Submitted by raprot on Sun, 01/02/2005 - 02:04.

Weddings are joyous events that join two people together by exchanging vows of their undying love. Of course in real life there is a lot more to the event that goes on behind the scenes. Final Fantasy XI has developed ceremonies very similar to real life ones, but hold no real consequences or changes due to them. They're primarily beautiful ceremonies run by GMs for you to share with your friends to show them that you love another character/personage within the game.



There are no stipulations that you must be married in real life to be able to get married within the game. There is a rule that 'only' male characters can marry female characters, though. This could cause problems for people who play characters different from their own sex or the single-sexed species characters (Galka & Mithra).

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Applying:

Wedding applications are found within PlayOnline before you enter the game. Click on Games and Final Fantasy XI as normal. Then underneath Play is Compendium. When you click on this you will see the choice of Wedding Ceremonies. Here you will find the application as well as all of the information I will post below. Feel free to read it there, given some things may change over time.



A chaperone must submit the application. This means that neither the bride or groom can actually submit for their wedding. It must be done by a third party. Applications are handled on a lottery basis and SE does not promise that all desired dates, times and places will be available. Both the bride and groom must have one job leveled to 20 or above. The bride and groom must also be of different genders.

Attendance:

Anywhere from three to thirty-six people, including the bride, groom, and chaperon, can attend the ceremony. Oddly enough it's stated that no monsters or NPCs can participate in the ceremony. Heh, I always considered King Behemoth to be a close, personal friend. I guess I'll have to let him down easy. At the end of the celebration, crackers/fireworks are given to wedding guests to mark the occasion.

Pricing:

Pricing includes facility rental fees, administrative fees, and the cost of celebratory goods given to guests. Ceremony size determines service fees:

• Small ceremony (3 to 10 people) - 20k gil
• Medium ceremony (11 to 18 people) - 30k gil
• Large ceremony (19 to 36 people) - 80k gil
• Jeuno (20 people) - 80k gil

Times:

Ceremonies can occur Wednesday through Sunday at:

2:00pm, 5:00pm, and 7:00pm (PST)

The bride, groom, and chaperone must arrive one hour before the ceremony to confirm arrangements.

Locations:

Windurst -

Windurstian ceremonies are presided over by a Sibyl Celebrant in the Star Sibyl's place. Generally considered the most cheerful of ceremonies, the procession follows Tarutaru traditions and the bride and groom must each prepare an offering of food beforehand. Weddings can be held at four different places (with guest restrictions):

• The second floor balcony of the Orastery in Port (10 guests)
• The deck platform behind the Rhinostery in Waters (18 guests)
• The Acolyte Hostel found next to the school in Waters (36 guests)
• A secluded cliff location in Sarutabaruta (36 guests)

San d'Oria -

San d'Orian ceremonies are presided over by a Temple Knight and vows are sworn before goddess Altana. The bride and groom must bring their weapons to the ceremony for their vows. Weddings can be held at three different locations (with guest restrictions):

• Count Caffaule's manor that is found on the western end of Southern San d'Oria (10 guests)
• Inner courtyard of Chateau d'Oraguille (18 guests w/ rank minimum of 3, or rank 2 by San d'Orians)
• Outside of Count Caffaule's manor in the courtyard (36 guests)

Bastok -

Bastokan ceremonies are presided over by the registrars from the Department of Industry in an informal and relaxed ceremony. The bride, groom, and chaperone join in a toast with drinks provided by the president. Weddings can be held within the three different locations (with guest restrictions):

• Altar of Altana found in the basement of the Matalworks (10 guests)
• Corner wharf location in Port Bastok (36 guests)
• Within the Morhen Lighthouse on the SE cliff in S. Gustaburg (36 guests)

Jeuno -

Jeuno weddings are not explained as to occur ceremony conditions. I'm assuming you may get to choose between the three traditions explained above. Ceremonies are held within the Temple of the Goddess. To my understanding, there is no way to visit this site without participating in a wedding there.



Other -

If you desire to have a wedding anywhere else in Vana'Diel you can submit the requests in your initial application. Stipulations do apply that these areas cannot be in crowded areas (AH or city entrance), dangerous areas (mob lairs), or places that would inconvenience other players in the game. When the wedding begins, though, all uninvited guests disappear from vision for the procedings.

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Wedding Dress:

The Wedding Dress Set costs 50k, is purchased by the bride before the ceremony, and includes:

• Head: Bridal Corsage
• Body: Wedding Dress
• Legs: Wedding Hose
• Feet: Wedding Boots

Wedding Rings:

Rings are given to the bride and groom when they show for the wedding. Wedding rings are considered rare/ex and cannot be sold or traded. The rings are specially engraved beforehand. There are two type of engraving available:



Marriage Spouse's Name - The bride's ring will have the groom's name on it and visa versa.



Couple's Initials - The first initial of the bride and groom will be used in the form BtoG and GtoB.



Engraving choices are made in the initial wedding application.

Engagement Corsage/Weapon:

There are no engagement rings in the game (unless you chose to make a certain ring special) so most people have found items that can go along with the ceremony. Some men purchase Lilac Corsages or their HQ/exceptional counterpart, the Gala Corsage. These are generally considered part of the Opaline/Ceremonial sets but for obvious reasons go equally as well with the Wedding set. Other men, especially those who have chosen a San d'Orian wedding, will usually purchase a staff or other type of weapon. Nothing in particular is specified, but you'll probably want to get something expensive and rare that they'll be able to use later.

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Misunderstandings:

There are multiple stories about marriage ceremonies in the game that are incorrect but continue to prevail. Here are the few that I ran into along the way.



Castor's and Pollux's Rings -

Many people have considered these rings to be wedding rings. The truth is that you can only obtain wedding rings by having a ceremony. These rings are named after two mythological brothers born to different fathers. Hence those you know better have decided that these rings are given as friendship rings that have the ability to be engraved in.


If you're interested, these rings are obtained by doing a quest in San d'Oria called 'Fit For A Prince'. You are asked by Halver in Chateau d'Oraguille to find a wife for Prince Trion. He gives you the race and hair style of the female you need to find. Once you find a female character meeting the requirements, join with her in a party and talk to Halver again. When done, you will receive Castor's ring and the female character will obtain Pollux's ring.


To remove the EX from the rings simply use a Wind crystal on it. There is no synthing requirement, it will always work.
To engrave (sign) the rings you must use a Cyclone Crystal. Cyclone Crystals can be obtained from any guild (except fishing) after you have passed the third guild test.



Opaline & Ceremonial Sets -

Many people also believe that the Opaline and Ceremonial clothing sets are really the wedding clothing. This is not true. Both sets are really clothes that look very similar to the Wedding clothing but can be synthed, sold, and traded. Neither have any great qualities for fighting in and they can only be worn by women. Nonetheless they generally sell at the AH for a lot of money. If you're interested, here are the synthing specs for them:


Opaline Set (Clothcraft 70-95) -

• Opaline Dress
• Opaline Hose
• Opaline Boots
• Lilac Corsage (Clothcraft 49)

HQ - Exceptional

• Ceremonial Dress
• Ceremonial Hose
• Ceremonial Boots
• Gala Corsage (Clothcraft 49)

Wedding Humour:

I hope this guide has helped you in planning your own wedding. I play a Mithra so I don't forsee ever getting married within the game (since I'm not female). May your marriage be a loving one, but in case things don't go well, you can reflect on this player's interpretation:



Wife: "Did you just check her?!"

Husband: "Huh?"

Wife: "That mithra, you just examined her!"

Husband: "Yeah, she's a 75 RDM, I wanted to see what kind of equipment she had."

Wife: "You think shes prettier than me?"

Husband: "I just wanted to see what kind of equipment I would need at 75."

Wife: "Do you wish you had married a mithra?"

(Wife runs off to mog house crying and locks the door.)

(Husband goes fishing.)