Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward – #6 – Ravana



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24 thoughts on “Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward – #6 – Ravana”

  1. A new primal fight so soon? Heck! Time to give Ravana's creation myth. I will be combining part of the lore for Ravana as well, to add a bit more information to him.

    "Fourfold master of the blade, savior of the insect-like Gnath tribe. A warrior and conqueror, Ravana respects strength and abhors weakness. He revels in battle with worthy opponents. Believing the rite of combat to be sacred, he revels in battle with worthy opponents while wielding the Chandrahas—legendary blades of moonlight that obey his every command. It is said that the Gnath called forth this deity of war to annihilate the dragons, their racial enemy, and begin a new campaign to expand the borders of their territory.

    Though scholars are eager to research the society and religion of the Gnath, repeated attempts to interact with the hostile Onemind have yielded little insight. As such, the manner in which the Gnath perceive Ravana's existence is poorly understood. One theologian writes, "A hive of shared consciousness instinctively aspires to an image of singular perfection, and it is likely that this ideal is seen projected onto the incarnation of their deity. Ravana is an invincible warrior god, his four shining blades slicing through dragonscale with contemptuous ease as he soars freely through the air on glittering wings. What more perfect ideal could the Gnath ask for to champion the defense and expansion of their territory?" "

    Ravana is a very unique Primal among the ones we have seen. Primals are usually based on Summons from the main series (even Moogles have a summon in FF7), but Ravana was only ever encountered in one instance: as a minor boss in Vagrant Story. Here, he is a completely original summon, and he is glorious.
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    Additional comments:

    16:37 Vidofnir my beloved.

    The Vath are an example of a friendly tribe in the game that we actually meet- and also have a tribe you can help out at the end of Heavensward, as the Nonmind were introduced in 3.2. Usually, gnath are connected by a hivemind, but some gnath can just get cut off from it without warning. Usually, these Nonmind die in the wilderness due to the dependence on the Onemind, or return to the hive if they reconnect… but as you can tell some Vath have survived and retained sentience, and are now trying to find their own place in the world.

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  2. Here be lyrics again for Unbending Steel, aka Ravana's theme

    High, on high I stand
    Gazing down to see
    The endless garden
    Awaiting me
    Red bloometh the rose of conviction
    And red bloometh the rose of hate
    Yes red bloometh the rose of contest
    Firmly bound to its fate
    And the war, it wageth on
    The storm, it rageth on
    The bold ever fight on
    Their lives echoed in song
    Fall, like snow they fall
    Petals plucked and strewn
    Yet from their seeds grow
    This war anew
    Blood trickling down from my fullers
    And blood trickling down from mine hands
    Yes, blood trickling down to Hydaelyn
    Until I alone stand
    The war, still wageth on
    The storm, still rageth on
    The bold blindly march on
    Their lives, lost in a song

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  3. Exploring new areas on a map nets EXP, so I’ve definitely completed levels that way before. Can also do so while completing sightseeing vistas and I should really work on those more. Ways to give myself healer EXP while waiting for new Duty Support dungeons lol.

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  4. Welcome to Dravania, Playfriends! Your spoiler free lore comment is here to be your New Eorzean Geographic guide!

    The Chocobo Forest is a recurring element in Final Fantasy games, where chocobos are frequently encountered (especially rare ones). The hunters of Tailfeather take extra precautions when catching their quarry, and have man rules on their methods. They don't kill chocobos (hard to sell a dead chocobo), they don't capture nesting hens (you need future chocobos to keep up business), and they have special traps (a chocobo with a broken leg doesn't sell well). By contrast, they compete with a small number of poachers, who have no rules, and threaten the chocobo population. Completing the side quests for them grants a series of fruit and vegetables for your own chocobo.

    Your own chocobo is customizable, and can fight as your companion. There are various fruits and vegetables to feed to your chocobo when it is stabled (you must either use an FC stable, or a personal stable near your house or apartment). Some of various stat effects, but others change the color of your chocobo. There are online calculators that help estimate how many of what items to feed the birds to get your preffered color, but sometimes these are a bit off. I recommend using the websites to get close to the desired color, and then use trial and error to get what you want. As far as experience, any time Durmin defeats an enemy with Kweh-friend deployed, they gain EXP. From level 1-10, a chocobo will level similar to any player and unlock skill points. Players can spend the skill points on healer, tank, and DPS ability routes. Once a chocobo hits level 10, they are locked from progressing further. To unlock the next level, the player must feed their companion a Thanavarian Onion. Each new level will require another onion. One of the fastest way to level a chocobo is completing FATEs. Because a FATE forces a player to be of similar level, any enemies defeated provide high EXP for your chocobo (being too high level decreases the EXP gained).

    Maybe having a team member carry around great grand uncle's forcibly removed eye isn't a good idea. Especially when that person is Estinien. "We come in peace, so get out of my way or *I will kill all of you*" isn't a good opening greeting.

    Nanka meat & eggs come up as comestibles in this zone. I just figured they were like dire-crawfish. You could make nanka etouffee, nanke creole, nanka po'boys, nanka scampi….
    If you haven't realized, the Vath are one of the 3 tribes of Heavensward that you can grind reputation for via daily sidequests. It's a fun storyline with musket wielding arthropods, finding their way without a collective consciousness.

    Ravana is a fun fight! The use of arena details in the metal fencing as an answer to mechanics helps elevate it above the ARR Trials, and it has fun music, too. It should be pointed out that there's an easy explanation of why Shiva loses to Ravana. What little we know of Primals point to two requirements for their strength: aether & worship. It's not more crystals that Shiva needs, but worship. Shiva primarily uses Ysayle's wishes to manifest (along with what belief her compatriots provide, but they're not here). Shiva can't compete with a whole hive mind of worship.

    The end of this episode's teasing of Alphinaud is great, and this playful banter will be something that gets expanded in the future!

    A new cast member:
    Gemma Whelan, who plays Yara Greyjoy in Game of Thrones, as Vidofnir

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  5. Thinking on the one hive version of the Gnath’s tempering has me thinking of spoilery things. Shadowbringers patches spoilers below.

    Can the hivemind tell when one of the members has been taken away from said mind? Bc I’m trying to figure out how the gradual healing of tempering for them would work if so. With so many members in said hivemind, it seems like this tribe in particular would be difficult to heal. :Va

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  6. 0:06 ummm "where the Dragons are" please!!! 🙂
    Hopefully obviously just messing, love the series and greatly appreciate all the hard work you put in to the voice acting each and every episode. Thanks for continuing the story!

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  7. Oh, one thing I did want to ask. Since Data Center travel will be coming to FFXIV next patch, can those of us who already have FCs join the discord to help out on these fights? I would love to do that, but also, I’m kind of over on Primal and like my already established FC, so. ^^;

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  8. The Ultimate Bug Knight!

    I like that Alphinaud's youth is being noted in-universe. He's very smart and skilled, but he's still baby, and Estinien being a big brother type mentor will do both of them some good.

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  9. During the big fight, I had just been thinking, "What, did they get the lead singer of Rammstein to sing with their orchestra on this one?" And then Dan said, "This song is fun."

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