The Celestia Citizen (“A Dream of Spring” Edition)

Hello, fellow Celestians! Welcome to another edition of the Celestia Citizen newsletter! Now that we are back on schedule for the new year’s run of newsletters, let us get right to acknowledging this month’s theme. With a few more weeks of winter ahead, and spring scheduled for March 20th, let us dream of spring.

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Final Fantasy XIV News

On the FFXIV news front, it is currently due to be a nice and quiet month ahead.

Patch 6.35 is set to release on Tuesday, March 7th! A reminder of what is slated to arrive with that patch is on the 6.3 Patch special site linked here (look for full patch notes via #announcements on Monday night): https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/endwalker/patch_6_3/

Little Ladies’ Day is scheduled for March 1st, 2023 and due to run until March 15th, 2023. Refer to the linked article here for more details on the event: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/special/2023/Little_Ladies_Day/mtqd47qw49

On another note, Final Fantasy Festival, aka FanFest, 2023 is off in full swing. In addition to the link here, be sure to venture over to the Discord server and nab your Fanfest Attendee role with proof of ticket purchase: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/topics/detail/08c262868e21e1a27e73981ebf185639c4f9783e

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Free Company Updates and Social Events

First on the docket is a continued promotion regarding officer availability. We are still talking officer applications at our respective Discord server for:

Raid Officer (24-Man Raid events every Tuesday)

Administration (documentation, such as meeting agendas/notes, spreadsheets, and announcements)

Primal Farming (Farming current expansion content for items)

General Officer (Helps for filling in at weekly FC events)

PvP (hosting PvP content, such as Rival Wings, The Feast, Crystalline Conflict, etc)

Applications may be accepted in the FC Discord server under the #officer-directory channel.

The next item to address is regarding the in-game fellowship system. Earlier this past month, this feature was disabled and retired from use. This will result in Discord serving as the primary means to coordinate activities for the Free Company.

Next, we have the conclusion of our recent social event that occurred on Saturday, February 18th, the Housing Decoration contest! Our winners are:

(House)

1st Place = Mct Windsor!

And 2nd Place = Ivy Leaf!

(Room/Apartment)

1st Place = Sadie Black!

2nd Place = Faey Baali

Our next social event is scheduled for Saturday, March 18th, the Bingo event! Come participate in our regular Bingo event where you can win a prize should you complete a Bingo card successfully! Refer to our Discord server and the #social-event channel for details.

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Beyond the Light

For our next Beyond the Light interview, our winner of this month’s draw is Sky Rendwyrm! Before we go any further, please participate in our Beyond the Light interview and tell us about yourselves so you have a chance at being featured here for the Free Company newsletter! Details are on the Discord server and in our #announcements channel (or you may message me directly at Scarlette Valanorr in the FC Discord for a copy)!

What is your in-game character’s name?: Sky Rendwyrm

What race are you currently in-game?: Viera

What drew you into your current choice of race?:

When I was a young boy, my father took me into the city to buy a gameboy game by the name of Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. He said “son when you grow up, you are going to buy things with your own money so you better get use to it now. Use your christmas money because I am not paying for it.”
One of my first recruits was a tan lady with bunny ears. She was an archer! Then I eventually trained her to be a sniper. She was in my party until the very end. Viera were a big part of my team because I was so impressed by this first archer.

I always said I would never play a female character on an MMO…personal decision. But when Viera came out, I had to BREAK that tradition! I was so excited…!

And then…then…BUNNY BOYS! Male Viera! A dream come true! I don’t even care that there are no hats. Isn’t like it much matters since my off time is spent (non-E) RPing as a pirate and Snow’s haircut has a little bandana that is very pirate-y so it fits well for me!

When did you first start playing FFXIV?: July 2017

What drew you to pick up and play FFXIV?: I got a fancy new gamer PC because I had money and a local shop. missed WoW. asked my friends who is playing some MMOs and one of my buddy is like JOIN FFXIV. Im like okay. So I played it…and got addicted.

How far have you gotten into the MSQ (Main Story Questline) of FFXIV?: I have gotten all the way through MSQ. Its a tradition to wake up early on patch days and get MSQ done before work.

What was your first (job? class? role?) when you started?: My first job was Dragoon.

What motivated you to pick that first (job? class? role?)?: I didn’t want to be a healer and casters seemed BORING. I didnt like the idea of casters. monk looked silly. Dragoon looked AWESOME. I played DRG up to E1-4. I couldn’t clear much content. I thought extremes were too difficult. I may have wasted a lot of time on a class im terrible at…

To date, what favorite jobs/roles/classes do you have?: My favorite job is…Red Mage! When Coco started getting to on-level trials and stuff in Stormblood, I switched to Red Mage to be more supportive

What kind of content do you enjoy?: MSQ, Savage Raids, Crafting and/or Gathering, Duty Content, Glamour Collecting, Casual Content, Collectible Gathering, and Roleplaying!

What would you say is your favorite content type from above to do? And why?:

My favorite content is definitely MSQ. I love that FFXIV is an mmo RPG and not a MMO rpg, if that makes sense. I love the story and how long-lasting it is. Coconu and I will randomly think of something in the car about the MSQ and we will have a conversation out of nowhere about it.

My next favorite content is tied between Extreme trials, collecting mounts, and RP. I really like the extreme trials because they are challenging and also give us awesome weapons and mounts. As of late, the mounts have been hit or miss… I am not sure if I would adopt any of these kitties if I saw them in the shelter! Hahahahaha.

The roleplay content is fantastic when I have time to really get in with a group and get lore started. Unfortunately, with life being so busy recently I have not had much time to devote to my venue(s) and getting involved. I hope that changes once I graduate with my masters.

What is one thing you like about FFXIV that distinguishes them from other MMOs?:

I answered this in the previous question but… “I love that FFXIV is an mmo RPG and not a MMO rpg, if that makes sense.” The game is more about the story than the multiplayer aspect. My first MMO was World of Warcraft, like most peoples. I will say that World of Warcraft has one piece of storytelling that is superior to 14 (at times) and it is that the world goes on without you. Sometimes being the Warrior of Light is exhausting and most decent roleplayers cut that out of their backstory entirely (can’t have 50000 people who all claim to have defeated [REDACTED] with their giant [REDACTED] right in the [REDACTED]!)

BUT this is about what makes FFXIV different and I have to say that the fact that it is always a story first, multiplayer last…. At least if you aren’t a heathen who skips cutscenes.

Which brings me to my next point – You decide how you play. If you want to skip every cutscene and just do Ultimate content forever, you are 100% capable of doing it and you will find a community open to it!

If you could make at least 1 change to FFXIV based on personal preference, what would you pick and why?: One change? Hmm… that is a tough one. I am a pretty go with the flow sort of person – or at least I believe I am. I would say that the change I would like to see is probably… more saved waymarkers.

What is your most memorable/favorite moment in FFXIV?:

This is a tough one! There have been so many great moments but I think the best moment is probably with the release of Endwalker. It was the first time that Coconu and I were both starting content at the exact same time and we were able to throw theories at each other across the room as we played. The excitement between the two of us was absolutely fantastic and was definitely some real magic moments in FFXIV.

Another memorable moment is when I was part of King’s Guard and we finally cleared P3S. We were all so happy after so much frustration. Our hard work and teamwork paid off.

Do you have any favorite visuals of your character you want to share with the FC for the newsletter?:

When did you join Celestia?: May 2021

What drew you to join Celestia? Was it a person, an advertisement, etc?:

Without going into too much detail and drama, Coconu and I were looking for a new FC that we could just disappear into and just be another face in the crowd. I went on the FFXIV FC website listing and looked at the top most active FCs and found one. We were greeted, within 15 minutes, to someone explaining how they were going to tie…well..do something to someone. We left and ran to the next FC on the list and found Celestia. We got invites and said “Yes. Now we can be quiet and not get attached to anyone.”

That…didn’t work out.

What do you like about Celestia as a Free Company?:

We all seem to show respect to each other most of the time. One of the first voice calls that Coco and I ever joined (maybe Coco should be part of this interview too…) someone was saying something about someone and Harli said “Now be quiet. They are not here to defend themselves.” That was…exactly what we needed to hear at the time to decide to remain for a long time.

Also the events that we have. Our leadership team really seems to care about making sure that this FC is more than just #s. It is a family.

It is also really cool that I have got to meet so many people in real life too!

What is your favorite weekly event to participate in with Celestia?: Favorite weekly events is probably Primal Learning, Primal Farming, and Maps.

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Z’attania’s House Tours

We have a new block here for the newsletter, taking up another fun social aspect that comes following the success of this recent Housing Contest! Requested by our fellow Celestia FC member, and house decorator, Z’attania Tsu, this section will be to promote various housing-related items to our interested members.

Expect to read details, and see details, regarding various housing aspects such as:

A different member’s house each month

Photos of their recent decorating efforts

Details about the context and implementation to achieve the desired decoration result

With that in mind, here is the very first of Z’attania’s House Tours!

NOOK AND CRANNY

A House Tour with Z

(featuring a new member’s design every month!)

Harliqyn Mave’s FC apartment

Address: Free company house, room #6

A cozy, moody library in mostly black, with some accents of red wood and a few gothic touches, this is an ideal place to kick back with a book on a rainy afternoon. Harli has thought of everything. There’s a stepladder to reach those books on the top shelves, a apothecary set on the coffee table to practice the potion recipes you research from the restricted section, and just the right amount of paper-related clutter.

What the homeowner is proudest of: That drop ceiling! Harli achieved this design without any glitching or floating techniques, and getting that ceiling just right required a lot of work. And it shows.

What Z especially liked: Those orchestrion players are pretty big and bulky. By sinking his orchestrion part-way into the wall partition, Harli created a more slim and sleek version, which is nice! I also like that all the furniture matches Harli’s chosen aesthetic: dark and moody but comfortable.

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Conclusion

Another month gone, and we are close to being a full third of the way into the new year. As we look forward to warmer temperatures, the first blossoms of spring and the return of sunshine to places that have missed it for months now, we must remember that this year is another new year for us to catch up. To see people we have not seen for a while, to see things we have not seen, do things we have not done, and to find new ways of embracing our lives and making them just a little bit better.

Patch 6.35 is still on the horizon, drawing closer with each week and day passed. Expect that there may be news on this upcoming patch by the next newsletter. Until then, please be kind and excellent to each other, embrace spring when it comes, and look forward to another long year of accomplishments and betterment for yourselves and for others you care for.

See you, Space Warriors of Light.