Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn has received tremendous post-launch content support from Square Enix since its arrival in late 2013. Now, a new era is upon us. The game's first expansion, titled Heavensward, is just a week away.
Related: New Job Skills Coming in Heavensward
Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward is a very large expansion consisting of a variety of new features and content. To help give you a better idea of what it's all about, I've compiled a list of 20 things you might not know. You can read about it in the gallery below.
Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward Launch Coverage
Review In Progress
20 Things You Might Not Know
Launch Trailer Shows Limit Breaks
A Guide to Choosing Which Job to Play
Review In Progress
20 Things You Might Not Know
Launch Trailer Shows Limit Breaks
A Guide to Choosing Which Job to Play
20 Things You Might Not Know About The Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward Expansion
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You can\'t just walk into Heavensward
In order to enjoy any of Heavensward's content you will need to have completed 100% of the A Realm Reborn main scenario quests. There are more than 100 of them available at level 50, and they range from fetch quests to completing dungeons that require up to item level 90. Sound insane? Trust me, I know. I completed the requirements last week and wrote about my experience here. -
Splitting the surge of players
Square Enix knows that there is going to be a huge flood of players come Heavensward launch, so it implemented two level 50 zones to split up players. -
A 50 hour story
Director Naoki Yoshida has stated that Heavensward's story is around 50 hours in length. Or, roughly the size of A Realm Reborn. There's a lot of story to consume, centered around Ishgard and its thousand year conflict with Dravania. It's a big expansion, to say the least. -
10 expansive areas to explore
Heavensward will feature nine new zones and the city state of Ishgard. The new zone names are Foundation, The Pillars, Coerthas Western Highlands, Abalathia Sea of Cloud, The Floating Continent, Dravanian Forelands, Dravanian Hinterlands, The Churning Mists, and Upper Sea of Clouds. The areas are said to be 50% to 100% larger than their A Realm Reborn counterparts. -
DirectX 11 support is included
While it's a bit late to the party, Final Fantasy XIV is finally getting DirectX 11 support with the arrival of Heavensward. With it enabled, you can expect a noticeable improvement in visual quality. Unfortunately, there is no DirectX 12 support on the horizon. -
Triple Triad expanded
Triple Triad will have its card list extended by more than 20 with Heavensward. These new cards range from mid to high tier. There will be plenty of new NPCs to play in the Heavensward areas. -
The scoop on raiding
Alexander will be the only raid available during 3.0, and opens two weeks after Heavensward releases. It will replace The Coils of Bahamut, featuring four bosses with Normal and Savage mode options. Normal mode is said to be similar to The Coil of Bahamut with an Echo buff. Meanwhile, Savage mode will be roughly as challenging as Final Coil of Bahamut Savage. -
Welcome the Au\'ra
A new race is being added to Final Fantasy XIV. It's called Au'ra, and it's a Hyur-like race with dragon scales. You can make one or change an existing character to one using a Phial of Fantasia as long as you own Heavensward. -
Two primals in 3.0
At Heavensward launch there will be two primals that you can face: Bismarck (pictured above) and Ravana. There will be Normal and Hard mode options available. Both will drop tokens that can be traded in for weapons. -
Final Fantasy XV\'s cast will make an appearance
We have been told that you "should not be surprised" to see the Final Fantasy XV protagonists driving around a Heavensward zone in their black sedan. It's likely that there will be a new FATE that features them. -
I believe I can fly
The new Heavensward areas have been designed to be explored with flying mounts. You will obtain a flying dragon mount part of the way through the main scenario quest line. You will then be tasked with attuning to wind currents around the zones to be able to fly around them. There will be several flying mounts that you can earn through completing content, including the option to fly your personal chocobo. At a later date you will be able to obtain two-seater flying mounts. It's worth noting that you can't dismount when in the air, and the flying mounts are capable of running on the ground. -
A quick trip to 50 for new players
It has been confirmed that main scenario quests from 1 to 50 will earn more than double experience to ensure that new players can reach 50 quickly. New players will also have priority in Duty Finder. With these changes Square Enix says that new players can reach Heavensward's level 50 to 60 content without grinding. -
Limit breaks for all
Upon arrival of Heavensward every job will have its own level 3 Limit Break visual. The Dragoon and Dark Knight limit breaks were shown in the benchmark trailer, and they are absolutely stunning. These limit breaks will still adhere to the current format in regards to what they provide for the group, so just the visual effect will change. -
You will become much more powerful
Your health pool will roughly double when going from 50 to 60 thanks to a significant increase in item level of equipment. By level 54 you'll find item level 140 equipment, and it will continue to increase from there. -
The three new jobs
Three new jobs are making their way to Final Fantasy XIV. They are the Astrologian (Healer), Machinist (Ranged DPS), and Dark Knight (Tank). All three have complex and interesting mechanics. They will be unlockable through quests in Ishgard, and will begin their journey at level 30. None of these three jobs have any base job requirements other than you having a level 50 job to be able to complete their initial quest. However, they do have cross-class capabilities. Astrologian is Conjurer/Thaumaturge, Machinist is Archer/Lancer, and Dark Knight is Gladiator/Marauder. -
New skills for existing classes
Every currently available class will be receiving significant new skills via job quests when leveling from 50 to 60. You can see the full list here. -
PvP content will be added
There will be a new Fontlines map added a month after Heavensward launch. In addition, new PvP gear and ranks will be coming. -
Much better items await
There is some beautiful new gear to acquire in Heavensward, and it will replace your current equipment quickly. By level 55 you should expect that even your top-tier item level 130 gear will be replaced. -
Zodiac rendered void
Don't worry if you haven't acquired your job's Zodiac weapon. The quest line won't be relevant for level 60 content. In its place, patch 3.1 will bring a new quest line for all jobs. -
Early access and launch information
If you pre-order Heavensward one of the bonuses you'll receive is Early Access. Early Access allows you to begin playing on June 19th at 9:00AM GMT. The day prior, June 8th, the game will be down for maintenance. Soon after, the game will launch so that anyone can join in on the fun starting June 23rd.
