An Empty Vessel (Blue Mage Flag Quest)  

Summary

There is a rare treasure in the "Middle Lands" that Waoud needs someone to obtain for him...

Walkthrough

The background of the Immortal Lions, the blue mages of Aht Urhgan:

The Immortals are the personal guard and the highest ranking soldiers of the leader of the Aht Urghan Empire, currently Empress Nashmeira II. Decades ago Emporer Balrahn feared an uprising of the chimaera, which the Empire used at this time as soldiers and warmachines and had to see how weak his palace guard were, leading to the death of his beloved son. The alchemists which created the chimaera thought just a monster can defeat a monster, so they took the strongest palace guards and tried to make monsters out of them. But after some horrible mistakes where the guards (in lucky cases) died from the transplantations the alchemists decided to stop the biotechnological way and turned to the way of magic: They fused the soul of the monster directly into the spirit of the guards!

These new guards, which wielded a magic called 'blue magic', could embrace the beast within themself and the monster they defeated. Their azure blood drew strength from the enemies they defeated and added them to power of the Blue Mage - the price being horrible pain and the loss of their humanity.

An Immortal never died after a normal livespan. They died in ferocious battle succumbing to their beastly nature ...

So, what is the way to immortality?

Before you do this quest I suggest you visit the Quon continent to gather some items:

• Dangruf Stone: go to (I-5) in Dangruf Wadi and search a shining spot there. It will give you the Dangrif Stone (may just happen during bright daylight).
• Siren's Tear: go to (J-8) in North Gustaberg an un-equip all weapons, shields and ammo from you. You will find a ??? which gives you the Siren's Tear. But be careful, it is a very delicate treasure which will slip away when you fight!
• Valkurm Sunsand: Go to the overturned ship at (H-9) in the Valkurm Dunes (shiver), wait for a sandstorm and then click the ??? to get this item.

Travel to Aht Urghan Whitegate and go to a guy named Waoud at the Heretic's Alley (if it is your first visit to Aht Urghan I recommend buying a map at the vendor in the port), where he stands on top of the middle buildings. Waoud is a diviner which has a rather unique way to tell your future. He will ask you 10 questions. If you anwer correctly, you will start "An Empty Vessel", the BLU flag quest. Here are the questions:

I. What is destiny?

II. Does the accomplishment of a goal require sacrifice and hardship?

III. You hold in your hands a forbidden scroll. Reading it will bring you untold wisdom, but cost all that you own.

IV. If the loss of one life would save ten thousand, would you offer yourself without hesitation?

V. Would you choose a tumultuous life where fame or fortune were attainable, or a tranquil life where both were forever beyond your reach?

VI. You stand on the precipice between life and death. Would you choose to live life as a beast if it would save you from falling into the shadowy abyss of the underworld?

VII. A companion in battle turns against you, raising a weapon to attack.

VIII. A loved one is afflicted with a terrible illness and has little time to live. You are asked to end that life by your own hand.

IX. You are in the midst of a fierce battle. The enemy lying at your feet was once a friend. His breath is ragged and weak.

X. A superior to whom you owe a great debt orders you to act in a way that violates your sense of justice.

The catch is this: there is no 100% 'correct' way to answer this question. When you answer the question think like a Blue Mage might answer - a ruthless beast without mercy but still honourable. For some people a certain set of answers work and for other people not. Perhaps the 'correct' way depends on the race and/or job you have while doing the divination ... but I'm pretty sure there are always 3 correct ways and the chosen way will determine the item you have to pay. For me 'take all bottom answers' worked, others say the right combination is 2-2-3-3-2-1-2-1-2-2

If you answer wrong, he will charge 1000 gil from you and you can do it again one Vana'diel day later. But when all the answers are right, he will see the symbols of the five serpents (Sky, Flame, Stone, Gale and Spring) and ask for no payment. Talk to him until he mentiones something from the Middle Lands (Mindartia / Quon) that he wants: either a golden sand, a red stone, or a blue jewel. Zone and wait a full Vana'diel day, then talk to him again and after that trade him the according item.

Waoud will send you to Aydeewa Subterrane. Go to the Bhaflau Thickets and then walk as far northeast as possible. There you will find the entrance to the Subterrane. Go right until you come to a room where many diremites crawl around. A ramp is there which leads down to a deeper cave where a great blue pool is. Step onto the pool ... and then decide ...

Do you want to get the power of an Immortal? If yes, take his hand...

To read the transcripts and see videos for this quest, see the An Empty Vessel Spoilers page.

Quest Series

This is part of the job flag quest series. Other quests of the series include:

• A Knight's Test: Paladin flag
• A Little Knowledge: Scholar flag
• An Empty Vessel: Blue Mage flag
• Ayame and Kaede: Ninja flag
• Blade of Darkness: Dark Knight flag
• Forge Your Destiny: Samurai flag
• I Can Hear A Rainbow: Summoner flag
• Lakeside Minuet: Dancer flag
• Luck of the Draw: Corsair flag
• No Strings Attached: Puppetmaster flag
• Path of the Bard: Bard flag
• Save My Son: Beastmaster flag
• The Fanged One: Ranger flag
• The Holy Crest: Dragoon flag