Oceanus
Taxonomy: Wavekin (Sea Serpent)
Description: Sea Serpents were once fantastically rare creatures, found only in the depths of the seas. With the calamity this began to change, with the serpents even daring to venture inland, where they have adjusted well to freshwater after their lives in the sea. Presumably these specimens predate all of those concerns, and were brought here by Allag in the Third Astral era, and it could be theorized that the adaptive salt-to-freshwater nature of their move inland could even hint at a chimeric origin.
Etymology Notes: Oceanus was the titan personification of the ocean in Greek myths, and this is clearly easily applied to the serpents of Eorzea due to their nature as beings of the oceans.
Dark General
Taxonomy: Forgekin (Iron Giant)
Description: Some of Allag’s finest war machina, the iron giants are possessed of immense strength and durability, and have been some of the most fervently replicated creations by Garlemald. Perhaps the name of these giants could imply a sort of eliteness in their nature, as would be expected in such a rarified locale as the tower.
Etymology Notes: The name Dark General is a reference to the monsters of the same name found in Crystal Tower in Final Fantasy III.
The Ninjas
Taxonomy: Spoken (Hyur)
Description: One might assume that these were Othardi subjects of the Allagan Empire (or clones of these subjects), employed for defense or perhaps as assassins by Xande. Both shinobi and their female counterparts, kunoichi, were found in the tower.
The Dragons
Taxonomy: Scalekin/Spoken (Dragon)
Description: A mainline, unspecialized dragon. These beings are immensely powerful, wise as the ages and capable of elemental aether manipulation, particularly through their breath attacks. The perception of the dragon differs from place-to-place, with most people regarding them as pseudo-mythical figures of legend and romanticized adventures, but with the inhabitants of Ishgard boasting a considerably more complex perception, due to their history with the Dravanian Horde. There were a number of dragons in the tower, ranging from yellow to green and red, and these individuals likely came from the Meracydian Horde before being enslaved by Allag.
Scylla ☠
Taxonomy: Chimera/Spoken (???)
Description: Records recovered from Allagan ruins speak of a brilliant mage, one of the finest archmages of the imperial cadre, named Scylla. Scylla apparently had a deep fear of hounds, a weakness preyed upon by the sickening impulses of Amon, the personal vivimancer of Xande. He offered her immortality and power beyond mundane ability, to which Scylla eagerly agreed. When she awoke, to her horror, Amon had chimerically grafted a collection of still-living heads from rabid hounds. This horror drove her deeply insane.
Capabilities: Scylla was apparently able to unleash an ‘ancient flare’, presumably relating to the flare techniques of Bahamut. As an archmage she would’ve helped to command the war in Meracydia, and perhaps fought Bahamut herself. She may have adapted this technique from his own. She was also able to use ‘daybreak’ a technique in which she petrified those around her, perhaps named for the bright flash of light that accompanied the magic.
Etymology Notes: Scylla is named for a similar boss in FFIII, which in turn draws its name from the terrifying sea monster of Greek myth. Scylla was a terrible multi-headed beast (some of which were howling dogs around her waist) bristling with tentacles who obtained her vile visage by the dark magics of the witch Circe and attempted to slay Odysseus. Circe is obviously the original Amon in this case, which I suppose makes the WoL Odysseus.
Acheron
Taxonomy: Spoken/Chimera (???)
Description: These figures bore a startling resemblance to Phlegethon, the rebel leader turned slave soldier found in the Labyrinth of the Ancients. These figures could have been lesser rebel commanders altered in the same way as Phlegethon, or clones of Phlegethon himself.
Etymology Notes: Acheron was one of the rivers of the Greek underworld, and the Phlegethon ran into it. This name was likely chosen in order to emphasize the link between the Acherons and Phlegethon.
Gomory
Taxonomy: Chimera (Naga)
Description: It was once thought that the naga were natives of Othard, but further investigation into the matter proved that they were a particularly insidious form of chimera. These creatures were pieced together out of voidsent body parts, presumably largely ahriman, obtained by Allag. Their creation seems to have been a matter of curiosity, simply born out of the crafters asking if they could create chimeras out of voidsent.
Etymology Notes: Their name is a reference to Gremory, the goetic demon archduke who could answer questions about the past, present and future, which may be a reference to the power of these twisted creations.
The Royal Clones
Taxonomy: Spoken (Hyur)
Description: Two scions of the Allagan Imperial bloodline, Doga and Unei were used as subjects for experiments by Amon. Amon created exact facsimiles of their corporeal forms but found himself unable to grant them a soul. After studying them and learning all he could he sent the clones to the army that they might be deployed as weapons. Apparently that included guard duty in Syrcus Tower.
Etymology Notes: Doga and Unei are named for npcs of the same name from Final Fantasy III, both of whom were talented mages who studied under Noah, a famously powerful sage. Doga possessed vast magical power, while Unei possessed control over the dream world. Their fellow student was Xande, a clear reference to their blood relation to him in FFXIV. The role of Noah as Unei and Doga’s tutor is reflected in Noah being the instructor of the two in XIV, as well as the organization of the same name they worked with.
Glasya Labolas ☠
Taxonomy: Spoken/Chimera (???)
Description: One of the rare subjects of Amon that fully consented to the surgeries of the mad mage. Labolas was a cruel and sinister man who took joy in butchering the previous Emperor and his loyalists in service of Xande, as well as slaying those who dared to rebel against the Emperor. His role in the Empire was that of commander of the Imperial Honor Guard. Amon’s sinister procedures not only empowered Labolas and made him immortal, but it also twisted him into an even darker, crueler man.
Etymology Notes: Glasya Labos was a mighty demon prince, or earl, in Goetic canon who is the captain of bloodshed. Certainly a fitting name for the bloody monster of Allag.
Clockwork Wright
Taxonomy: Forgekin (Bits)
Description: Essentially small support platforms, it was bits like these that Nero tol Scaeva earned his name for reverse engineering and reinventing. Judging by the name ‘wright’ these devices helped to maintain the tower.
Clockwork Squire
Taxonomy: Forgekin (Clockwork Knights)
Description: More sophisticated than the general clockwork soldiers, knights such as these were created with warfare specifically in mind. Common features included enhanced armory, weaponry and even the ability to jam the aether of others, preventing spellcraft. That these were ‘squires’ might imply that these devices were assigned as assistants or guards to high-ranking Allagans in the Empire.
Azer
Taxonomy: Voidsent (Ogre)
Description: Ogres are immensely strong and similarly immensely stupid voidsent that occupy the ninth rank of the voidal hierarchy. They are often enslaved by more powerful voidsent, or even by talented void mages because of this low intelligence.
Etymology Notes: These draw their name from the humanoid fire elementals of D&D, which is a reference to the fact that ogres in FFXIV almost always employ some kind of fire attack.
Haokah
Taxonomy: Spoken (Mamool Ja)
Description: Mamool ja are not native to Eorzea, or indeed to any of the three great continents on the Source. They hail from the New World, where they are the rulers of a great empire with a rigid tribal caste system. The fact that mamool ja are found in the Tower is astounding, as previously it was not known that the Allagans had even stepped onto the New World. Their presence here clearly outlines that they had spent time there, and even established ties with the mamool ja. When we remember, then, that the mamool ja are divided into multiple specialized and genetically diverse tribes, it must call to mind the Allagan’s love of creating specialised lifeforms. Perhaps the Allagans were in part inspired by the mamool ja, or perhaps they even created the beast tribe as they did with the ixal.
Etymology Notes: The name Haokah is a reference to the Heyoka, a rare caste of jester-shaman found in Lakota culture, which I suspect implies that the Haokah served or were created by Amon, the trickster-thespian genius of Allagan science and magic.
Abaia
Taxonomy: Voidsent (Vodoriga)
Description: The vodoriga are a species of voidsent that specialize in possessing inorganic matter such as statues.
Etymology Notes: The abaia was an eel-like sea serpent of Melanesian myth that acted as a protector of nature. This name is a reference to the name Vodoriga, which means shark in Bulgarian.
Amon ☠
Taxonomy: Spoken/Chimera (???)
Description: An extremely talented mage and scientist, Amon was the finest vivimancer in Allag. He was once a medical scientist specialising in medicines that assisted with cognition, but his dissatisfaction with the state of the Empire grew. He decided that it was not knowledge that Allag needed, but a great leader. This would lead him down the path he eventually walked in pursuit of Xande’s resurrection.
Etymology Notes: Amon, or Amun, was a Kemetic god who was patron of the great city of Thebes and who later fused with the sun god Ra to become the pre-eminent god of ancient Egypt. The fusion aspect of this etymology may play some role in Amon’s chimerical powers but judging by the goetic basis of many names in Allag I suspect it is instead a reference to the demon prince Aamon. He curries favour and can influence relationships, which I suspect may represent Amon’s courtly influence.
Experimental By-product #66
Taxonomy: Ashkin (Slime)
Description: Slimes are produced when humors leaking out of corpses come to rest on an area enriched by earth aether. The earth aether adopts the aetheric energies left behind by the dead individual(s) and uses them to control the congealed biological material. Fiercely toxic, Slimes are completely without will and tend merely to mill around until being taken control of by a magick user. These particular slimes seem to be the cast-offs of Amon’s chimeric experiments.
Kum Kum
Taxonomy: Voidsent (Troubadour)
Description: Senior Voidsent with a habit of telling falsehoods who occupied the fifth rung of the Voidal Hierarchy, these beings are called troubadours. They were apparently favourites of Amon, and being too paranoid to trust any Spoken, he employed several troubadours as his personal assistants. These must, then, be those very same Voidsent.
Etymology Notes: The kum kum are named for Malay ghosts that seek to drink the blood of young women so that they might regain the beauty and youth they possessed in life. Presumably the supernatural nature of the ghosts holds significance with the otherworldly nature of the voidsent.
Kichiknebik
Taxonomy: Scalekin (Cobra)
Description: Enormous creatures, cobras such as these were originally native to Othard before coming to Eorzea as part of trade. Some scholars do suggest a different origin however, that of the Allagan Empire’s fearsome chimerical experiments. The latter seems somewhat truer, seeing this creature here.
Etymology Notes: The Kichiknebik was a great serpent of native American myth, and its serpentine nature holds clear significance with that of the cobras.
Xande ☠
Taxonomy: Spoken/Chimera (???)
Description: The greatest emperor of Allag, Xande functionally founded the Empire before passing away. Amon later revived him many centuries later, but the dark sciences and magics he used drove the Emperor mad, as well as making him prodigiously physically powerful. He went on to become a warmonger and butcher of epic proportions, and eventually slid so far into madness that he began an omnicidal plot to destroy the entire world by opening it to the Void. His methods of doing so failed when the Syrcus Tower, the battery he was using to do so, fell deep into the earth via the earthquakes begun by the Calamity of Earth. Amon cast a protective barrier over the tower, saving Xande and his closest cabal.
Etymology Notes: His name and design is of course a reference to Xande, the joint antagonist of Final Fantasy III. A consummate mage, Xande was terrified by the thought of his mortality and indeed was driven quite insane by it. He began to seek the stasis of darkness. Xande may be derived from Xander and thus Alexander, a Greek name meaning ‘defender of men.’ This may not seem to suit the Emperor now, but in his first life he did advance society in a thousand different ways and defend at least his subjects, and the allusions to Alexander the Great are clear.
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