FINAL FANTASY XV: EPISODE ARDYN - PROLOGUE 

Don't get me wrong, i love somnus's theme. But after watching this, ardyn's lil bro *DON'T* deserve that name. period.

Let me just say: "Conditioned to Hate" is the PERFECT name for Ardyn's theme.

Either you die a hero or you live long enough to be a villain. Summary of Ardyn's story.

Ardyn is one of the true definition of Jesus gone wrong.

Scar: "I betrayed and killed my brother, usurped his throne, traumatized and attempted to murder my nephew." Somnus: "Hold my beer."

No wonder noct couldn't be with Luna the sins of the past came back to collect Edit : No wonder Ardyn killed Luna right in front of noct he did what his brother did to him

oh... I suddenly have some sympathy for Ardyn *N E A T*

“He’s become the monster I made him out to be...” Damn.. Ardyn he planned your downfall from the very beginning.

OH INFERNIAN, GRANT ME THE POWER TO TAKE SOMNUS, HIS PEOPLE, AND HIS CURSED KINGDOM, AND BURN THEM ALL TO THE GROUND Ngl I got goosebumps from that.

I was not planning to play anything else related to FFXV after the Royal edition dissapointment, but this.... I want to kick Somnus' ass

It feels like the beginning of the end..., but so thankful that this still exists! Long may the stories of Final Fantasy XV continue to be told.

Don't have the oracle as your fiancé, because you always lose them 😢😢😢

So, why did the Gods choose the more selfish King? I understand Ardyn had Daemon stuff inside him, but how is someone who gains the favor of the Oracle and wanting to help people at the cost of his own health the "unworthy" King? His lack of ambition and putting others before himself makes him a better king in my eyes.

The fact that pisses me off the most is that Bahamut and the other gods could have prevented any of this way before it happened, yet somehow it was a great idea to give a mortal man the power to absorb the scourge, and then when this mortal dutifully used their body as a container to keep the scourge locked up, obviously you punish that mortal by denouncing their claim to the throne and locking them up on the island of the gods, wrapped in various chains for more then 2000 years without ever seeking a way to cure or help him. 2000 years later this human escapes and seeks revenge Bahamuth: "Oh no, what did we do to deserve this?" Bahamut literally caused this to happen! Leave alone his "solution" is to take away death for an entire bloodline so they can gather their souls into the crystal and finally combine into the chosen king, all to deny an entire bloodline their afterlife to wipe out Ardyn, who in the first place already lost his entire life and had to endure 2000 years of suffering. Seriously Bahamut you should lose your position as the leader of the gods for sheer incompetence.

The way he looked at Luna before Ardyn slaps her suddenly makes so much more sense, in his mind for a split second he was thinking of Aera.

You already know shit goes down when somnus starts playing

Ardyn the one who helped the people so much it affected him to darkness. And then he got rejected by the crystal. He waited so long to get his revenge but he finaly got what he wanted. He did not want to rule. He wanted to end the Lucia line. And he wanted to end his immortal life. And he did it all!! All hail the mighty Ardyn. I realy cannot wait :)

RIP Keiji Fujiwara, VA for Ardyn Lucis Caelum.

Am I the only person in the world that truly loved this game?

Final Fantasy XV: Game of Lucean Throne.

It's really coming to an end...I enjoyed my time with FFXV, I enjoyed the game for what it was. FFXV will always be a good FF imo, I appreciate Tabata and his team with what they did for the game.

Ardyn's story could make one hell of a full game if Square were competent.

I feel this whole story could have been a multi-chapter series. Make us care more about Aera and hate Somnus even more for the final scene to be heavier

I think that many people fail to fully understand the complexity of Ardyn's character, unfortunately. He is nothing like the stereotypical bad guy who is first and foremost driven by a sadistic desire to hurt the protagonist because, well, he is evil, for one reason or the other. Ardyn was a noble man unfairly rejected by the Astrals and punished for having found a different way to help his people - a way that didn't please the Gods. His choice led him to experience an eternity that he didn't desire, and thus he spent the next thousand of years haunted by the horrifying memories of his brother's betrayal and his beloved's death. His people have long forgotten his martyrdom, his name was erased from history; in the end, all that was left for him to survive this eternity of sorrow was the desire of revenge. Ardyn didn't have anything personal against Noctis: actually, he considered him an unaware pawn of the Gods who was to be pitied; and yet he had to be cruel nonetheless, because Noctis was the Chosen King, the last resort of the Astrals, the last man standing between the Gods and his long - sought revenge. Ardyn used him to achieve his ends: that's why in the beginning he helped him and his friends to survive; but then, of course, he had to kill Luna to accelerate the advance of the Starscourge. He didn't do it out of sheer wickedness, I believe; if that was the case, he would have killed Gladio, Prompto and Ignis before Noctis' awakening or just before the final battle, when he instead opted to make them sleep. What a perfectly designed tragedy would have been if Ardyn was the usual, monotonous anti-hero! But no, Ardyn didn't kill them - and he could - for he has a much complex sense of moral. Unnecessary deaths don't have any value to him - that's the point I would like to stress. In the end, Ardyn prepared Noctis to become the true King of Kings not just because he wanted to shatter the unjust supremacy of the Astrals, but also because - in the likely event of a defeat -, he hoped to finally die. Particularly wise characters such as Luna and Noctis ( after his maturation) treated Ardyn with compassion and pity; and Noct put him out of his misery with kind, gentle words. Ardyn wasn't a saint, nor he was a demon; he was more like a true human being, with a rich psychology that could not be easily labelled using just two colours of one spectrum. I hope that his upcoming Episode will shed even more light on the beauty and the complexity of this tragic character. FFXV deserves more understanding and love.

My tears are everywhere... Poor dear, Ardyn. In some way -- other than being a selfish, jealous asshole -- I can see Somnus wanting to protect the people, but his actions are still unforgivable. It makes a lot more sense why Ardyn requested Noct and Luna to be wed in Kingsglaive, then be the one to kill her. I wonder what Aera's thoughts are on what Ardyn has become now. I am sure her spirit will commune from beyond the grave, just as Luna's did. But it's almost hard to see Ardyn as a kind, caring individual when we've all conjured these visuals of him over the journey of FFXV as being this oily, vengeful, immortal man. And we love him for it. I suppose that's what makes his past so tragic. Nevertheless, I am actually looking forward to seeing his personality shift from corrupted noble King, to the vengeful Adagium. I am already digging that soundtrack in the extended trailer. Time to tear up the streets of Insomnia!

Wow. Adryn's Oracle got screwed over. Explains why he killed Luna in front of Noct

Ardyn Jesus Caelum

It's nice to be the bad guy once in awhile.

FFXV Should've been about Ardyn...then release FFXV-2 with Noctis and the gang like what we have now....

Aera will return as.... Aeroga.

So Somnus was the true villan all a long. Turing his older brother into a monster and taking Arydn's place as king. Lying to the whole kingdom and killing the oricle...

Hm, so he killed Luna as a way of getting vengeance for Aera getting killed by Somnus. But I would've thought that, since Luna looks like a carbon copy of Aera, that Ardyn would actually have some sort of sympathy or pity for the woman who looks so much like his beloved. I guess he was just too filled with hatred at that point. Edit: So I see some people saying he killed Luna because she was slowing the Starscourge. But she was going to die pretty soon anyway and Ardyn knew that (having discussed with Ravus the price of forging a covenant with each Astral). Perhaps she could have lived longer but not for so long. Maybe a year or 2? With or without Luna being murdered, Noctis still would have journied to get his power ups and done his time in the crystal. And then he would have gone and killed Ardyn which, as others have said, is exactly what Ardyn wanted as well. Ardyn waited thousands of years for the Starscourge to take over, to get his revenge, and to die. He couldn't have waited a year (at most) for Luna to die? And I don't think Ardyn was worried about Luna bearing Lucis heirs. Her body was wasting; there's a high chance she would have suffered a miscarriage or even die giving birth (and then who would care for the baby while everyone is busy helping Noctis or surviving the scourge?) Would Noctis even be the kind of guy who screws a dying Luna asap for the sake of conserving his line? Before marriage? When they've just met after all these years apart?

Just can't wait till Ardyn's DLC comes out

This makes me think Somnus was the true antagonist of FFXV.

So is it me or am I constantly seeing a recurring theme that, no matter how good a person you are, a douchebag will always win because they are just rotten to the point of selling out family.

R.I.P Dlc Aranea and lunafreya...

Holy shiiiiitt!!!! Somnus is The Master of Masters!!!!!! Oh wait.... Sorry i'm still confused

Lol so much story missing from game. Episode Aranea was clearly important, too.

And just like that, a fair bit of the shit Ardyn pulls is justified. I no longer feel the least bit guilty whenever I trash the so-called Founder King.

“History is written by the victors”

Oooooooh shit at that ending trailer, the DLC is looking sick. Great Episode btw, the pacing was good and everything that needed to be said & shown was and that's all that really matters in the end. What a tragic backstory... thanks for showing us. Now, please, give us a way to watch this in the menu of the game itself, same with brotherhood & kingsglaive.

So Ardyn is kinda like an anti-hero

My relation with Insomnia : At the beginning : What a beautiful city! We must protect/avenge her! For Insomnia!!! Now : BURN THEM ALL TO THE GROUND!!!!

Now Ardyn becomes my favorite character in final fantasy series.

I’m genuinely in tears because of this. I always loved Ardyn as a villain, and sympathized with what we knew about his story. But this, this is heartbreaking to watch. He deserved so so so so much better and it’s so painful to see how Ardyn came to be.

This may also answer us a question that has been going on for a while, I'm going to guess the name Izunia comes from Aera, Aera Izunia - Ardyn takes her name as some form of revenge against the Caelum family.

So, versus XIII's(Shakespeare) philosophy was not abandoned in XV

I still hate Ardyn for what he put Noctis and his retinue through, but I don’t hate his character. Not at all. I love everything about his development. I hate Somnus with a passion for turning Ardyn into a monster and I hate Bahamut for deciding he needed Ardyn to be a scapegoat.

Ardyn aka what would happen if jesus had become evil

Goodbye Final Fantasy XV, thanks for the memories! :')

I now feel so sorry for ardyn

We demand all DLCs !!! FFXV cannot continue as an incomplete experience, Its too much potential wasted!

Such a cruel life Ardyn takes, just for his people

This so makes me almost wish Ardyn's story was Final Fantasy XV itself... Maybe we can get a Final Fantasy XV-0? This was amazing... I wasn't sold on Episode Ardyn being a good idea, but I have so much hype for it now!

Why does this dlc look better than the actual game???

Why didn't they make Dawn of the future like this instead of a book because this animation is what happens in the first chapter of the book why didn't they continue to do this with the other chapters, it would have cost less too

A bit shorter than I thought and a lot of recycled music too but I can understand since it's clear Square wants their new studio to move on from XV. Sweet origin story but the DLC looks so fun.

Jesus: I died for your sins. Ardyn: Hold my beer.

Ardyn was like Jesus ?! he wanted sacrifice himself for the better sake of his people thats deep "

Pause at 8:50. Is that Gilgamesh?!?! Or does that mean he was Ardyn's or Somnus sworn shield at the time? If you think about it, Gilgamesh is 2 millenia old as it's confirmed in Episode Gladio. Also if you look at him in 10:43 You can see his hair is the same as Gilgamesh

How I hate Somnus. More than ever.

This is interesting. Somnus is the true villain of the game. Ardyn did nothing wrong.

I liked how they played the song when noctis cuts ardyn down while ardyn is being cut down by somnus.

Damn, I knew he was going to lose that fight, but I wanted him to win so bad. They leave it kind of ambiguous if he really was chosen but his brat brother stole the throne but then because of his Demon taint the Gods decide, "On second thought, nope. Loved this game. No matter what the haters said, best game of that year IMO.

I’m torn on how I feel about Ardyn. 😕 On one hand I pity him, and the other.. lowkey resent him for harming innocent people in his quest for revenge. Noctis is NOTHING like Somnus, so to punish him for being his descendant is harsh. Hell, Lunafreya is the spitting image of Aera and he had no issues with doing *that* to her.

I'll never forget the DLCs we could've had.

*"Me sees title"* Time to nerd the F out! And wait for FF Pez to make a reaction video out of this :O

Should have treated tabata better. And let Nomura finish versus 13.

Oh, but I find Ardyn and especially Somnus fascinating. I read somewhere that originally they wanted to focus on all three main characters - Aera, Ardyn and Somnus - but due to constraints they ended up telling just Ardyn's side of it. Somnus is such a curious character. It has been said by the team that he never truly resented his brother, and is more of a realist and brutally efficient. If he was raised in this sort of environment- of having to make tough calls for the good of the people (and it has been stated he DID do it all for his people), what would he think of Ardyn as a king? Ardyn who picks and chooses who to save, who would rather the world continue to suffer while he saves people one by one... What will a single drop of water do against an ocean of starscourge? One day it would not be enough. He is wrong, of course, as the line of Oracles manages to keep the darkness at bay for millenia, but there is no way for him to be sure... And even if it worked, and as King Ardyn purged the world, what kind of King would that make Ardyn? What would he do if he had a difficult choice to make? Would he sacrifice the whole to save a few? Its not a risk Somnus is willing to take. He feels like the kind of character who doesnt care what the history books will say about him, so long as he saves his people from this scourge. If he has to trick and kill his brother, so be it. He will do whatever it takes. His issue with Ardyn comes down to a severe difference in opinion, one that becomes deadly. I feel like he had to crush his empathy to ashes in order to keep the remnants of the world safe, and that makes him a very interesting villain. Of course, this absolutely does not excuse Somnus. He did unspeakable, abhorrent things, and I detest him for it, but they would make sense to him, and I appreciate that in a character. Like his brother, he isnt evil for the sake of it, or to make Ardyn a poor misunderstood baby boi (and I firmly believe Ardyn is still a villain, and his backstory does not excuse the pain he brought. Even if he HAD to do it bc he gods forced it upon him, he still did it out of revenge and hatred, his plans happened to align with theirs. Noctis is not Somnus and he did not have to hurt an entire generation for the error of their founder. Funny how he's willing to kill a ton of people to end the Lucis Caelum bloodline, and out of revenge, not even for the greater good. How very Somnus of him. Fascinating characters, these Caelum brothers). He also truly wishes his brother to find peace, even if he still doesnt regret taking over as King. I like that about Somnus (as a character, I would not want someone like him anywhere close to me). He regrets the pain he brought his brother but still believes it had to be done, which makes him a pain in the backside but really interesting as a character! The best part of it all to me is what it means to Noctis as a king, because be seems to be the perfect balance between the mentalities of Ardyn and Somnus, and thus, there would never be a choice in his case. He IS the True King, both chosen and accepted by the Crystal. I think so because Ardyn at some point in the base game makes Noctis choose- the crystal or his friends? And mocks Noctis for choosing the crystal. Ardyn, I believe, would have chosen his friends. Everything about him was to save the few and deal with the whole later, and thats what Somnus thought was weak of him. Yet Noctis chooses right in choosing the people over the individual. Noctis is quite possibly Somnus done right, because where Somnus failed the most was that he did not trust that his brother would be fit to rule. The Scourge could have ended then and there, but thanks to Somnus' distrust and selfishness it was extended for another 2,000 years, not to mention that it left his brother chained and mad for that long. But Noctis doesnt do that. Noctis sacrifices himself for his people, for the world at that point. He gives up doing the ruling himself and trusts that his friends - his brothers - will do right by Lucis in his stead. He succeeds exactly where both Ardyn and Somnus failed, because he has the right amount of both of them. He WILL save his friends if he can, like Ardyn, but over the course of the game becomes willing to sacrifice the few to save the whole if needed (by choice and not force, looking at you, Gladio), like Somnus... And most of all, is also willing to let go of power and trust that his friends(brothers) will take care of things when he is no longer there (something neither Ardyn nor Somnus could do). He becomes selfless in a way neither of his ancestors ever managed to be. Fun fact, thats actually why as interesting as Dawn to the Future is, and I enjoy it, I'm glad it's still an alternate ending and not as well known as the main storyline. The gods of this FF may be bastards but I like the human conflict far better. Side note, but I do wonder if Ardyn's role would remain the same, King or not. What if the crystal originally chose Ardyn because he as King he would have to one day be consumed by it in order to end the Scourge? There being a blood price to end the calamity was such an important part of the base game, and I wonder if Ardyn would be the sacrificial lamb anyway, with Somnus eventually just taking over as second in line to the throne. I wonder what Ardyn would choose, considering the Episode Ardyn does (technically) give you the choice to accept or deny his fate. (Side-side note: I wonder where Luna's and Ravus' bloodline comes from. Did Aera have a sister? Why are Luna's healing powers so similar to Ardyn's but without a price to be paid? I really wish they explained the Oracle's side of the story as well... Unlike Somnus there really isnt a lot to glean from her on her scenes. Far more than Luna, Aera 100% feels like plot convenience, a lady that had to die so Ardyn could loose control and be rejected by the Crystal.)

I finished Final Fantasy XV on January 16th of this year, after waiting to play it for 2 years I had high expectations for it. When playing I understood why the game wasn't the best, but its charm still managed to capture me, at the very end of the game I even cried. I don't care how the public received this game and its story, but I am grateful that you worked so hard to deliver this, thank you very much.

Jesus + Possession + Athenians + Delphi Oracle + Romeo/Juliette

Can I just say how amazing Darin de Paul’s voice acting in the trailer is?! OH MY GOSH, words can’t describe how good it is!! I cannot wait!!!! 😄 Also, Somnus, HOW IN EOS could you call Aera a monster?! You son of a Bahamut! 😠

I surprisingly liked this prologue! It was well shot, and had a lot of things going for it! All of the other stuff in the FFXV Universe are kinda plain for me. But this one engaged me! Here's why: I liked a lot of the shots, the dialogue, I thought this one was well directed and well photographed overall. My favorite shot was the one where Somnus talks to Area and then it cuts to Ardyn eating by himself. It really shows what the brothers believe in the most and how they clash with each other. Somnus as you may see is on the forefront, yet believes in more realistic standards which is why he is on a darker shade. Ardyn on the other hand is on a very odd other side on his frame, on a more bright place. It shows how Somnus is more known while Ardyn won't be. But both shots have golden flowers in the background of where they are leaning. My second favorite would be the one where Ardyn is approaching the crystal...that one was very symbolic as well. I would break it down, but it's getting really long to read so. Other things I liked: the dialogue, it made Somnus look evil, the expressions, and just how everything was pieced together to for us to understand Ardyn's perspective. Now, I'm not without criticism. This one like all the others in the XV Universe is very flawed. I thought the pacing, despite my praise for the editing, is awful. The rhythm of all the cuts is erratic. There were even cuts when Ardyn and the villager WAS JUST WALKING! It rushes on a few scenes really fast as well. Such as when Ardyn was running away from Somnus' soldiers and passes out. We never see the consequences of that and cut to him all lively and well the next time we see him. The end especially felt rushed and we barely got time to process anything making all the things that were said lack any real impact. I thought the fight scenes were also very lame because of that because they were given the same rhythm as the rest of the story and that's a shame. Overall, just great job and can't wait for Episode Ardyn! Sad Darin De Paul isn't in this one.

The story of Ardyn is basically a voice for those whom are good by nature and keep their good actions and deeds in the hide and then they get jabbed by the closest people to them ,including betrayal by their own faith ,, somnus is such a nasty villian ,,assured he doesnt end up taking the evil role even tho he is pure evil for deceiving his brother and shifting his fate ,killing his brothers love and turning him into a demon,, the crystal rejected ardyn once he released darkness upon his loves death ,and that was somnuses goal all along to show bahamut that ardyn isnt worthy and he is ,,and the crystal reacted based on the darkness only

ITS TIME MY FRIENDS!

13:34 for episode Ardyn trailer

i might be crying a little

SE clearly didn´t bother to finish this ONA and just released it as is. The story outline itself was solid tough. The sadly final DLC looks amazing and more ambitious than expected. Good luck FF XVI and FFVII, may you come out in a better state.

Bahamut behind of all this

FFXV should come to the end with Episode Noctis, but so it comes to an end of an epic game with full emotional, amazing feelings, it will be always in our hearts. long live King Noctis👌❤

Ardyn is a good guy deep down, but he was rejected by the crystal because he took the starscourge into himself, instead how his brother Somnus did. By killing the infected people the gods opted him as king and he truly loved it. We can see that he felt no remorse by luring Ardyn to the throne room, and fighting him, even killing Aera he felt nothing. So Ardyn may do bad things in Final Fantasy 15 but everything isn't black and white, so we now know his backstory and why he want to destroy the Lucis bloodline. And how he killed Luna in front of Noctis, because he wanted revenge against his brother for killing Aera the woman he loved. So Noctis should also blame his ancestor Somnus for the cause he did 2000 years ago, and not just Ardyn.

Ardyn's fate remind of Wander's from Shadow Of The Colossus.

Ardyn was good all along, truly a sad destiny to him :(

FFXV brought a light within me that has been out for years! The overall experience of the game, to me, was phenomenal. I'd never played anything like it, I never felt alone when I was playing.

hahaha I convinced my mother to name my brother 'Ardyn' lmfao

Can we just take a minute and appreciate ardyn's english voice actor !!!! Hee diiiid such a greaat joob soo many emotioons greaat coveering love it

For all those who still think Ardyn killed Luna READ THAT Its worrying me so much, most of you didnt understand anything about lunas death. She was destined to die in fact in that moment in Altissia she was about to die cause of his destiny related to the gods. Ardyn did that for Noctis to see he was there too and make him responsible of that due to his real goal that is push Noct to his limits to fulfill his destiny. Ardyn did not kill her as she was going to die anyways. Please play the game and pay just little attention

I'm sure people have pointed this out already. FF always had an aura of sacriligiousness to it...like how you have to defeat the One Winged "Angel" in VII, how the protagonists always use black magic, how they can summon demons...but in Episode Ardyn it really seems like the story of Jesus. Only that he seems like a miracle worker like Jesus, is granted eternal life, but is also kinda like an Anti-Christ. Just an interesting analogy, amiright!??

Does this make Ardyn's character super interesting and so well fleshed out? Heck yeah it does. Does this make all of his evil deeds in FFXV right and just? Does it give him the right to ruin Noctis's life just because Somnus was an asshole 2000 years earlier and Noctis just happens to be his descendant? Nope. Just saying because there are so many people in the comments saying that everything Ardyn did was totally okay because of his backstory.

The feels man...it's raining in my room all of a sudden...

Walk tall my friends

But hey, Ardyn did manage to get rid of the Starscourge in the end

So funny that i had the idea for this story like back in 2017, i even started writing about it, the draft is like 90% the same, and im so happy to see that they turned "my" fantasy into a prologue and his episode

Okay but Ardyn acted like a Hero King whereas Somnus was just a usurper. You can be told a king must sacrifice the few to save the many. That one should allow the strong to live while the weak are left to die. Somnus would say that, while sitting on a throne he took through spilling blood and waging war. Ardyn would say something differant, sitting atop a throne he never wanted taking every chance he could to talk to the people and help them. He sacrificed his body to save countless others. He let himself become a Daemon... and yet saved others from the scourge. He refused to take the easy way, to become a remorseless killer... but Somnus did. The gods chose the wrong brother! But perhaps its the Crystal that is the true enemy in XV

Before I comment, I just want to say that to everyone especially Tabata, who helped make this game: Thankyou for working so damn hard. However it turned out, whatever people think, it was extremely hard work for many involved and I want to at least write *somewhere* that such efforts are respected and appreciated. Anyway, I'm replaying FFXV to prep for the final DLC and while I have seen the finale, and tried the character DLCs like 2 years ago and didn't like them that much, as a package FFXV isn't THAT bad. It broke my heart to wait 10 years and it be so obviously unfinished and was super disapointing but in the end, with all said and done after what now,13 years, I'd say its a solid experience. A perfectly acceptable 7/10. Eventhough I'm a Final Fantasy fanboy, I can admit that FFXV is a little bloated, empty, clunky, rushed and leaves you feeling less than satisfied, but I'd still defend it as at least being worth playing and experiencing. I can only hope that many lessons were learned which get taken into FFXVI... if there will ever be one. I really hope they can go for quality and not quantity next time; substance, not scale and completness not a compilation.

now..... LET THE FIREWORKS BEGIN!!!!

Damn it's been two years.

And Star-scourge is still a mistery...

Monsters aren’t born, their made

So...Somnus planned a coup and killed Ardyn's fiancée. Why's he acting like he cares about his brother being cursed in FFXV again?