They just try not to fade away Jordan Kennedy 52 Year-old Plainsfolk Lalafell Limsa Lominsan Professional Soldier Mama Bear Main Tumblr: see-reverse-side
"I am many things. A coward, for one. Selfish, wretched, a fool beyond measure. Yet for all my failings, there remains one thing I shall never suffer them to take from me: the freedom to fly."
Hello again! First of all thank you so much for your responses to these posts -- I've really enjoyed reading your reblogs. I'm glad folks are enjoying this!
As I mentioned in the first post -- here is the second half! It's covers the plants and animals I thought worth special distinction. By that I mean animals that communicate how much research was done regarding this zone. So no rroneek, no uxtena. It's pretty clear they are both meant to be buffalo and rattlesnakes.
And if you're somebody who hadn't caught that, um... surprise! That's what they're based on.
If you're somehow getting this post without reading or seeing Part One first, here is a link to Part One. I'd recommend giving it a read first.
With that taken care of, let's pick up where we left off before!
Shaaloani Flora
Aside from the cacti, there are a lot of plants I recognize as native to the regions discussed in Part One! First is this scrubby, short and wide tree. It took a few screenshots and a lot of scrutiny. I was torn for a bit thinking it was a creosote bush, but upon zooming in close I'm of the mind it's a redberry juniper tree instead!
The leaves are long and thing, and the shape gives to mind of juniper needles more. Juniper 'leaves' kind of scale over each other and between texture resolution and my horrible eye sight I can't tell if this does the same. Still! There's a photo below my two screenshots for further emphasis:
These are also the trees turned red near the ceruleum fields -- junipers tend to do that when they are dying. They are also incredibly hardy so typically when you've managed to kill one it's likely not good.
I will say when I was out here I noticed the botanist gathering log has mesquite beans on it -- and you harvest them from these trees! Which is too silly for me; so here's a link to the the wiki about honey mesquite, and a photo of the beans on a tree.
It's probably a reach to try and ID this grass in the Yawtanane Grasslands, but given that it caught my eye I felt inclined to make a pitch. For context child me thought a fun and engaging after school club project was to learn how to identify grass and other plants native to Texas. So when I looked at it I wanted to take a guess based on other regional clues:
To me I think it could be cane bluestem, a grass that's drought tolerant and popular for grazing animals. And its seeds are dispersed from these little fluffy heads like this.
I will say as a caveat that a lot of grass in this area can be dispersed by wind. So it might not be cane bluestem -- hell it's a stretch to even try this. But I like to think they also considered the grass.
The bush above I also hmmed and hrmmed about for a bit before positing if it was meant to be black persimmon. It's commonly called Texas persimmon or Mexican persimmon -- and it's found in Coahuila, Tamaulipas and Neuvo León. They generally just look like big shrubs instead of trees.
I mentioned this in part one, but I'll go ahead and reiterate here a few things:
One is I think Lake Taori's about the only place that reads as specifically Texas
Two is it's not a bayou. That's an East Texas ecosystem and way too wet for Shaaloani
Three is there are cypress trees west of San Antonio growing along the Frio river, and doing quite well! Garner State Park has quite a few of them
I stand by this because these trees are show to be reproducing by making 'knees' -- offshoots from their root system. Think of it like Pando.
I also feel cypress is correct; the trunks are wider at the base than higher up, and the leaves are the right shape. I also appreciate there's Spanish moss hanging from them, which is also pretty common.
The last plant I want to cover is this flowering bush -- I'm going to admit this one was a struggle because I don't know of a lot of bushes with large white flowers like this. I've seen flowers of this shape, but most tend to be ground cover plants that grow very low to the soil.
What I think it might be, which would feel appropriate, is a take on the datura. They can get a bit higher off the ground than most wildflowers. And they were used by several native tribes for cultural practices.
The flowers are bigger in real life than depicted here -- so this is a reach! If someone has a better suggestion I'm open to it.
Shaaloani Fauna
When Fate farming out here, I've seen several players comment like 'huh, there sure are a lot of dinosaurs on this map'. And you're right! Because a lot of this region is home to some incredibly rich fossil formations.
Big Bend National Park contains part of the Javelina Formation -- home to large creatures such as the Quetzalcoatlus, a pterosaur that boasted a 39 foot wingspan. You can read about fossils found in Big Bend here. The Javelina Formation has its own wiki article that details some of the specimens found within it, including the Bravoceratops and the Torosaurus. The Ojo Alamo Formation in New Mexico is home to the Ojoceratops. Just south of these is the Aguja Formation in the Mexican states of Coahuila and Chihuahua. These formations are home to fossils of all three types of scalekin above -- as well as alligators, who are also on this map!
Other Formations in the Southwest home to great fossil finds are:
Kayenta Formation (Colorado & Utah)
Tepetate Formation (Mexico)
Black Peaks Formation (Texas)
There's even a fun sightseeing lore blurb which acknowledges this!
I think this is a fun addition to the zone that strengthens the real world inspiration sources and have fun with world building -- a lot of the formations near the Permian Basin were along the shore or under the waves of the Permian Sea!
And that's all I have! Thank you all for indulging me, and by all means take any and all of this to do with what you will in roleplay. Have fun with it!
Hello again! It's another lore-adjacent post from me about a niche special interest of mine. This time it's Shaaloani, the American Southwest/Northern Mexico inspired zone in FFXIV's Dawntrail.
I want to disclose a few things right at the start just to temper people's expectations: I will not be definitively ID'ing any of the indigenous-inspired structures or visuals as inspired by any specific tribe. That's not my lane! I'm going to link to things that they remind me of, for sure. But otherwise my hyperfocus is going to be on the physical environment, some animals, and the ceruleum as petroleum industry. It's what I recognize best! And what I know best, truthfully.
"Hon why are you doing this?" A variety of reasons honestly. After DT dropped I saw a lot of folks who did at least one of the following:
Commented on the Old West theme park aspect
Called it "miqo'te Texas"
Generally just called the whole map "Texas"
And if I'm honest... it bugged me! Not because I thought anyone was being malicious about it (it's mostly pop culture saturation I'd suspect), but to me it stung a bit that this zone, which I grew up on the fringe of, was... kind of flattened by a lot of people?
I don't know, the response to me just felt like people assumed they knew everything about it because they'd seen it already in movies or TV or Red Dead Redemption rather than the same open-mindedness about what was presented in places like Urqopacha.
This zone isn't just Texas -- yes there are some bits and pieces here (because it's pulling from the Chihuahuan Desert and the Sonoran Desert), but so much of it reminds me of New Mexico, Mexico, and Arizona. There's some Colorado, Utah, and Nevada there too! And the background story going on there is something that still happens in a lot of those states, by both the government and corporations alike.
That variety deserves to be celebrated! So come learn with me about the inspiration for Shaaloani!
Shaaloani Geography
Shaaloani has three major regions in the zone -- Eshceyaani Wilds, Pyariyoanaan Plain, and Yawtanane Grasslands. To get this out of the way, I'm going to tell you the one that reminds me most of Texas.
Ready?
Lake Taori of the Pyariyoanaan Plain.
It's river-fed, with canyons on both ends of the Niikwerepi. The trees crowding around it are cypress trees, as you can tell by the little nubby off-shoots called knees. To compare, here is a photo of cypress trees along the Frio River:
This is also reminiscent of places along the Rio Grande and Pecos Rivers, two significant water sources in West Texas. I also would not call them bayous! Bayous typically have brackish water, are slow-moving, and are way too far east.
However, it could be partly considered a ciénega -- which according to its wikipedia article:
"Ciénagas are usually associated with seeps or springs, found in canyon headwaters or along margins of streams. Ciénagas often occur because the geomorphology forces water to the surface, over large areas, not merely through a single pool or channel."
As a caveat, ciénegas generally don't have trees around them, but I also know that you can't really drown a cypress and they love sunshine. Regardless -- if you see trees in the desert they are typically growing along a water source. Balmorhea State Park has some cottonwood trees native to the area that are going strong.
Yawtanane Grasslands reads as a mix of the Chihuahuan Desert and the Eastern Plains of Colorado. Both are rather arid and home to a variety of grasses that can thrive in such a climate -- which has historically made both areas home to large cattle industries (whether or not this was ever a good idea is debatable, since cattle are very thirsty animals).
Meanwhile the Eshceyaani Wilds looks similar to the Sonoran Desert -- the red-hued soil and rocks, the abundance of cacti with the scrub brush and some drought-tolerant grasses. Here's a shot of the Sonoran within Saguaro National Park in Arizona:
Saguaros also only grow in Arizona in the States! As well as the organ-pipe cactus, which you see in Tender Valley. And prickly pears grow just about anywhere they can get a chance -- as well as barrel cacti, both of which we see in Tender Valley (along with what could be agave!).
You could probably make a case for it being a piñon-juniper scrubland -- everything's very short compared to those cypress trees, including the juniper trees! Piñon-juniper scrubland's found throughout the Southwest. There are also piñon-juniper savannahs and persistent woodlands intermixed in the same places. The difference lay in what plants you find with the piñon pines and junipers.
Visually, aside from the Sonoran Desert, I can also see a lot of New Mexico, like the Ghost Ranch in Rio Arriba:
It matches up with the mountains you can see, and both Yowekwa Canyon and Tender Valley. And of course, Tender Valley is likely a Grand Canyon reference, going by the sheer height of the cliffs. But you could also make a case for Canyonlands National Park in Utah.
There's a shot from Grand View Point Overlook within the park -- the closeness of the canyon walls and the warm earth tones also evoke Tender Valley!
There's also a lot of these sandstone formations in Utah that better fit Shaaloani -- like here in the Valley of the Gods:
Shaaloani Structures
I also at this point want to call attention to one of the two sites with cliff dwellings & adobe structures. We just saw Tender Valley above, which is confirmed to be old Yok Huy structures. But check out these Tonawawta buildings below.
As I stated before, I don't want to state which tribe these two styles remind me of. But I do want to say this again strikes me as another New Mexico and Arizona callback; both the Gila Cliff Dwellings and the Puye Cliff Dwellings are found in two different areas of New Mexico. And the Gíusewa Pueblo, also in New Mexico! Montezuma Castle is found in Arizona, and is pictured below! Look at that rich reddish earth color.
I also want to call attention to the place of worship for the Tonawawta in Yowekwa Canyon:
When I saw it my kneejerk response was to call it an ofrenda. But that's ultimately an incomplete response -- that was just the vibe I felt after seeing them during my life! What it also reminds me of are pictographs and petroglyphs. You find these all over the Southwest (the climate helps preserve them!), but I'm going to link some really great examples. I won't provide images to all though!
Crow Canyon Petroglyphs:
Piedras Madras Canyon at Petroglyph National Monument (New Mexico)
Petroglyph Point Trail at Mesa Verde National Park (Colorado)
Petroglyph Panel at Canyon Reef National Park (Utah)
Nampaweap at Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument (Arizona)
Horseshoe Canyon at Canyonlands National Park (Utah)
and the Hueco Tanks State Park (Texas)
In contrast, I don't want to spend a ton of time on the boom town structures in this zone; they are pretty straightforward references to mining towns during the different resource booms (gold, silver, copper, oil).
Similar blocky shapes, built out of wood. One thing I noticed as a neat addition are the decorative patterns painted on it -- again, I don't want to presume if there's a specific tribe tied to this. But I do think it's a neat touch and I want to think that's a design choice to convey the underlying theme that this is a zone at odds with advancing technology and wanting to keep hold of important traditions.
I WILL talk about the ceruleum wells and pumping though. Mostly because I'm impressed that they went with structures that so closely resemble early 20th century oil derricks. Those were also predominately made of wood (including the barrels, yikes!). The pump part of what's called a pumpjack were covered in the old days -- the ones we're most used to seeing now are made of metal and are thus left uncovered.
However, as you can see from this century old rig, even the wheel's made of wood:
I don't think ceruleum gushes the same way oil did -- it seems to behave more like natural gas. However, most natural gas pipelines do burn off excess, which can be seen as a little spout of flame atop.
Oil's occupied an awkward spot in the Southwest, and still does. Aside from the heinous crimes committed in Killers of the Flower Moon (where members of the Osage tribe were murdered for their oil shares in Oklahoma) and the Teapot Dome Scandal, oil is just... well.
Bear with me, I'm about to rag on Koana a moment.
The people who make the most money and have the most power over the average roughneck's life never live in the Southwest. They work in the c-suite and have more money than sense.
I find it very fascinating that DT chose to recreate this dynamic, this uncomfortable push-pull of a region rich in a resource, and it's being harvested at the suggestion and behest of a power that is physically removed from the area. And to some NPCs it's with a certain level of disregard to traditions and practices in place before, with the focus on the nebulous quantifier of 'progress'. Progress how? It depends!
But the folks at the highest seat of power never have to grapple with those questions, because to them it's a fairly cut and dry answer. This is the way to proceed, and if they want to take this nation into the "future", then this is the clear way to do it. It speaks to Koana's fixation on foreign technology to the point he de-values his own (partly due to his childhood trauma, which kind of prepped him to be susceptible to it).
Meanwhile the locals are the ones grappling the most with this change -- how it affects their plants and animals. Sometimes pits open up in the earth and ceruleum burns (which, Santa Rita New Mexico sank multiple times into the earth thanks to copper mining). On the map there's even discolored plants -- and they only occur in the vicinity OF the bulk of the ceruleum pumps.
This is at odds with core beliefs, keeping up with traditional practices. It puts people in the place of 'do I participate in this system, which promises work and the means to take care of my family, even as it pits me against my cultural heritage?'.
Growing up in West Texas, one of the weirdest things to me (to this day) is how many people will claim they love the land. They do! They love the outdoors, they worry over how certain species of animals have become scarcer. But they also work in the single most damaging industry because it pays the most money. It lets them cover bills and give their kids what they never had.
That same push-pull is in Shaaloani narratively; when progress has been thrust upon you, how do you survive it? How do you make sure what's dearest to you comes along with you?
In Conclusion
I want to call it here for Part One -- Part Two after this will cover more observations I had regarding flora and fauna in the Shaaloani zone, and how that also shows the attention to detail given this zone! It's a good time! There will be dinosaurs!
"This world is beyond saving, like those who try to save it. Muddled as my mind may be, I've not forgotten that. But if fate has brought me to you, the one person in this godsforsaken world who can see and hear me, then perhaps there is a reason I endured. If I can find out why I was left behind, then maybe… maybe I can bring this journey of mine to an end."
CONGRATS ON THE LAST NAME, MISTER ARDBERT FINAL FANTASY!
ATTN: If you see someone in-game using my name that's not from Balmung, it's an impersonator.
I don’t own these characters and these were likely created by someone who has been harassing me. If it’s not too much of a bother, please report these accounts/characters for impersonation:
I’ve kept quiet about this because I’m not really fond of bringing drama on soc/med. But this person has already crossed the line multiple times:
For over a year now, Schezar Skyblade from Mateus has been harassing me both in and outside of the game.
UPDATE: Just wanna add more to this, because this harrassment from Schezar Skyblade still hasn’t stopped.
At this moment, I cannot publicly reveal any details, but if you see any accounts claiming me or my commissions are a ‘scam’, please feel free to contact me if you have any concerns:
I’ve posted about this issue before (original linked below). From the trail we’ve found online, this was the work of the same person who has been harassing me both in-game in FFXIV and across other social media platforms:
As of writing, the sites they have created on Carrd have been taken down multiple times due to violating the platform’s content policies. Several Twitter accounts have already been suspended for the same violations, but they continue to make dummy Twitter accounts in order to keep up with their harrasment.
This abuse from Schezar Skyblade has been going on since 2021, ever since they’ve been kicked out of a local FFXIV Discord community for the same behavior. More details of their previous harrassment here:
Twitter Thread 1 | Twitter Thread 2
i think it was essential IN MY TWISTED MIND that hydaelyn could not tell the wol I’m afraid and I have regrets and Please run so she has to do it in insane weird ways like putting 6383738 rabbits on the moon to build apartments
Jordan sighed as she felt the last bit of warmth from her teacup fade. She had taken the last sip but a moment before, looking as the sun had lifted up past the horizon. The morning had begun in earnest here at the small cottage by the sea off the east coast of Vylbrand.
Ever since she returned from the edge of the universe, the brink of death, an entire year ago, Jordan had taken to having morning tea out on the veranda on every clear morning she could. Sometimes a neighbor would stop by, sometimes her oldest friend Emmeline, sometimes some important somebody or other representative of the Admiral or Alliance or whatnot. Mostly, it was just herself and her animals.
This morning, she spied her chocobo Pipa, dozing against her friend Cuddles, the brown bear. It was getting a bit chilly after all Jordan thought May’aps I need to bring in the stable cover n’ one of ‘em Garlean-style ceruleum heaters. Jordan let a soft chuckle out, despite herself.
The months after The Final Days were a blur. The first month, she visited her family in Ul’dah for a while, crying despite herself when her adoptive granddaughter bent down and gave her a hug upon their first meeting. Despite what she said to Sami, it wasn’t really from the chronic pain in her shoulder.
The next months were, to be frank, debauched. She had abstained from drink, but not from her other vices. She had coin enough saved up and a sizeable discount for the one who help stop the bloody end of th’ world, after all. Then she chartered a boat off to the South Seas. Tataru had some cockamamie scheme of settling an island, but settling wasn’t the point.
Years ago, she had made a pledge. She promised herself when it was over, when she knew her grandchildren would grow up in a time without war, like she had, she would go out to sea alone and end her life. She had done it. Committed to that future. And here she was, as she had panned, placing the proverbial blade to her throat.
But she couldn’t do it. She knew as she alighted from Oschon’s Torch that she didn’t need to martyr herself anymore. She had prepared to slough off and wipe away the people who had killed so many she knew growing up. She had hated that standard of locked chains. She has wanted to murder Quintus van Cinna the moment she had laid upon the bastard. Learning he had died by his own hand, seeing the spatter of red, she could only spit and call him a coward.
By the time the final conflict had flared, not between her and the union of all despair, but between a tired old woman and a spoiled princeling turned rabid dog, she was sick of hating. Sick of herself. But no longer sick of living.
When she returned, she spared few trips from home. She was glad to be in her own bed, tend to her garden, drink her tea and soothe her wounds. She knew she wouldn’t heft an axe without some pain again, but the biting ache kept her anger going. Swords and Gunblades just weren’t the same, handy though they were. She got to know her neighbors, who were lovely once they got past the suspiciousness of the empty house suddenly bursting with life and chores and famous dignitaries and the like coming to visit.
Thankfully, the few trips she had undertaken were to someplace warm, by the sea, and, most importantly, valued good tea. Old Sharlayan had been a disappointment, sharing some of the worst aspects of Ishgard (the occasional drifts of snow, even in summer) and Gridania (the lack of actual flavors 99% of the time). Thavnair, in contrast, had spice and sea salt in the air, warm and cordial faces, and tea that rivaled Doma in complexity and presentation. True, the whole “voidsent” thing was a pressing issue, but she could leave the details to the others. Y’shtola is looking to travel to the First, Vrtra wants his sister who practically raised him like a mother. ‘n Estinien Varlineau Jordan mused, a smirk growing on her face is too obvious. Makes jest at Alphy’s savior complex, but ‘e’s just as much the same sort of boy protecting friends. Must be an Elezen thing may’aps. Zero was a new wrinkle, but Cylva’s words had helped put her at ease and she was able to let it fall to more capable hands until there were answers.
It was enough to be in a space of quiet, though it was beginning to get on with the day as Jordan’s thoughts again turned to the now cold teacup.
She stood and felt a presence in the pocket of her tunic. She reached in and felt the warmth and smoothness of the top as it came to points on the side. Azem’s stone. Mind of its own Jordan thought Always ‘appy to just be around until summat thing needs doin’ or it wants me to galavant off somewhere…
She entered her house and placed the cup in the sink. She looked out the kitchen window, noting the small ceramic plaque, which hung nearby. It was decorated with a crook, the symbol of her own patron God.
Jordan shook her head as she felt an old twinge and itch at her feet. “All right, all right! Can’t let an old woman rest in ‘er home fer five minutes can’t ye?” She announced out old, as though addressing the books and knick knacks in the room.
Jordan Rosalind Kennedy, having lived as such for 57 years on Ethierys, knew better than to counter provenance. She went downstairs to see her pack and her adventuring gear was ready.
As an old friend once told her, “the call to adventure never takes no for an answer.” She needed to make sure her affairs were in order.
I love that in the time since Twilight was big we've learned that Kristen Stewart is actually a fantastic actress and super cool human being and all the hate against her was unwarranted and rooted in misogyny while also discovering Robert Pattinson is yes a good actor but also one of the weirdest people alive
The best place to start is to explain the layout. Each moon in Eorzea is designated a specific deity, and each deity has their own unique symbol. These symbols are what we view in the stars to determine the sign of an individual!
Halone – Spear – First Astral Moon (January)
Menphina – Moon – First Umbral Moon (February)
Thaliak – Scroll – Second Astral Moon (March)
Nymeia – Ewer – Second Umbral Moon (April)
Llymlaen – Wave – Third Astral Moon (May)
Oschon – Arrow – Third Umbral Moon (June)
Byregot – Spire – Fourth Astral Moon (July)
Rhalgr – Bolt – Fourth Umbral Moon (August)
Azeyma – Sun – Fifth Astral Moon (September)
Nald’Thal – Balance – Fifth Umbral Moon (October)
Nophica – Bole – Sixth Astral Moon (November)
Althyk – Axe – Sixth Umbral Moon (December)
Those whose namedays fall within the last 3 suns and first 3 suns of a new moon are born on a cusp, so the potential of both signs that bridge that cusp could apply! Be sure to read both! (ie: 32nd Sun of the Fifth Umbral Moon is a cusp between the Balance and Bole sign!)
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