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Best Friends Forever

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Best Friends Forever

Quest giver
Ardashir
Location
Azys Lla (X:7.4, Y:11.5)
Quest line
Weapon Enhancement Sidequests
┗ Anima Weapons Quests
Level
60
Required items
1   Archaic Enchanted Ink
1   Aettir
1   Priwen
1   Minos
1   Cronus
1   Areadbhar
1   Nyepels
1   Sandungs
1   Terpander
1   Deathlocke
1   Kaladanda
1   Mimesis
1   Sindri
1   Anabasis
1   Canopus
Experience
Experience 0
Gil
Gil 518
Previous quest
Feature Quest Words of Wisdom
Patch
3.55a
Links
EDB GT TC

Ardashir is eager to put Matoya's sage counsel into practice.

※Changing classes or jobs will prevent progress during this quest.

— In-game description

Rewards

Depending on job:

Walkthrough

Steps

Journal

  • Ardashir is eager to put Matoya's sage counsel into practice.
    • ※Changing classes or jobs will prevent progress during this quest.
  • Having carefully pored over Matoya's missive, Ardashir explains that the primals are the key to the anima's enlightenment. He asks that you relive your fiercest battles with these celestial beings─not on the battlefield, but within your mind. Linked as you are to the anima, he posits that it would be as if your aetherial companion experienced these epic battles firsthand. Heeding his request, you take a deep breath, still your mind, and think back to your first encounter with the godlike beings known as primals.
  • You awake with a start, your heart still racing from your vivid recollections of your confrontations with Ifrit, Garuda, and Titan. Yet there is still much for you to share with the anima. You close your eyes once more and prepare to summon from the depths of your memory yet another harrowing battle with the primals.
  • You open your eyes again for a short reprieve from reliving the more arduous experiences of your past. With the memories of combat still fresh in your mind, you check─perhaps out of habit─to be certain your garb is neither soaked nor singed from battle. Alas, there is no rest for the weary, for many tales of derring-do remain untold. Again you clear your mind, and summon forth a vision of strife and struggle against the unbridled fury of the primals.
  • The ring of steel echoes in your ears as you stir back to consciousness. Though the confrontations have taken place entirely within your mind's eye, your muscles are strangely sore, your body stiff as if from great physical exertion. And yet, there is still one tale to tell─of three gods locked in perpetual conflict, and the brave soul that dared to bring them low.
  • You return to your senses in a cold sweat, a sigh of relief escaping from your lips as you realize the battles were all in your mind. Though it was not in the flesh that you faced these encounters anew, your sharp and stirring memories of your great deeds will doubtless prove of great value to the anima. Having exhausted your repository of grueling memories of your confrontations with the primals, you seek out Ardashir, that together you might awaken the anima's newfound knowledge.
  • Ardashir would proceed with the next stage of Matoya's plan: namely, to employ an enchantment to ingrain the anima's newly gained knowledge into the core of its being. There is, however, a rub─all the materials needed for the procedure are readily available save one─an ancient variety of enchanted ink said to be made only in the lands of Sharlayan. Knowing of no merchants who might deal in such exotic goods, Ardashir defers to your unequaled talent for procurement.
  • Through means available only to one of your experience and expertise, you procure a bottle of archaic enchanted ink and deliver it to Ardashir. He follows Matoya's instructions to the letter, outlining an arcane circle for the spell and gently placing the anima weapon in its center. As your aether flows into the circle, you focus your thoughts on the anima, which soon manifests before you. Your hearts and minds are as one now, the anima acutely aware of your faith and aspirations for the journey to come. The deep attachment you feel toward the anima has cast away its fears, leaving only hope and an unshakable resolve. After myriad trials and tribulations, your aetherial companion has truly come into its own. Though you know not what the future may hold, you take comfort in knowing that whatever perils you may face, you will not face them alone. Indeed, your foes must now stand against the might of the anima.

Dialogue

Accepting the Quest (Cutscene)

Ardashir: I have pored over Mistress Matoya's instructions─twenty times over, in fact─and I do believe I have settled on our next course of action. Allow me to elaborate.
Ardashir: As she explains it, the primals are the key to developing the anima's sense of self. I will grant that the idea may seem far-fetched, but bear with me. As you are well aware, they are beings of aether─much like the anima─summoned forth using crystals, and driven by the faith of their followers.
Ardashir: But to what ends do their followers summon them so? How do they fight once made manifest? This is the knowledge I would have you share with the anima.
Ardashir: To do so, I ask that you take the anima weapon in hand, and call to mind your encounters with the primals as vividly as you can muster, as if you were fighting these great battles anew within the confines of your own mind.
Ardashir: This plan may seem peculiar, but every success─and failure─a man experiences grants him strength. Having overcome untold dangers and countless hardships, your spirit is no doubt an inexhaustible reservoir of energies. You must tap into that strength, and share it with the anima.
Ardashir: When you are finished revisiting your harrowing experiences with the primals, come speak with me, and we shall set the next step of the plan into motion.

With the [Weapon] equipped, speaking with Ardashir in Azys Lla (Cutscene)

Ardashir: Ah, you are returned! I can scarcely imagine what terrible trials you contrived within the recesses of your mind. I trust you have revisited all the primals?
Ardashir: Excellent! With the anima now possessed of knowledge of the primals in all their forms, and the strong desires that spurred them into action, we need only reinforce what it has learned.
Ardashir: For that, we must use the magicks that gave birth to Mistress Matoya's amphibian familiars. Though they began as ordinary frogs, she transformed them into what we know as poroggo by means of an enchantment that served to awaken knowledge previously imparted to them.
Ardashir: She posits that, by using that same spell, what the anima has learned from reliving at your side your confrontations with the primals can be ingrained into the very core of its being.
Ardashir: The spell requires a few unorthodox ingredients, however. I can procure them all myself, save for one...
Ardashir: A form of enchanted ink used in days of yore, whose recipe has been lost to time. ...Or so it is generally believed.
Ardashir: There are those, however, who insist it is still being manufactured to the present day...in secret, deep in the heart of the Sharlayan motherland. Would that I were acquainted with a merchant who trades in exotic goods! Or perhaps there is another way...?
Ardashir: I have not the faintest idea of where to begin, but an adventurer as well traveled as yourself might fare better. Do you think it possible you could procure this ink?
Ardashir: A single bottle will more than suffice. As for the remaining ingredients, worry not. I will see to their procurement. Good luck, [Forename].
System: Speak with other players and share information to discover how to find the archaic enchanted ink!

With the [Weapon] in your inventory, delivering the archaic enchanted ink to Ardashir

Ardashir: Were you able to procure the elusive variety of enchanted ink that we require? If so, I would prepare the weapon for enchantment straightaway.
<Hand Over [Weapon] and Archaic Enchanted Ink>

Cutscene

Ardashir: Excellent work! Long have I been curious to see the splendor of Mistress Matoya's wisdom firsthand. With all of the reagents now accounted for, my curiosity will at last be sated. Let us begin!
Ardashir: Behold! The color has changed just as Mistress Matoya said it would. Splendid, splendid!
Ardashir: Next is the more delicate step of the process─inscribing the arcane circle needed for the spell using this magicked brew.
Ardashir: And...there! I believe that should do it!
Ardashir: Phew. I was all but certain the trembling of my hands would make a mess of the inscription. As the final step, we need but place the anima weapon within the circle, and hope that the desired effect is achieved.
Ardashir: The spell is ready, but its magicks must be invoked by your hand, Forename. In doing so, you will shape the anima's sense of self and purpose in the world. Now, close your eyes. Envision the path your anima will take, and allow your aether to flow into the arcane circle.
What will you wish for the anima?
< To freely choose its own destiny. >
< To fight faithfully at my side. >
< ... >
(All)
Anima: [Forename]...
Anima: Your memories of battle were quite evocative. I feel as though I truly was there at your side, supporting your every blow against the primals. I have reflected deeply on all that I have seen. About the primals, and the dreams and desires that spurred them into action.
Anima: I realize now that even a simple wish─no matter how pure, how innocent─can at times be used to bring about calamity.
Anima: All I ever wished for was the strength to protect you. But am I not unlike the primals? An aetherial being seeking ever greater strength to fulfill my desires? If that power should come to cause you harm... The mere thought of it chilled me to my core.
Anima: ...But no longer! Now, I have felt the warmth of your aether. Your earnest plea has banished my fears and filled my heart with unwavering courage.
< To freely choose its own destiny. >
Anima: Freedom...this is what you did wish for me. Indeed, the world is vast and full of wonders, and I would see them all. By your side, as your companion and ally. This is the path I choose of my own free will.
< To fight faithfully at my side. >
Anima: A faithful ally in combat... I feel our minds are already as one, for I would wish the same of you. The realm is rife with innumerable dangers, but we will face them together.
< ... >
Anima: You did not express your desire in words, but your heart spoke volumes. Know that I have heard your wish, and will do all within my power to see it granted.
(All)
Gerolt: Oi! The anima weapon's lit up somethin' fierce! I reckon it's gained more than a new sense o' self, if ye get my meanin'.
Ardashir: Could it truly be...?
Ardashir: What are you waiting for, [Forename]? Take the anima weapon in hand!
Ardashir: My word! Have you ever seen anything so exquisite? This, my friend, is the power of your wish made manifest─a form befitting the anima's newfound resolve.
Ardashir: And I daresay it deserves a name to match its resplendence. I hereby dub you [Weapon]
Ardashir: You have raised a fine ally in the anima, [Forename]. And thanks to Mistress Matoya's magicks, we have sparked a new sense of self within the anima through a joining of your minds.
Ardashir: Indeed, this marks a significant malmstone in my research─one that would not have been possible without your efforts. You have my sincerest thanks.
Ardashir: With that said, this method for developing anima is far from efficient. I very much doubt there are many adventurers with such prodigious experiences to draw upon. No, to devise a means for the greater populace to nurture anima as robust as yours will require further research.
Ardashir: Mark my words: from the lowly fishermen of La Noscea to the Temple Knights of Ishgard─I will not rest until anyone and everyone in our fair realm can reap the rewards of anima!
Gerolt: Hold yer chocobos there, Ardashir! Just how many o' these bloody things do ye plan on makin'!? 
Ardashir: I did say anyone and everyone, did I not? There is much work to be done, and I would be most appreciative if you could honor your end of our agreement. Of course, you are free to leave, if that is your wont. Though I suspect Rowena would be...disappointed. 
Gerolt: You no-good, stinkin' sack o'... Yer lucky me sellin' kettles ain't as gainful as it used to be.
Gerolt:  But when all this research o' yers is finally finished, I'm draggin' yer scrawny arse to Rowena meself, and we're gonna settle me debts right then and there. Got it?
Ardashir: Wonderful! I knew you would come to see things my way. I look forward to a long and fruitful partnership.
Ardashir: Words fail to express my gratitude. Now go forth, explore, and share the realm's myriad wonders with the anima. When next you return, I look forward to hearing your grand stories of adventure.
System: The anima spirit has gained unyielding resolve, the weapon it inhabits now the pinnacle of martial perfection.