Odin & Alexander

[Kajimaru]

Anyone else see that? >.>
http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/event/vanafes2010/index.html

" Summoner Two new long-awaited avatars, Alexander and Odin will be added. Both new avatars will appear and do the summoner’s bidding only when Astral Flow is in effect. Be aware, invoking one or the other will automatically initiate Astral Flow, the effect of which will end upon the avatar’s release. In accordance of their introduction, summoners will become able to use the “Astral Flow” job ability even when no avatars have been invoked.

Avatar: Alexander Uses “Perfect Defense” to reduce damage sustained by party members and prevent status ailments. - Damage reduction and resistance rate will vary with the summoner’s remaining MP.

Avatar: Odin Uses “Zantetsuken” to vanquish all foes within the area of effect in one fell strike. - When used against NMs, will instead deal damage.
- Amount of damage dealt and accuracy will vary with the summoner’s remaining MP.
- More monsters within the area of effect will reduce accuracy. "

I'm surprised no one has said anything. Or do fellow Summoner's feel like this is a bad joke.

 

[Miruyasha]

I don't main smn, but I have enjoyed leveling it and using it so I was excited when I found out about this. Then I found out they're AF only, so that kinda dampened it, but I still think it's cool. I foresee getting these avy's being a bitch.

 

[Davion]

These avatars are a wait and see kinda thing, after Diabolos being so boring...yeah lets not get our hopes up too soon.

 

[Miruyasha]

I'm sure there will be adjustments shortly after these VU's are implemented. There's always adjustments...

 

[Zaltana]

Well you can only use them with AF active. Since even calling them will activate you AF then I'm wondering will they extend AF's duration or will they appear, 2 hour, and leave.

Honestly i never expected SE to relent and give new avatars, lol. I'm guessing that you will have to have ToAU completed and einherjar completed and such, meaning i wont ever have either one.

 

[Miruyasha]

Well you can only use them with AF active. Since even calling them will activate you AF then I'm wondering will they extend AF's duration or will they appear, 2 hour, and leave.

Honestly i never expected SE to relent and give new avatars, lol. I'm guessing that you will have to have ToAU completed and einherjar completed and such, meaning i wont ever have either one.

Same. I'm so behind, I don't even have RotZ completed, or CoP...

Not really something to brag about lol.

 

[Nishida]

I was hoping they'd have normal abilities to use and not just one super move that consumes your 2hr. It's kind of lame imo, but maybe they'll tweak them later on..

 

[Miruyasha]

I was hoping they'd have normal abilities to use and not just one super move that consumes your 2hr. It's kind of lame imo, but maybe they'll tweak them later on..

I was hoping for that too. Alex has always been a holy-type summon (and he's a robot...go figure) so I figured we'd have someone stronger than Carby for light attacks.

 

[Kanelucian]

Just hope they dont make us go threw hell n back then to pergatory to get said summon...

 

[Shirai]

Actually this summoning style does befit the older FF titles where you summoned an avatar to do a very powerful attack or one to give you a very powerful buff.
It's up to SE on how they will ballance it out.
It's not like the current 2 hour has been used for anything other then astralburning or conserving MP anyway.
Ok, ok it can be pretty powerful in Einherjar if you put a few summoners together, but that about depletes the use of our 2 hour ability.

Now consider the following:
This also opens the door for a few other (perhaps even already existing) avatars that could suddenly become available for you to summon in the future.

Take Bahamut as an offensive pet for example:
Mega/Giga/Terraflare based on the summoner's level?

Atomos as defensive with his Soul vacuum:
Drains all stats from surrounding mobs and giving those to the party the summoner is in.

Above avatars are examples and of course highly theoretical, but with SE's current course of planning with FFXI I don't think it unlikely to see more pets or for other jobs abilities added that can only be triggered by our 2 hour ability but in return may be very powerful.

I wouldn't for example be surprised one bit if Meteor(The rumored new BLM spell) could only be cast with manafont.
Or Samurais, Warriors, Dragoons and Monks getting an extremely destructive weapon skill which can only be used when their 2 hours are up.

It's all theoretical, and it could all turn out to be utter BS I am spouting here, but as SE is already in the process of breaking with the old...
Why the hell not?

 

[Zaltana]

you site exactly why i feel they wont be "usable" in the usual sense. I would love to run around with odin and alexander doing my bidding for shits & giggles. But given the nature of their power, especially bahamut, the summon blast everything and leave method is the only thing i can see happening. IF SE wants us to use them similarly to the other avatars AF's durration will have to be extended to at least 2 min.

oh and I like that idea of WS's available only when your 2 hour is active. But SE may not do that cause not all jobs have an effect 2 hour. RNG, NIN, WHM for example.

 

[Shirai]

you site exactly why i feel they wont be "usable" in the usual sense. I would love to run around with odin and alexander doing my bidding for shits & giggles. But given the nature of their power, especially bahamut, the summon blast everything and leave method is the only thing i can see happening. IF SE wants us to use them similarly to the other avatars AF's durration will have to be extended to at least 2 min.

oh and I like that idea of WS's available only when your 2 hour is active. But SE may not do that cause not all jobs have an effect 2 hour. RNG, NIN, WHM for example.

What sais they won't change it?
The have updated or even changed 2 hours completely in the past.

And em..
Astral flow already lasts for little over 3 minutes.

It is indeed stated that we will lose our 2 hour's effect after dismissing Odin or Alex.
However what we do not know yet is:
Will either action consume MP or will both avatars only consume MP for normal perpetuation?

Will having them out extend the duration of your 2 hour for as long as your MP pool is able to support keeping either up, or will they just dissapear as your Astral flow effect wears off?

Will they be able to perform their actions more then once?

 

[Indalecia]

I'm more pissed about the fact that Odin has a damn spear, therefore could theortically give us our high level piercing pact FINALLY.....and they go and put him on a 2hour CD.

Seriously?
SERIOUSLY?!

 

[Elizara]

Heh. If you have to do Ein tho I'm gonna have to find a shell that works for me >< I did want to do it once, but it's scheduling that's a problem.

The good thing about these new avas though is I don't really have to make a set for them (I already have a full set taken up with the others), just macro them. I'll prolly macro them like a two hour though so I don't hit by accident! (put in a <stpc> in them so I can cancel)

 

[Lyall]

Bahamut would be tricky to introduce for canonical reasons. Spoilers for people not in the know for ToAU's story.

Spoiler:

Both Odin and Alexander take avatars in the form of Luzaf and Razfahd. It can be argued that they lend their power, literally turning the two guys into their own Avatars, hence the meaning of the term. We know through this that Odin and Alex both allow mortals to borrow their power for their own means.

Bahamut hates every lesser race on Vana'diel and doesn't seem too interested in taking an avatar in someone, so canonically having him lend even Mega Blast for a 2hour ability would be pretty hard to swallow.

'course, all that can change, but... I don't see it, and honestly it'd jade me to it. Bahamut's a really, really big avatar. Throwing a bunch of summoners all Mega Blasting at once would probably crash some systems if you had all animations displayed. Still, a summoner can dream.

 

[Indalecia]

SE straight up said bahamut will never be summonable, ever.

 

[Lyall]

SE straight up said bahamut will never be summonable, ever.

They also said they'd never increase the level cap. Things change, but unless there's a new expansion in which Bahamut suddenly gives a shit about the children of Altana, I don't see him coming around to our side.

Also, not trolling. I just no longer believe anything SE tells me. I'm wounded. ._.

 

[Westyle]

So... exp train, 1 kiter, 5 smn, Zantetsuken?

 

[Shirai]

SE straight up said bahamut will never be summonable, ever.

More precisely SE said they wouldn't make Bahamut summonable because they would have to reduce him in strength considerably or summoner would become too powerful
Yet right now they add an avatar which is about twice the strength of Bahamut.

And as Lyal said, SE also said they wouldn't increase the level cap.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying SE will eventually add Bahamut,that would be nonsense.
However this action of them did open a couple of theoretical doors, slightly.

 

[Lyall]

More precisely SE said they wouldn't make Bahamut summonable because they would have to reduce him in strength considerably or summoner would become too powerful
Yet right now they add an avatar which is about twice the strength of Bahamut.


.

Depends on how you gauge "twice the strength." Odin and Alexander are both Celestial Avatars. They're entities in their own right, but don't possess an actual lifespan, and they can't truly be destroyed. The Prime avatars return to the crystals and slumber, hence the Sleeping Gods and Odin and Alexander have both been driven back to whence they came by one another at one time or another.

Bahamut isn't Celestial, though. He's a big bad Terrestrial Avatar. He doesn't return to a crystal, and he isn't ephemeral in his nature; He's the fucking Wyrmking and has been around with a conscious body since the Mother Crystals. Granted, Carby and Fenrir and Diabolos also share this title, and they are also player avatars, but they're also inclined to help. Story-wise, Carby's had plans since before you picked up the ruby to gain his pact, Fenrir is older than dirt and is known to be weakened through Windy storyline and Diabolos only ever appears to you in HIS realm of sleep. Phoenix is the only known Terrestrial Avatar to have "died" but, you know, Phoenix.

I'm rambling now, but yeah, Bahamut = more badass canonically than either Odin or Alexander. The guardian of the dead? Holy robot that protects Aht Urghan? Those two aren't as formidable as an ancient wyrm that, at one point, planned on destroyed literally all life on Vana'diel just to prevent the planet's destruction. We don't know what Ragnarok entailed as far as Aht Urghan's idea of it, but Bahamut made plenty certain the finer details of his plans. Odin didn't come across as a world-slaughtering tyrant, and Alex just existed to stop Odin from doing whatever it is he had planned. Bahamut's not even really STOPPED, he just relents after you remove the threat, airship battle notwithstanding.