Final Fantasy 14: Stormblood

By Geegiiee

In 1557 of the Sixth Astral Era, the forces of the Garlean Empire launched an attack on Eorzea. Ala Mhigo, a strong nation known for their influential Lancers and the Monks of the Fist of Rhalgr, fell to the Garleans overwhelming firepower and airships. From that time onwards the country has served as nothing more than another imperial territory under the governance of its usurpers. Stormbloods main story focus is about regaining control of Ala Mhigo and liberating Doma, another nation that has been struggling under the control of the Garlean Empire. Its storyline is fascinating from start to finish and I can guarantee that you’ll be fully invested in the fight to free the people of Ala Mhigo and Doma from the grips of the Garlean Empire as soon as you begin your adventure.If you are unfamiliar with this tale of might and magic, this is the world of Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn. They recently released their latest expansion, Stormblood and I have been diving into this fantastic expansion quite a bit!

Kugane at night

I have made my way through all the expansions of Final Fantasy 14 multiple times and so far, Stormblood is easily making its way to the top of my favourite list. From the depths of the Ruby Sea to the grassy plains of the Azim Steppes, Stormblood offers a vast range of new areas to discover and explore. Along with these new areas a primary city zone called Kugane has been introduced this expansion. It does a beautiful job at showing off a far east aesthetic, with temples, dogos and pagodas. Comparing it to the last expansion, which was zones of castles, and stone housing, Stormblood offers a visually pleasing change of pace.

Geegee doing some exploring underwater

Final Fantasy 14s expansion not only comes with a new map to explore but also two new battle classes, Red Mage and Samurai. Both of which have quickly taken the spot of favourites for a lot of players and, on the plus side, are high damage dealing machines. Red mage uses a melee weapon and long range casted abilities to give it the first class in Final Fantasy 14 to do both; As for Samurai a melee class, they use beautifully crafted katanas to precisely defeat their enemies. Fortunately for players, both new classes start at level 50 so you can jump right in and reach new content quickly.

New classes Red Mage and Samurai

If battle and exploring aren’t enough to keep you satisfied Final Fantasy 14 offers a wide range of intricate crafting and gathering classes, from Culinary to Fishing! And with the release of Stormblood there are even more new recipes to collect and items to be gathered than ever before.

Chef Geegee reporting for duty

Final Fantasy 14 is a vast game even before Stormblood was released and can probably be a bit daunting to new players. But I can assure anyone out there that if you’re willing to sit down and give it a try there is no better time than right now. The changes that came with Stormblood have made the game an even more new player friendly place than ever before. With the revamp of the battle systems, the experience bonus given for content below 60 and the beautifully written storyline, you’ll be on the shore of Stormblood ready to liberate Ala Mhigo in no time.

Are you going to check out Stormblood? Do you already play Final Fantasy 14: Stormblood? If so, what are your thoughts on it?