If you’ve ever tried to do anything involving natural light in a Final Fantasy XIV house or room, then you’ve probably learned that the standard windows just don’t cut it. If you want to have light in your home, then you’re going to have to build some windows!
So today, let’s go over what to consider when you’re building windows for your home—and how to create some of the most popular looks.
What to consider when building windows in FFXIV
Direction
Here’s a fun fact that not many aspiring builders know: In FFXIV, the sun only shines rays through windows from certain directions. They’ll always glow, yes, but you’ll only get those pretty rays if your windows are facing in from the south, west, or east of your house.
If you’re happy with windows just glowing, then you won’t need to worry about this—but if you want your room to look sunny, then you’ll need to keep in mind which directions you’re building to make sure you get those rays.
Snapping
Because windows are wall-mounted items, they’re more than happy to snap to any available surface—which can, unfortunately, sometimes ruin your beautiful design.
When you’re building with any of the windows in FFXIV, keep in mind that you’ll need to either make sure there’s enough space between them and any surface to make sure they don’t snap, or provide an alternative to keep them in place. I particularly like hiding wood slat partitions and wooden beams for this!
View
Before you start building, it’s important to think about whether you want an actual view with your windows, or whether you’re happy with them bringing in the sun.
This will be the difference between whether you use default windows, or whether you try to create something more complicated using phasmascapes—or even creating your own open window design.
Techniques for building windows in FFXIV
The framing technique
You’ll rarely see designers in FFXIV leave windows plain; more often than not, they’ll frame their windows so they look more cohesive to the overall build.
This is quite a flexible technique, and really just means that you’re covering portions of the window to make it fit in—so you can use whatever you’d like to fit your design! My personal favourites are using either white rectangular partitions or wood slat partitions for trim, a hingan cupboard for a nice base, and even covering up the window with some wooden blinds.
The phasmascape technique
Phasmascapes are relatively new furnishings, but did they ever make it easy to make a window with a view! Though they do provide less light than a window, they give you a moving view that’s hard to beat. Plus, if you have the space, you can always float a window just behind your phasmascape so it still gives you sun rays during the day.
To make them look more natural to your build, make sure you cover up any features that give away that it’s a phasmascape. You can also adjust the view itself with greenery, partitions, or other furnishings—for example, in the image above, I covered an Azim Steppe phasmascape with an unmelting ice partition to create a sea view.
The open window technique
This is the most complicated of window designs, but is well worth the work for the look. Open windows were the window-with-a-view before phasmascapes, and usually involve quite a few furnishings, so make sure you have the slots for them!
Typically, these windows will involve a lot of greenery—including verdant partitions, oldrose planters, and more—as well as hidden windows to let sun rays shine in. Some designers will even use grade 4 aquariums, set to saltwater, to create the glass of the window! I’ve also seen shower stands used to create a rain effect.
Ultimately, though, you can do whatever you’d like with these windows, so get creative!
