Early today, Final Fantasy XIV director and producer Naoki Yoshida revealed more information about the MMO’s upcoming expansion, Stormblood, as well as answered numerous fan questions submitted regarding the expansion that is set to release in June.
First off, new details were shared about the key characters that will play large parts in the main story of Stormblood. Lyse and Yugiri are familiar faces, but we also get a look at the new characters Hien, Gosetsu Fordola, Yotsuyu, and Zenon yae Galvus.
Lyse
A young fighter of surpassing skill, Lyse yearns to bring freedom to her homeland of Ala Mhigo, which fell to the Empire when she was but a child. Her brash, impulsive ways often result in her biting off more than she can chew. Yet the time may come when she must rise to the occasion and become a leader of men…
Gosetsu
Hailing from the Far Eastern land of Doma, Gosetsu has long served Doma and her sovereign, and fought valiantly to defend them from the Garlean Empire twenty-five years ago. Though Doma fell in the end, the samurai has since labored tirelessly to see her rebuilt. Renowned as a peerless warrior, this loyal retainer dreams of a day when the shadow of Garlemald no longer darkens his homeland.
Yugiri
A shinobi in service to the Far Eastern land of Doma, Yugiri took part in the nation’s failed rebellion against the Garlean Empire. When all was lost, her liege bade her take to the sea, along with many of Doma’s people, and seek sanctuary in the western lands of Eorzea. Her calm, collected demeanor belies a burning desire to face the imperials in battle once more, and redeem the failures of her past.
Hien
The young heir to the throne of Doma, Hien is a charismatic leader beloved of his people. Together with Gosetsu and Yugiri, he spurred his countrymen to rise up against their Garlean oppressors. But when the rebellion was crushed, Lord Hien vanished without a trace…
Zenos yae Galvus
Leader of the XIIth Legion and crown prince of the Garlean Empire, Zenos is possessed of but a single passion: to stand on the front lines, blade in hand, and dance with death. He regards friend and foe alike with contempt, and tales of his brutality against both have spread far and wide. While crushing the rebellion of yesteryear in Doma, he took a liking to Far Eastern katana, which have since become his weapons of choice.
Yotsuyu
The acting imperial viceroy of Doma, Yotsuyu’s grace and beauty belie a heart of stone. A cruel, sadistic ruler, she harbors a deep hatred for Domans. Under the pretext of purging radical elements, she has perpetrated numerous atrocities against her own people. Yet all are the hero of their own story…
Fordola
A young soldier born and raised during the imperial occupation of Ala Mhigo, Fordola was promised the world─education, training, citizenship─in exchange for service. Scorned as traitors by their people and savages by their Garlean masters, she and others like her struggle to forge their own path in an unforgiving world.
In addition to that, the Artifact Gear for the Dark Knight, Dragoon, Paladin, Bard, and Scholar were shown.
Dark Knight:
Dragoon:
Paladin:
Bard:
Scholar:
Yoshida also showed off a couple of mounts, the Falcon and a Tiger, both of which are able to access the underwater areas that will be present in the expansion.
Falcon:
Tiger:
During the Live Letter, Yoshida also replied to many fan questions regarding Storblood. Here’s just a handful of the many questions that were asked during the stream:
Q: Are the new areas being added in Stormblood larger when compared to Heavensward ones?
A: The amount of areas is same and the general sizes are same as well. However, players have grown accustomed to travelling with flying mounts, so you might feel these areas are very large. That compass you all used in 3.0 might come in handy once again.
Q: For the new jobs, will there be new weapons added from existing content such as primal fights and Allagan tomestone equipment?
A: Allagan tomestones of esoterics/lore/scripture gear will also include the new jobs’ gear. Furthermore, starting in 4.0, all previous tomestone exchangeable gear will be available via poetics.
The Ironworks gear obtained from poetics will be exchangeable, and equipment for the new jobs will be available in level 60+ content.
Primal fight rewards from Ifrit through Zurvan will all be available, including those with additional visual effects. As for raids, gear from Gordias/Midas/Alexander are all prepared. Coil and Anima weapons will not be added.
Q: Will there be a new underwater gathering system implemented?
A: All gatherers will have a new underwater gathering implemented. For fishers, spearfishing will be added.
Q: There was an announcement regarding inventory slot expansion, but we would like to know which inventory (inventory/Armoury chest) is being increased and by how much!
A: We received comments that the Armoury chest and inventory could not be expanded due to PS3 limitations, but the two are separate issues. When players move areas or go into instances, all item data is being moved along with the character, so if we were to add additional item slots without much thought, the amount of data being transferred could become ridiculous, network usage would skyrocket, and servers could go down.
With this in mind, in Patch 4.0 we will implement the first inventory expansion, take a look at the state of the servers, then prepare for additional expansions.
The Armoury chest will receive 10 extra slots for each category of equipment, while the item inventory will be increased by 40 slots.
Q: Will Omega, the next raid tier, be released some time after patch 4.0, similar to Alexander?
A: Yes, we will be releasing the normal version two weeks after 4.0 release, and Savage will be released two weeks after that. Please feel free to play story content and level your jobs at your own pace.
Q: In Heavensward, players were able to increase their item level through main scenario quest rewards, but will players be able to increase their item level in the same way in Stormblood?
A: Similar to 3.0, players will be able to obtain gear through main scenario and side story quests. With 3.0 dungeons, there were times where gear for the role you wanted didn’t drop, or you may have lost the loot to other adventurers, so your item level may have increased slower due to these reasons. For these reasons, with the 4.0 dungeons, we made it so players can obtain the gear for their role after defeating the last boss in that dungeon.
You can read the Q&A session in its entirety over on the official forums.
Lastly, the trailer for Stormblood’s benchmark was also shared, giving us an even better look at the gear, upcoming Samurai and Red Mage jobs, locales, and more. You can check it out in the video below and read more about the benchmark over on Final Fantasy XIV’s official Lodestone.
Final Fantasy XIV is available for PC, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4. Its upcoming expansion, Stormblood, will release on June 20th, 2017.
Published: Apr 28, 2017 09:30 am