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The Final Fantasy 14 community gathers to pay tribute to the beloved heavenly voice actors
Final Fantasy 14 players gathered for a vigil to commemorate Stephen Crichlow, one of the game’s voice actors who passed away earlier this week at the age of 54. He is well-known for his roles in various Doctor Who and Torchwood audio dramas, and has voiced Bana in Xenoblade 2 and in the Battle for Azeroth expansion pack in World of Warcraft.
For the players of “Final Fantasy 14”, Creechlow is best known for his role as Edmont de Fortemps in the game’s first expansion pack “Paradise”. His role as a narrator tells the story through excerpts from memoirs. He is very good in this role, and the importance of his narrative and role is a huge factor for many people to make heaven so great.
In honor of Stephen Critchlow, the voice of Earl Edmont de Fortemps, the FFXIV community on Mateus (and other data centers/world) watched him. We will miss you, and you will always be in our hearts, Stephen Crichlow. #FFXIV #FF14 pic.twitter.com/CKl0nuYgijSeptember 21, 2021
Therefore, players gather outside Fortemps Manor from servers all over the world. Fortemps Manor is a regular destination in the main story of Heavensward, and Edmont de Fortemps can often be found to pay tribute to Critchlow.A lot of Reddit with Twitter Posts from players who participated in these night vigils appeared, showing the characters lined up outside the building. Many people have used the House Fortemps shield and changed the title of their character to “House Fortemps Knight”.
Things seemed a bit quiet on the EU server this morning, even though I suddenly showed up on Odin and found a small party. The players sit around the entrance of the manor, most of them in front of the bonfire. This seems to be an increasingly common way to pay tribute to an outstanding person who has passed away. Earlier this year, many people stood or sat at the campfire for the death of Berserk’s creator Kentaro Miura.
The community of Final Fantasy 14 is still one of the best places in the game. In small moments like this, players can unite to mourn, and it feels quite touching. Being there today, even in a relatively small gathering, I can feel how important this game and those who breathe life into it are. Without Critchlow and Count Fortemps, Heavensward would not be what it is now, and players would not forget this.