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[TRI Mike]

I finished T0HD last night and to be quite honest, I'm completely lost. From the

Spoiler

Concordia invasion

to the end and didn't understand anything at all and even before that point a lot of stuff made little sense to me. I consulted a wiki and some Reddit posts after finishing the game to try and understand a little but there's still a few question unclear to me.

Spoiler

1) How and why did Machina become a White Tiger l'Cie if he was from Rubrum¿ What was his true purpose¿
2) Why did Aria become the general's minion if Milites was the one who shot and almost killed her¿ It made no sense at all that she survived but started kissing the ass of the leader of her attackers.
3) If the members of Class Zero had the opportunity to choose whether to become l'cie or not, why did Rem accept¿ also, why did the Vermillion Bird crystal tried to find a l'cie at that point¿
4) Why was the beginning of the game so heavily focused on Izana if at the end Machina's motivations were influenced by his desire to protect Rem¿
5) Who the hell was Dr. Arecia¿ some wikis claim that she's actually a Fal'cie taking human form (like Barthendelus in the XIII series). What was her purpose¿
6) Is there an explanation to the scene with the samurai that looks like Ace¿
7) Why are Machina and Rem alive in the ending¿ Why does the rest of Class Zero die¿
8) What caused the red sky with the giant monsters¿ And what is the purpose of that red sky/giant monsters¿
9) Are Class Zero's members "created" by Arecia¿ They don't seem to be like normal humans, they also don't seem to have a past before being members of Class Zero, they seem oblivious to how the world works and they call Arecia "mother". That's weird.

 

[Christhor]

I finished T0HD last night and to be quite honest, I'm completely lost. From the

Spoiler

Concordia invasion

to the end and didn't understand anything at all and even before that point a lot of stuff made little sense to me. I consulted a wiki and some Reddit posts after finishing the game to try and understand a little but there's still a few question unclear to me.

Spoiler

1) How and why did Machina become a White Tiger l'Cie if he was from Rubrum¿ What was his true purpose¿
2) Why did Aria become the general's minion if Milites was the one who shot and almost killed her¿ It made no sense at all that she survived but started kissing the ass of the leader of her attackers.
3) If the members of Class Zero had the opportunity to choose whether to become l'cie or not, why did Rem accept¿ also, why did the Vermillion Bird crystal tried to find a l'cie at that point¿
4) Why was the beginning of the game so heavily focused on Izana if at the end Machina's motivations were influenced by his desire to protect Rem¿
5) Who the hell was Dr. Arecia¿ some wikis claim that she's actually a Fal'cie taking human form (like Barthendelus in the XIII series). What was her purpose¿
6) Is there an explanation to the scene with the samurai that looks like Ace¿
7) Why are Machina and Rem alive in the ending¿ Why does the rest of Class Zero die¿
8) What caused the red sky with the giant monsters¿ And what is the purpose of that red sky/giant monsters¿
9) Are Class Zero's members "created" by Arecia¿ They don't seem to be like normal humans, they also don't seem to have a past before being members of Class Zero, they seem oblivious to how the world works and they call Arecia "mother". That's weird.

I don't really remember much about the plot, but I'll give what I vaguely remember a shot.

1. The crystal was like "eh, I'll take whatever I can take" when it saw that loser. He did it because he wanted teh power to save Rem.
3. ??? Rem wasn't with Class Zero at that time, that's why she got asked after them. The Vermillion crystal didn't have any l'cie left, so it wanted some new goons.
4. It's best to not pay attention to Machina and Rem at all. They're both terrible.
6. It's a new scene for the HD edition, most likely teasing a new game.
7. Dr. Arecia took them out of crystal stasis. Class Zero died because they died.
8. iirc, it's something that happens when one nation rules the entire world.
9. They were born normal humans, but one way or another ended up under Dr. Arecia's care where they got extensive military training. They call her mother because she's their mother figure.

 

[Shadow Ranger]

The lore or the story...?

Or even the narrative.

 

[Aru]

1)

Spoiler

If I remember correctly, he was at the right place at the right time and wanted more power to protect Rem.

2)

Spoiler

She was saved by the general, it seems?

3)

Spoiler

Maybe she wanted to survive? She was dying already, and becoming a L'cie would save her from her illness.

6)

Spoiler

Type-1 will most likely have nothing to do with Type-0. It probably happens in a different time/world, but they might reuse some characters?

7)

Spoiler

The anima of the 12 members of Class Zero was absorbed by the final boss. Machina and Rem survived because they didn't fight in that battle and Arecia freed them from the crystal statis.

8)

Spoiler

When a nation conquers all others, the end of the world happens.

 

[Arkeband]

1)

Spoiler

NG+ explains this. If you haven't played through NG+ you should do that, it clears up a lot. NG is purposefully vague - you only know about as much as Class Zero does.

2)

Spoiler

In one of the datalogs or one of the unlockable cutscenes, they mention that Aria resembles the general's little sister (or IS her little sister), but with the way the crystals work, I got the impression that their memories were wiped and they don't remember this. I'm pretty sure this is why she's so present in his death scene, because it's supposed to be super tragic.

So yeah, play NG+ to answer a lot of your questions.

 

[CorvoSol]

The night after you escape from the Milites Empire and the Concordian Queen is assassinated, the night when Machina gets pissed off and walks out of camp. That's the night when he finds Qun'mi embedded in the Genbu crater and she transfers her Focus to him.

Machina's actions really are fueled by Izana and the "I did it for Rem" shit is just to make him sympathetic when he was a great big dick.

Arecia is a Fal'Cie. Everything that happened in the game was part of her bet with another Fal'Cie on how to open Etro's Gate (which is the end game of these FNC games so far).

Aria's a shit please do not remember her or how she may or may not have been Qator's imouto

Class Zero dies cuz they inhaled the Final Bosses' demon juices. Machina and Rem live because, like every single Goddess in Final Fantasy, Arecia's kind of a capricious bitch.

The kids are more or less normal but their souls are repeatedly reincarnated over the course of a bazillion years, in addition to Arecia being a demiurge and all.

The monsters in the endgame happen cuz world conquest means the end of the world getting triggered in Orience. I legit don't remember that monster from the beginning of the game having any significance aside from being a super boss you can fight on your third playthrough.

The endgame got hella rushed, so it's super sloppy.

 

[Garlador]

NG+ answers some of these questions.

... But nobody should have to replay an entire game twice just to understand the basic storyline or sequence of events.

Ultimately, there are answers, but they're poorly delivered, hidden too deep, or sometimes the explanations simply don't make sense.

Type-0 does many things well. Its story and characters are not among them.

 

[Arkeband]

NG+ answers some of these questions.

... But nobody should have to replay an entire game twice just to understand the basic storyline or sequence of events.

Ultimately, there are answers, but they're poorly delivered, hidden too deep, or sometimes the explanations simply don't make sense.

Type-0 does many things well. Its story and characters are not among them.

But the story isn't really about the deep explanation for certain plot points - the game could end on a 'what the fuck just happened' and the entire moral gist of the game has been established;

Spoiler

the cost of war, soldiers being sacrificed at the whims of those who have no concern for their lives, being caught in a struggle they can't possibly understand.

I agree that the background explanation is a bit messy but that almost doesn't matter. What's important is the first playthrough. As far as Class Zero knows by the time the credits roll, they were inadvertently caught up in something way over their heads and they die clinging to the only thing that they knew for certain, which was the bonds they shared between each other.

 

[TRI Mike]

Yeah I'm consulting wikis while I read your replies and it seems the first playthrough is supposed to be vague so you feel "attached" to class Zero and how they're caught in a conflict way beyond their understanding.

It didn't work for me though.

 

[Aru]

Yeah I'm consulting wikis while I read your replies and it seems the first playthrough is supposed to be vague so you feel "attached" to class Zero and how they're caught in a conflict way beyond their understanding.

It didn't work for me though.

The second playthrough explains jackshit. The only things you need to understand the story are the Compendium and thinking. It's very convoluted but I think the story would have had better impact on me if it was told better. I liked how crazy things went in chapter 8 and the ending was quite nice. The FFXIII trilogy was better told than this and I enjoyed it more because of that.

 

[Arkeband]

Yeah I'm consulting wikis while I read your replies and it seems the first playthrough is supposed to be vague so you feel "attached" to class Zero and how they're caught in a conflict way beyond their understanding.

It didn't work for me though.

I think the only thing that didn't work for me was the Machina/Rem thing, it was very hard to get attached to a character that acted like a brat the whole game and wasn't even in your party half the time. I blame the PSP. I imagine that if they were able to make the game the way they wanted with unlimited funds, they would have been able to nail that.

It's also tough to get the player to legitimately care about 14 different protagonists (and to care about some antagonists and side characters as well). In a way the class represents one multi-faceted character.

I hope if Tabata gets to make Type-1, that most or all of them return and we get to see backstory so we can really connect to each of these characters and what really sets them apart.

If it even extends beyond Type-1 and each game is the cast in a different universe, different backstories would be interesting to set up a nature vs. nuture kind of exposition too.

 

[Garlador]

The second playthrough explains jackshit. The only things you need to understand the story are the Compendium and thinking. It's very convoluted but I think the story would have had better impact on me if it was told better. I liked how crazy things went in chapter 8 and the ending was quite nice. The FFXIII trilogy was better told than this and I enjoyed it more because of that.

Sadly, I agree... and that's not a positive thing when FFXIII trilogy's story is viewed as the better and more logical and coherent of the two stories.

 

[Toth]

Aria's story is explained more in the library and then comes to a sudden, disappointing, and terrible end.

 

[Aru]

I think the only thing that didn't work for me was the Machina/Rem thing, it was very hard to get attached to a character that acted like a brat the whole game and wasn't even in your party half the time. I blame the PSP. I imagine that if they were able to make the game the way they wanted with unlimited funds, they would have been able to nail that.

It's also tough to get the player to legitimately care about 14 different protagonists (and to care about some antagonists and side characters as well). In a way the class represents one multi-faceted character.

I hope if Tabata gets to make Type-1, that most or all of them return and we get to see backstory so we can really connect to each of these characters and what really sets them apart.

If it even extends beyond Type-1 and each game is the cast in a different universe, different backstories would be interesting to set up a nature vs. nuture kind of exposition too.

I don't think there's anything worthwhile telling in this world. I hope Type-1 is set in a different world, but I don't mind if they reuse part of the Class Zero members. But not all.

 

[TRI Mike]

Another issue I forgot to bring in the original post:

Spoiler

I think it's been confirmed that, unlike the Cids, Gilgamesh is actually the same character in every game he appears. According to the Type-0 lore, he's a l'Cie from Lorica, the country we never even get to see because Tabata destroyed it with a Ultima nuke because he didn't have funds to develop missions on it. Now, can we assume that Gilgamesh's original world is Type-0's¿, apparently if you defeat his final form here, he gets trapped in the void, which is where he comes from in FFV (his first appearance) so maybe Exdeath simply summoned him in the classic game.

 

[Arkeband]

I don't think there's anything worthwhile telling in this world. I hope Type-1 is set in a different world, but I don't mind if they reuse part of the Class Zero members. But not all.

Who would you want to see return? I think there's potential for Nine as a bro-goon, though he was a little too stupid here. And I think King and Queen as a couple could be explored.

I'd leave out Machina and Rem and see if they can re-incorporate Joker/Tiz, seeing as their exclusion is what sets this story apart.

 

[aspiegamer]

A depressing amount of story is hidden in a NG+. Not executed well. A whole lot more made sense to me, especially

Spoiler

Machina's bullshit.

The main message is already clear, however,

Spoiler

with "war sucks, and we should feel bad for these kids who were essentially abused from birth to be tools of war and nothing else because they finally realized they were mass-murderers and wanted to do the right thing at the end for the first time in their lives".

1) Because that's who he got the job offer from.

Spoiler

He was desperate to help Rem. So desperate that he didn't realize until it was too late that all that power wouldn't help him achieve his goal. You don't get to pick your l'Cie employer, you could say, and there are always unseen consequences.

3) What I've always thought is that, for personal reasons,

Spoiler

to gain power and be able to be useful before her death. She talks earlier about how she doesn't want to sit around and wait to die and not be able to help anyone. The sense of family wasn't there for her originally to stick it out and fight to the end; She then has that epiphany and helps the others take out Cid, which justifies/explains her being chosen for work by the Vermilion Crystal specifically as it had no other powerful magic users left to choose from.

5+7) Her ability to

Spoiler

"revive" the dead l'Cie Rem and Machina suggests that she has to be a fal'Cie (a higher power tier),

but there's much guesswork.
8) This was just stupid. Something about

Spoiler

once all the crystal are united it starts a chain of events that can cause the end of humanity. As to why that chain events beings the very instant you defeat an enemy commander and before you can even fly home I have no idea.

It's not scripted well. My assumption is that it's something

Spoiler

Cid knew how to trigger and he chose to follow through with after his Ultima gambit failed.

 

[Aru]

Who would you want to see return? I think there's potential for Nine as a bro-goon, though he was a little too stupid here. And I think King and Queen as a couple could be explored.

I'd leave out Machina and Rem and see if they can re-incorporate Joker/Tiz, seeing as their exclusion is what sets this story apart.

Of the 12 original C0 members, only the ones I liked to play as:
- Ace
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Queen
- Jack
- Trey

 

[PshycoNinja]

This is gonna take me a second to explain so when I get to work I will explain in way too much detail the answers to your questions.

Oh and you don't need to play NG+ to understand the story. You can finish the story and get mostly what it's about if you speak to NPCs every once in a while and go to the Rubicus/Crimson Codex every so often if you want an answer to every single story thread. Additionally, you can go to the Rubicus from the main menu upon completing the game and see additional scenes that help with the explaination of the ending.

I never personally understood the NG+ reasoning. You don't need it to understand the story.

 

[TRI Mike]

This is gonna take me a second to explain so when I get to work I will explain in way too much detail the answers to your questions.

Oh and you don't need to play NG+ to understand the story. You can finish the story and get mostly what it's about if you speak to NPCs every once in a while and go to the Rubicus/Crimson Codex every so often if you want an answer to every single story thread. Additionally, you can go to the Rubicus from the main menu upon completing the game and see additional scenes that help with the explaination of the ending.

I never personally understood the NG+ reasoning. You don't need it to understand the story.

Alrighty Pshyco I'll keep an eye out for your post.

 

[Aru]

Noctis XV shall explain the story to Noctis XIII then

 

[Zomba13]

I wish the game just didn't have that ending bullshit. Like, scrap all the shit about the FNC and Fal'Cie and floating sky temples and end of the world doomsday bullshit. Just have it be a story about war and child soldiers in this weird world where you forget those who died.

I think the game worked better when it was about this world at war and the best hope for this one nation was a group of kids who were experimented on or something rather than all of it leading up to the end of the world and judgement and actually it's really about these two gods that created this world as a game to see who was right and it has gone on 999999999 times or something.

 

[PshycoNinja]

I wish the game just didn't have that ending bullshit. Like, scrap all the shit about the FNC and Fal'Cie and floating sky temples and end of the world doomsday bullshit. Just have it be a story about war and child soldiers in this weird world where you forget those who died.

I think the game worked better when it was about this world at war and the best hope for this one nation was a group of kids who were experimented on or something rather than all of it leading up to the end of the world and judgement and actually it's really about these two gods that created this world as a game to see who was right and it has gone on 999999999 times or something.

Quick side note while traveling: There are no Fal'Cie in the game. That term is not uttered once in the game.

 

[TRI Mike]

Cie'th are mentioned though (I think), yet they never appeared for me.

 

[Listonosh]

Quick side note while traveling: There are no Fal'Cie in the game. That term is not uttered once in the game.

Admittedly I've never played NG+ but I read that the game alludes to

Spoiler

Aracea being a Fal'Cie and that she's apparently always resetting the universe because it doesn't end the way she wants

or something like that. Is that not true?

I also thought that giant red cloud/phantom thing you fight in the very beginning was

Spoiler

supposed to be a manifestation of all the times the world was reset.

Is that also false?

 

[SephLuis]

I also just finished the game and have more questions and observations. That ending was rushed as hell.

Spoiler

1) Cid was looking to unite all of Orience under Militia rule and adquiring all crystals. Why the hell did he sudenly became the doomsday jugde in the endgame ?

2) Aria, when shot, said something about the commander and the upper management of rubrum. It gave me the impression that Class Zero was sold out. I figured they never talked about it because I thought Aria had died and their memories of her were wiped. But she was alive and this was never discussed. What happened to Aria and who devised the plot to frame Class Zero ?

3) Concordia is led by the queen, but after her death the king sudenly takes control, give up the crystal and declare war ? The Concordia battle was amazing, but their real reasons for going to war are iffy at best.

4)What the hell is Agito ?

I liked the game, but a lot of little things kept the game from being amazing. The story being this big of a mess does not help.

 

[TRI Mike]

I also thought that giant red cloud/phantom thing you fight in the very beginning was

Spoiler

supposed to be a manifestation of all the times the world was reset.

Is that also false?

Damn it I forgot about that enemy... what the hell was that¿ Also

Spoiler

what happened to the crazy guy with a giant sword that kept chasing me in the tunnels when they escaped Milites¿ who was that¿

 

[Aru]

I also just finished the game and have more questions and observations. That ending was rushed as hell.

Spoiler

1) Cid was looking to unite all of Orience under Militia rule and adquiring all crystals. Why the hell did he sudenly became the doomsday jugde in the endgame ?

2) Aria, when shot, said something about the commander and the upper management of rubrum. It gave me the impression that Class Zero was sold out. I figured they never talked about it because I thought Aria had died and their memories of her were wiped. But she was alive and this was never discussed. What happened to Aria and who devised the plot to frame Class Zero ?

3) Concordia is led by the queen, but after her death the king sudenly takes control, give up the crystal and declare war ? The Concordia battle was amazing, but their real reasons for going to war are iffy at best.

4)What the hell is Agito ?

I liked the game, but a lot of little things kept the game from being amazing. The story being this big of a mess does not help.

Did you watch one of the last videos found in the Compendium? Cid didn't want to be the judge.

Spoiler

He killed himself but they revived him for their goals.

 

[katagai]

Also

Spoiler

what happened to the crazy guy with a giant sword that kept chasing me in the tunnels when they escaped Milites¿ who was that¿

Spoiler

Pretty sure he's just a regular "super soldier" that survived being experimented on.

 

[Garlador]

I seem to recall there being random mole people underground or something that ate dragons. Honestly, by that point, my head was hurting trying to figure out what was happening. Did I imagine that from something else? If not, did they serve any purpose at all to the story?

 

[TRI Mike]

Yeah, the dragon-eating people in the frozen clouds mission are confusing as fuck as well. Damn this game makes little to no sense at all... I wanted to play it since 2011 and now I feel disappointed.

 

[Arkeband]

I also just finished the game and have more questions and observations. That ending was rushed as hell.

4) Agito is basically the "savior" prophesized to save the world.

I seem to recall there being random mole people underground or something that ate dragons. Honestly, by that point, my head was hurting trying to figure out what was happening. Did I imagine that from something else? If not, did they serve any purpose at all to the story?

http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Dracobaltian

 

[Listonosh]

I didn't love the story by the end until I read some explanations.

My takeaway and understanding was

• Spoiler

  You're stuck in a constant time loop, with Aracea constantly resetting time after Class Zero dies. This is supported by some of the class members having deja vu around certain events.
• Spoiler

  Machina and Rem we're apparently the variables in this cycle, which was also shown when Aracea talked to two other members who she called the originals or something like that.
• Spoiler

  The constant resetting of the time loop is creating these anomalies (that red cloud monster thing in the beginning) which gets stronger each reset (which is also why you can't fight it in the beginning)
• The ending part did confuse me, unless they were some sort of
  Spoiler

  time protectors, unleashing their armies against Aracea to stop the loop? That ending chapter just happened to abruptly that I never really understood its meaning. Who were those immortals that marched on the city? Why did they come?

 

[SephLuis]

Did you watch one of the last videos found in the Compendium? Cid didn't want to be the judge.

Spoiler

He killed himself but they revived him for their goals.

I didnt checked the Compendium in the late game. Honestly, not sure if I even want to go back now.
Thanks for answering the Cid thing for me.

 

[threelights]

If someone is already making a more detailed answer, I'll just go over a little bit each of the points.

I finished T0HD last night and to be quite honest, I'm completely lost. From the

Spoiler

Concordia invasion

to the end and didn't understand anything at all and even before that point a lot of stuff made little sense to me. I consulted a wiki and some Reddit posts after finishing the game to try and understand a little but there's still a few question unclear to me.

Spoiler

1) How and why did Machina become a White Tiger l'Cie if he was from Rubrum¿ What was his true purpose¿
2) Why did Aria become the general's minion if Milites was the one who shot and almost killed her¿ It made no sense at all that she survived but started kissing the ass of the leader of her attackers.
3) If the members of Class Zero had the opportunity to choose whether to become l'cie or not, why did Rem accept¿ also, why did the Vermillion Bird crystal tried to find a l'cie at that point¿
4) Why was the beginning of the game so heavily focused on Izana if at the end Machina's motivations were influenced by his desire to protect Rem¿
5) Who the hell was Dr. Arecia¿ some wikis claim that she's actually a Fal'cie taking human form (like Barthendelus in the XIII series). What was her purpose¿
6) Is there an explanation to the scene with the samurai that looks like Ace¿
7) Why are Machina and Rem alive in the ending¿ Why does the rest of Class Zero die¿
8) What caused the red sky with the giant monsters¿ And what is the purpose of that red sky/giant monsters¿
9) Are Class Zero's members "created" by Arecia¿ They don't seem to be like normal humans, they also don't seem to have a past before being members of Class Zero, they seem oblivious to how the world works and they call Arecia "mother". That's weird.

Spoiler

1) It doesn't matter which crystal you serve, you become powerful, and that's all Machina wanted.
2) She lived and the Commander started taking care of her. I guess she just liked him since she could do whatever around him. Also, she was not "kissing his ass", she was still a prisoner.
3)I'm not sure I understand. The crystal offers you to be l'Cie, you refuse, then the crystal offers Rem, and she accepts because that would cure her sickness. The crystal was looking for more l'Cie since it just lost all of its previous ones.
4) That was the motivation for Machina to hate Class Zero and eventually accept the power from the enemy crystal. The fact he wanted power to protect Rem just comes from the fact he didn't trust Class Zero to help him.
5)She's not a l'Cie, she's just a servant of one of the gods. She (and the Judge from the last chapter) are looking for Etro's Gate (never actually named in the game). If you want a more detailed answer about those two I'll search the post I did in the OT for you.
6)That's just a game Tabata wants to make. It's basically like watching a secret ending in a Kingdom Hearts game.
7) Rem and Machina die when they are l'Cie, so they become crystals. Arecia can revive them since all she has to do is "de-crystalize" them. Class Zero died because they were just normal people that got mortally wounded I guess.
8)At the beginning of the game? Where you fight the flying monster for a little while? I think that's just a secret boss =P
9) They are normal humans that got picked up by Arecia when they were young (hence why they call her 'mother') and she raised them to fight in the war.

I also just finished the game and have more questions and observations. That ending was rushed as hell.

Spoiler

1) Cid was looking to unite all of Orience under Militia rule and adquiring all crystals. Why the hell did he sudenly became the doomsday jugde in the endgame ?

2) Aria, when shot, said something about the commander and the upper management of rubrum. It gave me the impression that Class Zero was sold out. I figured they never talked about it because I thought Aria had died and their memories of her were wiped. But she was alive and this was never discussed. What happened to Aria and who devised the plot to frame Class Zero ?

3) Concordia is led by the queen, but after her death the king sudenly takes control, give up the crystal and declare war ? The Concordia battle was amazing, but their real reasons for going to war are iffy at best.

4)What the hell is Agito ?

I liked the game, but a lot of little things kept the game from being amazing. The story being this big of a mess does not help.

Spoiler

1)Answered above.
2)I'm not sure what you're referring to =X But in the end Aria died after everyone forgot the Commander (who was the only one that kept her outside of a prison cell). And I don't think it matters who devised the plan to frame Class Zero, it was the White Tiger.
3)If Class Zero killed their queen, then why wouldn't they go to war against Rubrum? They just joined up the war with the White Tiger. I'm pretty sure you don't need a bigger motivation than that.
4)I don't quite remember, but iirc the game had a prophecy/myth/story/whatever-you-want-to-call-it about the end of the world, and the only people who could save them from it was the Agito. They're basically heroes who would stop the end of the world...

 

[PshycoNinja]

Doing this from my phone. So future apologies if the grammar or spelling is off.

UNMARKED SPOILER AHEAD!!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

I finished T0HD last night and to be quite honest, I'm completely lost. From the

Spoiler

Concordia invasion

to the end and didn't understand anything at all and even before that point a lot of stuff made little sense to me. I consulted a wiki and some Reddit posts after finishing the game to try and understand a little but there's still a few question unclear to me.

Spoiler

1) How and why did Machina become a White Tiger l'Cie if he was from Rubrum¿ What was his true purpose¿
2) Why did Aria become the general's minion if Milites was the one who shot and almost killed her¿ It made no sense at all that she survived but started kissing the ass of the leader of her attackers.
3) If the members of Class Zero had the opportunity to choose whether to become l'cie or not, why did Rem accept¿ also, why did the Vermillion Bird crystal tried to find a l'cie at that point¿
4) Why was the beginning of the game so heavily focused on Izana if at the end Machina's motivations were influenced by his desire to protect Rem¿
5) Who the hell was Dr. Arecia¿ some wikis claim that she's actually a Fal'cie taking human form (like Barthendelus in the XIII series). What was her purpose¿
6) Is there an explanation to the scene with the samurai that looks like Ace¿
7) Why are Machina and Rem alive in the ending¿ Why does the rest of Class Zero die¿
8) What caused the red sky with the giant monsters¿ And what is the purpose of that red sky/giant monsters¿
9) Are Class Zero's members "created" by Arecia¿ They don't seem to be like normal humans, they also don't seem to have a past before being members of Class Zero, they seem oblivious to how the world works and they call Arecia "mother". That's weird.

1) Threelights explained this pretty well. However, there is the added fact that Machina, Ren and Izana are all from a town that bordered Rubrum and Milites. So it would frequently be fought over and be a part of each nation for periods of time. Machina accepted the White Tiger Crystal because he wanted the L'Cie power. And as it turns out the l'Cie who gave him the power focus was to give Machina the power to become a l'Cie.
2) First off, they note in Chapter 4 that Aria looks a lot like the Generals sister who passed away. So when he saw her shot he wanted to save her because she reminded him of his sister. She was grateful that he saved her so she wanted to help him.
3) When l'Cie finish their focus or disappear the Crystals always look for a new l'Cie immediately. In the moment you were given the choice to accept or decline the Vermilion Bird Crystal Primus l'Cie disappeared so the Crystal was looking for someone to take his place. If Class Zero declines then it asks Rem, who accepts.
4) Izana was kind of the spark that set off Machina on his path. His desire to protect Rem stems from the fact that he doesn't want to forget her like he did with his brother.
5) Aracia is actually a goddess called Diva. Her purpose is to keep sending souls to the gate of Etro so they will open up. That's why she keeps reseting the world and enacting Tempus Finis.
6) It's a hint of the future of the series. Has nothing to do with Type-0 but rather the series if it continues. The movie in Japanese is called "Type-Next".
7) Because Rem and Machina were l'Cin they were granted eternal life. When Aracia learned that the world was saved by her children, she undid the l'Cie curse on them so they can live on but she couldn't save Class Zero. So instead she undid the forget the dead curse so they can remember all of them so they could tell their story to the world.
8) That is Tempus Finis. The end of the world. The world essentially tries to end itself so it sends out those creatures to end it.
9) They were all orphans of war. Aracia took them in and raised them. They get their magic from her and not from the Crystal. Hence why they could use magic at the beginning of the game.

If you have more questions or want me to expand on my answers let me know and I would be happy to do it. Though I am on my phone so it will take some time to formulate a response until I get home. But I will do my best.

 

[Garlador]

UNMARKED SPOILER QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BELOW!

Doing this from my phone. So future apologies if the grammar or spelling is off.

UNMARKED SPOILER AHEAD!!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

1) Threelights explained this pretty well. However, there is the added fact that Machina, Ren and Izana are all from a town that bordered Rubrum and Milites. So it would frequently be fought over and be a part of each nation for periods of time. Machina accepted the White Tiger Crystal because he wanted the L'Cie power. And as it turns out the l'Cie who gave him the power focus was to give Machina the power to become a l'Cie.

Why would Machina accept the power of an enemy l'Cie and WORK for the enemy when it was common knowledge to him and everyone that Rem was on Class Zero's side? He effectively became her enemy when he did this... and like the dunce that he was, neither revealed his identity to anyone (for... dramatic effect?) and ultimately ended up making Rem do her best Aeris-meets-Masamune impression later on. How could he not see that coming if he knew she'd continue fighting for Rubrum?

2) First off, they note in Chapter 4 that Aria looks a lot like the Generals sister who passed away. So when he saw her shot he wanted to save her because she reminded him of his sister. She was grateful that he saved her so she wanted to help him.

That makes only the barest of sense. She still betrayed her entire nation, that always supported her, after ONE single guy from Milites proved he wasn't a total jerk... and that was ONLY because she was lucky enough to resemble someone he lost, which is such an insanely selfish reason. And she still took a bullet from Milites (honestly, I thought she was full-on dead until it was stated otherwise... that certainly looked like she was dead upon being shot, but that's just poor execution). It would be like someone joining the Nazis after being shot by them because one of them wasn't as bad as the others. They're still going after her friends. Heck, the General goes into battle to kill her friends and she's cheering him on the entire time. Makes no sense to me.

3) When l'Cie finish their focus or disappear the Crystals always look for a new l'Cie immediately. In the moment you were given the choice to accept or decline the Vermilion Bird Crystal Primus l'Cie disappeared so the Crystal was looking for someone to take his place. If Class Zero declines then it asks Rem, who accepts.

That logic makes so little sense. Do the Crystals ALWAYS need someone else to do their bidding? What if there was a time of peace? What if they couldn't think of anything for them to do? Why can't they give them a more all-encompassing focus? For that matter, why was Rem even a good choice in the first place, outside of bizarrely-specific plot reasons for maximum dramatic and tragic effect? They could've picked anyone.

4) Izana was kind of the spark that set off Machina on his path. His desire to protect Rem stems from the fact that he doesn't want to forget her like he did with his brother.

I never really understood that either. I never understood the entire "we forget the dead" stuff. Is that for everyone who dies, even those of natural causes? Why would making them forget the dead be a good thing when many times the cry of battle to victory is to REMEMBER the fallen (Remember the Alamo! Remember the Maine!) and to avenge them because the loss is personal? Regardless, it's revealed the puppet masters at the end can break these rules anyway (Rem and Machina don't forget Class Zero), so why aren't there more exceptions to this arbitrary rule that only exists exclusively to justify more arbitrary Ex machinas? (heh! MACHINA! I GET IT NOW!)

5) Aracia is actually a goddess called Diva. Her purpose is to keep sending souls to the gate of Etro so they will open up. That's why she keeps reseting the world and enacting Tempus Finis.

So she's a god with the power to alter time itself. And she's repeated these events nearly a million times or more. Isn't that the definition of insanity? Trying the same thing over and over and over and expecting different results? But, also, if she exists OUTSIDE of time, and is aware of the events that have happened, why does she not take more drastic measures to ensure more drastic outcomes? Why not just tell the students "if you do this, you will all die and the world will end" and then ensure they take a different path? She's a terrible goddess. If things get really screwed up, she can always just reset time again.

6) It's a hint of the future of the series. Has nothing to do with Type-0 but rather the series if it continues. The movie in Japanese is called "Type-Next".

Since Ace is involved, it either involves reincarnation or is just an alternate universe. Maybe. I don't know. It could honestly lead to nothing... like decapitating Tidus with an exploding Blitzball or something.

7) Because Rem and Machina were l'Cin they were granted eternal life. When Aracia learned that the world was saved by her children, she undid the l'Cie curse on them so they can live on but she couldn't save Class Zero. So instead she undid the forget the dead curse so they can remember all of them so they could tell their story to the world.

Sounds like something she could have done for Machina upfront so he could remember Izana... but didn't for some bizarre reason. So much of the plot hinges on this "forget the dead" plot, and they talk about the "benefits", but we never really see the benefits in action. In fact, it constantly has the opposite effect and everyone spends a great deal of time thinking about things they can't remember and wasting a lot of time on people they no longer care about because they find it so odd they don't care about them yet know that they should. Who even created that curse in the first place, and why did they think it was such a good idea?

8) That is Tempus Finis. The end of the world. The world essentially tries to end itself so it sends out those creatures to end it.

What causes Tempus Finis? It just comes out of nowhere. There is no instigating factor. Are all these powerful beings sitting there at the door going "okay, guys, we have to wait for the right time where the world is united and everyone is feeling happy and then we'll strike! Oh boy, can you imagine the looks on their faces?" It's yet another completely arbitrary event that happens for arbitrary reasons that don't fully make sense yet exists solely to raise the stakes again for no reason whatsoever. They could have made Tempus Finis something that happens for any number of reasons and it would have made as much sense. Oh, they're using nuclear weapons? Time for Tempus Finis. Oh, a major political leader is dead? Tempus Finis time. Oh, Eight choked on a hot dog? Better bring out that Tempus Finis.

9) They were all orphans of war. Aracia took them in and raised them. They get their magic from her and not from the Crystal. Hence why they could use magic at the beginning of the game.

That does beg the question of why so many don't question how Class Zero is the only class in the ENTIRE WORLD not affected by magic nullifiers. You'd think not just Rubrum but EVERY nation would be after these kids to understand their immunity to the greatest weapon of war known to exist, and yet it's given the same consideration as what uniforms they should wear to class and whether anyone else is concerned Rem's been coughing non-stop for, like, months now...

If you have more questions or want me to expand on my answers let me know and I would be happy to do it. Though I am on my phone so it will take some time to formulate a response until I get home. But I will do my best.

You're doing the Fal'Cie's work. Heaven help you.

 

[threelights]

I don't really have the time/willpower to stay around and discuss, but I'll just say two things.

That logic makes so little sense. Do the Crystals ALWAYS need someone else to do their bidding? What if there was a time of peace? What if they couldn't think of anything for them to do? Why can't they give them a more all-encompassing focus? For that matter, why was Rem even a good choice in the first place, outside of bizarrely-specific plot reasons for maximum dramatic and tragic effect? They could've picked anyone.

Among other reasons, the Crystal can't really protect itself, so it needs someone. If there was a time of peace and no one was l'Cie, would the crystal need to call someone? Probably, l'Cie are not weapons, they complete the missions the Crystals give them. If you get the items that tells the story from the other l'Cie that you can find around the game you will see that their mission is not always "fight this"/"protect me"/etc. l'Cie are often used by the crystals to maintain order, or to create something. They say at the beginning of the game that a l'Cie won't even participate in war unless the Crystal orders it to do so (or if an enemy l'Cie attacks him).

The moment the Crystal asked you to become l'Cie, why would it not? It just lost all of the other l'Cie and it was getting attacked by monsters who were murdering pretty much everyone.
Also, there weren't many options besides Rem. Most people were dead and Rem was easily the strongest one of the remaining group (her disease wouldn't be a problem after she accepted).

Since Ace is involved, it either involves reincarnation or is just an alternate universe. Maybe. I don't know. It could honestly lead to nothing... like decapitating Tidus with an exploding Blitzball or something.

We literally have zero clue as to what it could be. As far as we know, they could just use the name and design of Ace and this be a completely different game on a completely different world, but they keep the protagonist to have some link with the previous game.


Also, I'm pretty sure everything you say there is explained in some way in the game, I don't have the time to explain everything though, as that would basically imply explaining the entire game here =X

 

[katagai]

It's been a while since I last played, but to pretty much sum up the story after re-reading wikis and reddit posts:

Spoiler

The world of Type-0 is an experiment and is essentially a contest between two gods on who can open the Gate of Etro (land of the dead) first.

The only way for the Gate of Etro to open is through souls passing into the afterlife, so Lindzei (one of the gods, the one responsible for Cocoon in FFXIII) comes to the conclusion that in order to blow the gate wide open, they will require a large quantity of souls. Pulse (the other god) however theorizes that only a small quantity of "quality" souls (Agito) are enough to open it.

So Lindzei and Pulse (the other god) create the world in Type-0 and create two fal'Cie to compete against each other: Gala (the Rursan Judge, Lindzei's servant) and Arecia Al-Reshia (Pulse's servant). Gala uses Tempus Finis to wipe out all life at the end of a cycle to try and flood the gate open, while Arecia raises Class Zero to be her small quantity of "quality" souls. When Gala fails to open the gate and Arecia fails in turning Class Zero into Agito, the world is reset and everything repeats itself. And since the world can be reset infinitely, Gala can keep throwing the same flood of souls at the gate every cycle (Tempus Finis) and Arecia gets to keep strengthening the same 12 souls (Class Zero).

During NG+, you're given the choice to change the course of history. Upon doing so, Class Zero becomes Agito and it's revealed that the world has repeated itself 600,104,972 times since it's creation. As they lay there dying, Arecia listens to Class Zero (at the suggestion of Tiz and Joker) and comes to realize how much they love her as a mother, and grants them their final wish: for all of humanity to retain their memories. Arecia does not reset the world and disappears along with the four crystals that were part of the "experiment", essentially leaving humanity to it's own devices, with zero interference from gods. Class Zero passes away, but lives on in the memories of Machina, Rem and everyone else they came in contact with.

As for whether Arecia succeeded in opening the gate, I have absolutely no idea. I haven't stumbled upon any info saying whether it was opened or not.

 

[TRI Mike]

If people forget the dead in this world, why did the General think Aria resembled his DEAD sister¿

 

[Garlador]

If people forget the dead in this world, why did the General think Aria resembled his DEAD sister¿

Maybe she WAS his sister the whole time!
Dun DUN DUN!

 

[PshycoNinja]

If people forget the dead in this world, why did the General think Aria resembled his DEAD sister¿

Because they have portraits of her.

 

[zakujanai]

Don't try to understand it, just try to forget this abortion of a game and move on.

 

[TRI Mike]

Now I understand most of the plot... that doesn't mean I like it.

Gotta say that now I'm legit worried about Tabata directing XV.

 

[Arkeband]

Don't try to understand it, just try to forget this abortion of a game and move on.

Thanks for contributing!

 

[SephLuis]

Maybe she WAS his sister the whole time!
Dun DUN DUN!

With how her personality made a complete 180°, I would not be surprised.

Also, the explanation for the magic disruptor not working on class 0 is not believable to me.
They used, what I imagine, is similar to a Radio Disruptor to break the link between the people and the crystal.

Wouldn't the same principle be applied to the link between Class 0 and their mother ?
My personal explanation was that they implanted a small part of the crystal on their bodies, at least, to me it made more sense.

 

[PshycoNinja]

With how her personality made a complete 180°, I would not be surprised.

Also, the explanation for the magic disruptor not working on class 0 is not believable to me.
They used, what I imagine, is similar to a Radio Disruptor to break the link between the people and the crystal.

Wouldn't the same principle be applied to the link between Class 0 and their mother ?
My personal explanation was that they implanted a small part of the crystal on their bodies, at least, to me it made more sense.

Personally that would make less sense as the CRYSTAL Jammer nullifies the Suzaku Crystal from providing any sort of help because the Jammer is using a massive amount of the White Tiger Crystal's energy to nullify only the Suzaku Crystal. Not a god.

So your explanation would make entirely less sense given the logic and information you provided yourself. It's also why Class Zero can wield such powerful magic. Because it comes from a God and not the Crystal.

 

[TRI Mike]

Funny how the General thought Aria was his imouto when every little girl in Akademia looked exactly like her. I thought the replacement girl that sells potions and shit after Aria gets shot was Aria until I actually spoke to her two chapters later. When I saw her in the clssroom I thought "maybe Tabata forgot the girl was killed, lol"

 

[zakujanai]

Thanks for contributing!

This is honestly the best advice I could give. I played all the way to the end of this because I hate myself that much.

 

[SephLuis]

Personally that would make less sense as the CRYSTAL Jammer nullifies the Suzaku Crystal from providing any sort of help because the Jammer is using a massive amount of the White Tiger Crystal's energy to nullify only the Suzaku Crystal. Not a god.

So your explanation would make entirely less sense given the logic and information you provided yourself. It's also why Class Zero can wield such powerful magic. Because it comes from a God and not the Crystal.

I thought that the jammer severed the connection between the crystal and the people, thus if there were no need for said connection, the jammer would not work.

That's why I presumed that a shard of the crystal was in their bodies, they would be able to harness it's power because the crystal was with them. To me, it would also explain the whole medical check ups needed and how they could wield powerful magic.

Also, by the time I thought this, I did not knew that their mother was a God. I thought she was only a crazy scientist.