Outer continent (Final Fantasy XVI)

A vast landmass situated far from Valisthean shores. Aside from the most intrepid traders—and the odd particularly curious scholar—few have been known to brave the journey there and back, for which reason, the character and customs of its peoples remain a mystery to most.

Active Time Lore

The outer continent, also known as the Great Continent, or simply the continent, is a vast landmass not visited by the player in Final Fantasy XVI, leaving most of its properties a mystery. The natives of this land are referred to with the demonym continentals. Though some exchange exists between the two realms, the continent and the Twins are so far apart that the journey is a considerable effort and those who embark on it tend to do it for some particular gain, such as traders or scholars.

The characters known to hail from the outer continent include Barnabas Tharmr (who made the journey across as part of his clan's "pilgrimage") and Harpocrates II Hyperboreos (who came to become a scholar), and some characters like Cidolfus Telamon (who made the journey to work as a mercenary) and Charon (who made the journey as a weapons seller) are said to hail from "lands beyond Valisthea", which usually refers to the outer continent. Moss the Chronicler was also known to have visited the continent during his research.

The outer continent is also the general area where the "Children of Dzemekys" clan evacuated to after losing their Mothercrystal during the time the Fallen met their end and the civilization as Valisthea knew it came to an end. The knowledge that the Children of Dzemekys had gained by communing with their god via their crystal, which—in time—became the doctrine of the Circle of Malius cult, was largely lost in Valisthea, but remained in contemporary memory in the outer continent. Eventually, some cultists migrated back to their ancestral land of Valisthea, including Barnabas Tharmr. Legends tell of remnants of the Fallen having emigrated to the outer continent when their civilization collapsed ~1500 years ago, but what became of them is unknown even to the continentals themselves.

Not much is known about the culture or climate or geography of the outer continent. Both Cid and Barnabas display exemplary swordsmanship skills, but it is unknown if this is a commonly taught or valued skill on the continent, or simply their personal talent/interest. The outer continent has no Mothercrystals, and it is implied that Bearers are valued there and not treated poorly like in Valisthea. This would make sense if magic-use via crystal shards is not possible on the continent due to the lack of Mothercrystals. This also suggests a vastly different culture than the one enjoyed on Valisthea, whose denizens rely heavily on magic-use via shards and enslaved Bearers. The outer continent is not known to have Dominants, though both Cid and Barnabas awakened as such after making the journey to the Twins. Whether the outer continent also suffers from the Blight is unknown, but worshiping the land itself as a deity is common on the continent; fine steel blades "blessed by Gaian presbyters" are sometimes imported to the Twins under the claim that they are deadlier and more durable than those forged in Valisthea.

Considering that Ultima created mankind on Valisthea for the purposes of his masterplan, all peoples of the outer continent are assumed to originate from Valisthea. At which point the outer continent became populated is unknown, but the Fallen had airships and flying cities, and so they could have explored the globe much more easily than the modern day populace, who are restricted to sailing. Due to the mass migration of the Children of Dzemekys clan, the descendants of the "Motes of Darkness" tribe only lived on on the outer continent since the end of the Fallen civilization, their Eikon, Odin, being unknown on Valisthea until Barnabas awakened as such. Cidolfus being the Dominant of Ramuh indicates him as a descendant of the "Motes of Lightning" tribe, so the populace of the outer continent seems to be a mix of the ancient tribes, same as the modern day populace of Valisthea.