Our first steps into Tural are fast approaching and the official benchmark is here to whet our appetites. Victor, Nadia, and Mike discuss the 14-hour livestream, what the graphics update has done to our Warriors of Light, the many exciting teases in the benchmark trailer, and more on this episode of a very good Final Fantasy XIV podcast.

Also:

- Stranger of Paradise was really good

- A tribe consisting entirely of Rob Paulsens

- The Archons play Who's That Minion? (name pending)

Music In This Episode:

Dawntrail Benchmark BGM

Ahoy there Dropouts, and welcome to a lengthy in-depth study about Final Fantasy IV's influence on Final Fantasy XIV! Final Fantasy IV first came to the Super Famicom in 1991, and is still regarded as Final Fantasy's first instance of getting deep into narrative. Unsurprisingly, many of the characters, locales, monsters, and lore Final Fantasy IV introduced us to has been given ample representation in Final Fantasy XIV. Black Chocobos! The Dragoon Pose!™ Troia! Tall men in black armour! And gee Zero, how come Hydelin lets you have TWO moons? Nadia, Victor, and Marc Duddleson from My Life in Gaming tally up the references.

Music Used in this Episode:

Spoiler Level: Red. We talk about all the story content in the game up through the end of 6.x!

Stock up on shuriken because this episode is all about the hugely influential (if only in Japan) Final Fantasy III. And the fact we don't even mention the naming differences between FFIII for SNES vs. FFVI vs. the ACTUAL FFIII means maybe the world has moved on!

Join Archons Victor Hunter, Nadia Oxford, and special guest Retro Ali as we take a deep dive into the Crystal Tower, the Warriors of Darkness, Eureka, and more!

Music in this Episode:

Battle 2 - [Final Fantasy III]

Battle 2 - [Final Fantasy III - Four Souls -]

Shattered - [Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn]

The Reach of Darkness - [Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn]

Eternal Wind - [Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn]

The wait for Dawntrail continues but to tide us all over the talented Sena Bryer (the voice of Wuk Lamat herself!) stops by Dropouts HQ to talk about her experience as both a fan and cast member of Final Fantasy XIV. We discuss the excitement in the lead up to her Fan Fest reveal, her ongoing pacifist run of FFXIV, the 1.0 days, her history with FFXI, and more on this very special episode of Sharlayan Dropouts!

Part 2 of our 16-ish-month-long series is here! There's no shortage of people who claim II is The Worst One so the Dropouts are here to tell you why they're wrong. Victor is joined by special guest Christa Lee to discuss Dragoons, Dark Knights, Despots, Drive-Ins, and Dives. Does Final Fantasy II get enough credit for the major influences it had on Final Fantasy XIV and the Final Fantasy series going forward? You can probably guess that it does not! So let's give it some! Also let's go on tangents about FFXI and early Japanese PC adventure games!

Music In This Episode:

Rebel Army - [Final Fantasy II]

Battle Theme 1.x - [Final Fantasy XIV]

Love it or hate it, it's once again the time of year where the Dropouts directly and indirectly reveal way too much about themselves for the sake of a ridiculous Top 12 list. In what will surely be a strong contender for "Episode of a Final Fantasy Podcast Where The Hosts Make Up The Most Euphemisms For Doing it", Victor, Nadia, Mike, and Eric assemble the sexiest roster of FFXIV NPCs to duke it out for the prestigious title of Etheirys' Most Bankable Slampiece. Don't tell your girlfriend about this thirsty, deeply unpleasant, X-rated episode of Sharlayan Dropouts! You won't last 30 seconds!

If Final Fantasy XIV is a theme park then that means Mount Gulg is the Matterhorn, Matoya's Cave is It's A Small World, and Elidibus is someone wearing Mickey Mouse's skin! This all makes sense to me and it might even make sense to you after you listen to this episode! Victor, Nadia, and special guest Ash Paulsen talk all about the many many allusions in Final Fantasy XIV to the game that started it all; Final Fantasy. Choose your four favourite jobs and your four favourite four-letter words because we're going to the beginning and discussing how the original FF is still deeply important to understanding FFXIV, from 1.0 all the way to Dawntrail.

Shadowbringers Spoilers:

Rougly 1:11:00 - 1:19:00

Music In This Episode:

Opening Theme - Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra

The Fan Fest cycle has come to a close but that just means the Dawntrail hype is kicking into 4th gear as Summer(?) 2024 gets closer and closer. Tokyo Fan Fest 2024 was full of exciting announcements; Pictomancer, Female Hrothgar, Echoes of Vana'diel, and more! And to kick off the New Year we have a very special guest, Double Fine's own Harper Jay, to join Victor, Nadia, and Mike on the panel.

And remember that Sharlayan Dropouts has moved to a WEEKLY format so if you're listening on the free feed you're only getting half the story. Head over to patreon.com/bloodgodpod to hear all the Dropouts you've been missing out on and be sure to join us on the Discord for all kinds of community events and discussion.

Ending Music for this Episode:

Mithra - [Final Fantasy XI]

Lali-ho all you dropouts, troublemakers, and ne'er-do-wells! It's me, Nadia, Sharlayan's worst academic. What do bad academics do when they're supposed to be studying? Listen to music, of course. That's what today is all about. Since Vic is out of town for a little while, I thought I'd do a solo episode that explores some of the best songs FFXIV treated us to in 2023. Epic raids! Epic bosses! Love goddesses that look like Hatsune Mikune! Oh, forgive me Lady Menphina. Don't strike me down with crotch rot. Have I mentioned your dog is awesome?

Good morning Dropouts. I hope every single one of you skipped out on your education to stream the 2023 Fanfest at London. The event brought as much FFXIV-related merriment as you'd expect, but the real meat of the show (aside from the thicc monster-meat steaks being grilled up by the Mamool Ja) was the new Dawntrail trailer and the new job reveal: Viper. Oh, and there was news about the next Alliance raid being based in the world of Final Fantasy XI. Rest assured, Victor has things to say about it. Actually, we all have a lot of things to say, so slip this tape into your Sony Walkman and turn it up when your teacher turns her back. 

Spoiler Warning Level: Yellow. Past game content comes into our discussions about Dawntrail, but we don't focus on any story specifics.