FFXIV Lore: Aether and the Lifestream

  Hey there, everyone!  Dark here offering you the first of several entries regarding the lore and mythos of Final Fantasy 14. Whether you're a story buff like myself or you simply want to fill in some gaps that may not have made sense at first, this is the place for you! 

     Before we can delve into the story and history itself, we must first look at how the world of Hydaelyn maintains itself and those who walk its surface: The Lifestream. 

     Eorzea is one of several continents on the overall world of Hydaelyn, and it's known for its especially high concentration of aether, a physical representation of the Lifestream. Think of aether as energy or, for those who practice yoga or some eastern religions, your chakra or chi. Basically, when you are born, you are provided with a certain concentration of aether. Aetheric concentration determines most of what makes a being: life span, overall health and stamina, performance, and aptitude for the practice of magic. As you live, the amount of aether lessens, either through natural means, the corruption of the body when it comes in contact with crystals, or mortal wounds, which cause such a violent loss of aether that it manifests as crystals. If your aether is lost, you die, transferring your energy back to the Lifestream, where it is recycled and feeds the very planet itself.

     Now, since Eorzea is abundant with natural aether, its inhabitants have a firmer grasp on the practice of magics. Magic is simply the manipulation of aether by an individual to serve a specific purpose. To manipulate aether, one has to have an understanding of how aether works, its natural balance with the Lifestream, and how its different elemental aspects interact with each other. I'll cover that in another article, but for now, just know that if aether is manipulated in ways that go against the natural order of the Lifestream, it can have disastrous consequences. The biggest reference you'll come across in the game regarding misuse of magics occurred during the War of the Magi, when the Mhachi (practitioners of black arts) waged war against Amdapor (white magic), the culmination of which led to a world-wide flood that nearly wiped out all life on the planet. For centuries after, the practice of white and black magics was banned, for fear of repeating past mistakes. It eventually made a resurgence, however, when people began respecting magic and understanding its relationship to life and death itself, the most notable example being the relationship between Gridanians and the elementals of the Twelveswood. 

     It was also around this time that the Sharlayans, a group of nomadic scholars, discovered a means to travel through the Lifestream. Normally, any living being who encounters the Lifestream gets lost in the aetheric flow. Without their physical form, they eventually lose their sense of will and self, dissolving back into the fold. However, it was discovered that particularly large crystals formed where the Lifestream was close to the surface of the planet. Upon studying these mysterious crystals, the Sharlayans realized that they could manipulate them in order to allow a person to instantly pass from one waypoint to another through the Lifestream safely. By creating a sort of road between waypoints, a user could condense into their pure aether, crossing into the aetherial plane without losing their grip on the physical plane. This allowed them to retain their sense of will; thus, teleportation was born, and with it came further development and understanding of magic as we know it in the game today.  

And there you have it ^^ A quick rundown of the life force that makes up Hydaelyn. In a future article, I'll go more into detail regarding elements and crystals, but for now, happy gaming!

Written By

Darkmaelstrom Stewart