Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail is the fifth expansion pack to Final Fantasy XIV, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Square Enix for Windows, macOS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. It was released on July 2, 2024, over two years after Endwalker, the previous expansion. Like its predecessors, Naoki Yoshida served as director and producer and Masayoshi Soken composed the soundtrack. The expansion pack will be released as a standalone product for current players; for new players, the “Complete Edition” that originally launched with Heavensward was updated to include all expansions including Dawntrail.
In Dawntrail, players travel to Tural, a continent across the sea, to participate in a rite of succession to determine the next leader of Tuliyollal. They will serve as champion for Wuk Lamat, one of the current leader’s children. They are joined by allies from Eorzea who support different candidates. After the climactic events of Endwalker, Dawntrail was designed as a “summer vacation” for the player’s character, the Warrior of Light. In addition to adding new areas, the expansion pack increased the level cap, debuted two character classes and a new playable race, and initiated the game’s first major graphical overhaul since its relaunch in 2013.
The gameplay of Dawntrail largely matches that of the base game. Players interact with each other in a persistent world that responds to their actions. The two new jobs in Dawntrail are Viper, a dextrous dual-wielding swordsmaster, and Pictomancer, a paint-based mage. Viper is inspired by other agile swordsmen in the Final Fantasy series, such as Zidane from Final Fantasy IX. Vipers can combine their two swords into a stronger two-handed weapon for certain attacks. Pictomancers brush their magical paint directly into the air, casting both damaging and supportive spells for the party. It is based on Relm Arrowny’s magic in Final Fantasy VI. Krile, a fan-favorite character, changes her class to Pictomancer in this expansion. Director Yoshida stated that the more recently designed classes, including Viper and Pictomancer, feel “more complete” compared to ones introduced in earlier expansions. Additionally, Beastmaster will be added as a “Limited” job, with the same restrictions on player matchmaking as Blue Mage.
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