Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers – #13 – The Nu Mou



Vocal performance choices were made.

Support us on Patreon! ► http://patreon.com/playframe

_______▼ PLAYLISTS ▼_______

SHADOWBRINGERS series playlist! ► https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvFQJa1XAXzy3c1tEecPlfLYC0gRwH8Xl

FULL SERIES playlist! ► https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvFQJa1XAXzzXrfl_cbsGvEl4AbTt5SMG

________▼ FREE COMPANY ▼_________

Want to join our Free Company? See the unofficial PlayFriends Discord for details! ► https://discord.gg/PlayFriends

________▼ TWITCH ▼_________

We’re also streaming on Twitch! ► https://twitch.tv/playframeplus

________▼ MERCH ▼_________

Check out the PlayFrame Store! ► https://store.dftba.com/collections/playframe

________▼ SOCIALS ▼_________

BlueSky:
https://bsky.app/profile/playframe.bsky.social
https://bsky.app/profile/danfloydplus.bsky.social
https://bsky.app/profile/carriefloyd.bsky.social

Twitter:
https://twitter.com/PlayFramePlus
https://twitter.com/DanFloydPlus
https://twitter.com/CarrieFloyd

To hear Dan talk MUCH more about game animation, check out New Frame Plus! ► http://www.youtube.com/c/newframeplus

_______▼ CREDITS ▼________

Edited by Daniel Floyd

Thumbnail art by Dan Jones

________▼ MUSIC ▼_________

♫ “Pray Return” by Chris Logsdon
https://lnkfi.re/pray-return

________▼ CHAPTERS ▼_________

0:00 – Introduction

0:59 – QUEST: “A Visit to the Nu Mou”

14:24 – QUEST: “A Fitting Payment”

21:49 – QUEST: “Spore Sweeper”

26:39 – QUEST: “The Lawless Ones”

#PlayFrame #FFXIV #FinalFantasyXIV #Shadowbringers

source

32 thoughts on “Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers – #13 – The Nu Mou”

  1. I remember when the Nu Mou were first announced as being in this expansion and it got my hopes up that Final Fantasy Tactics Advance may finally see some sort of re-release.
    Half a decade later FFTA has still never been re-released. 😔

    Reply
  2. Ah, the Nu Mou. The voice Dan gives is so close to what I imagined, so Droopy Dog fills me with delight. I didn't even remember that they were in FFXII, but there they are!

    32:00 long, slow inhale and exhale of breath through gritted teeth, whilst I try to banish thoughts of just throttling Thancred then and there I have to remind myself sometimes that characters that invoke strong emotions in me are not failures as characters- indeed, this speaks to a story's strength, when they provoke the intended feelings of frustration and annoyance. But my problem with this story, once again, is borne of the strictures of MMOs and the corresponding strictures on how the characters might respond. The WoL is given only an option of three choices per dialogue to react to choices that have already been envisioned by the writer. And the passivity it engenders in regards to what your other characters are doing, irks me. And irks me with Thancred in particular, and more than once- I did not care for his behavior concerning Emmanelain, and I do not care for his behavior concerning Minfilia and there is. No. Way. To say so. I freely admit that it is a Me Problem, borne from a general tendency to over-identify with fictional characters and hold them to the standards I would in real life- which is silly to do with fictional characters… but I still wish there was more opportunities to influence the world beyond the clothes I wear.

    Because I get it about Thancred, I really do- he was with Minfilia as an older brother for most of her life after her father died (as others have alluded to in the lore, his death was kinda-sorta Thancred's fault), and he had to say goodbye to her twice. And worse, it wasn't even her both times: the first time it was through the WoL by proxy, and the second, it was after she had been subsumed by Hydalen and had only her fading memories. This is massive trauma to dump on any one person, and it is massively unfair that Thancred should have to deal with all of this and the protection of someone who is a dead ringer for Minfilia, but isn't her. But good god in heaven, I thought we had gone past the whole "suffering in silence" bit back in Heavensward, but here he is, still bearing everything on his own, whilst treating the girl he's supposed to protect as an unwanted burden. No, it doesn't matter that you feed and protect her, because that is how you handle a pet, not a girl! Thank goodness that Urianger is involved in her life too, however marginally, and gives her books to read and involves her as he can…This is kinda why I allude back to the Emmanelain situation, and his putting on of airs there. "Learn to deal with it- I have." My dude, you have not learned to deal with shit if this is how you carry on! I don't ask for much (and I get we've just had a scary jumpscare vision and we're focusing on that now), but it pains me that you cannot grab a minute alone with Thancred – not to actually sock him, that never did anything for anybody except momentary catharsis, but maybe to give him a moment to vent aboput all of this, or ask him why the other Scions are not involved with Minfilia's protection, or even to tell him "She thinks you hate her- you know that, right?" and to please do me the biggest favor and tell me you aren't giving her a hard time so that she'll give her body over to the Minfilia-Who-Is-Not-Even-Our-Minfilia-Anyway, kthnxbye!

    Or something to such effect. Oh heck, lets go back to the Droopy impressions, those are fun.

    Reply
  3. Playfriends, we'll need some help getting the remaining items to confront Titania. Let's hope this next group isn't as confrontational as the Fuath. Maybe they'll just roll over when we ask? This is your spoiler free lore comment.

    4:12 – For his elaborate deception, Urianger prevented the "Warriors of Darkness" from continuing their efforts to kill Durmin. He put them back on the path of righteousness. The path that lead them back here, to save as small slice of what was once their home. But Urianger will never forget the deception and that it sent Minfillia on a one way trip to The First.

    10:05 – The Nu Mou are fae who have resided in Voeburt since before the Flood of Light. Their village is named Pla Enni, after the mushrooms they cultivate there. This isn't the first appearance of the Nu Mou in Final Fantasy! They first appeared in FF Tactics Advance, where they were a experts in magic, with little physical endurance. They would return in the next Ivalice game, FF12, as masters of Mist and magic. Their appearance in the games have largely remained unchanged, with the amount of hair/fur they have being dictated by the art style and resolution of the games they're portrayed in.

    11:15 – Durmin, that is a big promise. I'm not sure it's one that even the Warrior of Darkness can keep. You couldn't keep that kind of promise at Holminster Switch. And you couldn't keep that kind of promise at the Inn at Journey's Head.

    12:40 – They're Man's Best Friend! And they must heed the words of power.

    15:05 – I refuse to believe this name is anything other than an in joke.

    34:20 – 1. Find Durmin! 2. ??? 3. Success!

    35:00 – Won't you come and play with me?

    We're short on lore today, but let's make up with that with a questline from the Crystalline Mean! Let's start with the Facet of Fishing! Frithrik manages the Facet of Fishing and helps direct the fishers of the Crystarium. While the Crystarium's fishers have been managing to help feed the residents, Frithrik believes that there is more that the fishers can do. He believes that in the pursuit of sustenance, certain dietary essentials have been lost, and its causing maladies throughout Norvrandt. Your job is to help him hunt down certain elusive fish which may provide the remedies to ameliorate these issues, since the fishers, lead by Mervyl, don't want to waste precious resources and time going after difficult exotic fish when there are hungry mouths to feed. But with your assistance, you show that helping balance the diets of the residents will help relieve them of several ailments as well as keep them all fed. This finally comes to a head when Frithrik takes on his most difficult case, a young girl named Hurielle, who is stricken with a wasting disease: crysteosis. But this professional dispute quickly becomes personal, as its revealed that Hurielle is the daughter of Mervyl. It will take extensive lore research and your best angling to determine that a treatment may be found in the legendary Prospero Eel. But with your success, Hurielle starts her road to recovery, and Mervyl is delighted. Frithrik will have the full support of the fishers in his attempts to make the Crystarium, and all of Norvrandt, a healthier place.

    Next time: The final group residing in Il Mheg, as we progress ever closer to the monarch of the Fae.

    Reply
  4. sometimes when following the story, it hits me. The Warrior of Light, Slayer of Eikons, Army of One, after defeating so many primals that none could hope to stand against, finds o so ever increasingly powerful foes, and they're just people. Like, strong people, sure, but it always still feels a bit strange

    Reply
  5. The original city name "Licht" is German for "Light". As far as I know, there's no sound in English that is like that, sry😔. You just have to listen to a German say it. If I had to describe the sound, it's a bit like the sound snakes make 😅

    Reply
  6. OH hey I gifted that outfit! I was in hospital at the time and extremely out of my face on painkillers. I'm glad you appreciated the gift! I remember that I felt like I wanted to give something small back for all the enjoyment over the years, and I'm glad to see it was appreciated 😀

    Reply
  7. I love the Nu Mou they are great, FFTA was an instant favourite of mine and is still a classic. Honestly had never clicked with me that the Nu Mou are dogs. As for the voice, in my head they always sounded somewhere in the vocal ranges of actors like Brian Cox, Richard Attenborough, Richard Harris, Christopher Lee, Alec Guinness, Sean Connery, Micheal Gambon, Malcolm McDowell, Colm Meaney, and Brendan Gleeson.

    Reply
  8. – ok but in all fairness only the Fuath wanted to drown you, the Pixies wanted to mess with you forever & turn you into a decorative shrubbery
    – Urianger you should have known better than to be honest with a Pixie & expect them to be helpful
    – i love the Nu Mou already, little Jim Henson creature-looking guys, & the Droopy voice makes them even better
    – oh no, poor Minifilia. I mean she's not wrong that Thancreed keeps getting reminded of the Ala Mihgan Minfilia the he couldn't save, but she is wrong that she's just the backup and he hates her
    – suddenly Fae King jumpscare

    Reply
  9. Ok I think we finally have enough context of Il Meg to get into it's mirror mirror status without spoilers. Picture if you will a fantasy kingdom, one with complex esoteric rules, a relationship to a common fairy tail enemy, big castles, and a leader who is corrupted, and needs to go down. That's Ishgard and Il Meg. The main counter points are fairies not dragons, the fantasy creatures rule the kingdom, rather than trying to destroy it, and their leader is physically corrupt not morally. Rather than everything being overly formal for reasons of politics, everything is chaotic for the sake of fun. Nether care much for the outside world, but for Il Meg that is based on their view of time, not their politics. Finally while Ishgard tries to push others away, and isolate, being notoriously unhelpful, the fae drag people in, and force them to help and be helped in some twisted view of "fair is fair".

    Reply
  10. 25:25 At last, my direct area of expertise comes into play! I got my undergrad in Germanic studies and linguistics, and Squeenix seems to have decided to use old Germanic for Voeburt as a kind of parody of the old French of Ishgard. Anyway, the name of the old Voeburt capital, Gruenes Licht, is literally just modern German for "Green Light." Since they're going for an old feel though, it's possible they could be using Licht to mean candle instead of light more generally. Also, Dan actually gets pretty close to the actual Nu Mou voices we hear, so clearly the devs were channeling Droopy as well here.

    Either way, the e after the u is used as a way of writing the German character ü using a character set that doesn't include the umlaut vowels, so it isn't actually pronounced. In German it would be written Grünes Licht. It involves sounds that English doesn't have (the ü is the same as the vowel in the French word salut for instance, /y/ in IPA), so if you want the closest you can get in English it'll be something in the area of "Grew-ness Leesht" or "Grooness Licked" or some variation thereof. Whatever feels most natural for you is the best way to go. That said, if anybody wants to give it a go, /y/ is pretty easy: it's just the long ee sound in English except made with rounded lips, so if you say ee and then round your lips without changing anything else, bam that's /y/. The ch is harder because it has two allophones, but for this one you're just saying a sh sound with your tongue closer to the roof of your mouth (your palate) rather than the ridge behind your teeth (the alveolar ridge). It's trickier because you don't just move your tongue back, but rather have to use a different part of your tongue.

    Reply
  11. The Nu Mou also showed up in FF12, but there they got a re-design which made them look… a bit too realistic lol
    in FF14 they stuck to the somewhat cartoony look from FFTA, with the rounded noses and tired eyes

    Reply
  12. One of the nodes required for the miner’s pickaxe relic is riiiiight next to one of the bushmen who is… also wielding a pickaxe. It’s not exactly comfortable.

    Reply

Leave a Comment