#estinien

the vault: chapter house

Estinien for my Elezen photocards I'll have at the Berlin #FanfestWOLExchange: the Giraffe Collection!

favorite female character:

I have to choose between Venat/Hydaelyn or Meteion. Help.

Honestly, as much as I love Meteion's entire arc and themes and design, Venat takes the win. She establishes herself early as a kind and motherly character and her identity as the former Azem makes her even more of a mentor-figure to our WoL. It kinda rhymes, you know? She mentored our previous life as Azem, and she mentored our current life as Hydaelyn.

Her line, "Has your journey been good? Has it been worthwhile?" is still one of my favorites in the entire game. And then, the ENTIRE Answers cutscene? Her walk? Still gives me CHILLS. She made a terrible choice, doomed thousands for the sake of an unsure future, the HOPE that we might be able to do what they could not.

favorite male character:

Oh, this is definitely a harder choice. I love Aymeric so much, but he's basically a nothing character after Heavensward (free my boy). In terms of pure development it would be Alphinaud, but I think Estinien just barely wins. I have a soft spot for my dragon boi. His entire arc through Heavensward is amazing, the bed scene in 3.3 is amazing, I love how he comes in out of nowhere like a BOSS in Stormblood, I love how he's implied to carry Nidhogg's spirit/memories and carries them forward. I love that he's just kind of a dork at times. I hope Evercold does him justice.

favorite book/season/etc: (Expansion)

Endwalker, followed closely by Heavensward and then Shadowbringers.

This was sooo close though. All three have some of my favorite moments, but as "bloated" as I feel EW was, its themes and the way it wraps up the ENTIRE GAME'S STORY just hits you like nothing else does. I don't think we'll ever get another moment quite like it, where moments from the entire game come back as a rallying cry. No, not even Endgame managed that as well.

favorite episode: (Ima go with "boss" here)

Nidhogg still has my favorite lead-up cutscene in the entire game, but you CANNOT beat Seat of Sacrifice. You cannot. The build up. The music. The mechanics - god the MECHANICS. I will go into SoS EX MINE any day of the week. THE MUSIC. THE MUSIC. The story BEHIND the music - Soken my GOAT!

my favorite ship:

Ryne/Gaia, my disaster lesbians <3 especially after FRU.

a character i'd die defending:

Hermes. I don't think he's a psychopath or a sociopath - hell, if anything he's the OPPOSITE! He's someone who cares too much in a system that puts no real value on what doesn't match their ideals. He's the product of a society that enforces conformity and doesn't allow outliers to thrive (no, I don't relate to him at aaaaaall). His choices were flawed, but were driven by desperation.

a character i just can't sympathize with:

Is Asahi cheating? Because honestly, I can't think of many. Yotsuyu was a monster, but I can understand why she was. Emet-Selch is obvious. Fordola was a victim of circumstances. Thordan was pretty much written as an unsympathetic tyrant. Asahi... we beat Asahi to death. With clubs.

a character i grew to love:

Emet-Selch. Honestly, for all he was hyped up to me before Shadowbringers... okay, I loved every scene he was in, but I just didn't find him as sympathetic as some other villains. At least not when I first played.

And then Endwalker happened. I don't think I need to explain much further.

anti-otp:

If the morning came with a warning sign, and it told me what I'm going to lose,

I'd still choose you...

(x)

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