#old lestallum

“The oldest town in Cleigne. One day, pioneers hoping to explore a new frontier set up camp along the River Wennath, and the rest is history.

Nowadays, mentioning ‘Lestallum’ immediately conjures up image of the electricity-producing powerhouse to the north. In the past, however, it referred to this very spot. The name was derived from an ancient word meaning ‘a warship’s ram’, chosen as an homage to the literally groundbreaking spirit of the first settlers.

Let’s take a look at the changes to Old Lestallum in the FF15 Comrades game!

Lots and lots of little changes here! Obviously the sun is far less visible, producing a huge overcast pall over the entire city. All plants are shown to have begun to whither, most notably the huge palm tree right behind the Motel sign. All the light fixtures continue to be in place, but a handful of billboards have been removed. Unlike The Souvenir Emporium, the gas pumps remain, but are surrounded by pipes and storage containers.

In the distance, a Hunter weapon van has moved in, and although it’s less visible in this photo the entire east side of the town now has chain link fences and lookout platforms manned by Hunters. The 3 Zs Motel is closed, and the front is now manned by Dustin of the Crownsguard who offers you an opportunity to recustomize your character.

Gladio couldn’t resist a photobomb, but we again get a pretty good look at a major change to Old Lestallum: the Hunter Outpost here. The entire parking lot area in front of the Motel has been taken over by tents, tables, and supply vans. Again in the center the sad, saggy palm tree is visible.

Here’s a general look towards the west and the bridge over the river (featured in the Road to Old Lestallum quest). The Kenny Crow mascot has been taken down from the roof, the palm trees are visibly wilted, and a huge door has been set up to regulate access across the bridge (guarded by Cor, at the moment).

I’m no biologist or botanist so I couldn’t tell you how long these trees have been starved for light, but it’s clear that this didn’t happen over the course of the day. Minimal light still filters down, but the various plants and trees out in the wild suffer similarly.

“When You See It You’ll Shit Bricks”