On the first day of the Fan Festival for MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV, which took place in Tokyo, the developers revealed a lot of new information about the upcoming Dawntrail expansion. Players will find a new class (profession), new locations, new dungeons, graphical improvements and much more. In this article you will learn more about this.
Note: If you haven’t read the summary from the previous event, be sure to check it out at this link.
New trailer for Dawntrail
In the full cinematic trailer for Final Fantasy XIV Dawntrail, produced by Square Enix’s Image Studio, we learn about the profession of Pictomancer, as well as a new character, the female Hrothgar, who figures prominently in the new story. She invites the Warrior of Light and the Scions to her home, Tural, to take part in a competition to determine the successor to Ruler Tuliollal.
Dawntrail is the fifth expansion for Final Fantasy XIV, which has now reached its 10th anniversary and has amassed over 30 million registered players. It will be released in the summer of 2023, although the team is not ready to give an exact date yet, as they want to avoid delays, as happened with the previous expansion.
New profession Pictomancer
The second profession appearing in the Dawntrail expansion is the Pictomancer. In the cinematic trailer, Creel demonstrates this new profession. This DPS caster is inspired by the original art from Final Fantasy VI, but differs in that it creates art rather than duplicating it. Final Fantasy series creators working on various projects met and confirmed that Pictomancer should become the official nomenclature for this profession in the future.
In Final Fantasy XIV, Pictomancers can create more than just monsters—they can also create weapons and terrain to aid in combat. Characters use a brush as a weapon and casting equipment. They work with the medium of the “mixed ether” to cast spells and bring their creations into reality.
The Pictomancer does not require a pre-class to play and starts at level 80 with a quest chain in Gridania.
Pictomancers will have spells that need to be cast, which will require casting time, but they will also have a set of instant abilities. They will not be able to resurrect party members.
Although the Pictomancer has support abilities, it should not be considered a support profession, but it is not a pure attacker like a black mage.
Tural and new locations
The team described one of Dawntrail’s plots as: “the best summer vacation a Warrior of Light can have.” A new character coming in Patch 6.55, releasing on January 16th, is a female Hrothgar originally from Tural.
She calls on them to help her in the competition. The prize is the inheritance of the ruler of Tuliollal, a huge city located at the junction of the northern and southern regions of Tural.
Succession competition can also divide Scions who hold views contrary to your own. A massive bridge near Tuliollal connects the northern and southern regions of Tural, and the story may feel split in two as you travel from one to the other, but it will be one scenario.
The team also revealed new areas that look radically different from anything else in the Dawntrail expansion. The new city of Solution Nine is “a city with towering facades, built by an entirely different civilization from Tuliollal.”
Another area of the Heritage Found is a region “overflowing with lightning energy, where thick thunderclouds obscure the sun and purple streaks illuminate the land day and night.” This is not a dungeon – ordinary people live here.
In Dawntrail you will meet new allies – Pelupeul and Moblins, as well as Hanu-Hana (similar to Vanu-Wanu). Mamul Jha is another diverse culture that has different views and values.
New threats and new raids
It was previously stated at other Dawntrail fan festivals that the expansion will pit players against new threats, presumably in new challenges.
Pictured on the left are three of these challenges: Valigarmanda – a winged serpent that players may remember from Final Fantasy VI, the Eliminator – a mysterious entity that appears to be potentially synthetic and organic, and… Barreltender – a saboteur with unique proportions.
New dungeons
8 Player Raid: The Arcadion
While there hasn’t been much information about this raid, we already know that it will be located in a futuristic zone called Solution Nine.
This 8-player raid will have Normal and Savage difficulty versions, which will be released a month after the expansion, so that players will not rush to complete the expansion story and can enjoy the raid.
Alliance Raid: Echoes of Vana’Diel
In this collaboration with Final Fantasy XI, players will take on a challenge from the world of Vana’Diel.
In particular, with the Lord of Shadows, who is the main antagonist of the first Final Fantasy MMORPG.
This series of alliance raids will begin in patch 7.1 and will continue after launch.
Ultimate Raid: Eden – Futures Rewritten
The next ultimate raid will take us back to Eden.
In the ultimate raid, Eden – Future Rewritten, players will see a potentially different what-if scenario involving the main characters Ryne and Gaia.
The team admitted that the popularity of the raid, its story and characters led them to choose this raid as their next ultimate.
Female version of Hrothgar
Female Hrothgar will be the latest race added to Final Fantasy XIV. The team wanted to make them as lean and strong as possible.
The Hrothgars come from Ilzabard, and there are “relatively few women among them, but they are easily recognized by their slender, muscular forms. An equally characteristic feature is their penchant for leadership. The Turali people, who share common ancestors with the Khbr’aal, call Yak T’el their home.”
New equipment and new graphics
The team showed off a ton of fresh images related to the new gear and how the graphics update coming with Dawntrail will better display different materials with increased clarity.
Character models have also been improved with more polygons and higher resolution textures. Dark skin tones have been adjusted to look better in dark, low-light environments, and hair has been improved. Yoshida assured players with characters of the Au Ra race that if they do not like the new look of the eyes, they can still achieve the previous appearance.
Additionally, in the future, all players will receive a free Fantasia bottle, which will allow them to change their appearance if they choose.
Graphics comparison – before and after
New content
Core Combat Content
There will be new FATEs from previous expansions in the field zones, as well as new hunt signs, treasure hunts, and timed sidequests.
The Duty Support system is also getting an update, and you can expect Pictomancer Creel to join you at some point.
Space exploration
Once Dawntrail launches, a completely new type of non-combat content will be introduced in a series of patches. Peaceful content first appeared with the debut of Island Exploration, in which you could explore the island, collect resources, and craft items at the factory.
The new content is available to play solo, but is designed to allow you to work together to progress. Here you will visit different planets. With each update, the planet where you will work will change.
The scenario here will be different from what happens in the main scenario, and the team wants you to think about what kind of gaming experience you will have in these different worlds.
Constant content updates
Once the Dawntrail expansion is released, content will be released in a series of patches. You can expect updates to existing content such as the limited Blue Mage profession, new Hildibrand adventures, a new Deep Dungeon (the team has plans, but they’re not final yet), a Gold Saucer update, a PVP update (starting with version 7.1), and new dungeons Variant Dungeons.
Field Operations
The Endwalker expansion’s post-launch content schedule did not include a new Field Operation, a term used to refer to content like Stormblood’s Eureka and Shadowbringers, and the team has received a lot of feedback on it since then.
In the 7.x series, the team will release something in the style of this content. It will be designed for players who will need to clear large areas.
Yoshida noted how times and attitudes have changed since Eureka’s debut, and said that Field Operations eventually evolved into the type of content that the community loved, and although they took a break with the 6.x series, the new Field Operations ” will still appear.
Limited Profession: Beastmaster
Beast Mastery is a new limited edition profession coming out in a series of patches following the Dawntrail expansion.
Like the Blue Mage, this profession will be different from the combat professions, and will offer some kind of collectible aspect, as well as tasks for solo play and group play.
More detailed information, including illustrations, will be published later.
Art by Akihiko Yoshida
