The first wave of Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail patch content arrives with Patch 7.1, bringing new main scenario quests (MSQ) and daily quests. These patches typically serve two purposes: tying loose ends from the previous expansion and laying the groundwork for the next. Patch 7.1’s MSQ delves into the mystery of Gulool Ja’s mother, leading players to an abandoned research facility and the new dungeon, Yuweyawata Station. This questline may offer intriguing hints about future FFXIV content.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for FFXIV: Dawntrail and Patch 7.1
The 7.1 MSQ begins with the search for Gulool Ja’s mother. This seemingly simple task becomes a complex investigation, eventually leading to an old, decommissioned research facility. The hope of finding clues about this mysterious Mamool Ja woman prompts the group to explore the lab, ultimately unlocking the Yuweyawata Station dungeon.
Unraveling the Secrets of Yuweyawata Station
Within Yuweyawata Station, scattered notes reveal the facility’s grim purpose: researching ways to enhance individuals’ strength by channeling feral souls through their resonators. While this research ultimately succeeded, evidenced by characters using feral souls in dungeons and the Arcadion raid, the notes depict the initial struggles and setbacks. The lab’s dilapidated state, littered with bodies and bloodstains, suggests a troubled history and the possibility that Yuweyawata Station was not the final location for this research.
Yuweyawata Station’s final boss, the Tural Vidraal
While volunteers were supposedly recruited, the notes hint that test subjects may have been unaware of the experiments’ true nature. In some instances, researchers themselves became test subjects. After completing the dungeon, players witness a vision through the Echo, revealing Zoraal Ja’s intention to harness the power of the Tural Vidraal through this feral soul research. This vision also unveils Gulool Ja’s mother as Teeshal Ja.
The Tural Vidraal and Cahcuia: A Possible Connection?
The Yuweyawata Station’s final boss, the Tural Vidraal, bears a striking resemblance to a deceased NPC, Cahcuia. The circumstances surrounding Cahcuia’s death remain shrouded in mystery. She never reveals how she died, and the Alexandrian populace either forgets her or avoids the topic. Even considering the time distortions caused by the dome, Cahcuia’s death is unlikely due to old age, given the Viera’s long lifespan.
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The Tural Vidraal and Cahcuia share similar color palettes and distinctive braid styles, a detail not often seen in FFXIV. Furthermore, the Tural Vidraal is described as a distant relative of the Shetona, information gleaned from the minion dropped by the boss. This suggests that the researchers might have believed a Shetona soul could better control the Tural Vidraal.
Cahcuia’s memories recreated as an endless echo
Given the researchers’ experimentation with both placing beast souls in mortals and mortal souls in beasts, a chilling theory emerges. Could Cahcuia have been a test subject, her soul extracted and placed within the Tural Vidraal, her fragmented memories then residing within the Living Memory where players encounter her?
Shifting Narratives and Unanswered Questions
This theory is not without its flaws. The Echo vision after defeating the Tural Vidraal depicts Zoraal Ja and Teeshal Ja, suggesting Teeshal Ja might be the soul connected to the beast. The circumstances of Cahcuia’s death and the true identity of the Tural Vidraal’s soul remain unclear.
Some speculate that parts of Patch 7.1 were initially intended for the base expansion, later repurposed as patch content. This shift in narrative direction might explain the coincidental similarities between Cahcuia and the Tural Vidraal, with insufficient time or justification to alter the boss design within FFXIV‘s established 10-year roadmap.
While many questions linger, hope remains that future patches will shed light on these unsettling experiments, particularly as Gulool Ja entrusts the research data to Shale. In the meantime, players can anticipate the upcoming mobile playtests for FFXIV.
