Time

In-game Widget showing Eorzea Time, and the current weather. The icon on the far left shows your incoming and outgoing data on mouse-over.

The measurement and expression of time in Eorzea, like the real world, is governed by a fundamental set of rules. The Dusty Tomes found in various guilds explain these standards in a book called The Five Ages - An Eorzean Chronology, albeit in heavily archaic language. In-game, time can be expressed in either a 24-hour clock format, or a 12-hour format with a.m./p.m. You can also change the clock to be Eorzea Time (ET), System Time (ST) of the server you're on, or Local Time (LT) showing your current real-life time. There is also an icon showing the current weather for the zone you're in, in the upper-right corner of the mini-map.

Eorzean Time Units and Conversions[edit]

Earth Equivalent Unit Eorzean Terminology Eorzean Time Equivalent Earth Time Equivalent
second second 1 second
minute minute 60 seconds 2 11/12 seconds
hour bell 60 minutes 2 minutes, 55 seconds
day sun 24 bells 70 minutes
week week 8 suns 9 hours, 20 minutes
month moon 4 weeks 37 hours, 20 minutes
year year 12 moons 18 days, 16 hours

Moon Phase[edit]

Moon none.png Moon 25 start.png Moon 50 start.png Moon 75 start.png Moon full.png Moon 75 end.png Moon 50 end.png Moon 25 end.png
New
Moon
Waxing
Crescent
Waxing
Half Moon
Waxing
Gibbous
Full
Moon
Waning
Gibbous
Waning
Half Moon
Waning
Crescent

Each month begins with a new moon, and each phase lasts 4 Eorzean days. Currently the moon phase of the moon shown in the Eorzea sky at night seems random and rarely matches the phase icon. The phases of the Moon has at least one known effect currently: certain phases are required for the spawning of certain S rank hunt mobs. Okina in the Ruby Sea, for example, can only be spawned during a Full Moon.

Lore[edit]

See also: The Five Ages - An Eorzean Chronology

Lightning Element Icon ARR.png
Wind Element Icon ARR.png
Fire Element Icon ARR.png
Water Element Icon ARR.png
Earth Element Icon ARR.png
Ice Element Icon ARR.png
Lightning Icon.png
Wind Icon.png
Fire Element Icon (1.X).png
Water Icon.png
Earth Icon.png
Ice Icon.png

The elemental wheel is the basis for all time measurement in Eorzea. Cycles of time generally begin with the polar umbral element (ice) and circulate clockwise around the wheel. In addition to the six elements, the two polarities that they represent (astral and umbral) are also used to divide time into increments.

The polarities have been a source of confusion in the lore; the months of the year are divided so that each of the six elements is represented by an astral and umbral month, totaling 12 months in a year. However, actions that were based in astral or umbral energy clearly identified three elements associated with each, with the three elements at the top of the wheel (wind, lightning, and fire) representing "the astral heavens above" and the three at the bottom (water, ice, and earth) representing "the umbral depths below." Not only do these two things seemingly contradict each other philosophically, but these actions have since been changed to identify astral and umbral energy as "neutral," so it is unknown if these associations even still exist or carry any influence. In the official lore book Encyclopaedia Eorzea (and in-game sources), the six elements have been defined as having different "states", called polarities. An element in its astral state is active and dynamic, whereas an element in its umbral state is passive and static. For example, astral fire would appear as burning flames, where umbral fire would induce dryness. The association between elements and polarities is due to the fact that astral elements (wind, lightning, fire) are most commonly found in an astral state, and vice versa.

A Sun[edit]

I II III IV
Ice Element Icon ARR.png
00:00 06:00 12:00 18:00
Water Element Icon ARR.png
01:00 07:00 13:00 19:00
Wind Element Icon ARR.png
02:00 08:00 14:00 20:00
Lightning Element Icon ARR.png
03:00 09:00 15:00 21:00
Fire Element Icon ARR.png
04:00 10:00 16:00 22:00
Earth Element Icon ARR.png
05:00 11:00 17:00 23:00

This is the term Eorzeans use to describe a day, being a "period which lasts for the duration of four cycles of the six elemental hours." It is stated that there are two astral cycles and two umbral cycles, and it is assumed that polarity association alternates (as the years do) from one cycle to the next. These hours are frequently referred to as "bells" by NPCs.

Even though each bell is associated with an element and polarity, each only lasts just short of three Earth minutes, so even if it did have some influence in-game, it would be very difficult to take advantage of it.

A Moon[edit]

This is the term Eorzeans use to describe a month, which "spans four cycles of eight Suns, and is thus the sum of thirty and two." Unlike real-world months, a moon's weeks are of equal length, representing the six elements and both polarities. The new moon phase fittingly falls on the first day of each moon. Throughout the month, the moon waxes to its peak, which occurs on the 17th, and wanes back down to the next new moon, which begins the next month. Again, it is unknown at this time if the daily element associations or moon phases have any impact at all, or if they are purely lore-based.

Ice Element Icon ARR.png
Water Element Icon ARR.png
Wind Element Icon ARR.png
Lightning Element Icon ARR.png
Fire Element Icon ARR.png
Earth Element Icon ARR.png
Banish.png
Scourge.png
1
Moon none.png
2 3 4 5
Moon 25 start.png
6 7 8
9
Moon 50 start.png
10 11 12 13
Moon 75 start.png
14 15 16
17
Moon full.png
18 19 20 21
Moon 75 end.png
22 23 24
25
Moon 50 end.png
26 27 28 29
Moon 25 end.png
30 31 32

A Year[edit]

A year, to Eorzean culture, "can be said to be the length of twelve Moons." Each of the six elements is associated with two successive months, the first being the astral month of that element, and the second the umbral. For instance, "the first and second Moons of the Year are the first astral and first Umbral and together they share affinity with Ice." This can get confusing, because a month with the name, "the third astral moon" is actually the fifth month of the overall year. This chart can be used for easy reference.

Month Element Name
01 Ice Element Icon ARR.png First Astral Moon (Halone)
02 Ice Element Icon ARR.png First Umbral Moon (Menphina)
03 Water Element Icon ARR.png Second Astral Moon (Thaliak)
04 Water Element Icon ARR.png Second Umbral Moon (Nymeia)
05 Wind Element Icon ARR.png Third Astral Moon (Llymlaen)
06 Wind Element Icon ARR.png Third Umbral Moon (Oschon)

Month Element Name
07 Lightning Element Icon ARR.png Fourth Astral Moon (Byregot)
08 Lightning Element Icon ARR.png Fourth Umbral Moon (Rhalgr)
09 Fire Element Icon ARR.png Fifth Astral Moon (Azeyma)
10 Fire Element Icon ARR.png Fifth Umbral Moon (Nald'thal)
11 Earth Element Icon ARR.png Sixth Astral Moon (Nophica)
12 Earth Element Icon ARR.png Sixth Umbral Moon (Althyk)

To articulate a singular date of any given year, begin with the numerical day expressed as one of the thirty-two suns in a moon, followed by the name of that month. For instance, the in-game widget's date of 10/17 would be expressed as "the seventeenth sun of the fifth umbral moon."

An Epoch[edit]

Eorzea does not express years in clusters of ten, as does the real-world with decades, but in clusters of twelve. Each year in a cluster is associated with one of The Twelve.

An Age[edit]