Primal



The primals, also known as eikons, are magical beings in Final Fantasy XIV worshiped by the beast races of Eorzea. They are classic Final Fantasy summoned monsters, and may be related to both the Echo and the sudden new attacks from the Garlean Empire who considers them a threat. Each beast race has its own primal and plans to use them to its own ends, either to harass the city-states, self protection or to fight the Garleans.

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Primals are born during a moment of chaos, such as during one of Eorzea's Umbral Eras. When there is an abundance of aether and people are praying for aid, the prayers manifest the aether into a physical form. Due to the nature of their existence, a primal must consume aether from its surroundings, becoming a threat to the world of Hydaelyn. The summoning rituals need an ample supply of aether—the most convenient being crystals. The aether can also be acquired with other tools, such as the enigmatic horn and tablet stored on Seal Rock, or the eye of a great wyrm.

While usually an embodiment of the summoner's desire, there are cases when the summoner transforms into a primal. There are also primals like Bahamut and Moggle Mog created in the image of their namesakes.

Ten years before the start of the original Final Fantasy XIV, the dragon Midgardsormr was killed in the Battle of Silvertear Skies and its seal on the aether beneath Silvertear Lake was broken. After this, the primals were easily summoned by the beast tribes. Since the most convenient supply of aether for the summoning rituals is a massive amount of the same crystals and shards used by crafters, some of the beast races stopped selling theirs to the city-states.

Once summoned, primals can "temper" other beings, instilling fanatical loyalty to the primal and creating a secure wellspring of faith. Usually this is an intentional process, but a few primals (such as Ramuh) have shown distaste for it, implying it is a natural byproduct of their existence. While those gifted with the Echo are immune, their soul's aether may still be consumed by a nearby primal if they ever lose their mortal form.

Due to the presence of primals in Eorzea and the massive amount of energy needed to summon them the flux of aether over Silvertear Falls has been disrupted and the land of Eorzea will slowly perish if this process isn't reversed. The Scions of the Seventh Dawn strive to eliminate any primals that manifest. This is also one of the reasons behind the Garlean Empire's campaign to destroy the primals, according to Emperor Varis. Gaius Van Baelsar hoped to achieve a permanent means through the Ultima Weapon's ability to absorb primals.

The Ascians have been teaching the means to summon primals, and for ancient Allag, the means to bind them. The creation of primals has an effect on the mothercrystal Hydaelyn, seemingly as part of the goal to revive Zodiark. The primals and the tools to summon them have proven useful in undoing an Ascian, as the supply of aether needed to summon a primal can, if focused, shatter an Ascian trapped in White Auracite. Further, an Ascian's soul can be consumed directly by a primal if its host body is slain by one; primals feed on aether, and a soul is comprised of it.

Known primals
By patch 4.3, there are 25 known primals, though one of them was only mentioned.

The term "Elder Primal" indicates those worshiped/summoned in older eras (i.e. before the Sixth Astral Era), often from cultures that no longer exist. For example, Bahamut was originally summoned in the Third Astral Era, whereas Shiva is a recent "newborn" primal.


 * Ifrit, Lord of the Inferno, primal of the Amalj'aa.
 * Titan, Lord of Crags, primal of the Kobolds.
 * Garuda, Lady of the Vortex, primal of the Ixal.
 * Good King Moggle Mog XII, primal of the Moogles known as Moggleguard, who support him, and is modeled after their ancestors' savior.
 * Bahamut, the Dreadwyrm, Elder Primal of the dragons of Meracydia in the image of the Firstbrood of the same name. He was incarcerated inside Dalamud until the Seventh Umbral Era.
 * Phoenix, a primal of rebirth created from Louisoix Leveilleur during the Seventh Umbral Era.
 * Leviathan, Lord of the Whorl, primal of the Sahagin.
 * Ramuh, Lord of Levin, primal of the Sylphs.
 * Shiva, Lady of Frost, primal of the Ishgardian heretics in the image of Saint Shiva and summoned into Ysayle Dangoulain.
 * Enkidu, an inadvertently summoned primal created by Gilgamesh, based on the memory of the original Enkidu.
 * Ravana, Lord of the Hive, primal of the Gnath.
 * Bismarck, Lord of the Mists, primal of the Vanu Vanu.
 * Knights of the Round, primals created by Archbishop Thordan VII using the Ishgardians' faith in their country's founding legend in conjunction with Nidhogg's eye. King Thordan is supported by his Knights Twelve, the primal forms of the Heavens' Ward.
 * Odin, the Dark Divinity, described as a roaming Elder Primal. The sword Zantetsuken is the primal, while Odin is a mortal which the primal blade tempered and blessed with power.
 * Belias, an Elder Primal from an unknown era. Initially only his Egi is encountered, though he makes an appearance himself in The Ridorana Lighthouse using similar Egi to support himself.
 * Alexander, the Creator, primal of the Illuminati Goblins.
 * Sephirot, the Fiend, is the first member of the Warring Triad and an Elder Primal of a tree-like race in Meracydia.
 * Sophia, the Goddess, is the second member of the Warring Triad and an Elder Primal of a multitude of Meracydian races.
 * Zurvan, the Demon, is the third and final member Warring Triad and an Elder Primal of Meracydian centaurs.
 * Susano, the Lord of Revel, primal of the Kojin.
 * Lakshmi, the Lady of Bliss, primal of the Ananta.
 * Shinryu, the Worm, a primal summoned by Ilberd in order to lay waste to the empire. It was stopped by Omega.
 * Tsukuyomi, goddess of the moon and divinity of night. A minor primal of the Kojin summoned into Yotsuyu.
 * Eureka, an Elder Primal mentioned in The Forbidden Land of Eureka storyline. Currently sealed inside the isle's castle, but appearing around the place as a masked man.

Valefor was a primal mentioned by Gagarua that hasn't appeared. Enemies named Valefor appear in the Labyrinth of the Ancients, but these are voidsent dahaks, not primals or even egis, so Gagarua may have been bluffing.

The Warrior of Light discovers that some youths from Little Ala Mhigo were plotting to summon Rhalgr in the same way beast tribes summon their deities to combat the Garleans, which would have created Rhalgr as a primal. This plot is halted before they do anything reckless.

It is currently unknown what primals are worshiped by beast tribes like the Qiqirn, Gigas, or Mamool Ja, if they even worship any at all.

Egi
Egi are tiny versions of primals, made of concentrated elemental essence. Only Summoners can call them forth after binding their power with the aid of their Soul Crystal. These egi bear many characteristics of the respective primal, but lack the personality and aether-draining properties of the full-scale forms.

Some primals summon minions that are similar to egis, such as Ramuh's Grey Arbiters and Titan's Granite Gaolers.

Version 1.0
The Warrior of Light was made aware of the primals by the Elezen mage Louisoix Leveilleur, leader of the Circle of Knowing, while investigating the activities of Garlean Legatus Nael Van Darnus. According to Louisoix, the primals' absorption of the realm's crystals threatened the land. The Warrior of Light learned that mysterious figures known as "Paragons" had taught the beast tribes the means to summon, and while the Warrior took down the primals, Nael Van Darnus sought to destroy them by having the planet's lesser moon, Dalamud, crash onto Eorzea.

As Dalamud approached it absorbed the primals' aether who lost their physical forms. Even after Van Darnus's death, Dalamud continued to fall until it broke apart, revealing the Elder Primal Bahamut. Although Louisoix tried to use the power of the Twelve, Eorzea's guardian deities, to reseal Bahamut, the attempt failed and Bahamut's rage was unleashed on the realm, triggering the Seventh Umbral Era. In the catastrophe's aftermath the beast tribes focus on rebuilding.

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn
Thancred Waters asks the Warrior of Light to aid in solving a mystery regarding the disappearances in Camp Drybone. It turns out the Amalj'aa have been kidnapping people to be offered to their primal, Ifrit. During the operation to catch the Amalj'aa red-handed, the Warrior of Light is betrayed and knocked unconscious to be turned into a follower of Ifrit. Through the protection of Hydaelyn, Ifrit's fire has no effect on the Warrior and s/he defeats him.

The Maelstrom, the grand company of Limsa Lominsa, requests the Warrior of Light to slay Titan, who has been summoned by kobolds near the city. Y'shtola Rhul warns the Warrior that Titan is much stronger than Ifrit and that advice from the Company of Heroes, a brave band of men and women who have in the past killed him, would come in handy. After performing a series of tasks for the company members, the Warrior of Light receives their blessing and enters Titan's lair, where his/her group defeats him.

Later on, the Warrior of Light works with Cid and Alphinaud to reach Garuda where the Ixal have summoned her in Natalan. Garuda is much more powerful than the previous two primals, able to retain her physical form even after seemingly being beaten. She proclaims to tear down each city-state and leave behind a world where she is revered. Before she can attack the Warrior of Light again, Gaius Van Baelsar arrives and mocks her, slaying the Ixal whose prayers were powering her. Garuda rips Ifrit and Titan into existence from their followers Ixal had captured and prepares to feed upon their aether, but the intervention of the Ultima Weapon, deployed by Van Baelsar, defeats Garuda and the other primals.

After the defeat of the Garlean Empire and the resurrected primals, Alisaie Leveilleur asks the Warrior of Light to investigate a dungeon beneath Castrum Occidens called the "Binding Coil of Bahamut" to discover the mystery behind Bahamut's sudden disappearance. They find fragments of Bahamut's body, and at the center see its head held in place by technology from Dalamud. They see Louisoix and Nael Van Darnus, alive, watching over Bahamut. Unable to do any more, the two take their leave.

In the events of the "Through the Maelstrom" scenario arc, the Sahagin accumulate enough crystals to summon their primal, Leviathan. After being warned by the Scions of the Seventh Dawn of the impending crisis, Admiral Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn mobilizes the Maelstrom in launching a preemptive strike against the Sapsa Spawning Grounds. They find a Sahagin priest calling forth Leviathan, who claims he will achieve eternal life through the Echo. He transfers his mind into the bodies of fellow Sahagin after being shot by the admiral, but is absorbed by the awakened Leviathan. To take out the Lord of the Whorl on the open seas before he can unleash a catastrophic tidal wave, a special barge called the Whorleater is created to enable the Warrior of Light to approach and defeat the ocean primal.

In the main scenario events of "Defenders of Eorzea", the touched Sylphs call forth Ramuh, Lord of Levin. The sylphs of Little Solace had previously assured Ramuh was of minimal concern, focused only with the protection of the forest, and it was believed that an influx of refugees from the unrest in Ul'dah pushed the touched ones' hands into summoning their primal. When confronted by the Scions, the Lord of Levin condemns the actions of man. Questioning the Warrior of Light's resolve to be the Bearer of Light, Ramuh bids him/her to undertake his trial. Once defeated, he grants the Warrior of Light his blessing and leaves the physical world.

During the events of "Dreams of Ice," the heretic Ysayle Dangoulain summons forth Saint Shiva as a primal. Being a user of the Echo, she can channel the primal into herself, becoming its avatar—a feat previously unknown. Shiva is defeated by the Warrior of Light, and reverts to Ysayle. Frustrated, she condemns their involvement, insisting she's doing this for the sake of peace.

Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward
The Gnath, a tribe of arthropod-like beastmen native to Dravania, became increasingly belligerent to both dragons and hunters. The dragon Vidofnir reveals that they had summoned a primal, and this has put the dragons on edge and thus denied the Warrior of Light, Ysayle, Alphinaud, and Estinien Wyrmblood access to Hraesvelgr for the time being. The Warrior of Light and Ysayle let themselves be captured as offerings to the primal, Ravana. Realizing the primal is a wargod, Ysayle offers a trial by combat, asking the Gnath abandon their conquest if they defeat him. In the first round, Ysayle transforms into Shiva to duel Ravana, but is defeated. The Warrior of Light is up next, and defeats the primal, who honors his word.

In the Sea of Clouds, the Vundu tribe of the Vanu Vanu had summoned Bismarck as a primal, an immense whale capable of devouring the floating islands, including the one that housed the key to Azys Lla. Cid concocts the idea of towing a floating island via airship as bait, and installing Ishgardian Dragonkillers to harpoon the whale., allowing the Warrior of Light to defeat the Lord of the Mists at the Limitless Blue.

During the course of the Main Scenario quests it is revealed the Archbishop Thordan VII and his elite knights, the Heavens' Ward, used Ascian teachings to channel the legend of King Thordan and his Knights Twelve as a primal of the church. At the floating continent of Azys Lla, Thordan uses the power of Nidhogg's right eye to transform into King Thordan with the intent of eliminating all conflict in the world and ruling as a God-King. As his first act, the primal executes Lahabrea and absorbs the Ascian overlord's aetherial essence. The Knights of the Round are defeated by the Warrior of Light in the Singularity Reactor. Alexander is awoken in the Dravanian Hinterlands, while the Warring Triad stirs from their slumber.

Later, atop Baelsar's Wall, Ilberd Feare uses the Eyes of Nidhogg and the sacrifices of himself and his soldiers to summon Shinryu and bring calamity upon the empire, but moments after its release Shinryu is confronted by a recently activated Omega. The battle ends in a stalemate as the clashing energies result in a massive explosion of energy that sends both of them flying away to parts unknown.

Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood
Upon traveling to Tamamizu, the Warrior of Light learns of a creature akin to a primal called Susano, a kami worshiped by the Kojin of the Red. Unlike the primals of before, the Red Kojin do not plan to summon him. Instead, the Warrior of Light unwittingly summons Susano during a mission to draw Red Kojin away from their imperial allies, as the Yasakani-no-Magatama in the Warrior's possession reacts to two other treasures stored in a vault, materializing into the physical world without either prayer or crystal. Susano desires a contest of wills with the Warrior of Light, his wish for battle independent from the the Red Kojin.

After freeing Doma and returning to Gyr Abania, the Warrior of Light learns of another primal from their Ananta allies, called Sri Lakshmi, a deity worshiped by their beast tribe. She was summoned when Fordola rem Lupus murdered the daughter of the Qalyana's leader, who had previously sided with the empire in the hope of being left alone. Driving the imperials away with the might of their patron deity, they demanded that the Vira tribe of the Ananta come pay tribute to her. The Warrior of Light, the Levilleur twins and Lyse Hext head to the Qalyana's home to slay the primal.

They see the Qalyana's broodmother distraught, as although her daughter had been revived, her soul was long ago lost to the aether, leaving behind a soulless unresponsive husk. Alisaie becomes incensed by the primal's false promises and tries to convince the Qalyana to renounce Lakshmi, but the mother's grief is profound. The primal floods the room with a wave of tempering flames, which the Warrior of Light blocks. Lakshmi warns them to leave them be. After defeating the primal in her lair, the Qalyana broodmother curses the Warrior of Light and Lyse for taking away their only means of solace and tells them to leave for her to mourn.

The Warrior of Light discovers the missing Shinryu within the Royal Menagerie of Ala Mhigo. Zenos's men had captured and imprisoned the beast while it was incapacitated from the battle with Omega. Because Shinryu was born of pure rage with no worshipers to guide its power toward a specific target or goal, it is akin to a mindless beast. Taking advantage of this, Zenos used the Resonant within his being to merge with Shinryu, becoming the primal itself with its power at his disposal. The Warrior of Light later fights and destroys Shinryu, leaving behind Zenos's battered body and the now powerless eyes of Nidhogg.

After the liberation of Ala Mhigo, the Qalyana join with the leading members of the Resistance to discuss the matter of the throne. Though the broodmother spoke of harmony with her fellow Ala Mhigan neighbors, she reveals her true plan to summon Lakshmi, calling it forth in front of the leaders to temper them, having used the enthralled guards to smuggle in the crystals. Amid the chaos, Raubahn cuts down the broodmother while Arenvald Lentinus and the Warrior of Light use their Echo to shield the civilians and leaders from her influence. Lakshmi's advances become overwhelming but unexpected help arrives when Fordola, released from captivity, steps in and uses her Resonant powers to protect the Ala Mhigans from a blast that would have otherwise ensnared them. With their combined power, the three slay the primal, saving countless lives from a lifetime of servitude.

During the prisoner exchange between Doma and Garlemald to solidify the united front against primals, Asahi sans Brutus plans to disrupt negotiations between nations by forcing Yotsuyu to regain her memories, bringing her back as acting viceroy of Doma. The supply crates he took from Yanaxia were in fact crystals and the mirror he had given her prior was used as a catalyst for the summoning of a kami. Feeding upon her sorrows, the crystals transform her into Tsukiyomi. Asahi uses her summoning ritual to breach the agreement and orders his men to retreat. As the Warrior of Light battles her, they bear witness to her innermost turmoil, being overwhelmed by specters of those who wronged her, though a single light defends her in the form of a ghost of Gosetsu Everfall. Yotsuyu succumbs to her hate, but is defeated. Remnants of the primal's power still linger in her transfigured state, but Asahi repeatedly shoots her. Yotsuyu uses her remaining power to skewer him with swords. Her vengeance sated, she peacefully, her lifeless body returning to its original state.

Final Fantasy Trading Card Game
Some of the primals appear in Final Fantasy Trading Card Game.

Triple Triad
Some of the primals appear on Triple Triad cards in the version available via Final Fantasy Portal App.

Gallery

 * Official Artwork/Renders

Etymology
The Garlean word "eikon" may derive from the Greek word eikon, translated in English as "image," which is the root word for the English work "icon" whose early definition was religious imagery.

Trivia

 * In the original opening CG of version 1.0, the shapes of Ifrit and Titan emerge from the aether pillar formed after the death of Midgardsormr. Unlike Ifrit, Titan did not appear until A Realm Reborn.
 * On the bonus disc included with the physical collector's edition of Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, Midgardsormr is erroneously referred to as an elder primal.
 * The terms for those enthralled by the primal match with their element: Ifrit's Tempered, Leviathan's Drowned, Ramuh's Touched ("touched" by the primal's divine influence), and Odin's "sundered" due to how his blade tears one "asunder."
 * "Tempered" is the default term for a being brought under a primal's thrall, as violet Sylphs have been referred to as "tempered in the levin light of Ramuh." This was conformed during Live Letter XXVII, where it was mentioned each primal has a phrase correlating to its element and their form of tempering.
 * Though Hildibrand referred to Enkidu as a primal after his summon, many fans originally believed him to be an egi due to the nature of his summoning and behavior. However, on an updated list confirming how many primals there were since Patch 3.15, Enkidu was confirmed to be a full primal.
 * Square Enix's Eorzea Cafe served dishes based on the primals.
 * As for 4.4, 15 of the 25 known primals have their own minions: Odin, Bahamut, Ifrit, Titan, Garuda, Leviathan, Ramuh, Shiva, Alexander, Ravana, Bismarck, Lakshmi, Susano, Shinryu, and Tsukuyomi.
 * Although not further elucidated on in the story, a distinction is made between eikons and primals by Unukalhai in the quest, "Gods of Eld." There is an implication that eikons refer to much older entities (presumably similar to elder primals), and Garleans use the term as a catch-all to be more like the Allagans.