one, he starts swirling down the drain, and we have to mash X to make him jump out. In theory he jumps out in the direction he's facing when he gets out, but since that's based on the totally random speed at which we can manage to mash the button it's impossible to control and we end up falling in multiple times. There's a path we can carefully walk for the first stretch of the room but I haven't been able to avoid the third whirlpool every time I passed through this room, which has been… A lot.
And then there's this fucking thing.
"Hey Omi why are there only two members in your party?" BECAUSE THAT BIRD ATE THEM, THAT'S WHY. It's the Zuu and it can just! Eat!! Your party members!!! Only Quina is allowed to do that!!!
The Zuu is genuinely a threat, the only thing in this place that could actually lead to a party wipe. So of course, it knows a powerful Blue Magic that I need to get from it by lowering its HP below 25% and keeping it there without killing it until Quina can eat it, which makes my life significantly harder.
But eventually, we manage, and it's time to finally reach our destination.
III. Go not to the Elves for counsel, for they will say both no and yes
As we enter, we are greeted by more ratfolk who call out Freya by name. Their style of dress is notably different from that of the Burmecians, being more ancient-looking and with more of a mystical vibe. This will be a convenient visual shorthand. Even though everyone in Cleyra is ratfolk, we can tell the Burmecian refugees from the Cleyran natives at a glance.
…wait, "ancient city at the heart of a protective design that's been cut off from contact with the rest of the world and where everyone is wearing robes?" That's just Esthar again!
Freya asks how the Forest Oracles know her name, and they tell her the King of Burmecia spoke of her and asked them to have her guided to him the moment she arrived. Freya says "Long live the king!", then turns to the other and invites them to rest while she has her appointment with the monarch. One of the oracles leads Freya ahead, and the other offers to give us a guided tour of the city. And why not?
Quina splits off to go look for 'yummies' while we're getting the tour.
Cut for image count.
Final Fantasy IX, Part 10.B: Gargan Roo & CleyraNew
Cleyra is a beautiful place, quite at odds with the trunk below it. Vegetation grows everywhere, mushrooms and flowers sprouting next to various living areas, and the architecture has a quaint, delicate feel to it. Any time we can see outside the city, our view is obstructed by the sandstorm. It not only serves to protect the city, but the wind of it actually powers the windmills which draw water from deep within the trunk and ground, bringing it to Cleyra. The sandstorm reaches just slightly above the top of Cleyra; the one place where we can properly see the sky is therefore at its highest point, where the Cathedral is located from which the High Priest "brings peace to our souls."
This is clearly a deeply religious place, with most Cleyran having titles like "Forest Oracle" or "Moon Maiden." An insular, highly religious community worshipping nature… Yeah, they're elves. Rat elves. I would not have called that shot.
Inside the Cathedral is a magical harp; it is its power that maintains the sandstorm. This is probably fine and nothing is going to happen to the singular linchpin of Cleyra's state security.
Once we've completed the tour, Vivi splits off to explore further, and we control Zidane. Which means it's time for more ATEs!
The ATEs follow two parallel narratives: Quina's increasing despair at finding out Cleyra has "no yummies," no traditional Alexandrian cuisine, no bundt cake, no nothing; they get so intense about it that it frightens locals.
Meanwhile, Vivi suffers from anti-black mage prejudice.
Burmecian refugees see him, the children take fright, the mother tells him to stay away, and the soldier father appears then, threatening Vivi.
These are not just any refugees, though. They're Dan and his family - the family Freya ran into earlier in Burmecia. They've seen Vivi before. I guess they don't recognize him, but like - the artificial black mages have only one singular model and Vivi doesn't look like them. He looks like a child. Seriously.
If we pass through this area with Zidane, Dan does recognize him, and is helpful and nice to him, even opening a weapons shop for Zidane. It's literally just Vivi he's an asshole to.
If we visit the inn, we can find the local moogle, who can give us - somehow - a letter from Ruby.
Ruby: I decided to start a small theater, but I ain't had any luck finding actors… Do you know any good actors who are looking for work? Man, how I wish y'all were here! Come to think of it, you Tantalus guys look like a bunch of outlaws! Just kidding.
Well Ruby, I hope your theater venture fares well.
Poor child.
Vivi tries to insist that he hasn't hurt anyone, to little success. Meanwhile, Quina decides to sample the local mushrooms. Just, y'know. Grabbing a random mushroom off the side of the road and probably shoving it straight down their mouth.
Talking to the locals, we find out more about the differences between Cleyran and Burmecian culture. Burmecians consider the Cleyrans to be "stiff, but nice once you get to know them," while the Cleyrans proudly claim that their traditions of magical dancing are older than Burmecia's, and therefore more powerful. The two people where once one, and it was Burmecia's search for the "art of war" that led to the Cleyrans going into exile.
The vibe is very much that these are the wise, pacificist, traditional culture of Proto-Burmecia which sealed itself off from the world, retaining powerful magic, while the Burmecians became more modern, more cosmopolitan, but also more warlike, and lost touch with their ancient magic.
Eventually Zidane runs into Quina again just as they're about to do something extremely reckless.
They jump into a sand whirlpool.
Zidane: "What are you doing, Quina!?" Quina: "So dizzzzzzzzy!"
[They vanish below the sand.] Zidane: "Sometimes you're so annoying!"
[He jumps after them.]
Incredible decisions are being made on all sides today.
At least we landed on a previously unreachable spot of land, which allows us to open chests we otherwise didn't have access to. Nice! We grab a Silk Robe and Magician Shoes, and then we have to, yes, climb all the way back up to Cleyra with a party entirely composed of Quina and Zidane.
Once we're back, we head to the cathedrals, were the guards turn us away after giving us a message from Freya to wait for her at the inn.
Just as we arrive, however, Dan the soldier rushes in calling for help.
Night Oracle Donnegan: "What is the matter?" Burmecian Soldier Dan: "Th-The antlion's mauling a kid!" Donnegan: "The antlion!? It is usually so docile… How could-" Dan: "We gotta teach that beast a lesson!" Donnegan: "This calls for immediate action. I shall inform the high priest at once."
[The Oracle begins to make his way up the city stairs at a leisurely pace.] Dan: "Hey, buddy, wh-where are ya going?" [Donnegan continues slowly walking.] "These Cleyrans are all so damn lazy!" [He turns to Zidane.] "You there! Gimme a hand if you think you're good enough!"
[Donnegan rushes down the stairs, and we follow.]
Yeah, the Cleyrans definitely give off the impression that they've been so safe, they've settled into a slow rhythm of life where there is never any true urgency. Which is great except when a giant bug is mauling a kid, but that itself is a disruption in their life rhythm they did not anticipate. They really are elves, which is interesting because they lack the usual traits justifying this in elves, namely immortality or very long age. They're normal ratfolk, just with a different way of life.
The antlion thing is, of course, calling back to IV, where the antlion was also a creature that was supposed to be peaceful but was somehow roused to violence by the events of the plot.
IV. A Face Only A Mother Could Love
That's one ugly motherfucker. Let's kill it.
Wait, did that dialogue box say 'Puck'?
Vivi: "NO!!!" Zidane: "Hang in there, champ! We're gonna save you!"
[Freya enters.] Freya: "Is the child alright, Zidane?" Zidane: "Yeah, he's fine." Puck: "Like hell, I'm fine!!" Freya: "That voice! Might it be Prince Puck!?" Puck: "Freya! Where you been!?"
[Suddenly the antlion flails and tosses Puck off towards the party.]
…okay. So, Puck – in case you don't recall, the rat kid that Vivi encountered in Alexandria who recruited him as a "slave" and got him to the theatre, inadvertently causing him to be roped up into our adventure – was a Prince of Burmecia this entire time. Just playing at being a street urchin in Alexandria. That is wild.
For now though, we have to deal with the antlion.
The beast uses Sandstorm at the opener, blasting everyone and reducing their HP to single digit and inflicting Darkness on the first round. Any follow-up attack is sure to kill the targeted party member, so we need to immediately shore up our defenses… And what better way to do this than the White Wind we just stole off the giant bird.
The animation isn't the shiniest but it gets the job done.
That gets everyone back up exactly 224 HP, which is specific enough it makes me wonder what the formula on it is. Zidane gets a further 150 HP heal from Auto-Potion, as we've been slowly unlocking that across various characters. Then I have Freya use Frey's Wind, casting Regen on everyone. Detect reveals the antlion to be carrying an Annoyntment, a Mythril Vest, and a Gold Helm. And to top it off…
…it's vulnerable to Slow. And it's a desert creature.
Vivi's damage has been popping off in the most insane way throughout this entire sequence. 1653 damage is far more than any of my other characters can deal. I wonder if placing several opportunities to acquire the Ice Staff (off Gizamaluke, then as a purchase in Treno, then finally as a chest in Cleyra's Trunk) before a long desert sequence was a deliberate game design effort to signal to the player to think in elemental terms and to give Vivi specifically a showcase.
The Antlion has a couple other tricks, like Trouble Mucus, which inflicts Trouble. As a reminder (since I completely forgot myself due to it being a new status effect that comes up rarely), Trouble means a character "shares" the damage he takes with everyone else, which I only now realize having typed it out is an extremely funny if slightly mean gag. The combination of Sandstorm, Trouble, and Fira (its main magical attack) could potentially make the Antlion a real threat, but between White Wind, Auto-Potion, and Reis' Wind, can pull an immediate comeback from sandstorm and give Vivi enough time to freeze that thing into oblivion.
Freya: "Are you alright, Your Highness?" Puck: "Hey, Freya! Whassup?" Freya: "But how can this be? I heard that Your Highness disappeared upon leaving Burmecia…" Puck: "Uh… yeah!" Freya: "Well, let us go at once to the cathedral to inform His Majesty!" Puck: "My old man, huh? Nah, I don't wanna see him! Just tell him I said hi, okay?" Freya: "But, Your Highness!!!"
[Puck runs off screen, then briefly comes back in.] Puck: "Take care, Vivi!"
[He leaves again.] Quina: "He so rude! Vivi much nicer." Vivi: "He's the first friend I ever had. I've gotta tell him something!"
[Vivi runs off after Puck.]
God, what a shitkid. I'm kind of amazed, though. In a world crawling with monsters, where the path between each city is shrouded in Mist that threatens life and soul, Puck just up and left Burmecia of his own will one day, made his way to Alexandria, from there made his way to Cleyra, dancing through danger, as a, like, 10- or 11-year old kid? That is some kind of impressive alright.
Freya meets with the King of Burmecia again, whose sartorial sensibilities wouldn't be out of place in 70s pulp sci-fi. Freya reports to him about seeing Puck, and clarifies that she heard he left Burmecia one month after she did, which makes it also three years, so this kid left home alone at eight and has been surviving as a street urchin and vagrant this entire time? Goddamn where is his solo feature.
The King expresses his gratitude to both Freya and Puck for returning in his time of need (...but Puck didn't do anything…) and then, the High Priest enters.
Cleyran High Priest: "Freya, we shall conduct an ancient ceremony to strengthen the sandstorm. Surely no enemy would attack with the powerful storm protecting Cleyra. And with the help of a dragon knight like you, the storm should grow even more powerful." Freya: "Ah, the ceremony from the time when Burmecia and Cleyra were one. I understand."
I like that Freya's dragon knight class is acknowledged in-character as not just some random martial job but as something with deep cultural relevance and even mystical potency, which can increase the power of a ceremony with its inclusion.
Also, we probably shouldn't be looking too hard into the fact that we know the Alexandrian monarch as "Queen Brahne" and the Lindblum ruler as "Regent Cid" but the rulers of Burmecia and Cleyra are just "King of Burmecia" and "Cleyran High Priest," no name given. That's probably fine.
As the priest and the Maidens arrange themselves for the beginning of the dance, Freya and Zidane exchange a few words.
Freya: "Zidane, I met with utter failure when trying to defend Burmecia… And I will not allow Brahne to exert her will upon us any longer!" Zidane: "You've changed, Freya. I didn't think you were so strong when I first met you." Freya: "I could not bring peace to Burmecia and thus fulfill Sir Fratley's wish. But now, all I can do is protect this beautiful place." Zidane: "Yeah, protecting Cleyra is the best thing you can do for yourself." Freya: [She looks down thoughtfully.] "Doing so will help me."
It's nice how the game reminds us that (timeline being kinda weird aside) Zidane and Freya share an established relationship and a bond, and they've grown to mutually respect one another on the basis of that bond, rather than as strangers who met at the start of the game. Also I think Ratwife deserves to receive more validation.
One of the maidens begins playing the harp, and the dance begins. I can't really show it through screenshots, so I'll link a video: it's a pretty nice scene, with a very nice music. Freya is partnered with one specific Maiden, though she's not given a name or line, but it gives it a comforting sense of intimacy.
It's sudden and jarring, the music and dance all coming to a stop at once. Moon Maiden Claire, the harpist, whispers that this is a terrible omen.
And with these words, the sandstorm barrier starts to come undone.
Cleyra stands unprotected, a lone tree amidst the Mist, and for all that it is immense, a tree as tall as a mountain, greater than any there ever was in our world… In that moment, with the cover of the Mist all around it, it seems infinitesimal.
For the first time, when we look out the windows, we can see clear blue skies. And the great irony is that this is anything but a good sign.
No one has any clue what just happened. The High Priest explains that the harp is crowned with a magic stone that powers the sandstorm; it seems like with the harp broken, the power of the stone is still there, but they have no way of harnessing it.
The dialogue that follows is a little clunky, mostly because they're reiterating things that we already know:
King of Burmecia: "Perhaps someone is trying to invade Cleyra." Cleyran High Priest: "I fear that you may be right, my lord." King of Burmecia: "I only hope our enemies don't come up the trunk."
Okay so they're definitely coming up the trunk, thank you for signposting this. I mean, they could be attacking in an airship, maybe ready yourselves for that? No? Ah, well. I'm not seeing the causal link between "enemy is trying to invade" and "harpstrings snap," either - how did Alexandria cause this, if they did? Maybe we'll find out. Or maybe this is just fate dealing Cleyra a bad hand.
For the time being, we have business back in Alexandria.
V. A Mother Only A Daughter Could Love
Steiner: "How dare they imprison us like this! Those wretched court jesters! Zorn and Thorn will never get away with this!" Marcus: "I can't believe I got dragged into this." Steiner: "No one asked you to meddle in our affairs!" Marcus: "It's pretty sad, gettin' backstabbed by your own queen." Steiner: "This is all some kind of a mistake! I know the queen. She would never betray me!" Marcus: "Wishful thinking. Who knows what she's gonna do to the princess…" Steiner: "....." Steiner: "I must save the princess at all costs!"
Oh my god so Zorn and Thorn actually are court jesters, that's their actual job and they still get to run around with experimental supermages and be entrusted with capturing Dagger, how.
Well, Steiner. It's partly your fault that everyone is now in this predicament, so I sure hope you can save Dagger.
That has to be the breaking point, though. Like, obviously Steiner is still clinging to denial, it must be a mistake, the queen would never etc, but there is no way he can come out of this still believing the things he used to believe.
We'll see soon. For now it's time to check in on Dagger/Garnet.
Dagger: "I wonder if Mother will even listen to me… Why did she attack Burmecia? And why did she arrest us like this? I must be sincere with her." [Dagger walks towards the screen.] "She hasn't been herself lately… Actually, she's been acting rather strange since my birthday last year." Dagger: "The same day that tall man visited us… Maybe he had something to do with it. Come to think of it, that was when things began to change. Doctor Tot left Alexandria shortly afterwards, too. What happened that day?"
[Zorn and Thorn enter.] Zorn: "Queen Brahne summons you." Thorn: "Come with us." Dagger: "What!? How dare you speak to me like that!?" Zorn: "Quiet!" Thorn: "With us, you are coming, and that is that!" Dagger: "(What was that phrase…? Oh yeah.)" Dagger: [Shouting] "Get off me, you scumbag!"
She's using a sentence Zidane taught to Vivi! She learned by watching! That's great.
Also, hm.
So when Dagger commented that the flashback scene with the terrestrial globe was eight years ago, she didn't mean that she last saw Doctor Tot eight years ago. She last saw him one year ago; they've known each other for most of Dagger's life.
And there's a single precipitating event, a "tall man" visiting the castle on Dagger's birthday that seemed to have led to Doctor Tot leaving and Queen Brahne's behavior changing radically.
It seems clear that Kuja deliberately moved in and displaced Dagger's old professor as an advisor to Queen Brahne. It's likely that this was in part a ploy to remove a mentor figure for Dagger, making her more vulnerable, as well as to get closer access to Queen Brahne. From there, he started suggesting war, but…
…given the way Dagger speaks about the day "things began to change," the mind control theory seems more likely by the minute.
Unfortunately, Zorn and Thorn aren't intimidated by Dagger's shouting. In fact, they look at each other seeming completely clueless as to what "Get off me, you scumbag" even means, then close in on Dagger to force her to move out of the room.
It's time for the family reunion.
Dagger: "Mother…" Brahne: "Darling, there you are. Where were you? I've been worried sick. Here, come closer."
[Dagger approaches.]
Dagger: "Mother, there is something I need to ask you." Brahne: "What is it, darling? I will tell you anything you wish to know." Dagger: "Did you… Is it true that you are responsible for the destruction of Burmecia?" Brahne: "Oh… Well, no wonder you look so concerned. That is far from the truth, Garnet." Brahne: "You see, those Burmecian rats have been plotting to destroy Alexandria for some time. I couldn't just wait for them to attack and destroy our precious kingdom. So, I had no choice but to take the initiative." Dagger: "Mother, is that really the truth?" Brahne: "Of course. I would never lie to you."
This is the most transparent made-up excuse for a sneak attack without a declaration of war that I have ever seen, and it's very amusing that we get the option to actually believe Brahne. But well, Dagger is sixteen and emotionally invested in trusting her mother.
I picked both choices but if they have meaningful ramifications it would only be later on; right now there's only two more lines before an interruption.
Dagger: "I don't believe you!" Brahne: "Oh, darling, what's wrong? Why wouldn't you believe your mother?"
[Kuja enters.]
Again, the theatrical reference. I think Kuja fancies himself a man of the arts.
Dagger: "Act?" Kuja: "Yes, an act from a beautiful play…" [He raises his arms dramatically.] "There is a knight on a white horse… and a beautiful princess. It is a tale of tragic love. Overcome by grief, the princess must sleep for a hundred years…" Dagger: "You… I've seen you before…" Kuja: [He touches his hand to his forehead while tilting his head back, chuckling.] "It appears we were destined to meet again." [He starts approaching Dagger, who recoils. He slowly advances towards her.] "My sweet angel, come to me. I will take you to a world of dreams."
Stranger danger! Stranger danger!
Oh this is some Phantom of the Opera shit. We're moments away from Kuja asking Dagger to sing for him. The vibes are nefarious. Queen Brahne, of course, doesn't lift a finger as Kuja waves his hand and light follows: A sleep spell. Dagger falls limp into his arms.
This is what I get for not equipping Insomniac before the cutscene.
Creep.
Brahne: "Hmph, impudent little girl. Zorn, Thorn! Prepare to extract the eidolons from Garnet."
Yeah, Queen Brahne's caring mother act was obviously a front, and now she's showing her true colors. As for "extract the eidolons from Garnet…"
Well, I suppose we now have our answer as to why Garnet has had access to the Summon command this whole time, yet been unable to actually use it.
Zorn: "A belated happy birthday, Princess. Hee-hee-heee!" Thorn: "Sixteen years old, the princess has become. Draw the eidolons from her, finally, we can."
[They begin chanting and dancing.] Zorn: "Eidolons of eternal life!" Thorn: "Eidolons of infinite power!" Zorn: "Arise from the 16 year sleep!" Thorn: "Depart from the 16 year wait!"
[Light begins to rush in towards Dagger.] Zorn: "Let there be light!" Thorn: "Let there be life!"
[A blast of light from Garnet tosses Zorn and Thorn through the air, but they recover; Dagger begins to rise from the dais.] Zorn: "The time has come!" Thorn: "The time is now!" Zorn: "Come forth!" Thorn: "Odin, warrior of the dark!"
…
Well.
That's not ideal.
Everything is falling into place. Several "eidolons," summons, were sealed within Dagger at her birth, sixteen years ago. This is likely related to her hidden heritage. Those summons lay dormant, and she lacked the ability to call upon them – represented by her having the Summon command but lacking the MP to actually use it.
Kuja contacted Brahne a year before, and Zorn & Thorn just implied that they could not draw out the eidolons until Dagger was 16. Something about this age is meaningful. I suspect Kuja lied in wait for Dagger to grow old enough, then stepped in a little ahead of time to get his hooks into Queen Brahne, so that when Dagger came of age she would be right there for him to pluck like a flower, and use the eidolons towards whatever nefarious end he has planned.
And now, Dagger is alone, put in a magical sleep, while Steiner and Marcus are prisoners, and Zidane's group have no idea of the true scope of the threat. Cleyra's protective sandstorm is down, and Zorn and Thorn are summoning Odin.
Traditionally not exactly a chump as a summon or fight.
And with this, we're back at Cleyra… And that's where we'll leave it for now. I was wondering if this beat would lead immediately into the next major event, but there seems to be some latence where we can go around the tree, talk to people, grab supplies. Then we'll probably have to fight Alexandrian soldiers and so on. I think we've gone through enough today - two boss fights, the swap back to Zidane's party, major story developments…
…
I brought up the timeline earlier. I felt it was wonky. I'm not actually sure anymore - let's lay it out.
Zidane's timeline: The group wakes up. They leave Lindblum, go through Gizamaluke's Grotto, reach Burmecia at the tail end of the Alexandrian assault. Beatrix takes them all out. They get back up, leave Burmecia, head straight for Cleyra, climb up the trunk, the storm vanishes.
Garnet's timeline: She and Steiner leave Lindblum. They head to South Gate, at which point news of Burmecia's destructions have already reached it. From there, they reach Treno, meet with Tot, take the Gargan Roo, head for Alexandria and are taken captive. Garnet meets with Queen Brahne, and Kuja puts her to sleep.
Brahne and Kuja's timeline: They leave Alexandria with an army of black mages, which goes through Gizamaluke's Grotto. They reach Burmecia and destroy the city. Zorn and Thorn are there. Zidane and his party encounter them and are defeated. Brahne, Kuja, Zorn and Thorn all go back to Alexandria. Kuja makes a stop by Treno, where he runs into Garnet, then heads back to Alexandria in time for Zorn and Thorn wait for Garnet and take her prisoner. She is taken to Brahne, Kuja puts her to sleep, and Zorn and Thorn draw the eidolons. Meanwhile, Cleyra's sandstorm shield goes down for unexplained reasons.
There's… Something that doesn't work there. Zidane goes from "there for the destruction of Burmecia, heads immediately to Cleyra, sandstorm breaks," while Dagger's entire side story happens after news of Burmecia's destruction has already spread and takes its time winding through multiple locations and then ending up a prisoner. And while all this is happening, Queen Brahne's team just move between Burmecia, Treno, Alexandria and presumably then Cleyra as the plot needs while manifesting supernatural awareness of Dagger's movement so she falls into the perfect trap.
This is probably because Queen Brahne moves around in an airship, but… We know that the airships can't move freely above the mountains; they have a limited maximum altitude that forces them to pass through the Gates. That's why the black mage army had to go through Gizamaluke's Grotto. "Doctor Tot sold Dagger out" could explain the convenient trap, but how would he have gotten word out in time?
None of this is really a problem until you start to look at it too closely and interrogate how the parts fit together, but now it bugs me. Perhaps there's an explanation, though.
…
There's one more thing, though. One thing I'd like to go back and cover before we leave. If you've followed the thread, you know what it is.
VI. Ultimate Power (Terms & Conditions May Apply)
The eidolons slumber dormant in Dagger. In the course of a normal playthrough, they will not be unlocked before the scene above. I assume some change will follow that scene – maybe all of Dagger's MP costs go massively down, maybe she loses her entire Summons list, whatever. The point is: The natural way of play is to reach this section of the game with the Summons still dormant, Dagger unaware of their existence. A breach of the fourth wall, hinting to the player that there's a mystery afoot.
However, we can decide to ignore that entirely.
Dagger reaches South Gate at around lv 7 or so. I hung out around Treno a bit to get some Abilities but didn't really do any strong grinding, and she ended up lv 9 in the Gargan Roo. Those big worms were decently threatening at this level… And that means they give a decent XP payload. Just by running around, grinding battles, we're able to quickly get everyone up a couple levels. This tapers off, though; at some point it gets grindy… Unless we let Steiner and Marcus die to feed Dagger more power.
This isn't exactly without risk. The beasts are more capable than killing Dagger if we're careless, and I do have to reload once (from a conventional hard save, to add insult to injury). And hey, we get to see Dagger's Trance!
Oh, that's… Hm.
I'm going to need the HD model.
Okay, so, first of all, Dagger's Trance turns her blonde. Which isn't necessarily out there, considering Zidane goes Super Saiyan, which has a similar effect. But also, her skin turns pink, her overalls with an undershirt become a leotard with added sleeves and prominently displayed cleavage… And she has lightning patterns across her thighs.
In some ways (especially her turning pink), this is clearly a reference to the original Trance, Terra's. The fact that her skin turns pink while Zidane grows pink fur also draws a direct parallel between the two love interests. The golden hair/sleeves and lightning patterns do give off the idea of a character being suffused with power. The change in outfit?
I have no explanation for the change in outfit.
Yeah I don't have a Lore Read on Dagger's Trance the way I had Zidane, Vivi's, and Steiner's.
Oh, but Trance wasn't what we were here for. After a false start or two, we blast our way through enough disgusting worm to hit lv 17.
Which… This isn't even, like, a massive grinding spike. This is the same level Zidane's party is at. When we resume play with Freya next update, she's lv 17! So would Dagger if she hadn't split from the party! She and Steiner have just been left completely behind, and it's going to make things awkward when they reunite in the "real" timeline.
But for now, we are in the other timeline. The timeline where Dagger hits lv 17 and finally has 96 MP.
Enough to pay the cost of summoning Shiva.
It works. There's no catch (other than the fact that this wipes out Dagger's entire MP pool in one go and isn't particularly more powerful than Vivi's Blizzara). If Dagger levels up enough, she can awaken the dormant eidolons within her and call upon their power.
Nobody will remark on this, because it's pretty clearly not meant to happen diegetically. But we can make it happen, the option is given to us.
I think this is a great example of gameplay-narrative integration. The power of the eidolons lies dormant within Princess Garnet, and she remains (presumably) unaware of it. But the power is there, presented to us in the UI as an ability we could be using, if we had enough MP… If Dagger gained enough power. And if we twist the game's arm with some grinding, we can make that happen, and call forth the summons – or at least the least of them, Shiva. Awakening that dormant power, though not in time to change the plot.
I'm not going to keep that save, because I would rather play through the game "naturally," and trust that it has something in mind to make up for the fact that Dagger is currently eight or nine levels below Zidane while in a coma and before another stretch of Zidane gameplay feeds him more levels. Like… This would seem like an obvious design oversight if there wasn't a built-in mechanism to make up the discrepancy.
We'll see. Canonically, Dagger has never summoned Shiva.
…wait, "ancient city at the heart of a protective design that's been cut off from contact with the rest of the world and where everyone is wearing robes?" That's just Esthar again!
I recall thinking it was maybe inspired by or in conversation with The Secret of NIMH, a bunch of rats with superpowers living communally in a big bush.
This is probably because Queen Brahne moves around in an airship, but… We know that the airships can't move freely above the mountains; they have a limited maximum altitude that forces them to pass through the Gates. That's why the black mage army had to go through Gizamaluke's Grotto. "Doctor Tot sold Dagger out" could explain the convenient trap, but how would he have gotten word out in time?
I also wonder how long were they held prisoner between "Zorn and Thorn capture the trio" and the big discussion between Brahne and Garnet. If it was a few days, maybe that would be enough?
As for the Black Mages... you know, Bret Devereaux is working through the Siege of Eregion from The Rings of Power right now, and a point he continues to return to is that it's very, very hard to move a medieval-ish army in secret because you can easily track them through their food consumption.
But what if it's an army of magical doll automota that don't need to eat or drink? Could you march them around secretly, outside the normal expected routes, because they don't have any need for logistical support? I doubt that's something that the FF9 writers really intended, but it does seem like there's a pretty good strategic implication there, that a doll army could be more dangerous or useful than a mortal army because they don't need the long logistical tail, even if the dolls aren't necessarily any stronger in a straight fight.
I'm pretty sure that Alexandria has taken the North Gate which gives access between Burmecia and Alexandria.
We saw that there was some kind of military action there on the Alexandrian side way, way back when Steiner and Dagger were in the party, I wanna say before Dali?
And then we saw something similar on the Burmecian side just after Gizmalukes Grotto, during the scene where Quina decides they don't like war, so they're just going to look at the flowers.
So it's entirely possible that Alexandria has just taken the Gate and is using that to give them free ability to attack Burmecia. Seems like any force would need to take the Gates to gain entry.
This is the gargant of Gargan Roo - a giant insect that has been saddled with a small ship-like trolley. It moves by clinging onto the massive green vine you can see on the roof of the tunnel; this means the vine effectively acts as a rail and its motions are predictable, allowing it to be used as a means of transit.
…
It's the Last Stag from Hollow Knight, huh. And the giant flea-buses from Morrowind, too. Damn. Wasn't expecting "insect being used as public transportation" to be such a popular concept.
I guess underground insect transport just makes some kind of sense? I mean if you've got giant insects anyways, they're probably perfect for navigating your underground tunnels if trained in some way or another (or just intelligent creatures themselves like The Last Stag).
Unfortunately, just as I'm excited to make use of one of my new abilities, I find out FF9 seems to have brought back one of the least fun aspects of the older games:
As the group advances, a rusted iron grate suddenly rises from the floor, blocking the way. Steiner's reaction, of course, is to turn around and accuse Marcus of betraying them, getting into an argument just long enough for the second iron grate to rise and trap them completely.
Great job, you guys.
Steiner shouts angrily, shaking the bars, but the party is well and truly trapped (amusingly, I'm pretty sure Freya could literally just jump over the top).
I know that objectively it's because Quina is an optional party member for at least this section of the game so they get minimal plot-relevant dialogue, but it's kinda funny that Zidane doesn't bother asking them what they want and if they're alright - I mean, a little callous, but with the fact that Quina is just standing around while Freya and Vivi are still on their knees winded it just gives me this impression that Quina is just, like. Fine. That battle was nothing to them. They got hit on the head, woke up and were instantly back to chasing frogs. Burmecian genocide? That was a lifetime ago. Beatrix? Already forgotten.
I choose to believe that canonically Quina just got lost in the kitchens, gorging themselves on random leftovers until finally wandering in to meet the party post-Beatrix fight.
"Hey Omi why are there only two members in your party?" BECAUSE THAT BIRD ATE THEM, THAT'S WHY. It's the Zuu and it can just! Eat!! Your party members!!! Only Quina is allowed to do that!!!
The Zuu is genuinely a threat, the only thing in this place that could actually lead to a party wipe. So of course, it knows a powerful Blue Magic that I need to get from it by lowering its HP below 25% and keeping it there without killing it until Quina can eat it, which makes my life significantly harder.
Incredible decisions are being made on all sides today.
At least we landed on a previously unreachable spot of land, which allows us to open chests we otherwise didn't have access to. Nice! We grab a Silk Robe and Magician Shoes, and then we have to, yes, climb all the way back up to Cleyra with a party entirely composed of Quina and Zidane.
Out of curiosity, was this sand pool accessible earlier in the dungeon to reach that ledge? Or is this some Quina-exclusive thing where having them in the party got you some bonus treasure?
Vivi's damage has been popping off in the most insane way throughout this entire sequence. 1653 damage is far more than any of my other characters can deal. I wonder if placing several opportunities to acquire the Ice Staff (off Gizamaluke, then as a purchase in Treno, then finally as a chest in Cleyra's Trunk) before a long desert sequence was a deliberate game design effort to signal to the player to think in elemental terms and to give Vivi specifically a showcase.
I feel that's just how Black Magic tends to go in Final Fantasy and similar games, honestly. Starts off as a stronger option because spikes of elemental damage, then falls behind your physical fighters for a bit until your mage suddenly goes "Whoa what if I stuck an a at the end of my spell?" Granted, it helps that FFIX apparently makes good use of elemental weaknesses.
God, what a shitkid. I'm kind of amazed, though. In a world crawling with monsters, where the path between each city is shrouded in Mist that threatens life and soul, Puck just up and left Burmecia of his own will one day, made his way to Alexandria, from there made his way to Cleyra, dancing through danger, as a, like, 10- or 11-year old kid? That is some kind of impressive alright.
Starting to see a pattern here with Burmecians running off on journeys for whatever reason, maybe it's just a Rat People thing? I mean, Sir Fratley disappeared forever ago, Freya went after him, and now the crown prince ran off at like age 8 to go on adventures across a monster-infested continent. What a kid.
Also, we probably shouldn't be looking too hard into the fact that we know the Alexandrian monarch as "Queen Brahne" and the Lindblum ruler as "Regent Cid" but the rulers of Burmecia and Cleyra are just "King of Burmecia" and "Cleyran High Priest," no name given. That's probably fine.
Alright so, blatantly obvious foreshadowing of "Something bad will probably happen to these unnamed relevant figures", I do wonder what the thoughts of the devs are on specifically leaving these somewhat important characters completely unnamed? I mean sure it's one thing going back to early games to just have "King of Cornelia" or even "King of Baron", but I feel like by the time of FFIX we've presumably advanced enough to give even two-bit obvious death bait characters a name, right?
Oh my god so Zorn and Thorn actually are court jesters, that's their actual job and they still get to run around with experimental supermages and be entrusted with capturing Dagger, how.
Are they actually court jesters, or is that just what Steiner is dismissing them as based on appearance, I wonder? ...For that matter, have Zorn and Thorn been around Alexandria all that long, like were they deep agent spies sent ahead by Kuja before he came into the picture? Did they come along with him? Or maybe they really are some kind of court jesters who were in fact totally normal and harmless until Kuja stuffed them with some Kefka Juice or whatever after he showed up.
And now, Dagger is alone, put in a magical sleep, while Steiner and Marcus are prisoners, and Zidane's group have no idea of the true scope of the threat. Cleyra's protective sandstorm is down, and Zorn and Thorn are summoning Odin.
Traditionally not exactly a chump as a summon or fight.
Worth noting is that Garnet's trance leotard looks more or less just like the outfits Rosa and Celes and a couple other SNES women wore due to the limits of making a feminine outfit in 16 bits, so it might be more shout out
