Flame Clock

Flame Clocks are objects in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 mounted on Ferronises. Keves and Agnus fight each other to fill their respective Flame Clocks with the life of their enemy.
==Description==
Flame Clocks are large metallic discs affixed to the front-and-center of Ferronises. A ring of energy curls up from the bottom and encircles the disc, with a fuller Flame Clock circling farther around the disc than an emptier one. Kevesi Flame Clocks are blue and fill anticlockwise, while Agnian Flame Clocks are greenish-yellow and fill clockwise. Castles possess a Flame Clock with both a Kevesi side and an Agnian side, though the purpose of this is unclear.
Every person from Keves or Agnus is bound to the Flame Clock of their colony, which gradually depletes over time. If the Clock runs empty, all its people die, forcing them to constantly fight and kill others to replenish it. Killing animals and monsters is sufficient, but feeble; killing people from the enemy nation is preferred. As people can be transferred between colonies, it is presumably possible to "re-attach" someone from one Flame Clock to another.
If a Flame Clock is destroyed, the people bound to it are freed, and no longer need to take life to stay alive. This is however extraordinarily difficult - not even an Ouroboros or Moebius can damage a Flame Clock. Only the power of a legendary weapon, such as Lucky Seven, can do the job. People who are freed in this way are also freed from Moebius control. While it's possible to attach those who were freed to another Flame Clock, this is not enough to allow Moebius to control them. It appears only through being reborn can someone be put back under Moebius control. People who become Ouroboros are similarly freed.
It is shown that individual people can display a Flame Clock in their Iris to others, which appears to be capable of moving independently from their colony's Flame Clock (going from quarter-full to half-full in a single motion). The nature of the relationship between a person's Flame Clock and their Ferronis' Flame Clock is unclear.
Some colonies have unusual Flame Clocks, designed by Consul Y as part of his scientific experiments. While they fill in the appropriate direction for their nation, they are of different colors and may have different roles and properties.
==Story==
==Gameplay==
===Chapter 1===
For the majority of Chapter 1, the party is bound to 's Flame Clock. This is represented by a gauge that can go up to 1000 points, starting at 800. Killing enemies provides points, ranging from 0 to 30 depending on the enemy. Losing a fight removes 5 points. Every 25 seconds, points are added or removed based on the clock's currrent state.
* Most of the time, 1 point is lost.
* If the gauge reaches 950 or above, 4 points are lost until it is back below 800.
* If the gauge reaches 350 or below, 1 point is gained until it is back above 550.
As a result, if the player does nothing, the Flame Clock will fluctuate between 350 and 550 points.
If the Flame Clock is below 550 points, the Flame Clock Low, Attack Down is applied to all party members at all times during battle. However, if the Flame Clock runs out of points, nothing will happen.
Once the mysterious Moebius is defeated, the party is no longer bound by the Flame Clock system.
===Later chapters===
Destroying a Flame Clock will liberate a Colony from the control of the Consuls and the party will be able to visit them, but it will also raise the Warning Level of each nation.
==Trivia==
* The loading screen features a filled Flame Clock. Initially, it is filled with blue flame, but once the party becomes Ouroboros, it becomes filled with gold flame.
* The Nopwatch from the Archsage's Gauntlet plays on the nature of a Flame Clock, considering its similar name in Japanese (), which only differs by a few characters. Similarly to how a low Flame Clock weakens those tied to it, an empty Nopwatch reduces HP recovery and Arts recharge.
==In other languages==
==Gallery==
Colony Omega's Flame Clock.png|Colony Omega's unique Flame Clock
H's Colony's Flame Clock.png|H's Colony's unique Flame Clock
Flame Clock (gameplay).jpg|The Flame Clock in gameplay
Category:Lore (XC3)
it:Cronofiamma