It just occurred to us that our introductions and stuff are kind of strewn all over the place, so we’re making this so it’s a bit easier to get to the important stuff.
Introductions:
Cat (proper introduction)
Jeanne
Kris
😭Caster of Calamity - Chalchiuhtlicue
Victor
In a nutshell: Three masters, one body, thanks to magic. Kris is abrasive, but can handle Spartacus like a champ. Cat’s more of a people-person. Jeanne is more analytical, as long as you don’t bring up Mash.
The Flame Soaked City (Fuyuki)
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
In a nutshell: The masters get a crash course of their duties, meet their co-workers, experience emotional trauma thanks to an eldritch abomination, you know, typical first day of work stuff.
The party heads to their first singularity in 15th century France. Jeanne's still shaken by their first outing, but the world's over, so it's not like much else can go wrong.
Good Hunting, Will (Shinjuku)
Pr much edge for the sake of edge, but it also shows the lengths the masters are willing to go to protect each other.
On Multiplicity
World building about how exactly the masters’ living situation works.
Misc. Prompts
As we find them we’ll put them here.
Family
Random questions: x | x | x | x
Spartacus’ Curious Occurrence: Prologue | 1 | 2 | Final
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the fact that final fantasy likes to reference old myths isn't news, but to sate my own curiosity I thought it would be cool to catalogue all the references that can be found through relic weapons in Final Fantasy 14! this is gonna be a bit long, so. everything's gonna be under a cut
Black Mage: The Stardust and Lilith Rods
while the stardust rod does have in-game lore thanks to shatotto's party trick of calling down meteors, it does not appear to be connected to any historical figures. the Lilith Rod is much more interesting though, referencing the demonic first wife of Adam as well as a class of demon in Mesopotamia. there aren't many-if any-direct references to Lilith in religious texts, but a few texts do make off-hand references to her, or other monsters that could be related to her. look, there's a reason black mages are so rare. this demon stuff is complicated.
Bard: the Artemis and Yoichi Bows
Artemis is the goddess of hunting and the moon, who was known for using a bow. and also turning people into deer and straight up murdering entire families when they insult her mother. Nasu no Yoichi was a legendary archer who famously shot a fan off a boat during the Genpei War. both of these are very straightforward references. straight to the point. like an arrow. i have a million of 'em, I can nock puns out like nobody's business.
Dragoon: Gae Bolg and Longinus
the Gae Bolg is a spear used by the famous Irish hero of legend Cu Chulainn during the Ulster Cycle. it has to be kicked into someone to be used properly, but on a hit it basically grows a thornbush in the poor bastard's circulatory system.
Longinus is the name of the roman centurion who stabbed Jesus with a lance. it also comes from the greek word for lance, so there's a non-zero chance someone saw a picture that had labels on it and was just like "yeah spear sounds like a guy's name its probably right" (the spear itself doesn't actually have a name, it's just called the holy spear)
Monk: Sphairai and Kaiser Knuckles
the first class on this list to have no specific historical references! Sphairai were predecessors to boxing gloves used in greek boxing (similar to himantes, which show up as regular weapons in-game)
kaiser knuckles don't appear to have any specific references, though it is the name of a fighting game from the 90s, so it might just be saying like. "this person's good at punchin'"
Ninja: Yoshimitsu and Sasuke's Blades
Minamoto no Yoshimitsu was a samurai from the 11th century who was credited with creating multiple martial art styles. he was on the same side as that yoichi guy we mentioned earlier, though a couple decades earlier.
Sarutobi Sasuke is the name of a fictional "superhero" ninja who first rose to popularity in the 1910s, and has since been referenced and used as a character in other stories, such as Dragon Ball and Naruto. or it could be a direct reference to one of the other sasukes, it's hard to tell.
Paladin: Curtana/Holy Shield and Excalibur/Aegis Shield
Curtana is one of the swords used as part of coronation rituals to crown the king of england, and is said to have been used by Tristan, one of the knights of the round table. the holy shield is just a generic name, sadly.
on the other hand, Excalibur is one of the most famous swords in the western world, said to be the blade of King Arthur. also of the round table. also known by the names Caliburn and Caledfwlch, depending on how old-school you want to go with it. given by a faerie/stone, symbolizing his divine right to rule, etc. etc. The Aegis is a bit weirder though. it's a shield slash... coat? used by both Athena and Zeus in Greek mythology, though in modern use it usually just means general protection.
Scholar: Omnilex and Last Resort
Scholar's relics are extremely straightforward, which makes sense given they're supposed to be military treatises. the omnilex is just latin for "all words", which makes sense since it's supposed to be a compilation of every tactic ever devised in Nym. meanwhile, last resorts are desperate tactics only used in dire emergencies.
Summoner: the Veil of Wiyu and Apocalypse
aaand we go from the easiest ones on the list to the hardest. the veil of wiyu has just enough stuff I can find to be referencing multiple sources, but not enough to be definitively referencing any one. wiyu and weiyu are the name of disparate spirits found in India and Brazil, but I couldn't find much more information about them. the most compelling argument I could find about this book came from Ethys Asher, who suggested it's referencing waiyu, a chinese word for "foreign language", implying the information found within comes from another world- literally "beyond the veil".
the word apocalypse, surprisingly, doesn't mean the end of the world. I mean of course it does now, but its original meaning just referred to any prophecy or information bestowed by gods. given the name of the previous iteration of this relic, and the fact that you can summon bahamut, either interpretation of this name works very well.
Warrior- Bravura and Ragnarok
from what I can find, Bravura just refers to a type of music/dance designed to show off the artist's skill. I know warriors like to show off and solo the boss down from 60% health, but otherwise I couldn't find anything specific about axes to tie it to the class.
Ragnarok is pretty similar to apocalypse, though this time it 100% refers to the war at the end of the world in norse mythology. no hidden translations this time, just fighting all the way down.
White Mage: Thyrus and Nirvana
the thyrus means nothing. however, the Thyrsus is the name given to the staves/spears wielded by Dionysus and his followers in Greece, though they were less ornate than this one. they also were said to cause madness, not heal it, so... not quite the white mage's schtick.
Nirvana is a band. it's also the escape from samsara that is supposedly the end goal for a significant number of religions, like hinduism and buddhism, representing the complete dissolution of earthly desires and finding true peace. much more on-brand.
The Tools: from top to bottom, left to right: Ullikummi, Vulcan, Kurdalegon, Urcaguary, Pinga, Clotho, Paracelsius, Chantico, Mammon, Rauni, and the Halcyon Rod
we're almost done, now it's time for the lightning round: Ullikummi was a big golem in Mesopotamian myth that fought the gods and lost when it got chopped down like a tree, by a saw. Vulcan is the roman version of Hephaestus, who was a blacksmith. Kurdalegon is the Iranian version of Vulcan, so that's armorer down. Urcaguary is the deersnake god of treasure worshipped by the Incan empire, and probably some goldsmiths. Pinga is the inuit god of the hunt, who would punish people who overhunt just like the leatherworker's guild. Clotho sounds made up as hell but they're one of the Greek fates, specifically the one that spins the thread of fate, like a weaver. Paracelsus isn't a god for once but he was a really good alchemist who discovered a bunch of medicines and was seen as a prophet. Chantico is an Aztec goddess of the hearth who got turned into a dog when she couldn't stop snacking between meals. Mammon is the demonic personification (demonification?) of greed, and is what you turn into if you dig up one to many darksteel ores. Rauni is arguably a finnish goddess whose exact position is debated but one version of her story ties her to the growth of plant life in the spring, hence the botanist axe. and finally, the Halcyon Rod which I was completely sure would just be a generic name isn't. it's referencing the Greek story of Queen Alcyone who got turned into a kingfisher after her and her husband blasphemed.
we just finished making all the eureka relics, so now we're making it everyone's problem!
Bard: Berimbau, Gandiva, and Terpander
A Berimbau is a bow-like instrument that originated in Angola, and was later adopted by artists throughout Africa and Brazil. It also saw use as a weapon by practitioners of Capoeira. ...by sticking a blade on one end and using it like a scythe. (there are instances of musical bows being used as actual bows as well, but I couldn't find any about the berimbau.) The Gandiva is a sacred bow forged by the gods in the Mahabharata, where it is wielded by the demigod Arjuna. A bit of a sharp increase in power, but alright. and Terpander swings straight back around to the musical side of things- the historical Terpander was a greek bard, credited with the creation of lyric poetry and the first greek styles of music. He also got banished for straight up killing a guy, so even now our inspirations aren't too peaceful.
Black Mage: Lunaris Rod, Hvergelmir, Kalandanda
"Lunaris" just seems to be a made up word that vaguely relates to the moon. The only things I could find that match the name are a palworld monster and a metal album, neither of which are likely inspirations. Hvergelmir, on the other hand, is quite interesting, especially given its expansion- it's a spring from norse mythology- specifically, the spring from which all waters flow. Given Mhach's role in flooding the star, this isn't a surprising reference- but that spring is also said to be home to several varieties of serpent- including the dragon, Nidhogg. And finally, the Kaladanda is a club wielded by the Hindu god of hell- it is the ultimate weapon that can kill whoever it is targeted by, no matter what divine protections they invoke.
Machinist: Ferdinand, Armageddon, Deathlocke
As you'd probably guess from... being a gun, the first machinist relic Ferdinand references a much more recent event than the others- there have been a lot of people named Ferdinand in history, but the one most related to gunplay is, of course, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose assassination caused World War I, and indirectly, WWII. And while Armageddon is these days used interchangeably with the end of the world, in the book of revelations it specifically refers to the battlefield where the armies of the world will gather to battle during the end times. Cheery stuff, huh? And finally Deathlocke is... nothing, from what I can tell. There's a marvel character named Deathlok. He's a cyborg. Still probably not an intentional reference there, but who knows?
Summoner: Almandal, the Draconomicon, Mimesis
the Ars Almandal (Arabic for the Mandal) is one of the five occultist books known collectively as The Lesser Key of Solomon. While its more famous counterpart, the Ars Goetia, deals with the summoning of demons, the Ars Almandal is about summoning angels. The series was compiled in the 17th century, though the anonymous author claims it's based on works from the 14th. the Draconomicon is, once again... nothing. there's a few D&D books that use the name, but it's basically a fancier way of saying "this is a book about dragons", which... yeah. we summon bahamut, makes sense. there are a few books simply called Nomicon, with the word itself originating from ancient greek. And while we're on the topic, Mimesis is another greek term, effectively meaning realism. It's the opposite of diegesis, a.k.a. the narrative.
Dragoon: Brionac, Rhongomiant, Areadbhar
the Brionac is one of the Celtic sun god Lugh's legendary spears, known for- nothing at all, because it doesn't exist. More so than most legendary weapons, I mean. Apparently a fantasy novel based on Celtic mythology got really popular in Japan, and some of its original ideas got mixed in with actual mythos. Lugh does have a real famous spear though, Areadbhar. In welsh stories about King Arthur, he wielded the Rhongomiant, or Rhongominiad, as one of the three weapons he got from god. It's also the only one without special powers, unless you play Fate Grand Order.
Monk: the Rising Suns, Verethragna, Nyepels
the Rising Sun is just kind of a neat visual metaphor, I guess? There's a lot of different symbolism this name could have, from hope to war crimes. Verethragna is a Zoroastrian god of war and victory, who has the epithet 'barrier-breaker'. pretty fitting, considering how closely this job is tied to Rhalgr the destroyer. A Nyepel is a knife/shield combo from Sudan, though it's probably a more direct reference to FFXI here, as they appear there too.
Ninja: Yukimitsu, Kannagi, Sandungs
Yukimitsu was a prolific swordsmith in Japan, and a contemporary of Masamune, another smith whose name ends up on a lot of jrpg swords. Kannagi is the main character of the Cilappatikaram, one of the great Tamil epics, who eventually curses an entire city, burning it to the ground. This likely has nothing to do with the daggers, as Kannagi is also a term for Japanse shrine workers, especially those that commune with or get possessed by gods. And finally, Sandungs are a type of grave used mostly in Indonesia. Huh, I actually kind of see the progression in this set.
Dark Knight: Deathbringer, Nothung, Cronus
Deathbringer is just a cool name. This is dark knight, after all. Nothung refers to the sword the legendary hero Sigurd used to kill the dragon Fafnir in Norse legends. Again, pretty fitting for heavensward, even if we wouldn't get fafnir itself until stormblood. Cronus either refers to the greek god of time, or it's another way of spelling Cronos, the guy who ate all the greek gods before spitting them back up.
oh boy, here we go. Aettir are the families of runes used in Norse writing, and by neopagans in fortune telling. The Hauteclaire was a sword used by a knight in a popular French epic, The Song of Roland. The Almace can also be found in that same epic- in which, it's claimed that it, the legendary blade Durendal, and the Curtana were all forged together by the same smith. Priwen and Prytwen are, likely, referring to King Arthur's shield and boat, or maybe they're both referring to the shield, or maybe it's the boat, who knows, they have a dozen different spellings each, it could be anything. Also this has nothing to do with the whole post but if I don't tell someone I'll be even more upset than I already am- the magic card Aettir and Priwen doesn't even depict the actual sword and shield in the name- the picture is of Almace and Priwen Lux! again it's completely inconsequential but I'm busting my ass trying to figure out where these names came from and a multi-billion dollar company can't even use the right names at all and it's pissing me off. Anyway. the Ancile was a sacred shield in Rome, they thought having it would keep Rome safe from being invaded or destroyed so they made a bunch of copies of it.
Warrior: Parashu, Ukonvasara, Minos
(you can tell the paladin set took a lot out of me by how much worse the warrior gposes are)
Parashu are a type of axe from India. there's famous ones but a parashu is a generic name. Ukonvasara is the hammer/axe of Ukko, the Finnish lightning god. Weirdly, Squeenix picked the version of the name that specifically refers to the weapon as a hammer- the axe version is Ukonkirves. Minos is the guy with the bull cucking problem. The minotaur is often depicted with axes, case closed.
there's more weapons in heavensward than we're allowed images per post so here we go
Astrologian: Atlas, Deneb, Canopus
Atlas was a Greek titan who held up the sky, naturally. Deneb is the brightest star in Cyngus, and it's also blue, hence the big blue ball on this one. Canopus is the brightest star in Carina and the second-brightest overall. god why can't they all be easy like this.
Scholar: Elements, Tetrabiblos, Anabasis
Elements are the basic building blocks of everything- it's a pretty generic title. Tetrabiblos also sounds generic, but it's actually a Greek book of Astrology/Philosophy, and is part of the reason astrology wasn't destroyed by the church, so thank Ptolemy for horoscopes and obnoxious dating app ads, I guess. Anabasis is a first-hand account of an ill-fated expedition of mercenaries. And no, despite the angel wings and its similarity to the Anabaseios raid tier, the word anabasis has nothing to do with any sort of heavenly figures.
White Mage: Seraph Cane, Majestas, Sindri
A Seraph, (pl. Seraphim) are a variety of angel found in abrahamic religions- exact details differ between versions, but they usually have six wings, are almost always on fire, and constantly sing the praises of god. The Majestas is a common theme of early Christian art, namely Jesus Christ upon his throne in heaven. Sindri is the name of the afterlife where all good souls will go after Ragnarok, though it's likely a post-christianization of Norse mythology.
And finally, the fuckin' Lightning Round!!! the third round of Anima weapons is super generic, but I can at least talk about each kind of ruler they're describing.
Sword/Shield of the Twin Thegns, Sultan's Fists, Axe of the Blood Emperor, Trident of the Overlord, Bow of the Autarch, Spurs of the Thorn Prince, Guillotine of the Tyrant, Flame of the Dynast, Cane of the White Tsar, Rod of the Black Khan, Book of the Mad Queen, Word of the Magnate, Sphere of the Last Heir
Thegns (rhymes with reign) are landowners from anglo-saxon England. If you've played skyrim, you recognize them. Sultans are sovereign and religious leaders in Muslim countries- the only current countries that use the title are Brunei, Malaysia, and Oman. there's no specific 'Blood Emperor' I could find, though the word emperor is Latin in origin. Overlord is old english in origin. Autarch is Greek, referring to a despotic ruler. Prince is again, Latin. The Greek use of Tyrant is very different than you'd think. The title was neutral, simply referring to a king who usurped the throne from another, regardless of their quality of rule. Dynast is also from Greek, referring to basically the opposite- a king who was born into his role. A Tsar is, of course, Slavic, and a Khan is from the Tatar region, most famously Mongolia. Mad Queens are a common trope, though the word is from Old English. Magnate and Heir are both Latin.
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Nobunaga was already super chuuni, you wanna know what would happen if she got a decent rack? They'd be speaking Japanese in Chiang Mai, that's what would happen.
Transitioning made Nobunaga significantly worse, but also introjectible into a surprisingly large number of systems in my experience, which arguably counts as saving her
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tbh I legit don’t know if Siebold calling his wife an otaku is a mistake or not. on one hand he says it repeatedly, but on the other fgo feels like the kind of game that would point out when they’re doing a bit like that
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