Garlemald Garlemald , more commonly referred to as the Garlean Empire , is a major world power from " Final Fantasy XIV " . The empire is located to the northeast of Eorzea , and is one of the game ' s main antagonist groups , having sought to annex the realm as one of their territories for the last fifteen years . Its technology is said to be far ahead of the Eorzean city - states , specializing in magitek machinery and airships . Their magitek technology is empowered by a substance called Ceruleum , a special component that can be mined from below the earth or obtained by draining elemental Crystals ; it is said that the origin of Unaspected Crystals may be simply the removal of their Ceruleum . Story . Until around fifty years ago , Garlemald was a remote and sparsely populated nation occupying little more than a fraction of the northlands . However , with the arrival of a technological golden age and the emergence of a brilliant young legatus , now Emperor , within a single generation Garlemald established itself as one of the most formidable forces of Hydaelyn , and quickly started conquering other nations with its unmatched magitek artillery and air force . Fifteen years prior to the game ' s events , in the year 1557 of the Sixth Astral Era , the Garleans launched an attack on the city - states of Eorzea , using powerful machinery far more advanced than those of their enemies and massive airships to wreak havoc on the northern part of Aldenard . Quickly , the most powerful of these city - states , Ala Mhigo , fell before the might of the Empire and its Legatus Gaius Van Baelsar . Though the remaining states were forced to put aside their differences to battle against the new foe , Empire never attacked the southern nations of Eorzea , due to the emergence of a Primal shortly after the fall of Ala Mhigo and the destruction of the " Agrius " at Lake Silvertear in a skirmish with Midgardsormr and the Dravanian Horde . As quick as they came , they simply left . This results in the city - states of Eorzea , not wanting the purposeless warriors and armies to resort to criminal acts to survive , to establish multitude of guilds and services for the profession of " Adventurer " . Thus this began what became known as the " Age of Adventure " . Before the Calamity . For years , peace slowly returned to Eorzea until the events of " Final Fantasy XIV 1 . 0 " ; this started to change as the Garleans were slowly resuming their invasion . In Gridania , two adventurers known as Yda and Papalymo were found lost in the woods and welcomed into town . It seems that part of their objective in the city - states was to spy on them and discover if they are preparing to start a war against the Empire - though it is unknown if they were sent there by the Garleans or not . Not long after , giant machines were spotted in the forests surrounding Gridania while wiping out the Sylph camps in the process . Because of this , the Sylphs came to the Path of the Twelve seeking help as the " metal ones " are destroying their seedlings ; the Adventurer and company learns that the Empire is preparing a strong position to launch an attack against Gridania and the beast tribes residing in the Black Shroud . Later on , sending linkpearls in all the major city states of Aldenard and Vylbrand to state the promise of protection from the beast men and their eikons to those willing to surrender , Garlemald began to dispatch legions throughout Eorzea . Units have been engaged in combat within Thanalan , as well as the Black Shroud . The Legatus of the VIIth Legion , the notorious Nael Van Darnus , secured the Ishgard ian stronghold known as the Dzemael Darkhold for its vast crystal deposits located inside the caves for Ceruleum harvesting . An unnamed legion has also infiltrated and planted strange technology within the Thousand Maws of Toto - Rak , again for reasons unknown . Darnus conceived of a plan to eliminate the primals and beast - tribes of Eorzea with Project Meteor by calling down Dalamud , what his family knew to actually be an Allagan relic . This drew opposition from not only Eorzea ' s populace but even Gaius , who felt that Meteor was too extreme a solution . Wanting to conquer an intact Eorzea rather than its ashes , he secretly provided intel to adventurers about the Lunar Transmitter housed at Castrum Novum . Despite their efforts at sabotaging the transmitter and killing Darnus , Dalamud ' s descent continued undeterred . Seventh Umbral Era . During the Battle of Carteneau where the Eorzean forces clashed with the VIIth Legion , the Seventh Umbral comes to pass when Dalamud shatters upon entering Hydaelyn ' s atmosphere with the released Elder Primal Bahamut emerging and devastating Eorzea in what would be known as the Calamity , marking the beginning of the Seventh Umbral Era . Gaius and the remaining Imperial forces were forced to retreat while the rest were consumed in death and flame . Though Emperor Solus abandoned his goal to conquer Eorzea , Gaius would renew the campaign five years after the Calamity . The Garleans proceed to take residence in a few Imperial outposts that endured the Calamity as Gaius received aid from the Ascian Lahabrea to obtain the Allagan anti - Primal war machine Ultima Weapon . Once the weapon is refurbished by Nero Tol Scaeva with magitek , Gaius used it to absorb the Primals Ifrit , Titan , and Garuda with the purpose to inflict both deterrence and intimidation against both the beast tribes and city - states . In the face of Gaius ' s ultimatum , the city - states of Eorzea rallied together again to repel the Garlean invasion with a counterstrike called Operation Archon , the end goal being the destruction of the Ultima Weapon . This culminated in Gaius ' s final defeat and presumed death as his stronghold Praetorium was destroyed . Seventh Astral Era . Since the downfall of Gaius , the threat of Garlean invasion has largely been eliminated . Refugees from the eastern nation of Doma , a vassal of Garlemald , brought word of a civil war that has resulted from a succession crisis — implying the Emperor Solus may be no more . Doma had been destroyed as a result of a failed revolt during the turmoil . However , the Imperial presence within Eorzea has not completely disappeared . Nero Tol Scaeva survived the fall of the Praetorium , and is implied to have control over Baelsar ' s remaining invasion force as he investigated Crystal Tower , another Allagan relic that surfaced in the wake of the Calamity . It is eventually revealed that the war of succession had ended and the late emperor ' s grandson , Varis Zos Galvus , has been crowned Emperor of Garlemald . This has renewed apprehension that the Garlean Empire may once again attempt an invasion of Eorzea . Furthermore , it was revealed that the new emperor had planted a spy in Eorzea known as " the Ivy " back when the Grand Companies were re - instated to combat Project Meteor . The Warring Triad . During the events of " Heavensward " , Varis and Regula Van Hydrus traveled to the Sea of Clouds in pursuit of Archbishop Thordan VII , believing he had the key to reaching of Azys Lla . At that time , the Vundu tribe of Vanu Vanu had summoned a fearsome primal , Bismarck , which began devouring aether rich floating islands ( including the one with the key ) . Unable or unwilling to distinguish the Vundu from less hostile tribes , the VIth Legion invaded Ok ' Zundu and prepared to exterminate them as an extreme measure to deter primal summoning . At the village , Varis himself personally met the Warrior of Light and Alphinaud Leveilleur . The Garleans backed off due to the sudden intervention of Lucia goe Junius , especially now that Thordan had stolen the key with the aid of Ascians . After Cid managed to break through the barrier surrounding Azys Lla , the new super - dreadnaught , " Gration " suddenly ambushed them . A last - ditch assault by Ysayle , in the form of the primal Shiva , froze the ceruleum engines of the great dreadnaught , forcing it to remain moored at the Garlean outpost in the Gamma Quadrant , where the imperials set up an outpost . Regula van Hydrus sought to reach the Aetherochemical Research Facility , hoping to learn how the Allagans bound the ancient Warring Triad on behalf of the Emperor . These efforts were continually thwarted by the Scions , and Regula clashed with the Warrior of Light on three separate occasions , each time forced to withdraw . Motives . While not much has been directly explained about the Garleans ' true intentions , a few hints are scattered around the main storyline . Most importantly , it ' s clear that those touched by the Echo and the Beastmen tribes ( as well as their Primals ) are the " enemies " of the Empire , whose citizens and soldiers believe to be fighting for the greater good of their nation . Gaius Van Baelsar even expressed a belief that Eorzea must be " saved " . During the final stretch of Version 1 . 0 missions and Legatus Van Baelsar ' s appearance , it ' s heavily hinted that the Ascians are also targeted , and the soldiers believe they must prevent a Catastrophic Event from happening . During several missions , different characters also proclaim that the Empire is ' not the true enemy ' , which possibly means that while they are clearly antagonistic when it comes to their chosen methods , the Garleans may actually be wanting to prevent a terrible event . Yet in spite of these implications , the Empire would inadvertently cause such a catastrophe thanks to Nael Van Darnus ' Project Meteor : the moon Dalamud descended from the heavens and released the captive Bahamut within , devastating the land . Even then , not all Garlean leaders had agreed with using Project Meteor to purge Eorzea , preferring conquest rather than scorched earth . Many of these had covertly aided the Eorzean Alliance against Van Darnus , with the intent of having an intact Eorzea to conquer . In " Heavensward " , Varis states he shares the Scions ' goal of eliminating the threat of primals . He acknowledges , however , that their means are very different from how the Warrior of Light eliminates them . Military . The Garlean military is said to be one of the most powerful in all of Hydaelyn , due to the Empire ' s technological progress . The army is divided into fourteen large - scale units known as legions , and each legion is comprised of ten infantry battalions known as cohors . These cohors are further broken down into three companies , or manipuli . Finally , a manipulus consists of two platoons , or centuriae . Individual soldiers tend to be defined by their role , such as hoplomachi ( sword - and - shield fighters ) or eques ( spearmen ) . At the end of the Sixth Astral Era , two Garlean legions were present in Eorzea as part of the invasion force : the VIIth , led by Legatus Nael Van Darnus is stationed in the Dzemael Darkhold , and the XIVth , led by Legatus Gaius Van Baelsar is stationed in Silvertear Falls and responsible for holding Ala Mhigo . Following the Calamity , several strongholds were established by the XIVth Imperial Legion , chiefly near sites of Dalamud ' s debris and other strategic points in the realm . A third legion , the VIth , led by Legatus Regula van Hydrus , established an outpost on Azys Lla , intent on understanding how ancient Allag contained primals . While it is currently unknown how they recruit soldiers from inside the Empire , a good portion of the lower eschelon imperial troops are citizens from conquered areas such as Ala Mhigo ; after the fall of the city state , many of its children were brainwashed into hating the Primals and Beastmen , and became loyal servants of the Empire . Statements by the development team have confirmed that these conscripts are recruited with the promise of citizenship in Garlemald . One advantage to this is that some of these recruits can utilize magical arts , something native Garleans are unable to do . Examples of this include shinobi from the nation of Doma , once Master Gekkai the Blind became an imperial spymaster . In order to curb rebellion , the military never stations its conscripted recruits in their home provinces , sending them to other annexed territories instead . There ' s also heavy use of magitek weaponry , out of which the Imperial Juggernaut is the most prominent , being used for both ground support and air battles due to its mobility and the powerful magitek cannon . The air forces are also often backed up by massive dreadnoughts . Yet despite their technological might , the Garleans did not hesitate to augment their military further by studying the ancient Allagans and recovering their relics , whose technology had exceeded even their own . Naming conventions . Garlean characters that have appeared have a distinct naming convention quite different from those in Eorzea . They consist of a given name , a middle name denoting rank , and a surname taken from their family . The ranks observed so far : The majority of citizens bear the " ban " title and those who appear to be well respected artisans have adopted the title " cen " . " aan " is a title bestowed on the people of annexed territories and they lack even the basic rights of the citizens . People of annexed territories can gain citizenship for a display of exceptional skill or 20 or more years of military service . Musical themes . Garlean appearances thorough the storyline are often accompanied by a ominous theme , more notably played during the invasion of the Black Shroud and the Futures Perfect mission . It also plays when Gaius attacks the player and battles the members of the Circle of Knowing . This theme reprises in " A Realm Reborn " and " Heavensward " , appearing in cutscenes whenever a major Imperial character is on - screen , such as Gaius or Nero . Enemies . In version 1 . 0 , Garlean troops could not be found outside of special events ; they can only be fought during the main quest , inside the Dzemael Darkhold or the Aurum Vale , as part of some sidequests or may spawn at random at several camps ; Helping fend off those Garlean invasions grants some missable achievements , deaspected crystals , faded pages and several types of potions . In " A Realm Reborn " , members of the XIVth Legion could be encountered near the Garlean outposts throughout Eorzea . Defeating them occassionally awarded certain crafting materials not obtained from anywhere else . In " Heavensward " , members of the VIth Legion can be encountered in areas of Abalanthia ' s Spine .