The Celestia Citizen (“Wake Me Up When September Ends” Edition)

Hello, my fellow Celestians! And welcome to another edition of the Celestia Citizen! We’ve got just a couple more weeks of summer to go before Autumn (Fall to some) sets in and starting bringing cooler temperatures and plant life begins to lull off. And let’s not forget it is also Pumpkin Spice season too! I hope everyone gets their annual fill of the niche flavor, if you do care for it!

October is still some weeks away, bringing even cooler temperatures, lots of leaves, and the joy of Halloween! Until then, we still have to weather a September. Or we can slumber through it.

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Final Fantasy XIV News

First, the 10th Anniversary event is still ongoing in-game, particularly with the Moogle Treasure Trove (10th Anniversary Hunt)! There is currently no end date to this except “with the release of Patch 6.5”. While tomestones may be more plentiful in getting, there are also numerous prizes available to get, many of which are either limited to in-game events or command huge prices on the Market Board! Refer here for the current details: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/special/mogmog-collection/202308/1ny0ji96di

Speaking of Patch 6.5, it now has a tentative release date of “Early October 2023” (which will give focus to players who want to complete the 10th Anniversary Event and obtain all of their desired prizes). It also has a special site now posted to tease many of the upcoming details waiting to release with it. Refer here: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/topics/detail/4eae7bf1425dbcde6dce089dffeec16c688a8c3e

Next, the Rising is now live and due to run until the release of Patch 6.5. Be sure to get this one done, as it includes a special mount for free!: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/special/2023/The_Rising/eykg76bc2d

The next Live Letter is scheduled for Saturday, September 23rd. Details are linked here: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/topics/detail/0f699c77ac8fae0f73ca75ec326206313b1ea771

For the current 10th Anniversary event, a special survey is being conducted for players to write about their FFXIV experience (such as main job, what FFXIV means to a player, and so on). Based on responses, there will be a new side story and that side story may also feature a character from a previous one or from the new “Tales under the New Moon” series! Refer here for the article & survey: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/topics/detail/6b16d69fcbc27be1e4fc18bd884ba63654853c07

To tie into the referenced “Tales under the New Moon” series, there have been 3 stories released to date since August 25th. Here are the links to them:

First story: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/topics/detail/378a37193045835181833e2b297304a6ba0a10af

Second story: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/topics/detail/8b735439d154e2c5b2439e758144c6ea5b3a3483

Third story: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/topics/detail/352aef60539bbf97c631673914217d958499b3e7

Look forward to more stories in the coming weeks and months!

And lastly, the Fall Guys x Final Fantasy XIV collaborations have begun within the Fall Guys game, but the Final Fantasy XIV side is due to still occur. There will be special Gold Saucer events occurring with the Patch 6.5x series. Refer here: https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/special/fallguys/

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Free Company Updates and Social Events

We are continuing to take Officer applications at our respective Discord server for:

Raid Officer (Held on Tuesdays, based on current content – Normal 8-Man & Alliance 24-Man)

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

PvP (hosting PvP content – At least one/week, such as Rival Wings, The Feast, Crystalline Conflict, etc)

Social Events – Holds & organizes social events for Free Company members (at least 1 event/month)

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

The first thing to touch base on is Celestia’s 10th Anniversary. On August 17th, 2013, Celestia was founded. On the 19th, the Free Company celebrated with an organized march across the 3 major cities (Ul’dah, Limsa Lominsa, and Old Gridania). Gifts were then given out to our members, and we had reconvened at the FC House for a group photo to commemorate our Free Company and its members.

From Aurora Lightsnow:

From Scura Darkangel:

From Squirrel Guile:

From Aminore Vespertine:

From Karah Thrace:

And one from yours truly (Scarlette Valanorr):

And lastly, a special gift from Aurora Lightsnow to our Free Company leaders, Blessed and Scura Darkangel – A photo of the lovely couple, and a declaration:

“A little over 10 years ago two new adventurers Blessed and Scura Darkangel set forth into Eorzea, bent on world domination… errr I mean to have fun and have adventures. They created Celestia Free Company to gather minions to further their evil empire… (opps wrong narrative) to gather other adventurers to explore this strange new world, to seek out new life and kill it and boldly go where no others have gone before (hmm how did Star Trek get in here). Over the last 10 years Celestia has grown into one of the largest and oldest FCs on Hyperion, we’ve had our ups and downs and sideways, growing pains, and our share of drama but through it all we’ve always worked to make it a fun FC. We’ve laughed and cried together, made fun of one another, murdered each other… (umm darn Among Us snuck in) and generally having a good time. Please join us tonight as we celebrate Celestia’s 10 year anniversary.”

(Pictured below are physical stand-ins for Blessed and Scura’s characters)

In closing this out, I want to extend a Thank You and a Congratulations to all of our members, new and old, for helping to make Celestia the best Free Company on Hyperion server in Final Fantasy XIV! Let us strive forward for another 10 years!

The next Free Company meeting is scheduled for Saturday, September 30th at 6PM PT. Be sure to join us on Discord via “The Great Theatre”, and in-game at the communal pool near the FC house in Ishgard!

On Wednesday, September 13th, Eorzea Octopus Week will begin! This Fisher-themed series of events will occur from the 13th to the 19th, and will contain events for Fishers of all levels! There will be prizes included such as Gil, Aethersand, Glamour Items (ranging in value from 50k to 150k usually) and raffle tickets for a 1 million Gil prize (the more you participate in these events, the more raffle tickets you can earn for your chance)! Refer to the #announcements channel for the general announcement, the #general-dol-doh channel for sign-ups for the events, and be sure to also have the @DOL/DOH role on your Discord profile in-server to receive notifications!

Recently, the Free Company had done a Sightseeing event for the Stormblood expansion on August 26th. However, one component of this log was regarding one of the greatest challenges in the game to date: Jumping Puzzles. Join us on September 23rd as the grandest of these jumping puzzles, the Kugane Tower, is tackled in our next social event on Saturday, September 23rd at 2pm! You will need either the jumping ability (for climbing up the tower solo) or Blue Mage role with Self-Destruct unlocked (for resurrecting to the Sightseeing vista). Be sure to join us via the #social-event channel in our Discord server!

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Beyond the Light

For our next Beyond the Light interview, our winner of this month’s draw is Gunner Thehunter! 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! Linked here is the direct interview form for your submissions: https://forms.gle/oRb3pzQEp8y1MaRQ6



What is your in-game character’s name?: Gunner Thehunter

What race are you currently in-game?: Miqo’te

What drew you into your current choice of race?: I like the look honestly and me and my Fiancée Xotika L’xia wanted to match. (Corny I know LOL)

When did you first start playing FFXIV?: August 24, 2013 (A fellow 10th Anniversary player!)

What drew you to pick up and play FFXIV?: I played FFXI and then moved to 1.0 and from there moved to ARR in closed beta.

How far have you gotten into the MSQ (Main Story Questline) of FFXIV?: I am caught up!

What was your first (job? class? role?) when you started?: Gladiator to Paladin

What motivated you to pick that first (job? class? role?)?: I played RDM in FFXI and I wanted something different and I wanted it to be tanking and then it grew on me.

To date, what favorite jobs/roles/classes do you have?: PLD, NIN, Monk, One day Reaper, MIN, FSH, GLD

What kind of content do you enjoy?: MSQ, Savage Raids, Crafting/Gathering, Duty Content, Side Quests, Casual Content, Collectible Getting

What would you say is your favorite content type from above to do? And why?: To be honest it has to be the duty content, because its where the team work and party system is used the most is the Duty’s. We all log in each day and run daily’s, some have their static groups for content, so many different duty’s to be done in the game which I know I haven’t by far done nearly half of LOL. I love to do this with the FC, I like doing big raids, I love grinding for better gear in the duty’s. I like being social. MSQ is great don’t get me wrong but a lot of walking haha.

What is one thing you like about FFXIV that distinguishes them from other MMOs?: Well I with me already being a fan of FFXI It was hard not to follow the title, but I did play AION, Guild Wars, and WoW (Cartoony) and FFXIV was the beefed up FFXI on steroids with a twist. As well seeing the end of 1.0 and being apart of ARR from the start kind of Biased.

If you could make at least 1 change to FFXIV based on personal preference, what would you pick and why?: To be honest what pushed me away from FFXI was the fact they destroyed the HNMS scene. Yes I understand it was bot filled but it was fun to camp them track them and claim them. You just had to get in the right linkshell by being a dedicated player. But they did add their own variation of HNMS so the concern was answered.

What is your most memorable/favorite moment in FFXIV?: To be honest my most memorable moment for FFXIV was when it became the number 1 MMORPG, being apart of closed beta to now has really been a crazy ride and I have a lot to do in the game still, but what Yoshi P has built is legendary and is historical in my eyes and he is a pure genius I cannot wait to see what’s in store for the future with the rest of you.

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

When did you join Celestia?: October 2013

What drew you to join Celestia? Was it a person, an advertisement, etc?: Well I was drawn to Celestia with a couple other friends who are no longer with the FC and I loved how active the FC was. As well the hang outs in voice chat to make everything easier then trying to read an understand what is being typed.

What do you like about Celestia as a Free Company?: I love the fact that no matter what happens in your life you are always welcome back to the free company, I joined the Originally the date marked above with breaks that life made me take, not at my choice so I have been in and out 3 times and this being my 4th I am back for good, and was welcomed just the same.

What is your favorite weekly event to participate in with Celestia?: Well I know for me its gonna be old content because that’s where i am at I haven’t really concentrated on anything else but leveling some jobs helping FC mate Shadowed Raven with his MSQ to get caught up to my fiancée Xotika L’xia and I so we can progress together through the old content that we are at.

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Z’attania’s House Tours

Next, we have the newest presentation from our resident housing columnist, Z’attania Tsu, for her Nook and Cranny coverage in House Tours!

NOOK AND CRANNY

A House Tour with Z

Gunner’s House

Address: Goblet Ward 20, Plot 42

Three’s Company at Gunner’s House! This house is owned by Gunner, but shared with 2 other FC members: Shadowed Raven and Xotiika Thehunter. Since the house is a medium, each roommate designed a different floor and created a home that they all share together. Upstairs is a master bedroom, the main floor is a kitchen and living room, and the downstairs is another bedroom and study.

What Gunner is proudest of: how they split the floors and designed them! Shadowed Raven took the basement, Xotiika Thehunter was in charge of the master bedroom upstairs, and Gunner designed the common areas on the main floor. Gunner especially likes the basement and thinks it came out the best, and all three of them agree that fish tanks were a must!

What Z especially liked: The chocobo stable in the yard is very pretty. The oriental grass plot in front of the chocobos looks like the perfect tasty treat for hungry birds, and hiding the aetheryte shard among the grass gives a very nice blue glow.

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Conclusion

We are now two-thirds of the way through 2023, and we will be nearly one-third of the way through the 2020s come end of year. It feels as if things are steadily getting worse, but they are also getting better. Remember that just because the world slowed to a crawl for a couple of years does not mean that your hopes and dreams have to, either. Be sure to reach out, seize opportunity and work to better yourself continuously (whether it is finding a better paying job, getting yourself a new house when you’ve had an apartment, getting yourself into physical or mental or vocational shape, meeting that special someone, or so on).

See you, Space Warriors of Light 🙂 .