Thanks to N00tN00t84 for the inspiration!

After 2 decades of playing Final Fantasy games I finally got round to playing XIII.

“You have obtained a tuft of Phoenix Down”

It’s not common knowledge, but everyone comes to find out that a

Phoenix Down (フェニックスの尾, Fenikkusu no o?, lit. Phoenix Tail), sometimes known as Fenix Down or Life, is a recurring common item in the Final Fantasy series. The “Down” refers to the down feathers of a bird, the undercoat of feathers beneath the visible layer on top. The down feathers of a Phoenix would return people from the dead as a Phoenix itself does.

But wait.

A turf? What does that mean?

Most people don’t know what Phoenix Downs are. I didn’t. I thought they were just “super potions”. I figured they had something to do with resurrection, knowing about the mythological Phoneix:

In Greek mythology, a Phoenix or phenix (Greek: φοῖνιξ phoinix; Latin: Phoenix, phœnix, fenix) is a long-lived bird that is cyclically regenerated or reborn. Associated with the sun, a phoenix obtains new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor. According to some sources, the phoenix dies in a show of flames and combustion, although there are other sources that claim that the legendary bird dies and simply decomposes before being born again. According to some texts, the Phoenix could live over 1,400 years before rebirth.

But the item you get to revive your characters is the “downs” of the Phoenix. “The “Down” refers to the down feathers of a bird, the undercoat of feathers beneath the visible layer on top. The down feathers of a Phoenix would return people from the dead as a Phoenix itself does.“

So then, you would think that it would be a plumage:

Plumage (Latin: plūma “feather”) refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, color, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colors of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, there can be different color morphs. The placement of feathers on a bird is not haphazard, but rather emerge in organized, overlapping rows and groups, and these feather tracts are known by standardized names.

So then, why is a group of feathers a “turf”?

Turf is what you think it would be “grass, sod, lawn, peat, etc.”. Nothing to do with feathers or even birds. Would a bunch of feathers on top of each other make a mound, like a turf?

If Phoenix Downs are “turfs”, then are they truly even feathers?

I don’t know the reasoning behind this one, and if someone has an idea, please let me know!