Papalymo can be one of the first Scions of the Seventh Dawn characters that a player meets.
He is one of the most important people in the group and one of the best magic users.
At one point in the story, he’s a part of something very exciting.
What was wrong with him?
Spoilers for Final Fantasy XIV follow: After A Realm Reborn comes to the Heavensward expansion, so be careful!
In Final Fantasy XIV, Papalymo is one of our most powerful allies.
The small Lalafell went to school with the legendary archon Louisoix, who isn’t actually in XIV but is constantly mentioned.
Louisoix’s actions can be seen all over A Realm Reborn, which makes sense since he is the main reason why the realm was reborn in the first place.
People say that Papalymo is Louisoix’s best student because he works hard and is good at magic.
So, it makes sense that he ends up in a similar way.
The story of Ishgard and its never-ending war with the Dravanian Horde is told in the Heavensward expansion.
It has everything you’d expect from a high fantasy story: huge dragons, knights, religious corruption, the whole thing.
But Stormblood, the next expansion, is a whole different story.
Stormblood is a story about a political uprising and defiance against the Garlean Empire.
It is an adventure that takes place in faraway places.
To go from high fantasy to something in the Far East that was a little bit like Star Wars, a dramatic event had to happen.
And this is what the Heavensward patch content gave us.
Papalymo does end up dying because of the things we’ll talk about below.
Still, his sacrifice stops unimaginable damage and loss of life, so it wasn’t for nothing.
What Events Led Up To Papalymo’s Sacrifice?
Let’s get this done as quickly as we can.
Ilberd Feare made the Ala Mhigan Resistance go crazy by pretending to be a leader of the resistance called “The Griffin.”
Ilberd used to be a captain in Alphinaud’s Crystal Braves, the group that eventually betrayed the Scions and set them up for trying to kill the king.
Ilberd is, of course, a pretty bad guy.
He is an extremist who will do anything to get what he wants, and sometimes it seems like his main goal, which is to free his home country, isn’t as important as his endless hatred.
At the end of Heavensward, we face Ilberd as The Griffin at the end of the dungeon Baelsar’s Wall.
Even though we beat him, he still uses both of Nidhogg’s powerful eyes to call a terrible Primal named Shinryu.
So Why Does Papalymo Die?
Papalymo saves the day because he can’t think of anything else to do.
He uses the same spell that Louisoix used to stop Bahamut in Final Fantasy XIV’s legacy days.
He uses his own life force to trap Shinryu in a cocoon of light.
Before he casts his spell, he says goodbye to his friends and asks them to stay safe.
At this point, the player has a choice to make:
They can try to stay with him or trust him and leave.
This choice doesn’t really change anything, but it does change a little bit how the next scene goes.
In either case, the Scions leave, and Papalymo uses magic to keep Shinryu trapped.
This doesn’t kill Shinryu, but it gives the heroes who are fighting him a very important bit of time.
They wake up Omega, a superweapon that had been inactive for a long time and had come to Hydaelyn to find Midgardsormr.
Then they put the two epic forces against each other.
Papalymo has already used up all of his life force, though, by the time Omega is turned on.
So, yes, that battle is the end of Papalymo’s life.
But it’s a terrible way to die.
What Happens If I Choose To Stay With Papalymo?
Papalymo will not allow you to stay with him.
He dies while casting this spell, and this decision is really just to give your character a little flavor.
Are you going to put your faith in your friend to get the job done or are you going to put up a fight?
In the event you decide to stay, Papalymo will use his magic to send you on your way.
What Happens If I Leave Papalymo?
After giving Papalymo a sad look and nodding, you’ll dash to the airship for your own safety.
This scene alone has no bearing on the overall plot.
