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Hello everyone and welcome back! Today's gonna be one of those fun days because we're going to be visiting the first Alliance raid today.
Yes, yes...I must speak of the arrangements I made to acquire the two remaining varieties of aethersand. Some days ago, I asked a Sharlayan acquaintance of mine to travel to Gridania and there gather the necessary materials. Since that time, however, I have heard nary a whisper from him.
To be frank, this lack of communication is not entirely uncharacteristic, but I cannot discount the possibility that something ill has befallen the man.
Alas, we do not have time to investigate his fate. As I have mentioned before, the more we delay our expedition, the more likely it is that the Crystal Tower's secrets will fall into the wrong hands. Therefore, I would entrust you with the same mission I assigned to my friend. Travel to the Black Shroud, and seek out Parsemontret, the master of the markets in Gridania. If anyone knows where aethersand might be bought, it is he.
Parsemontret is the Gridanian master of the markets. As such he has an inflated sense of self-worth.
Yes? ...I'm sorry? Did you say you wish to purchase aethersand? Forgive me, madam, but have you the faintest idea of the rarity of the material you seek? Why, I have not seen so much as a grain of aethersand in these markets for many a long year.
I could tell you where one might mine the ore from which the water-aspected variety of the abrasive is derived, but only a desperate fool would willingly set foot in the place.
...You seem undeterred. <sigh> Very well.
Are you familiar with Urth's Gift? That is where the ore is to be found-in an area inhabited by a particularly pernicious hog. Should you encounter the betusked nightmare, you will know that you are in the right place...albeit at the wrong time. Farewell!
Ginger was just here a few updates ago to do the level 45 BLM quest. Or maybe it was the level 40 one. I forget which.
I think someone's been here already.
You are too late, adventurer-and not only for the entertainment. You will find no trace of the ore which but recently lay here. Nay, not so much as a speck.
I love Ginger's "this is making me upset" face. It's too adorable to take seriously.
Ah...no. You will never spy me from there. For the time being at least, you will have to trust the evidence of your ears. Now stop squinting at the foliage and listen. As I told you, the water-blessed mineral you hoped to find is gone-taken by me.
Victory has made me magnanimous, however. Accordingly, I have decided to share the location of an alternative source of aethersand with you-the wind-touched variety, to be specific. I trust I have your attention? Good. A band of Ixal in the North Shroud keeps a quantity of the abrasive for the purpose of removing impurities from lesser crystals.
Well? Do you mean to dally here all day? Make haste, adventurer, before I snatch another prize from under your nose! This is to be a race. The Ixali logging grounds in the North Shroud shall be our destination. And that is where the real amusement will begin. May the best man win!
Back to the Ixali Logging Grounds...
Red Mage comes with a bunch of item level 115 gear, so this is no sweat for Ginger.
Bravo! That was quite a show, adventurer! Why, the spectacle proved so enthralling that all thoughts of aethersand slipped my mind. I appear to have forfeited our little race! Congratulations-the wind-touched abrasive is yours.
And yet, having been treated to such a memorable performance, I cannot help feeling that the greater prize is mine. This inequity must not stand. I insist that you accept a token of my appreciation.
Payment for this entertainment will be waiting for you to the east, in a clearing within Proud Creek. Pray retrieve the gift ere it is crushed beneath the iron feet of the dullahans!
Our disembodied friend seems to be quite taken with Ginger...
Not what you were expecting? I took the liberty of refining the ore from Urth's Gift into aethersand. Do keep it safe, adventurer. Lest you accuse me of playing games, you should know that the thought of relinquishing my prize never once crossed my mind-until I saw you in action. Such deeds must needs be rewarded.
The face of a woman who is so confused right now.
It is my vocation, you see, to record history as it is made by mortal men. And I much prefer to chronicle the accomplishments of the bold and the mighty. Thus, it is my fervent wish that you continue your career with the same courage and zeal you have shown today. We shall meet again, adventurer-and sooner than you may imagine.
At least we have the aethersand. 
Back to Rammbroes we go...
What news of your mission? Are we any closer to acquiring the remaining abrasives?
Yeah, I got the last two.
You've brought both!? I shall have Master Garlond begin work on the crystals immediately.
There. That should do the trick!
Excellent work! We now possess all four of the "fangs" required to pierce the Crystal Tower's defenses. My compliments, Master Garlond!
Oh, it was a trifling matter, I assure you. Ginger here is the one you should be thanking. Anyway, by my reckoning, there's nothing stopping us from striding up to the Allagans' front door!
Ginger is, for once, happy that she didn't have to participate in the Great Runaround.
You can't go without us, Chief!
You can already tell they're improving their animation game. Back even a single patch in 2.0, Biggs and Wedge would have just calmly walked up instead of running in like this.
Biggs! Wedge! Come to lend a hand, have you?
Well, it's not every day you get the chance to study the wonders of the Allagan Empire, is it? Their technology makes Garlemald's look ancient!
I appreciate your enthusiasm, lads, I really do, but we're not here to take this knowledge for ourselves.
Twice in the last decade, the promise of unimaginable power has prompted men to meddle with technology they do not understand, and the realm has been dragged unto the very brink of oblivion on both occasions. We shall not be so irresponsible as to risk another.
Wedge, do you recall our company's creed?
Y-Yes, Chief! It's, um, "Freedom through Technology"?
Exactly. Freedom. When we forsook our homeland, we swore that we would have no truck with machines that could be used to promote tyranny. That has not changed. Should you feel tempted to break your oath, remember this: the wonders of the all-knowing Allagan Empire could not save their civilization, and have damn near doomed ours. Twice.
That is why we must explore the Crystal Tower, and, if needs be, seal away its secrets.
Biggs and Wedge turn to look at each other...
I somehow don't think that's going to be a problem with them.
A compelling viewpoint. It is unyielding wills such as yours that have defined the course of history.
The script says that this is "a familiar voice."
That dorky rat tail...
So, you return at last. What, pray tell, has kept you so wholly preoccupied that you could not spare a moment to inform me of your progress or preservation?
Why, the task you assigned to me, of course. Surely you have not forgotten about the aethersand? I tasked a passing adventurer with delivering it. A more capable courier I could not imagine.
The catboy jumps off of the ledge...
Greetings, adventurer! Did I not say we would meet again?
G'raha Tia is another fan favorite character for a reason. It'll take a while to get him there, but until then we have to deal with him being a dork who's overly obsessed with dramatics. He's very 
for that reason.
G'raha Tia has been assigned to the project as an observer. I hope you will forgive him his...eccentricities and welcome him as one of our own.
Everyone's looking at Ginger here.
She's smiling and is probably rolling her eyes at him, but G'raha is harmless enough. And, more importantly, he didn't send us chasing our tail for ten quests.
So then, our fellowship is complete, and all stand ready to step into the unknown! Three cheers for NOAH!
..."Noah"?
That is the name I have chosen for our little collective. Given our differing backgrounds, we cannot very well call ourselves the Sons of Saint Coinach, can we?
And we must have a memorable appellation if our venture is to leave its mark in the annals of history. I could claim that NOAH stands for "Nominated Observers of Artifacts Historical," and so it does, technically-but my true reason for choosing this name stems from the fact that it is shared by a vaunted Allagan archmagus.
An archmagus? I like the sound of that!
G'raha is very charming. It's hard not to like him.
...Very well. Now that the pressing matter of what to call ourselves has been settled, it is time we set forth to brave the outer defenses of the Crystal Tower. Is everyone ready to depart?
Ready!
Esteemed colleagues! The secrets of ancient Allag beckon! Let's not keep them waiting any longer! Adventurer-you and I will join the engineers at the Crystal Tower's main gateway, where we will endeavor to neutralize the structure's outer defenses.
Rammbroes, meanwhile, will remain here and oversee the operation. Given my knowledge of Allagan history, it seems logical that I should lead the expedition itself...though I admit the role does not exactly befit my status as an observer.
Still, we can but make use of the resources at hand. Assuming all are in agreement, let us proceed forthwith to the large, lopsided gate found to the southeast.
Way over in a small corner is a path to the tower. Just gotta go through the askew door.
The Crystal Tower lies beyond this portal. Now comes the interesting part...
Cid, you are the only one of our number who has ever crossed this threshold. I ask that you take the lead for the present.
It's a lot easier to see the statues now that it's not a sepia-toned flashback!
I say... The energy radiating from these statues is...palpable.
Lucky for us that it is. One might otherwise stroll past them... Feast your eyes on the elemental defenses which prompted our lengthy preparations. These sentinels prevent would-be intruders from advancing to within twenty yalms of the tower's inner reaches.
There's no getting past those barriers.
...No matter how swift they may be.
I like the elemental fangs and I want one for a desk weight.
Happily, the crystal fangs we took such pains to craft should spare us the inconvenience of instantaneous annihilation. Here, allow me to demonstrate.
Ch-Chief!? It's too-
Dangerous to allow anyone else to risk his life testing one? Quite right. I made the damn things-it's my job to see that they work.
Cid would have drawn blood if Biggs and Wedge had tried to stop him. Never get between an engineer and testing his gadgets. Even if that gadget is a glowy red rock.
Cid pushes the fang forward...
Flashy!
...Success!
I for one am convinced! Friends-ready your fangs!
They're destroying the watchers, King's Quest V Neverending Story style!
This last one is yours, old friend. It seemed only right...
*nods*
A statue falls inches from Ginger. Zero fucks given.
Normally I complain about nighttime recording, but I think in this particular case, the darker lighting helped make the cutscene more vibrant.
Haha! We did it! So much for the outer defenses!
Indeed. The entrance to the tower is near at hand. My blood fairly sings with anticipation!
Speaking of blood-I have a proposal for the next stage of the expedition. I suggest we wait here while Ginger and a handpicked party of her adventuring companions enter the tower.
What!? Without us? I thought we came here to survey the entire structure!
We did-and we will. But our investigations must proceed at a more measured pace. If the outside of the place is this well defended, can you imagine what awaits us on the inside? Only a true hero could reasonably hope to brave the hazards ahead and live to tell the tale.
I threw this glamour together for these quests and wound up liking it so much that I just never bothered to change it.
Ginger here fits that description better than anyone I know.
And it is not as if we shall be idle in her absence. While Ginger and her companions are risking life and limb to beat us a path to the tower, we can set about analyzing this rubble for evidence of how its technologies function. Your knowledge of ancient lore will be invaluable in that endeavor, Historian G'raha Tia.
Bah! Do you ever tire of being right, old man!?
Ahem. Ginger-as it seems I won't be accompanying you, allow me at least to provide some instruction. The maze that surrounds the base of the tower is known as the "Labyrinth of the Ancients." During this initial foray, I suggest you concentrate on ridding the place of hostile elements.
When you are reasonably certain the maze is secure, contact me via linkshell and we shall join you posthaste-no matter what Master Garlond says! Though we would prefer it if any relics you encounter remained intact, you have leave to do whatever is necessary to secure ingress to the upper levels of the tower. Fortune go with you, Ginger.
This was recorded almost a month ago as of the time of writing (July 1st), so the mogtomes as a bonus are not always there.
After an unusually long wait for mid-morning...
This is a sight many a player has seen many a time.
The way through the labyrinth is blocked off by three bosses.
So Labyrinth of the Ancients, or LOTA, is the easiest Alliance Raid in the game. Many a player is afraid of doing something harder and so they will refuse to unlock the later Alliance Raids so they can do the easier ones like this and the next.
Some players unlock them all and then cheat the system by unequipping shit until they're below item level 90 so the queue will only give them LOTA or Syrcus Tower. Those players are cowards and if you do that, I'm specifically calling you out.
First we go left at the four way intersection.
I mentioned it some when I covered Coils, but let me go over it again. Alliance Raids are designed for any random 24 players to complete. Each group has 1 tank, 2 healers, and 5 DPS, which means that it's actually easier to get into an alliance raid as a DPS than it is a tank or healer.
If you queue as a tank, you're taking up just one of three slots. There are 15 DPS per alliance raid. So you will quite frequently see alliance raid roulette get the mythical "DPS in Need" bonus, which gives incentives for specific roles to queue. Usually other roulettes have Tank or Healer in Need for obvious reasons.
Before the first boss are a couple of add fights. These guys are largely toothless, but can inflict a disease on random players that severely slows them down for 30 seconds. It's easily cleansable, but asking random healers in your alliance raids to recognize that you need a cleanse is like asking for a miracle.
Second fight is no harder than the first...
...and the third is just as easy. By the way, if you haven't yet you should really go into your options menu and turn off the spell effects from players who aren't in your alliance. Even the beefiest of computers will not have a good time when it's trying to render 24 separate spell effects going off all at the same time.
And you should turn ones for players in your group to low. There are some beneficial or non-harmful effects that some jobs can place on the ground that you can't see if you turn all effects off.
The first boss is the Bone Dragon.
His HP bar melts. But you're often going to find especially on Primal that some groups still think this is A Realm Reborn and not Shadowbringers. And so they insist on using the strategies that Mizzteq or Mr. Happy talked about years and years ago that just aren't applicable anymore.
In this case we do not have a raid full of cowards, and so the Bone Dragon is tanked right in The Bone Zone. Do you see all those adds? Those skeletons start spawning as the boss gets lower. Once the boss "dies" they all rush into its corpse and explode for a lot of damage.
Ginger's down to 1400 HP from over 6000. Each explosion deals 1000 damage.
And then the boss stands back up. Cowards will tank the boss as far north as possible because they don't like seeing their HP bar dip low. If you're wearing item level 100 gear or better, it's not actually possible to die from Bone Zone tactics.
A cowardly tank here taunted the boss and started running north. Bastard.
The boss "dies" a second time and more skeletons pop up. I also want to draw attention to the purple sludge. That hurts. So don't stand in it.
The final time the boss is alive, random non-skeleton adds will spawn. Just focus the boss down. It will stay dead the third time.
After each boss, three treasure coffers spawn. Ginger is currently in Alliance C, and so she can only peek in Treasure Coffer C. There's also a shortcut back to the start.
This time we head right.
Three alliances, three lanes. A takes the left, C takes the right.
Here's another place eager jerks can mess things up for everyone. This miniboss requires four members of the group to stand on the octagonal platform, which will lower the shield on another alliance's atomos. Everyone needs to work together, you see.
But if someone walks past the platform, then the encounter starts. 15 seconds later, everyone who isn't past the starting line will automatically get teleported in... to Alliance A's lane.
In general, ranged DPS and healers will stand on the platform while melee beat up the atomos. Tanks are supposed to drag adds back to the ranged. Supposed to.
Most don't.
Alliance C is really good this time, so our atomos dies quickly.
20 seconds later, another alliance finishes their atomos and our platform turns off, meaning we can get off it and do whatever.
And now we wait...
45 seconds after C finished our atomos, B finally kills theirs and we're allowed to progress.
Thanatos is the second boss. This is extremely easy.
Do you see those blue jagged lines? Those all shot out of the boss and hit Alliance A. They have a full minute in which they're able to damage the boss.
Only players who have turned into ghosts can damage the boss, and the beams turn you into a ghost going in alphabetical order by alliance. So it starts with A, then 30 seconds later B can join in. 30 seconds after that, A can no longer damage the boss and C is allowed to join in. Make sense?
Presumably 30 seconds after C starts, A can once again join in. Not sure though. Never seen the boss live that long.
The other two alliances need to kill adds.
After approximately 30 seconds, B is turned into a ghost as well and is given their own opportunity to beat on the boss.
...oh boy. This is a cursed LOTA indeed. Alliance C should almost never be given a chance to fight Thanatos. In all my time playing and running LOTA on Crystal, it was pretty common for A to either finish the boss off entirely or just barely leave it alive for B to come in and help out.
The shortcut once again returns us to the start.
The third boss is straight ahead.
The next miniboss is first, though. Three Vassago (the giant demons) and a bomb guard the way forward. Each alliance each takes one and I'm sure you can figure it out from there.
As the groups attack the boss, bombs will spawn that float toward the center. In my experience, most groups ignore the adds for some reason instead of killing them. They barely have any health and die within a few seconds.
A second add, Allagan Napalm also spawns. The napalm needs to die ASAP because if it reaches the center, it blows up and makes the bomb in the middle grow bigger. If the center bomb gets big enough, it explodes and wipes the raid.
On the whole, the Vassagos are easier than the atomos. Also they should be tanked apart from each other because I'm pretty sure if they're allowed to get near each other, they get a defensive buff.
It's King Behemoth, as seen in the hit video game Monster Hunter World! Featuring, I'm told, the same mechanics as well.
Do you see those green markers?
Those drop comets on top of the targeted player eventually. Once they do, the boss starts casting Ecliptic Meteor.
You need to put the comet between you and the boss as a shield. It's just that easy.
Anyone not behind a comet when the meteor falls will instantly die. It's also worth pointing out that if someone drops a comet inside the boss's hitbox, then it's not a valid safe zone and will kill you if you try to hide behind it.
The boss's hitbox is the purple circle directly around it.
The crystal falls into the platform which rises up. This surprised me because for the longest time I'd been convinced that the final boss fight of LOTA was in the ground below the main room, not high above it!
Phlegethon is a very unfortunate-looking boss.
This is going to take some setting up to explain. Do you see the two floating markers in the center and right? There's one just like them on the left. Those markers are where there's a platform for each alliance.
At 50% and 25% HP, Phlegethon casts something called Ancient Flare. Hold that thought...
Some claws will spawn occasionally in the fight and grab whoever is nearby. Break them out if you see it happen because it's often a healer or ranged DPS.
I like how Abyssal Slash looks.
Now. Ancient Flare. The alliances need to fucking book it back to their platform. Each one needs something like 5 or 6 people on it before it's considered "active." Once all three are active, a defensive shield is put up which will stop Ancient Flare.
Like this. Ancient Flare instantly kills anyone caught in its blast because it deals 9999 damage, which is more HP than anyone can have in ARR, even in actual Best-in-Slot gear.
Smart tanks will ensure that Phlegethon is not tanked in the dead center of the arena. You see, he has to run to the center to cast Ancient Flare. So if he's being tanked anywhere else, then when he starts moving, it lets players know they have to move.
Also some people have macros that play sounds for others to hear and alert them that Mechanics Are Happening. Unfortunately most players have universally decided that extremely quiet drum noises are D A N G E R B O N G O S. Those quiet drums are very difficult to hear instead of any other number of sounds. I don't know why they insist on it.
With enough raw damage output, it's possible to skip the second Ancient Flare altogether. It's not a common thing, though. Some groups will see the boss is at 17% when he starts casting it and get greedy. And so it becomes a total wipe in that case and everyone has to start the fight over. Don't get greedy in LOTA!
Thankfully that didn't happen here! 
Very impressive, I must say! Your name shall be writ large in the volumes that are sure to be penned on this historic expedition.
The scale of this structure defies comprehension... Someone plainly thought bigger was better.
According to the findings of my Baldesion colleagues, the Crystal Tower was constructed to collect and store the endless energies of the sun. A characteristically ambitious undertaking.
Now, what of the tower's inner defenses? Judging by your haggard expression, clearing out the labyrinth was no small feat.
Zombie dragons, atomoses, big dudes... a behemoth!
...A giant of a man wielding a shimmering scimitar, you say? Yes, that will have been Phlegethon. Not Acheron. Phlegethon. He was a hero of the Allagan revolution.
And you gleaned that from what exactly? His choice of weapon?
Well, I am a historian. And I have a certain, shall we say, "affinity" for the lore of the Allagan Empire.
It is, of course, all knowledge gleaned from musty scrolls and tomes. The ancient texts claim that the Crystal Tower is defended by the champions of eld, resurrected and augmented through the Allagans' extraordinary technology.
Chief, you need to see this!
That's a hell of a striking shot.
Well, well, there it is...the foot of the tower. What surprises do you have in store for us, I wonder...?
I can't tell you how glad I am to have you with us on this little jaunt, old friend. Had you not beaten a path through that maze, I very much doubt we'd be standing here now...
Well! We have much to discuss and digest. Let us retire to Saint Coinach's Find for the present and there plan our next step. Lest there be any doubt, our expedition has some way to go yet!
So good of you to join us, Ginger! Our meeting would be dull indeed without a full account of your experiences in the labyrinth. Take a moment to collect yourself, and when you are ready, we shall debate how best to proceed.
The fellowship of NOAH being accounted for, it is time this assembly was called to order! Rammbroes will be presiding over the meeting. If you would be so kind as to inform him of your readiness to proceed...
Welcome back, Ginger. I have just been reading about your encounter in the Labyrinth of the Ancients. It pleases me greatly to note that you seem none the worse for the experience.
For your reference, I have added my own notes to G'raha's preliminary expedition report, and begun compiling a Crystal Tower survey log. The information contained therein will be available to you at all times. Should you have any questions, you need only ask. Now, if there are no objections, I shall begin with a summary of the expedition's key accomplishments.
In the course of this, our first foray into the grounds of the Crystal Tower, we succeeded in neutralizing the structure's outer defenses, before proceeding to secure the maze surrounding the base of the spire.
According to Ginger's account, the labyrinth's defenses were most emphatically active. Disturbingly, her report also mentions a violent encounter with a sentry heavily augmented by Allagan technology...
In short: our misgivings were well founded. The Crystal Tower was not simply thrust above ground by the chaotic shifting of earth-it has somehow been reawoken.
If, as seems increasingly likely, the tower's secrets should prove too dangerous to share with the world, we will have no choice but to contain them. Short of leveling the place, this will almost certainly involve returning its mechanisms to a state of dormancy. To do that, however, we will first need to address the question of how they work-the answer to which must surely be waiting for us inside the tower itself. In conclusion: that is where we must go.
A task rather easier said than done, if the perils of the labyrinth are any indication...
Then I move that all further exploration of the tower be delayed until such time as an exhaustive analysis of the structure's defenses has been completed. Master Garlond, may I entrust this task to you?
It would be my pleasure.
Don't forget about us!
It's like you said, Chief-we founded the Ironworks to make sure that technology was used for the right reasons, and that means making sure it's not used for the wrong ones. We wouldn't be doing our jobs if we didn't see this through to the end.
Lads... Well, I hope you're ready for some backbreaking chores!
You'll do nothing of the sort, G'raha. Your knowledge may prove useful to Master Garlond's investigation.
I love the animations in this cutscene.
As an observer, I am not, strictly speaking, subject to your authority...
Pray do not mistake my intent, Ginger. I am well aware that I shall never be a match for one with your innate talents, however hard I train. Be that as it may, pray do not allow your skills to rust from disuse during the coming pause.
We will need you fighting fit if our subsequent forays are to prove as productive as this one. Mark me: we have not yet caught more than the briefest glimpse of that which time has obscured. Soon, however, we shall cast off the veil, and gaze upon the glory of the Allagan Empire!
And with that encouraging thought in mind, it is time to bring this assembly to a close. Let us all focus on the tasks at hand, that our next expedition may begin all the sooner. Meeting adjourned!
Such a terrible mess. Yet it does leave the door wide open, so to speak. One cannot help but be impressed. I'm beginning to understand the reliance you place on adventurers, old friend.
So...this is the legacy the Allagan Empire left behind. If my readings are correct, the energy source waiting atop the tower is a match for even the Ultima Weapon. Nay...more than a match.
Heh heh heh... A new toy for me to play with.
I believed the fates had conspired to deny me my just rewards once again...but it would seem they had a greater destiny in mind for me.
And so long as my ambition burns, I shall strive to seize it. The dream lives on, Cid... Do not disappoint me!
NEXT TIME: ARC 1-30
My plan is to spread out the class quests through the patch updates so the last 6-8 or so aren't just one gigantic lump of class quest story. After ARC 30 will come what you all voted for... Hildibrand, Agent of Inquiry.