Sil'dih Survey Record

The Sil'dih Survey Record is a series of short lore excerpts about The Sil'dihn Subterrane, unlocked as the player clears different paths of the dungeon.

There are twelve entries in total to unlock.

Entries

Whom the Silkie Serves

“

What a surprise to learn that the old palace silkie was a creation of Mother's! The discovery impelled me to pursue the topic with Papashan, who, of anyone besides Father, knew my mother best of all. Naturally, I was circumspect in my inquiries, lest he become aware of my subterranean explorations.

With fond remembrance, Papashan spoke of Mother's penchant for cleaning--a habit she refused to surrender even after taking up residence in the royal chambers. Her ladies-in-waiting were positively scandalized, and hid away every brush and broom that the sultana's hands not be sullied by common grime. Denied the usual tools of sanitation, Mother retaliated by employing a Sharlayan tutor, whereby she acquired the arts necessary to manifest a massive, mouselike familiar. Ingrained with an obsessive dislike of dirt, this arcane entity would even corner the palace guards to scrub spots from their armor--to the great amusement of the household staff. Then one day, without fanfare, the sikie was simply gone.

I suspect the cause of its disappearance lay in the deepening conflict with the Monetarists; with less and less time to slip away from the palace, Mother likely set her familiar to protect and maintain the secret garden in her absence. Yet what a stubborn and willful soul she was! To create a servant for cleaning is one thing, but to imbue it with such unbridled power is quite another!

— Entry 1 of 12

A Spot in the Sunlight

“

He, a member of the royal family. She, the daughter of a modest merchant house. They met at a palace banquet--an opportunity to mix with the notables of commerce--and it was love at first sight. Ah, I adore that story-- 'tis so very romantic. Mother would go on to tell me of the secluded place her and Father would visit ere they were bound in marriage; of a sun-dappled garden at the end of a secret tunnel, where they could enjoy each other's company away from prying eyes and judgmental stares. In other words, a perfect description of the sanctuary we discovered on our recent foray.
When they did at last announce the details of their engagement, the location of this magical place where Father proposed to Mother became the subject of much rumor and debate. I am told that the city's merchants, being the same incorrigible creatures then as they are now, seized upon this furor to turn a tidy profit. They never did come close to the truth of it, but after visiting the spot myself, 'tis easy to see why it has remained undisturbed. I imagine the two of them in their younger years, whiling away an idle morning amidst the dawn-kissed petals, their haven protected beneath a barrier of Thanalan's scorching sand, and I cannot help but smile. Never until now have I managed to think of them without a pang of sadness. Have I been captive to grief for so very long...?

— Entry 3 of 12

A Key Memory

“

On my fifth nameday, my parents gifted me with a key wrought in silver--but not the knowledge of what it opened. "When you are a woman grown, we will take you to the precious place this key protects," Mother had explained. Father had nodded saying it was "where slumbers the memories which neither we, nor Ul'dah, should ever forget." I, a child of five, understood only that I was being forced to wait for my true present. Oh, how I had sulked and fumed back then! Yet now I cling to that fading recollection with desperate fingers, like a failed merchant to her dwindling coinpurse.
'Twas too soon after when Mother and Father were called away to Thal's eternal halls. Their sudden absence left me hollow and dazed; my ascension to the throne followed by torturous days of uncertainty steeped in sorrow. It seemed I stumbled across the desert, the sands burning one moment, freezing the next. All thought of keys and secret places were cast aside, forgotten. Why had they entrusted such a portentous gift to a daughter so young? Had they foreseen the "accident" which would befall them? Or had some other factor influenced their actions? Their true intentions are lost to time. There is only one thing I can know for certain: that the key was left in my hands for good reason.

— Entry 4 of 12

Ul'dah's Sin to Bear

“

When that Amalj'aa champion burst forth from his casket, the blood nigh froze within my veins. He must have suffered injury during the purge, the zombie corruption finding its way into his flesh...

The Trader's Spurn was concocted by Ul'dahn thaumaturges, and employed by the reigning sultan during our war with Sil'dih. Sasagan III even knowingly propagated the fiction that it was the Sil'dihns who devised this abhorrent alchemy in an effort to turn their own citizens into undying soldiers. An accusation from the House of Thorne saw Sasagan III later punished for his heinous acts, and thus ended the first Ul Dynasty. His Lies, however, would live on to become accepted history.

This deceit was upheld by a desire to preserve not only the Ul Dynasty's authority, but also the standing of the Order of Nald'thal-- an institution deeply entwined with thaumaturgical practices. And it can be said that few Ul'dahns would wish to accept that their home was built upon the corpse of a city so brutally slain by their forebears. Yet without a clear view of the past, we cannot be sure of our course for the future. The sight of that rotting Amalj'aa hero was all too stark a reminder: as a sultana of the House of Ul, I bear responsibility for my ancestor's atrocities. And though we suffer for the truth, even as Ishgard did for hers, the time has come to set the records aright.

— Entry 6 of 12

The Thorne Legacy

“

"Sil'dih aqueducts. Thorne. Vault." I noticed these words scribbled on the back of the burglar's not we found, but was too preoccupied to give them much thought at the time. Did the intruder believe that a secret cache of Thorne riches was to be found somewhere in the waterways? An odd notion, given that the House of thorne was well known for its honesty and integrity. After all, 'twas a sultan of their dynasty who willingly transferred power back to the House of Ul, and there was nary a peep to imply they had any wrongful withdrawals from the royal treasury. Assuming they had secreted wealth in some hidden location, it would have been done with the full cooperation of the Ul family--with the particulars passed down to successive sultans. Father would have known of the arrangement, and he did speak of slumbering memories which should not be forgotten. Was this one of those things my parents wished me to see when I came of age?
I have considered a hundred potential scenarios for what they might have meant, each more fanciful than the last. And although the Sil'dihn palace was indeed an eye-opening discovery, I sense that Father alluded to a matter of even deeper import...

— Entry 11 of 12

In Parchment We Trust

“

Deep beneath Ul'dah, beyond the twisting tunnels of the Sil'dihn aqueducts, we have discovered a vault in which slumbers a precious legacy. In its center, a catalog of evidence emblazoned with the words: "For coin, country, and comrades-in-arms, we bequeath this trust to the House of Ul."
This solemn declaration, signed by the last sultan of Thorne, was followed by several pages of florid signatures--a procession of Ul'dahn rulers which ends with the name of my own father. And wedged there, betwixt one page and the next, a faded missive penned in his distinctive hand.
Addressed with the hope that the reader be "our darling Nanamo," the letter describes the purpose of the vault. 'Tis a place known only to the royal heirs; a secure archive wherein evidence of Ul'dah's alliance with the Amalj'aa is preserved. And though tradition dictated that this trust be passed on by word of mouth, Father felt that, should worst come to worst, 'twas safer to have an explanation committed to parchment.
"Dearest Nanamo, we wonder what manner of woman you have become. We know the role of sultana will challenge you in myriad ways, but no matter how your rule unfolds, remember that you shall ever be our greatest achievement. Seize what happiness you may each day, for joy is worth more than all the gil in Ul'dah."
Mother. Father. Be assured that 'tis not sorrow which causes these tears to fall, but overwhelming pride. Now, in this moment, I am simply happy to be your daughter.

— Entry 12 of 12