As Final Fantasy XIV’s Dawntrail expansion ends its first month after launch, there’s been a lot of public discourse about its diverse cast of characters, especially those that stand out. An unofficial Dawntrail character popularity poll conducted within the Japanese FFXIV community revealed some unsurprising results.
Disclaimer: The following contains character-related spoilers for FFXIV’s Dawntrail expansion, so read ahead at your own discretion.
Final Fantasy XIV’s Dawntrail turned out to be one of the most interesting expansions to date, not only because of its impressively compelling (if not slightly unbalanced) storytelling but its stellar cast of new characters who have grown on many of us. To gain further insight, an unofficial popular poll was recently distributed among Japanese players from the FFXIV community, asking which characters they found to be the best in the latest expansion.
Like posted by FFXIV insider Audrey (@aitaikimochi) on X (formerly Twitter) and shared by ‘Head-Photojournalist’ on Redditafter receiving approximately 17,000 votes, the top 10 results revealed a lot of love for Dawntrail’s many new characters, although two returning ones still topped the list.
- Erenville
- Krile Baldesi
- Bakool Ya Ya
- Cahciua
- Sphene
- Otis
- Koana
- Honey B. Lovely
- Guluol Ya Ya
- Wow
At number one, and well deserved in our opinion, is Erenville (as seen above). FFXIV’s favorite introverted, animal-loving Viera was first introduced during the latter half of Endwalker’s storyline as a collector employed by Old Sharlayan’s Forum. He took more of a spotlight during Dawntrail, as the main story brings us to his hometown in Tural along with some incredibly emotional revelations about his family.
Second place went to Krile, whose origins had an even bigger role in Dawntrail’s story (though some argue it was underused) and an equally emotional twist that left many of us feeling undeniably sympathetic. Third place was none other than Bakool Ja Ja, whose faltering popularity made headlines and even left director Naoki (“Yoshi-P”) Yoshida feeling confused.
The rest of the list highlights some other amazing newcomers to the FFXIV storyline, like Cahciua (Erenville’s mother), Sphene, Koana, Wuk Evu (the most hilarious hrothgar in existence), and even Honey B. Lovely, the infamous Arcadion Raid boss. that amasses its own player fan club.
However, the obvious elephant in the room is that Wuk Lamat, Dawntrail’s overtly positive and all-encompassing protagonist, is completely absent from the list. Her adoptive father Gulool Ja Ja and brother Koana have both earned pedestals, but she remains one of FFXIV’s most surprisingly divisive main characters, clearly regardless of region. Sphene, who made the list as well, can be argued as a mirror character of Wuk Lamat in many ways, but still, the results speak for themselves.
Be sure to check out all our latest news and guides for Final Fantasy XIV at Pro Game Guides, like Has Data Center Travel opened up back in FFXIV?
